echo chain saws?

Maybe it's me but every time I see a good quality name product show up in the big box stores its down hill from there. TS, HD, Lowes. Husqvarna and Echo make great saws which are sold at these locations, well see in a few years when quantity is more important then quality.

I debated over what new saw to buy for a long long time by posting here and over at the arborist and came to the conclusion that the most important thing is being able to find replacement parts/knowledgeable service people. Echo might not have the reputation of Stihl, Jonsered, Dolmar, etc...but it's got a five year warranty and there are three dealers within an hour and a half of me-one less than 20 minutes away. I have a CS-400 that I bought on sale at Home Cheapo for $250.00 At the time I simply needed a saw, had a gift card for $50, and wasn't about to drop anymore than $300. I'm a scrounger so I use my saws (I got my McCulloch for free) either for cutting up trees that have been left on the ground, or for trimming down oddly cut pieces once I get them home. The CS-400 has an 18" bar but I think I may switch it out for a 16" since I have the McCulloch for handling bigger stuff. If I were doing real forestry work, etc...I'd go with something different, but for what I do (and I would imagine for most woodburners) the CS-400 does just fine.