What is the best battery operated chain saw

John_Mc · Jan 27, 2019

ernemats said:
The limbs I was cutting were from 2 " to probably 6 " in diameter, the 359 runs fine and has a new chain on it, they are not equal as far as cutting fast but the Ryobi cut a lot better than I expected it to

Mostly too small to bring out the differences in a significant way. Try some 10"+ hardwood.

I'm not knocking the Ryobi. It's fine for it's intended use. It's just not in the same ballpark as the 359 if you are cutting wood that will actually put a bit of a load on the 359.

ernemats · Jan 27, 2019

I got the Ryobi for smaller trees , it is easier to start ,pull trigger not a cord. My age is a big factor on buying a battery saw (age 75). I will still use the 359 a lot for larger trees over 8 ".

dfkrug · Jan 27, 2019

John_Mc said:
That kind of makes me wonder if you are having problems with your 359. That's a solid saw (and 60cc). It should run rings around that Ryobi, unless you were just cutting small limbs.

I agree with that. The 80V Greenworks saw seems almost as fast/strong as my 37cc gas saw.

aczlan · Jan 27, 2019

dfkrug said:
I agree with that. The 80V Greenworks saw seems almost as fast/strong as my 37cc gas saw.

We have the 80v Kobalt powerhead (comes with a weedeater), I picked up a Ryobi quick change polesaw for $7 at a yardsale and it fits perfectly on there. Last year, I took off everything smaller than 4" from a 60' Maple on one charge (just cut into human manageable pieces to put them onto a burn pile).
I was very impressed with how it worked.

Aaron Z

dragoneggs · Jan 27, 2019

Not battery operated, but my electric cheapo HF pole-saw got busy this afternoon. For $59 or whatever I paid, it has sure earned its keep.

AchingBack · Jan 28, 2019

dragoneggs said:
Not battery operated, but my electric cheapo HF pole-saw got busy this afternoon. For $59 or whatever I paid, it has sure earned its keep.

View attachment 589019

Poor tree.

dragoneggs · Jan 28, 2019

AchingBack said:
Poor tree.

I know, I know... I hesitated on posting the pic. In all fairness, my wife wants it down, and I like it. Did similar whack job pruning about 4 or 5 years ago with the intent to take it all the way down in a few weeks. I of course didn't get to finishing it off but it looked great by summertime. No doubt it will do the same.

I need to keep it tamed as it is going too big for the bulkhead (far side) and shades too much of my wife's garden. I'm also worried about future damage to the driveway. If I let it go and it blows over, I got major problems! Damage to bulkhead, driveway, and corner of the house just out of the picture to the right.

If I don't finish it off this time and I remember this thread in the summer, I will post a before/after pic!

ernemats · Mar 5, 2019

I have used my Ryobi battery saw 40 volt some more now and I am still impressed with how it cuts trees and limbs under 6inches, have even used it to cut a 10 inch cherry log , it was not real fast but it did it. The biggest problem is how long the battery lasts about 15 minutes steady cutting 4 to 8 inch limbs.

ultrarunner · Mar 6, 2019

I think those that sell these saws have little knowledge...

The information comes from users out in the field.

Doing Fresh Cuts on Christmas Trees requires a short burst... but we have run the saws all day on a 450 tree sales day... two battery Stihl Saws...

One caution is the replacement chain loop is expensive... same one used for the pole saws and costs over $40...

John_Mc · Mar 7, 2019

ultrarunner said:
I think those that sell these saws have little knowledge...

The information comes from users out in the field.

Doing Fresh Cuts on Christmas Trees requires a short burst... but we have run the saws all day on a 450 tree sales day... two battery Stihl Saws...

One caution is the replacement chain loop is expensive... same one used for the pole saws and costs over $40...

Not sure where you are getting your chains, but over $40 is a complete rip-off. I can get replacement chain for the Milwaukee M18 Fuel chainsaw a whole lot cheaper than that. The saw comes with a 16" bar, 0.043" gauge, 3/8" Low-profile chain with 56 drive links. Baileys (who is not the cheapest place around to buy chains) sells a few options:

WoodlandPRO 34LP56 for $13
Oregon 90PX056G for $17
Stihl 61PMM356 for $22

I'm not a big fan of the Woodland Pro, but the other two manufacturers make good chains.