Choosing a good starter chainsaw

[Entburner]

OK, so I'm going to get the safety gear at the same time I get the chainsaw. That's #1.

What is a good starter chainsaw? I expect to use it to buck about 3 cord/year. I live in the PacNW so lots of fir, and lots of blown down trees. We have a Sears outlet/refurb center nearby, where stuff is usually 30-50% off. How is the craftsman brand? I'm sure a Stihl would be the best but I'm on a budget.

I have used chainsaws before to clear brush, fell small trees, and I have bucked 6" logs or so in the past, so I'm not a complete noob. But I haven't worked extensively with one.

Any advice?

 

[Danno77]

i have mixed feelings on the subject, and you are about to get a lot of different people offering advice on the subject.

1. you can get a craftsman, but later on you are going to want a better saw. I see this as an ok thing, though. You are on a budget now, and everyone here has an opinion on which features and saws are best. Nothing wrong with getting used to using a saw so that you know what works best for YOU. So, craftsman, poulan, cheapo, etc they might not be a bad idea.

2. You can look on CL and maybe find a gem of a used Stihl for around 150-200 bucks. I'd lean this direction, but remember that you don't have a warranty on a used saw. Doesn't mean this isn't the route you should take. My saw was used when I got it (I didn't buy it, though, I inherited it) I wouldn't have done it any other way. When I go to buy my next saw I know exactly what I'm looking for in a saw (read #1)

3. There is definitely the sound advice that my FIL always gives me, that you should "Buy nice and buy once." If you can drop the extra cash for a Dolmar, Echo, Stihl, Husky, etc. then you probably won't regret having a good reliable saw that holds it's value, comes with good customer support and warranties. My only problem is that I generally need a tool NOW and don't have the luxury of buying NICE. On a similar note, I have purchased a lot of tools that were low end, and they hold up just fine, OR I've bought really nice tools that I decided were a waste of money because hobbies/life/preferences/technology all changes.

hope this helps a little.

 

[brages]

1) What's your budget?

2) What is the typical diameter of the wood you will be cutting?

 

[Entburner]

I should stay under under $200, especially if I'm going to get chaps. I can just imagine my wife's surprise when she gets a helmet for Christmas! (Oh, honey, you don't need that? Well, maybe I can use it.)

I'll probably be cutting whatever I can find.

What are the good brands? Anything to be sure to avoid?

 

[smokinj]

I should stay under under $200, especially if I'm going to get chaps. I can just imagine my wife's surprise when she gets a helmet for Christmas! (Oh, honey, you don't need that? Well, maybe I can use it.)

I'll probably be cutting whatever I can find.

What are the good brands? Anything to be sure to avoid?

If your not felling tree's save the money on the helmet and put more into the saw. (chaps and a pair of boots cheap pair of safety glasses) I dont wear a helmet unless there a tree over my head about to come down!

 

[thinkxingu]

Under $200, you're better off looking for a used Stihl, Husky, etc. in good shape. Anything you buy new will most likely be underpowered and overbarred.

S

 

[muncybob]

If you are in no hurry I say save your spare change each day and buy like Danno's FIL suggested. I currently am in the market for a saw but I have the luxury of using a friends Jonsey anytime I want(it's in my garage) so I am saving my spare change! I used to have a lesser quality saw and it was OK for taking down an occassional small tree but for cutting on a semi regular basis I would go for as much quality as you can afford. I asked a similar question about used saws over at the arborist site and there was a very good response...I'll see if I can find it.
My wife got me a helmet for my birthday last year and I actually like using it...no chance of losing safety glasses( I have a habit of taking them off and forgetting where I laid them) and it has eye/ear and head protection all in one package. I wear it even if just bucking up a log but latley I have been felling trees and it gives me a bit more peace of mind I guess.The only time I'm not crazy about using it is when the air is warm.

 

[CSAW]

Don't know about where you are, but around here I see a lot of "used once or twice" Poulans on CL in the $40-$50 range, offer less. My son bought a Poulan Woodshark at a yard sale for $30. The thing is practically new and screams. Throw it away when done.

 

[smokinj]

Don't know about where you are, but around here I see a lot of "used once or twice" Poulan on CL in the $40-$50 range, offer less. My son bought a Poulan Woodshark at a yard sale for $30. The thing is practically new and screams. Throw it away when done.

Its ok if you like to run slow and working on maintaining the saw through out the day. If you need to get done or producing more than a few cords a year your going to be very frustrated!

 

[Joey]

I picked up a Stihl MS 180C early last year for $199, new. I think they are around $229 new now. I also do only about 5 cords a year. I think it is a fantastic starter saw. Remember, with a new saw you will get a warranty, depending on which brand. Stihl has a 1 year warranty. My local dealer was fantastic to deal with. If your not cutting down huge trees, I think the smaller Stihl is a fantastic saw for the money. Of course,,,we always want something bigger, guess it just human nature.

