Stihl MS290- upgrade to bigger chain?

[Ozark Woodburner]

I've got a 1 year old stihl MS290 that came with a 16" bar and .325 saftey chain. I was gonna get another 16" bar and a more agressive chain. I'm happy with the chain size, but the dealer is pushing me to upgrade the sprocket and bar and chain to the bigger chain. It cuts mostly 6"-14" wood and I will have to drop some smaller trees under 20" diameter occasionally. I've ran other 290's, all with the bigger chain, but it has been awhile, I can't remember how they cut as compared to mine.

Do I need to upgrade to the bigger chain?

 

[smokinj]

Tell him to kiss your @ss stay with the .325 16 in. and all I want is some non safety chain Please! if its working pretty good now there is no need for 3/8 and then you would have a back up chain...a lot will say go with the 3/8 but I think you will get more profamce out of the .325

 

[webie]

This is just my personnel feeling here , For felling I like the 3/8 chain much better as it doesnt pinch as much but for bucking I wouldnt change off of the .325, I think its actually faster cutting , because of the narrower cut it uses a bit less HP . I would follow Jays I dea and go to a Non safety chain either a full chisel if you are cutting mostly clean wood or a semi chisel (round Tooth ) if you have dirty wood fence lines , city wood , wood that grows along roads , this chain will cut a bit slower but stay sharper longer .

 

[smokinj]

This is just my personnel feeling here , For felling I like the 3/8 chain much better as it doesnt pinch as much but for bucking I wouldnt change off of the .325, I think its actually faster cutting , because of the narrower cut it uses a bit less HP . I would follow Jays I dea and go to a Non safety chain either a full chisel if you are cutting mostly clean wood or a semi chisel (round Tooth ) if you have dirty wood fence lines , city wood , wood that grows along roads , this chain will cut a bit slower but stay sharper longer .

+1

 

[JustWood]

What J sez unless you're a pro at sharpening then try the 3/8.

 

[Ozark Woodburner]

Got it!

 

[thinkxingu]

Stick with what ya got, unless you want to replace what you already have. Of course, if you're gonna do that, you should probably just sell the 290 and step up to a 'real' saw! But seriously, <20", for all intents and purposes, won't really matter on chain size.

S

 

[Ozark Woodburner]

Oh, I don't need a "real saw". This one will do all I need it too.

Besides, I'm not one that needs a "Pro" saw to make me feel like a man, :lol:

 

[thinkxingu]

That line was more tongue-in-cheek, since I'm getting beat up on another thread for appreciating lightweight saws!

S

 

[Ozark Woodburner]

Oh, I know, I'm just playing! Its hard to get me upset over saws. There's more important things in life. Good luck!

 

[Mainely Saws]

I also would stay with the .325 pitch & make sure you get a semi chisel chain at least & throw away the anti kickback chain .....

 

[southbound]

I run 3/8 on all my saws except the 290..It does real well with .325 and a 20" bar.. I do recommend a muffler mod..It will make a new saw out of it and the 290 is easy to do....

Mainely Saws

What part of Topsham you in??????? My mom grew up on Green st...

 

[Mainely Saws]

I know right were Green street is next to the river . I'm not far from there but on the other side of Maine street , near the walking bridge ...They call it Topsham Heights .

 

[southbound]

We used to sit on the back steps and watch the blue angles fly over head...

I remember the fair grounds as a kid too...


Sorry for the hijack......

 

[EatenByLimestone]

I love my 16" chain on my 290. I haven't needed to yet, but if I ever find it too short I'll pick up a 20" bar (in .325) and then switch back to the 16" after I'm done.

Matt

 

[firefighterjake]

My own opinion . . . stick with the chain size you have . . . and simply go with a decent chain of semi- or full-chisel.

When you get your next saw -- either as a back-up saw or to replace the one you have now you may want to consider one with a different size chain . . . but for now why go through the time and expense of swapping things around for what may be a small gain in perforrmance.

 

[Ozark Woodburner]

The thing is I am happy with it and the way it cuts. I can cut my supply of wood fairly quickly with it I feel, but the dealer kept pushing and pushing me on upgrading the chain size. This is not the dealer I actually bought it from, maybe they just really wanted a sale.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

I think that's a good part of it, but there are people who feel if it's not 3/8 you shouldn't even bother starting it.

You have a good saw that you're happy with .

Be happy.

Matt

 

[southbound]

My inlaws think that if it an't got a 20" bar it is a POS....

They don't care if it can pull it or not........