Buying Advice Need Second Stihl Commercial Chainsaw, Larger Than MS261

[Will_C]

I have a 260 and a 461. They are a great pair of saws for me. The difference in power is very noticeable. My dealer had had the 461 on sale off and on for the past 2 years for $849 with a 20" bar-that's what I paid for mine.

Although a 362 is a great saw, I just don't think it is a large enough jump up form a 260/261.

Will

 

[jeff9366]

Have you thought about modding your 261? Not as a replacement to a new saw, but in general, and it would give you more power to hold you over until the 462 is released.
FWIW, I think that 462 is going to be one REALLY nice saw.

I think I need a 24" to 26" bar to safely cut through the large Oaks. Even working from both sides, I could not get through the Oak I was working on yesterday, approximately half way from the roots, with the MS 261 equipped with an 18" bar. See photos in Post #1.

I need to purchase now. By June it will be too hot for me to safely use a manly-man saw at age 70. I need to section the big Oaks while it is cool and i can bear wearing Kevlar chaps.

I forecast MS 261 75% usage, MS 461 25% usage during 2018.

I think I would prefer to buy the new MS 462 during its fourth year of US sales. I abhor down time.
(Quite a number of negative reviews on the early electronically modulated MS 441 'C-M' saws on Stihl's web site.)

 

[4570Man]

You guys all need to switch to dolmars and quit fooling around

In seriousness though....I agree. 441/461 or whatever version of those two is what you want.

Your 260 is like my 115i dolmar.
A 441/461 is similar to a dolmar 7900

Yes there is quite a noticeable difference in speed of cut and power.

I think we can agree Stihls aren’t the best. Unless I’m missing something the price difference in a 372XP and a comparable dolmar is about what dinner at McDonald’s cost. And the 372 has the superior power to weight ratio. If there’s a saw that’ll match or beat the price and power to weight of a 372xp I’m all ears.

 

[Deere Dude]

I have a 55cc older chainsaw with a 20" bar and .325 chain. When the chain is just sharpened it may take a minute to go through a certain sized log.
I bought a 60 CC new pro saw with a 20" bar but with a 3/8" chain, able to run a 24" bar. It seems like there shouldn't be much difference but the new saw will chew through the same log in 15 seconds. It may seem it is just a little more time involved, but every second on a cut like that, makes it more unbearable to hang on to, especially if it is an all day cutting.

I was looking at the Stihl 362 with Mtronic carb. The older lifelong Stihl dealer in a forestry area kind of steered me away from them because of the electronic stuff. He said if a man has one and it works good, then great. But if a guy has one and has trouble with it, the troubles seem to never end. He said just because it is the latest, doesn't necessarily mean it is the best for me.

He would have gladly ordered anything I wanted but he confided in me that old style carbs were more reliable and can generally be fixed by tweaking the carb. up or down by anyone. I am assuming the MS 462 would be in the same boat. I was not to concerned about down time but didn't want something a dealer has a rough time fixing after the warranty period is done.

That was a year ago so I listened to him and skipped his 362 and ended up with a competitors model. I don't regret my decision, yet, FWIW.

Check out Arborist.com forum. Anything you want to know about saws, they seem to know.

 

[/pine]

Seems to me you could save some money and just rent a bigger saw a few times and just get the bigger trees cut...
Maybe I'm missing something but from the descriptions provided I just can see buying a new commercial grade saw for a limited amount of work...?

 

[Piston]

Seems to me you could save some money and just rent a bigger saw a few times and just get the bigger trees cut...
Maybe I'm missing something but from the descriptions provided I just can see buying a new commercial grade saw for a limited amount of work...?

STOP! STOP! STOP! This is not the forum for that type of thinking!


Jeff, it sounds like you made your decision. And, it sounds like a great one. Enjoy that new saw!

 

[4570Man]

Seems to me you could save some money and just rent a bigger saw a few times and just get the bigger trees cut...
Maybe I'm missing something but from the descriptions provided I just can see buying a new commercial grade saw for a limited amount of work...?

Nobody is going to rent a saw for a limited amount of work either. Buy a saw or suffer through using your current one. My 50cc saw rarely leaves the garage since I got my bigger saw. I don’t know where you’d rent a chainsaw even if you wanted to.

 

[xring100]

I've always had stihl saws. Currently as ms361 and ms660 both great saws. I agree with others the 362 is not a big enough step. My buddies husky 372xp runs good i would definetly consider it over the 441 which is just as heavy as the 461.

 

[motownbrowne]

I think I need a 24" to 26" bar to safely cut through the large Oaks. Even working from both sides, I could not get through the Oak I was working on yesterday, approximately half way from the roots, with the MS 261 equipped with an 18" bar. See photos in Post #1.

I need to purchase now. By June it will be too hot for me to safely use a manly-man saw at age 70. I need to section the big Oaks while it is cool and i can bear wearing Kevlar chaps.

I forecast MS 261 75% usage, MS 461 25% usage during 2018.

I think I would prefer to buy the new MS 462 during its fourth year of US sales. I abhor down time.
(Quite a number of negative reviews on the early electronically modulated MS 441 'C-M' saws on Stihl's web site.)

Good thinking Jeff. I think you're on the right track. M-tronic is a bit unnerving (autotune on Huskys too), but it does have the benefit of possibly protecting a saw from an operator who doesn't recognize when a saw is tuned too lean. Is your 261 m-tronic, or can you adjust the carb yourself? If you are new to tuning 2-strokes, learn what 4-stroking is, and what it sounds like. I believe the 461 has an RPM-limited coil, so it's important to tune it in the wood. If this doesn't sound like something you've done before, and you have any interest in learning more, there's some great videos I'd be happy to point you to.

Also, regarding bars, I have spent a lot of time with a 460 and a few different bar lengths. I will say that I stopped using the 25" altogether and started using a 28" most of the time. For me the benefit is that I can actually reach the ground with the 28", so there was a lot less stooping. I also use a 20" a lot on that size saw. For bucking oak, I think you'll find that to be a really nice setup. So, if I were you, I'd buy the 461 new from the dealer with a 20" bar and then I'd order a 28" Tsumara Light and Tough bar online. There are several makers of lightweight bars nowadays (including Stihl), and they really are nice. Tsumara makes some of the best, though they cost a few bucks more than the competitors. For a longer bar, it really is worth the money. Yeah, having two bars is gonna cost a little more than the 25" regular bar, but it'll be a much nicer setup. I'd take a 461 with a 28" lightweight bar over a 25" regular bar every chance I got.

 

[goeduck]

I have a MS261 and an MS441 mostly because both are anti vibe. Vibration more than weight gets to me. I do not know if the MS462 is anti vibe or if that makes a difference to you.