battery powered chainsaw

[argus66]

looking to get a chainsaw i saw a small battery powered black and decker chainsaw at cabellas the other day for $79 looked ok im looking for a small saw i can keep in the back of my truck to cut wood i find or see on the side of road, im not looking for any major saw just something small and easy to carry around, any suggestions?

 

[swestall]

Get a small gas powered saw. Electrics and Battery powered saws are certain to leave you short. I had the smallest Stihl, but it was useless. You really have to get a smaller but reliable unit.

 

[moondoggy]

i cant imagine that being too powerful or having great longevity. resistance wears down batteries quickly no??
although these days i suppose anything is possible... i saw a circular saw batt powered.
but going through a tree/log there is a lot more resistance then a 2x4. maybe for limbs, but trunks i dont know...

just found,,,,here is a review that states..

"It's the perfect solution for small to medium cutting and trimming tasks that simply don't merit dragging out the big chainsaw."


(broken link removed)

think this is a black and decker site.


still a cool toy to have, and I wouldnt mind having it, but if your going to store it in the car, i'd be concerned how long battery stored holds a charge.

 

[Henz]

yeah, by a small chainsaw. If you really dont want to spend alot, go and get a poulan wild thing or something like that. 16" bar, nothing fancy. I bet you could get away with $250

 

[johnsopi]

battery chain saw seems to me a waste of money better off buying 80$ of wood. Or a good hand saw.

 

[RedRanger]

Don`t buy it Will give you an example. I own a cordless leaf-blower. When I first got it, it would run for 30 minutes,now 3 years later I get 7 minutes max. imho a chain saw is going to work even harder. And buying a new battery pack is damn near as expensive as buying a new tool. Like others have advised,"get a small gas one"...

 

[argus66]

yeah the battery thing is a pain, and a even bigger pain to keep replacing ill stick to gas.

 

[lumberchukk]

"battery chain saw seems to me a waste of money better off buying 80$ of wood. Or a good hand saw."

I agree, I'd go with a good pruning saw. I have one that flies (relatively) through wood. Plus you never have to
worry about batteries, moving parts wearing out, etc...

 

[mayhem]

For $80 you can get a nice lightweight 14" Craftsman or other low cost brand gas saw. You're not going to use it as your primary saw and it'll pretty much run forever.

I paid $120 for my 18" Craftsman and its never missed a beat. Its definitely a cheap saw, no doubt about it...but it starts every time, costs nothing to own and has served me reliably for 7 years now. Check in their open box area...lots of poeple go there to get a free equipment rental. They buy a power tool, use it to clean up their yard and wipe it off when they're done. Bring it back and return it for a full refund. Sears checks it over lightly, starts it and puts it on the clearance rack for 1/2 price. Picked up a nice 22" Hinda lawnmower for $130 last spring that way...it was a little dirty underneath, but right next to it was a brand new one for $350. Full warranty, choice was made.

 

[computeruser]

Echo CS 306 or 346 would be good, lite saws that would tolerate being in a truck much of the time. They are more tolerant of neglect than any saw I've ever owned. With good chain (i.e. not low-kickback safety chain) and a bit of muffler work, you'll be surprised with what they can do. $150-180 on ebay, new in box.

 

[Gooserider]

Harbor Freight fairly regularly has cheapo homeowner grade "factory reconditioned" chainsaws for short bucks - under $150, typically a ~36cc motor, over-barred with a 16" bar. Putting better (non-safety) chain on it and opening up the muffler will help, but better yet, drop the bar down to about 12" and you will have a decent saw for limbing and light work. Don't waste money on a battery saw.

Gooserider

 

[argus66]

i was gonna get a harbor freight but saw my neighbor down the street this morning and he has a craftsman with 16 inch bar used just a handful of times. got it for $35. now im ready to get some wood for next yr. plus we had real bad wind here last night saw 4 huge trees down just on my st. and recyling center in parents down leaves all the cut down town trees there free for the taking just need to be cut. so next winter ill be ready......

 

[Molson]

how can you tell if its a "safety chain"?

 

[Gooserider]

how can you tell if its a "safety chain"?

Mostly by looking at the packaging... Typically it will have "Anti-Kickback" written all over it, and be labeled as "home-owner" or "consumer" grade chain, as opposed to "professional"... Pretty much all chain these days has some anti-kickback features, but the most obvious on "safety chain" is the presence of "bumper links" or raised straight links on the chain in between the cutters - these are supposed to keep the chain from biting to deeply on small wood, but also keep it from cutting as well as it could... The difference is that the chain designers focus first on reducing kickback with the "safety chain", and give cutting performance secondary consideration. On Pro-chain, the priority is on cutting performance, with anti-kickback features added only to the extent that they don't interefere with cutting ability.

I would also expect that if you get a non-pro saw, it will probably come with safety chain on it...

My own experience is that either type will kick back some, especially if you aren't running the saw properly, or have a dull chain. Pro-chain is worse, but not greatly so, I've never had a kickback with either that was bad enough to trip the chainbrake...

If you haven't used a chainsaw before, there might be advantages in running the safety chain for a while until you get the hang of the saw, but I wouldn't in any way count on "safety chain" to keep you from injuring yourself - get and use the proper PPE!

Gooserider

 

[Molson]

Thanks Goose. I've used many different saws over the years, and never considered weather the chain was safety or not, figured it was just design. Makes sense now that I think about it.

 

[Jags]

I also believe that on Stihl chains, they will have a link (chain link) that is colored. Green is safety (anti-kickback), and then there is orange..thats the good stuff, but there are also many varieties in both categories.

see link for examples
http://www.stihlusa.com/chainsaws/types.html