 

[basswidow]

The ECHO 370 or 400 can be picked up at HD fairly reasonable. I'm on my third season and have cut atleast 14 full cords of wood with it, NO issues at all. It's paid for itself.

But has been mentioned, I do want a bigger better saw. It's an addiction.

Oh yeah,

ear and eye protection for me, but I don't wear a helmet or chaps. I only cut what's on the ground. I've dropped 2 leaners and maybe 2 trees and thats it. I haven't needed the helmet. Save some money there if you are not dropping trees.

 

[brages]

Refurb. Husqvarna 445 off of Ebay for $200 shipped:

http://cgi.ebay.com/Husqvarna-445-C...702802311?pt=US_Chainsaws&hash=item3362e98187

 

[EatenByLimestone]

I'm not going to discount what has been said above about buying a good saw once and being done with it. My main saw is a 290 Stihl and I couldn't be happier with it.

I started off with an underpowered 18" Craftsman 42cc chainsaw. I still have it and it still runs good after many cords. It is the easiest saw I have to start. Press the primer a few times, adjust the choke and it will start right up. The main problem with this saw is the long bar is a strain on the engine. As long as the chain is sharp, it will cut with that bar. When the chain is dull, it will frustrate you.

I was clearing pasture with the Stihl and letting somebody else run the Craftsman the weekend before last and it worked for that job also. The pasture was all white ash, pin oak and hop-hornbeam.

As said above, the saw isn't a high powered saw. But it will get the job done, you can buy new chains and bars at Walmart at 10pm (Yes, I have.), and is a heck of a lot better than no saw or a saw that doesn't work for one reason or another. The Craftsman has never failed to start for me.

Matt

 

[Beowulf]

I just sold my Husqvarna 455 Rancher, couple of year old, for $200. It was a good "starter saw." It was a little heavy and a little underpowered, but I cut quite a bit of wood with it, maybe the largest stuff was a 36" red oak. It was not the fastest saw on the planet and should have had an 18" bar instead of a 20, but was very reliable.

Cheapest one I see new on E-Bay is $288 with free shipping. http://cgi.ebay.com/HUSQVARNA-455-R...697857842?pt=US_Chainsaws&hash=item33629e0f32

I like working on saws, as long as it is not while I'm in the woods, so I will occaisionally buy a used saw to fix up. Right now, if I had your desired budget in mind and not a lot of desire to work on saws, I would look for an older "good" saw from someone that I knew took care of their stuff. Stihl, Husqvarna, Echo, Dolmar/Makita, etc.

 

[gerry100]

had to chime in about bar length vs power.

My long experince is that the biggest power booster is a correctly sharpened chain.

I use a stihl026 with a 16" bar to cut down whatever my woods offers me, and that's up to about 24' dia.

Sometimes I wish for an 18" bar and a new chain but don't feel I need more power.

 

[CTburning]

A 42cc 18" craftsman saw is no doubt a Poulan saw. A couple of Christmas's ago I bought one at home depot on a Black Friday sale for $100. I really liked the saw thought I got the deal of the century. It's the same saw as the Wild Thing and a half dozen other names and models. I am strong but have bad hands from years of manual labor and probably have carpel tunnel (spelling?). That saw would kill my hands and wrists after a very short time. The next day I would wake up and couldn't move my hands. I bought a Jonsored which is just a dressed up Husky 455 Rancher and that saw is smooth. Ironically Poulon and several other companies are all owned by the same parent company.

If you have never owned a chainsaw then maybe it is a good idea to use something cheap and smaller and get comfortable with it. That way if you break it you are only out a small amount of cash. The thing is you will outgrow a cheap saw quickly so the cheapest route is to buy it once. I was able to sell my Poulan for $75 bucks with two new good chains so in reality I got about half my money back for it. This time of year you might get lucky on CL because of the holidays and someone willing to let go of a good saw for a good price.

 

[Adios Pantalones]

You'll be cutting about all softwoods. You can probably get by with less saw.

 

[brages]

You'll be cutting about all softwoods. You can probably get by with less saw.

The wood may be softer but the trees are bigger!

 

[Bigg_Redd]

OK, so I'm going to get the safety gear at the same time I get the chainsaw. That's #1.

What is a good starter chainsaw? I expect to use it to buck about 3 cord/year. I live in the PacNW so lots of fir, and lots of blown down trees. We have a Sears outlet/refurb center nearby, where stuff is usually 30-50% off. How is the craftsman brand? I'm sure a Stihl would be the best but I'm on a budget.

I have used chainsaws before to clear brush, fell small trees, and I have bucked 6" logs or so in the past, so I'm not a complete noob. But I haven't worked extensively with one.

