I'm in the market for a new chainsaw. 24 inch bar.

[GManBart]

I bought a Stihl 029 back in 1994 with a 20" bar. The saw has been unreal as far as reliability, with only general maintenance items to fix. It's getting tired, and so I'm in the market for a new saw. I have many big oaks that I'd like to cut, but just pass on them now because of the 20" bar, and lack of power. I looked at a Stihl 391 today, and it looks good. Price was about $590. The Stihl 362 was a couple hundred more, but apparently is a huge step up.

I'm looking for a saw with a 24/25 inch bar. What are you guys using, and you're happy with.

Mike

I'd probably have the 029 rebuilt and put a 16 or 18" bar on it for general use, and as a backup. For a 24-25" bar I'd look to go bigger than the 362. I have an MS311 which is the mid-range 59cc model with 4.2hp (compared to the MS362 at 4.6hp) and I have a 20" bar on it...I wouldn't go any bigger than that, and it is probably a little light on power for that size bar. No way I'd consider a 24/25" bar on a 362 unless you're cutting really soft stuff.

I also have an MS460 (76cc and 6hp) with a 28" bar and that's about as big as I'd go on it. In many cases I think it would be better with a 25" bar, and that's what I wanted when I bought it (they were out of 25" bars, but had a 28" and gave me a discount). Still, it handles the 28" bar pretty well, and I really like the saw. The day I bought the 460 I was actually planning on ordering a 440 with a 25" bar and the dealer talked me out of it. There's essentially no weight difference between the two, and you get more power with the 460. To top it off, he made me a deal on the 460 and sold it for the same price as I would have paid if he ordered a 440. Granted, he cut me a deal (I've bought a lot of stuff from him) but I think his argument made a lot of sense.

The funny thing is I have a 30cc saw, 59cc saw and a 76cc saw and the 30cc gets used probably five times as much as the other two combined. I bought the 30cc saw thinking I'd just use it for limbing and maybe storm cleanup, so I bought a cheap homeowner saw. Now I find that if I can avoid using the bigger, heavier saws, I stick to the small saw, and wish I'd bought the professional grade small saw since I expect it'll continue to get used more than the others over the years. One of these days I'll get around to replacing it with a professional grade saw.

 

[wampum]

I operated my own chain saw shop for many years and sold different brands.I use to run Remington back in the day.Then went to Huskys after Remington went belly up.I now run nothing but Dolmars and love them I have a 5100 and a 7900.But seriously the greatest factor in any product is maintenance if you do not repair them your self.Stihl,husky,echo,Dolmar and so on are all great saws.If you had good luck with Stihl and have a good dealer that supports you you most likely should stay with Stihl. If you are not happy with your dealer check out the local tree service guys and see what they run and where they get them serviced.Their saws support their livelihood.

 

[Scut 4 Big Bucks]

Well, the new saw is in my hands, fellas.

I crossed Stihl off my list pretty quickly. I loved my old one, but the pricing on the new ones was just too much. I figured I could get a better value by going with a saw company that didn't advertise as much as Stihl does.

I narrowed it down to Echo and Dolmar. I was interested in the Echo 800, and the Dolmar 7910. The Echo was $800, and the Dolmar was $900, both with 24" bars. I stewed about this for a while, and bought neither. I didn't need that much saw, and I really didn't want to spend that much money.

So, I bought a Dolmar. I paid $550 with a 20" bar, and ordered a 24" inch bar and chain also. I wasn't going to buy a saw without testing it out. This guy had wood laying behind the shop for this purpose. I buried the bar in a big old log, and the saw never skipped a beat. I was sold. Got home and headed straight to the woods to look a big oak right in the eyeballs. Sawing wood is fun again. Now, just for the halibut, which model did I get?

 

[LD1]

Well, the new saw is in my hands, fellas.

I crossed Stihl off my list pretty quickly. I loved my old one, but the pricing on the new ones was just too much. I figured I could get a better value by going with a saw company that didn't advertise as much as Stihl does.

I narrowed it down to Echo and Dolmar. I was interested in the Echo 800, and the Dolmar 7910. The Echo was $800, and the Dolmar was $900, both with 24" bars. I stewed about this for a while, and bought neither. I didn't need that much saw, and I really didn't want to spend that much money.

So, I bought a Dolmar. I paid $550 with a 20" bar, and ordered a 24" inch bar and chain also. I wasn't going to buy a saw without testing it out. This guy had wood laying behind the shop for this purpose. I buried the bar in a big old log, and the saw never skipped a beat. I was sold. Got home and headed straight to the woods to look a big oak right in the eyeballs. Sawing wood is fun again. Now, just for the halibut, which model did I get?

New or used?

 

[Scut 4 Big Bucks]

Brand new.

 

[LD1]

If new, I would guess a 6400. $550 is a pretty good price for one of those. My best price on them about 4-5 years ago was $490 OTD.

Anything less than a 6400 and I dont think you would be ordering a 24" bar for it.

If used.......could have probably gotten the big 7900 for that price.

 

[Scut 4 Big Bucks]

Winner winner chicken dinner!

A 6400 is what I got.

 

[PSEbowhunter]

Winner winner chicken dinner!

A 6400 is what I got.

Run about 10 tanks through it and get it broke in and it'll really come to life for you. And the great thing is about the 6400 is if you decide in time you want more hp you just get the bigger piston and cylinder for it. Congrats on the new saw

 

[LD1]

Congrats. Great saw.

And totally understand if you leave it as is, those are pretty well tuned saws and don't pick up much from things like muffler mod. But if you decide later in life to put the big top end on and do a little port work....opening up the muffler and HD filter help alot

 

[wampum]

The 6400 is physically the same as the 7900. If you want down the road you can buy a big bore kit and bring the CC,s up to a 7900.Here is a kit for under $100. DLA Engine Parts - Cylinder Kit fit DOLMAR PS6400, PS 6400 USA, PS7300 Deco (52mm) [Big-Bore]