Jonsered Chainsaws

[Snakebit12]

Hello everyone,

I would appreciate some opinions.

I "may" have destroyed my 15-year old Husky 351 today. The muffler bolts came loose while in use and the exhaust melted the housing something awful - a quick google search showed that I am not the only one to experience this. I can only blame a cold for not smelling the burning plastic. Waiting on the repair estimate but am cognizant of throwing too much money into a 15-year old chainsaw.

I stopped by a local dealer who is closing out on Jonesred equipment. As I understand it, Jonesred no longer makes chainsaws? I also was under the impression that their saws are basically red Huskys so parts availability should not be an issue.

I was interested in the CS 2152/18" (Husky 545 MSRP $500) and a CS 2260/20" (Husky 362XP MSRP $750). He quoted me cash prices of $423 for the 2152 and $672 for the 2260...10-15% lower than Husky. They would come with the standard 2-year warranty which can be doubled by purchasing 3 cans of pre-mixed gas per chainsaw. The local dealer would service the units.

He also quoted me $1,071 cash for both as I may need to replace the Husky 351 (with the 2152) and would also like a bigger saw (the 2260) for some of the bigger jobs that I sometimes face.

It makes me a little nervous that Jonesred is not making these units any more but the prices (albeit cash) are much better than the comparable Husky MSRPs. Around here, Husky MSRP = Husky sales price. Seeing the same thing on the internet.

I am guessing that these units have been sitting on his shelf for over a year? Thinking that he should throw in the premix fuel (and therefore the 4-yr warranty) for free.

I would greatly anybody's thoughts on this.

John (aka Snakebit12)

 

[firefighterjake]

I suspect you'll find that a lot of the Jonsered parts are the same as the Husky parts once you look inside . . .

 

[dougand3]

Maybe you have a Husky 350? The engine sits in a plastic chassis that the loose muffler can melt. Most probably, repair shop cost will exceed saw worth.

 

[duramaxman05]

Sounds like a good deal to me. That 2260 is a screamer. I have ran one. New jonsered pro saws are getting harder to come by as redmax bought the out. They offer the gz7000 I think which is a 2172. I came across my new jonsered 2172 new for $600. Hard deal to pass up. Only thing with the 2260 is which carb it has on it and keep an eye on the intake boot. They tend to crack and make it run lean

 

[Snakebit12]

Maybe you have a Husky 350? The engine sits in a plastic chassis that the loose muffler can melt. Most probably, repair shop cost will exceed saw worth.

Pretty sure it's a 351 but you described exactly what happened. I unfortunately am expecting the verdict that you suggested.

 

[Snakebit12]

The 351 was pronounced DOA at the shop as expected.

The Jonsered deal collapsed when I asked for serial numbers...the 2152 and 2260 were manufactured in 2012 and 2013, respectively. A 15% discount is way too small for chainsaws that will go from "new" to "6 years old" the second I pull the starter cord.

My local Husky dealer is having a 10% off sale in April...I'll bide my time until then.

 

[sprawlnstall]

I had a Jonsered 2165 turbo (65 cc) heck of a saw but always ran hot, eventually the piston scored. Any reason your not considering a Stihl lots of dealers and parts around.

 

[salecker]

Any reason you don't want to fix your saw yourself?
Parts would be cheep,not a lot of mechanical knowledge required to change the tank.

 

[Snakebit12]

"Any reason you don't want to fix your saw yourself? Parts would be cheep,not a lot of mechanical knowledge required to change the tank."

Having little to lose at this point, I am watching a tear-down/re-assembly video as I type.

 

[paulnlee]

Don't know how they are now but many years ago my Homelite 360 died. Sent the wife to the local dealer and she came back with Jonsered. Started cutting and threw it in the truck, took it back and brought home another 360. Absolutely no comparison. Only Stihl now

 

[Snakebit12]

As it turns out, dougand3 was right...it is a 350, not a 351. I am at a loss to explain why I keep confusing the two numbers (senility?).

The one piece housing runs around $60. The threads in the cylinder for both muffler bolts have been stripped...new bolts simply slide in (and out). A mechanic offered to re-tap the holes for $50 but cautioned that it could weaken the cylinder wall. From watching the video on teardown/rebuild, while this may be something I can do, it is not something I want to do. I figured I'd be in $150 or so for the repair when all said and done to repair a 14 year-old saw.

The shop offered me a new 450 (effectively the same chainsaw as the 350) for $300...I took it. It cut like a champ today after I brought it home. I'll keep the old powerhead for parts.

Thank you to all who responded.