I'm leaning toward the 461 at this point...any reason besides cost to choose the 362 over it? I also have a Husqy 440 for the smaller stuff.
MS-362 or MS-461?
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Ashful
Minister of Fire
No. I have an 036 PRO, the predecessor to the 362, and I barely use it. Too big for small jobs, too wimpy when the 85cc 064 AV is sitting there smiling at me. Grab that 461, put a 24" bar on it, and wield it with pride. Budget aside (it is cheaper), I see no reason why anyone should buy a 36x over a 46x.
Roundgunner
Feeling the Heat
StihlKicking
Feeling the Heat
I find the 60cc class of saws to big for small work and to small for big work. Get the 461 or back up to a 261 if comfort is what you want in a saw.
Get the bigger saw, you can always go to a shorter bar if needed, but a smaller saw won't always be a good fit with a longer one. I bought a 660 3 years ago, with a 32" - the beauty of Stihl is the 30 year old 20" bar from my 041 fits right on the new saw. I even put a 16" on that 660 for a 5 cord pile of 12" dia. locust - Was like using a light saber. I stihl have the 041 I bought new in '72, I use it all the time - 200.00 it was, lot of money back then. Added a ms200t for a top handle saw too. Go big or go home - HA HA - 
Babaganoosh
Minister of Fire
Stihl dropped the ball with the newer release of the 362-gutless. Run an 18inch bar with full comp chain and it just doesn't run the same as the old 036. I would strongly recommend the 461. This saw is an absolute beast. Power and weight are nicely balanced with a 24inch bar.
Soooo...what do you guys really think? [emoji2]
Glad I socialized the $1k saw idea with my wife in advance!
Glad I socialized the $1k saw idea with my wife in advance!
461 all the way..my bud brought his new 362 to the timber a couple weekends back and asked if I wanted to try it and handed to me. I handed it back to him pretty quick as I had wood to cut...lol
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Ashful
Minister of Fire
The good news is it will outlast you, and she'll be able to sell it for $600 when you're cold in the ground. [emoji14]
D8Chumley
Minister of Fire
I have a 460 with 20 and 25" bars, usually has the 25" since I have other saws for small to medium stuff. I don't use it a lot but when I do it puts a big smile on my face. Can't comment on the 362 I haven't run one
I don't have the answer to that but they don't have a adjustable carb anymore...the power seems to be continually dropping off and they keep tightening up the amount of oil these saws put out...thank you EPA...As soon as I found this out I made a mad dash to upgrade all of my older and well used saws with new old stock.I haven't picked up any of the new "1" series saws and ran it and thought WOW...
Is there a Stihl model decoder guide out there somewhere? I can't make any sense of their naming scheme.
the original series were numbered 017,028,044 ect...ect.. then they went to 170,280,440,ect..ect..and now any model number that ends in a 1 is a new series saw. Dont know what happened with the way or why they numbered the 362 other than they truly dropped the ball on this "new" saw.Finding a new saw in the previous series is becoming extremely difficult to find.If you want one and find it..buy it!
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What does the first number in the model signify, and is there any clear way to tell a "professional" model from a "ranch"?
Have you been to the Stihl USA website?
https://www.stihlusa.com/products/product-selector/chain-saws-product-selector/
I have...I've been using this chart:
https://www.stihlusa.com/WebContent/CMSFileLibrary/downloads/Chain-Saw-Comparison-Chart.pdf
Just trying to make sense of the scheme so if I see something of interest on Craigslist I can tell what class of saw it is. For instance: what in model number MS-250 tells me it's a homeowner model?
They have them classified on their website. Although they have the 250 classified as a home owners saw I will tell you that they will take a extreme amount of abuse! I ran a pair for 10 years as my main firewood saws in my firewood business..they still ran fine when I upgrade to a pair of 260 pros.
I understand they're classified on the website...my question is this: is there any rhyme or reason to the numbering, or is it entirely arbitrary and meaningless without a chart with which to cross reference?
I am sorry...and here I thought you weren't getting it...lol you are correct..there is no rhyme or reason to the numbering. Print the chart off for reference.
Ashful
Minister of Fire
There used to be visual cues, such as the color of the handle (white handle = pro model on the older models), but I think those visual distinctions have been abandoned in recent models. It mostly comes down to the design of the case. With a few exceptions, the pro saws have a split case design, whereas the farm and homeowner saws have a clamshell case design, but exceptions have been made (eg. top-handle saws).
Ashful you are absolutely correct on the handle colors...I had forgotten about that... and you are also correct in that there is no color variation in the handles anymore as I just checked my saws.
