'Professional' grade saws vs. 'Homeowner' saws

[Bob_Young]

From my "looking", Pro saws usually have higher grade internals. Up graded bearings, advanced cylinder porting/liners. Magnesium cases instead of alu etc.
I'm not sure about ignition components nor carburation. Seems like those would be pretty standard as far as price vs quality.

I'm looking hard at the 60cc Makita saw. (prograde) A lot of saw for $650.

Would be hard to learn about upgraded bearings and advanced liners/porting from the sales hype. The magnesium cases OTOH would be something they'd mention that would mean a lot. Seems like it could be an indicator of a well made saw.

 

[CalG]

Just a note:

My last saw purchase was the Husky 50cc xp "pro" . I selected this over the "rancher" or whatever, just for the features of the pro saw.
Of course, I can't for the life of me recall what those differences are. I do know I paid a bit more for the xp. It does serve me well, but a bit more HP would be handy when the full 18" is burried in a rock maple log.

Would be hard to learn about upgraded bearings and advanced liners/porting from the sales hype. The magnesium cases OTOH would be something they'd mention. Seems like it could be an indicator of a well made saw.

As I recall, I did have to dig deep. And today? who knows what they tell.
At the time, each saw had a brochure hanging from a chain as they were displayed .

 

[RandyT]

Somewhat blurred now but with Stihl the model number was a clue to the homeowner vs pro saw. The homeowner saws had an odd model number 017/ms170 021/023/025/027/031/039 and their MS equivalents And the pro saws had even model numbers 018/024/026/028/034/036 etc and their MS equivalents 180/240/260/280/181/241/261 etc

 

[xyz123]

One easy tell on a pro grade style chainsaw is the metal crankcase that splits in half for rebuilds and bolt on cylinder.

Most times the plastic cased stuff with clamshell design are not your pro grade stuff.
But there has been a few exceptions to this over the years is small saws that were pro grade.

 

[oosik]

I have two chainsaws. Both are Stihl. Large one with a 20" bar - small one with a 14" bar. Surprising - as I get older I tend to use the smaller one - more and more. Just last month I had to use the large one to fell a couple "bug infested" pines. Both were 24" on the butt. Once on the ground - I immediately switched to the smaller saw.

 

[5030]

From my "looking", Pro saws usually have higher grade internals. Up graded bearings, advanced cylinder porting/liners. Magnesium cases instead of alu etc.
I'm not sure about ignition components nor carburation. Seems like those would be pretty standard as far as price vs quality.

I'm looking hard at the 60cc Makita saw. (prograde) A lot of saw for $650.

Be careful with a Makita chainsaw and note where they are made at. They can be Chinese or Japanese depending. The Echo Timber Bear is about 150 clams less btw and is a very popular 'pro grade' saw. I have one and it's easy to improve on the power output with some simple mods, plus Echo offers a 5 year non arborist use warranty.

 

[dodge man]

I also own a MS250 and MS 261. I burned up the 250 so I bought the 261. I rebuilt the 250 for about $100 and I remember taking both out, I was cutting pretty good sized oak into rounds for firewood. I used the 250 first and it was running good and cutting well. I thought I’m such a fool for spending money on the 261, the 250 is just as good as the 261. Then I picked up the 261 and thought “oh yeah, this is what a saw should be”. For what is about the same weight the 261 makes 4hp vs 3hp for the 250.

Lighter weight and more power is what shows up in the pro saws. I agree with what others said about upgraded components. One I notice between the two is the air filters. The 250 is kind of chintzy and the 261 much larger and better. Bigger fuel and oil tank, bar nuts that don’t fall off when loosened (captive), less plastic and a bunch of little things that add up.

 

[kenmbz]

I have an Echo 620P (p=professional).
Has magnesium for most stuff (including sprocket cover) my other Echos have aluminum or plastic.
No cat muffler.
Decompression valve for (much) easier starts.
Clutch driven oiler
Dual bumper spikes (very useful)
Upgraded coil
dual ring piston

 

[Bob_Young]

Somewhat blurred now but with Stihl the model number was a clue to the homeowner vs pro saw. The homeowner saws had an odd model number 017/ms170 021/023/025/027/031/039 and their MS equivalents And the pro saws had even model numbers 018/024/026/028/034/036 etc and their MS equivalents 180/240/260/280/181/241/261 etc

Something like that would make it easy. Wonder why they blurred the scheme? Husqvarna had something similar going for a while. Think both my Huskies are 300 something, but they're big saws.

 

[Bob_Young]

One easy tell on a pro grade style chainsaw is the metal crankcase that splits in half for rebuilds and bolt on cylinder.

Most times the plastic cased stuff with clamshell design are not your pro grade stuff.
But there has been a few exceptions to this over the years is small saws that were pro grade.

The rebuildable aspect is one I overlooked and possibly the best one. Trouble is you'd have to know the saw before you went to buy one. Sales people normally aren't that knowledgeable. Still a split metal crankcase should stand out.