Saw alert! Husky Husqvarna 240

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redmanlcs

Burning Hunk
Nov 20, 2017
165
West Virginia
I wanted to throw this out here. If you own a Husqvarna 240 chainsaw I would like to alert you of a potential problem that might make you consider something else.

I own one of these saws and so far I am satisfied with it after a couple years of use. The reason I purchased this saw is because of the brand and the price point. I am very strapped for cash. I can't remember the exact price but I do remember having very little change from $200 at Lowes.

I bought a poulan 3314 when I first moved into my "cabin in the woods". I tried heating my cabin with a kerosene heater. Heating fuel was five dollars a gallon and I was using five gallons per day! It didn't take me long to consider the wood stove option. I ran to town, purchased a small wood stove, and the cheapest thing Lowe's had to cut firewood with which was the poulan. The poulan worked well for the first couple years, but the wrist pin came loose from the piston and lodged into the exhaust port. Game over. I needed another saw immediately. Again I considered the poulan. I paid right at $100 for it and it lasted 2 years. Not too bad but I had just a little more to spend. I knew that husky makes poulan and all their similarities. Maybe the orange plastic does make it a better saw.

Now I will try and explain what kind of saw I got for $80 bucks more, compared to the poulan which locked up in year 2 of use. Keep in mind my husky (poulan) 240 is still running strong so far on year 2.

Power? I can't complain.
Easy to start? Better than the poulan, but still has a "trick" you learn. Its pretty close to factory recom for me.
Quality? .....
Operator error. Removed chain guard to clean. Didn't recognize the chain brake actuator star, and I activated it accidentally. Chain guard would not engage. I was unable to turn the star with my squrench and I was out in the field. I removed the chain brake entirely. Saw still cuts but a bit more unsafe.

CHAIN TENSIONER. The screw which activates the dog for the chain adjustment. Mine had vibrated out as much as three-eights inch. Sometimes more. I looked into the problem and found that the screw is held in to the cover with a small tin like washer. I could easily make this screw pop in and out of this thin washer. Out in the field it failed completely and my screw was out an inch. The thin washer had finally broke in half. I purchased some eclips to replace the broken part and so far is working better than new. If you have to do this repair, make sure to get a selection of mm clips. I acquired some standard sizes and had to modify a couple to get it to work.

The husky has a good vibration system over the poulan. At first I couldn't believe the smoothness. Sometimes my hand gets hot when cutting larger trees as it seems the exhaust bounces back onto my hand. I once fouled the bar in a tree and tried to snake it out like I did on the poulan and bent some of my vibration dampers. It hasn't locked up yet. Would I pay more for this saw? I'm still undecided. If your looking into one of these saws, buy some mm eclips you will need some.

I'm with most everyone here, but the best saw you can even if you have to save up. You get what you pay for. I'm looking into some xp huskys. I think that is the way I need to go.

 
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Thanks for the report.

The Husky XP saws are great saws. I've owned a 562xp since 2012, with a 20" bar and a 28" bar. I do some heavy duty cutting with it, cutting down trees for firewood. We heat with a wood stove 8 months a year. Still burning wood now (it was 36 this morning).

I bought a Husky 440 a few months ago, but I haven't used it yet. It came with an 18" bar, but I bought a 16" bar for it, so I can use it as a limbing saw. I'll be putting both Husky saws to work all summer, cutting down 20 trees (+ or -) to replenish my firewood supply.
 
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I have a 460 for bucking and felling and a Stihl 150 (less than 4 lbs I think) with a 12" bar for limbing and pruning
 
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Note that some of today's non-XP Husqvarna saws compare very well to XP saws of similar displacement that have been discontinued over the last 5-10 years. Husqvarna 545 and 555 come to mind.
 
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They are a throw away saw. They get you by for a short time if low on cash. But not intended for heating your house year after year.
i'm no saw expert, but i have used mine over the past several years to cut up several larger diameter trees, producing about 10 cords of wood (i only use about 2 cords each winter). this saw has been a champ, never failed on me. perhaps if i'm cutting 10 cords/year each year something might give, but that is not my need. nice and light for small cuttings jobs as well. not sure where the "throw away" fits in.
 
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I have had my MS 180 for 10 years. 16" bar.

It's done everything I have needed. 32 cc; 2 h.p. I probably would have gone larger if I cut a lot. Great little saw for my needs.

I use bit less than one-and-a-half cords per year.
 
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i'm no saw expert, but i have used mine over the past several years to cut up several larger diameter trees, producing about 10 cords of wood (i only use about 2 cords each winter). this saw has been a champ, never failed on me. perhaps if i'm cutting 10 cords/year each year something might give, but that is not my need. nice and light for small cuttings jobs as well. not sure where the "throw away" fits in.
throw away because if you can't fix it yourself...
the cost of a shop to fix it comes to more than the saw is worth new.
the closest Stihl dealer to me charges $120.00 an hour to work on saws.
the 180 on sale barely costs $300 here.
 
i'm no saw expert, but i have used mine over the past several years to cut up several larger diameter trees, producing about 10 cords of wood (i only use about 2 cords each winter). this saw has been a champ, never failed on me. perhaps if i'm cutting 10 cords/year each year something might give, but that is not my need. nice and light for small cuttings jobs as well. not sure where the "throw away" fits in.
Forgive me, if that’s what you have and works for you then you did well with your saw purchase.
They simply don’t fit my needs, I do realize that everybody has different needs when it comes to saws.
 
Forgive me, if that’s what you have and works for you then you did well with your saw purchase.
They simply don’t fit my needs, I do realize that everybody has different needs when it comes to saws.
there is a saw for everyone! i just didn't understand the "throw away" aspect. stihl makes high quality products. i agree with a prior post that lower cost products are often not economically repaired unless one does their own labor. not gonna spend $200 to repair a $200 saw when i can get a new one for that price. that's the issue with saws, mowers, trimmers, snow blowers, etc.
 
there is a saw for everyone! i just didn't understand the "throw away" aspect. stihl makes high quality products. i agree with a prior post that lower cost products are often not economically repaired unless one does their own labor. not gonna spend $200 to repair a $200 saw when i can get a new one for that price. that's the issue with saws, mowers, trimmers, snow blowers, etc.

When was the last time you saw any reputable tree service bust out a 170 or 180?
 
difference between residential and commercial. i'm not a tree service, so don't need commercial grade equipment.
 
Why would I want the expense of a pro-grade saw for what I have to do in my yard?

My nextdoor neighbor drove three miles to work in a 500-h.p. BMW M6 convertible. Does that make any sense if his company wasn't paying for it?

His colleague, another neighbor, used to drive an Audi A8L. Company also paid for it. Then went to a Chevy Volt. That's a bit of a switch. :)