Any advice?

There's no such thing. Just get a good saw.

I've cut 8-12 cord per year for 8 years with my MS 290. They're about $400.00 around here. If you think $400.00 is a lot to spend take a look at your power/propane/natural gas bill. I bet it's close to $200 per month.

Just sayin'

 

[Stump_Branch]

OK, so I'm going to get the safety gear at the same time I get the chainsaw. That's #1.

What is a good starter chainsaw? I expect to use it to buck about 3 cord/year. I live in the PacNW so lots of fir, and lots of blown down trees. We have a Sears outlet/refurb center nearby, where stuff is usually 30-50% off. How is the craftsman brand? I'm sure a Stihl would be the best but I'm on a budget.

I have used chainsaws before to clear brush, fell small trees, and I have bucked 6" logs or so in the past, so I'm not a complete noob. But I haven't worked extensively with one.

Any advice?

There's no such thing. Just get a good saw.

I've cut 8-12 cord per year for 8 years with my MS 290. They're about $400.00 around here. If you think $400.00 is a lot to spend take a look at your power/propane/natural gas bill. I bet it's close to $200 per month.

Just sayin'

agree. I just bought my first saw. Used other peoples for a while, everything from Stihl to poulan to a true, all metal cased, Craftsmen (before homelight) that was older then me. I got one piece of advice from everyone, "buy a Stihl, and never have to get another saw." (what they leave out is another BRAND of saw) guess what I bought, and I can pretty much bet that I am on a tighter budget then most. Its worth it. If you plan on doing this for more then a year or two, think youll tire of it and give up, buy a cheapy. if not....even a used one is worth it in my opinon, just dont buy sight unseen.

 

[Kenster]

I bought a 36cc Craftsman, 16 inch bar, when we first moved out to the country almost five years ago. I had never operated a chain saw so had nothing to compare it to. It did fine for cutting down and bucking some 8 to 14 inch standing deads (mostly hickory, some oak) and bucking up tree tops and trees downed in storms. I finally tackled a large water oak that had been struck by lightning. About 30 inch diameter. This was by far the biggest tree I ever dropped. That little Craftsman slowly got the job done and it feel precisely where I wanted it to.

Last winter I found a new Stihl MS390, 16 inch bar, with a muffler mod for about $380 on eBay. It's a bit on the heavy side but, man, can that saw tear through the wood. All I cut it hickory and oak.

If I was starting over, and doing so with the support and knowledge gained from this message board (which I did not have when I first started off) I'd go for Stihl 180/190. Lots of good deals in the $200 range on eBay.

 

[CTYank]

Don't know about where you are, but around here I see a lot of "used once or twice" Poulan on CL in the $40-$50 range, offer less. My son bought a Poulan Woodshark at a yard sale for $30. The thing is practically new and screams. Throw it away when done.

Its ok if you like to run slow and working on maintaining the saw through out the day. If you need to get done or producing more than a few cords a year your going to be very frustrated!

There's a "roll the dice" thing here. You can get lucky. You might need to make a few adjustments. Dunno about the "maintaining" thing.

Anyhow, your first saw will absorb lots of abuse as it teaches you what the boundaries are. Like your first car. Then you invest in something nice.

 

[ISeeDeadBTUs]

Anyhow, your first saw will absorb lots of abuse as it teaches you what the boundaries are. Like your first car. Then you invest in something nice.

Or, like your first girl, she'll spoil you for life. Get the Stihl.

Oh and if yer somewhat new to this, cutting up blow-down can actually be quite dangerous. Just so's ya know.

 

[Danno77]

Or, like your first girl, she'll spoil you for life. Get the Stihl.

I was spoiled on both accounts, so I kept both of my firsts...We'll see which gets replaced by a newer model first, the wife or the saw.

 

[Bigg_Redd]

I bought a 36cc Craftsman, 16 inch bar, when we first moved out to the country almost five years ago. I had never operated a chain saw so had nothing to compare it to. It did fine for cutting down and bucking some 8 to 14 inch standing deads (mostly hickory, some oak) and bucking up tree tops and trees downed in storms. I finally tackled a large water oak that had been struck by lightning. About 30 inch diameter. This was by far the biggest tree I ever dropped. That little Craftsman slowly got the job done and it feel precisely where I wanted it to.

Last winter I found a new Stihl MS390, 16 inch bar, with a muffler mod for about $380 on eBay. It's a bit on the heavy side but, man, can that saw tear through the wood. All I cut it hickory and oak.

If I was starting over, and doing so with the support and knowledge gained from this message board (which I did not have when I first started off) I'd go for Stihl 180/190. Lots of good deals in the $200 range on eBay.

I would bother with a 180/190. Might as well have a Poulan.