Stihl MS 290 vs Husky Question

[Caw]

My husky 440 is in the shop with a broken starter until after the holidays. I have 200+ hours on it so it was due for a little TLC. In the meantime my dad is letting me use his MS 290 so I can get my driveway clear for Christmas. I only have about 1.5 cords of logs to buck I already did most of the work.

Anything I should know about the MS 290? I imagine it'll perform similarly but wanted to ask the Stihl boys. Looks to be a very similar saw just slightly bigger engine at 45 cc vs 41 cc on my 440.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

It’s a good saw. It’s been a reliable workhorse for me. I run a 16” bar with an Oregon chisel chain on mine. I have a 20” bar that I used once and a green chain that I’d have to look for if I needed it.

 

[bigealta]

I have the 029 super. Basically the earlier version of the ms290. I love it.
To start full choke, pull a few time till 1st sputter. Stop there.
Move choke up 1 notch.
Pull and should fire right up.
Hit the throttle and Choke should auto click up 1 more spot to run position.
Then you should be good to go.
Only problem is u may not want to give it back.

 

[Pinesmoke]

Big hit it.

I can only add there is a baffle plate under the air cleaner cover for warm or cold operation. It simply pull air from a "outside" when turned for hot and pull engine warm air set for cold. It's not really important until you are in extreme temps.

 

[bigealta]

just to be clear the first step - Full choke, you grab the handle squeeze throttle and throttle lock to full on and then move the choke lever all the way down.

 

[bigealta]

Here is the youtube if anything is unclear.

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[Doublebogey]

290 is a 57cc saw. Quite a jump over a 41. Should cut substantially faster.

 

[DonTee]

I was looking at the Husky 455 (56cc) and Stihl 290 (57cc) back around 10 years ago. I ended up with the Husky because it was slightly cheaper. I still have the saw and it still works great. I haven’t kept track of the hours on it but it has a lot.

Rancher versus farm boss. I think they’re both middle tier saws. Better than the typical homeowner saw but not as good as a pro saw.

My dad has a Stihl 044 (71cc) that I use sometimes. It’s a beast. Also not worth carrying around unless I’m cutting some bigger trees.

 

[Caw]

So I I mistyped in my post because I was recently looking at bigger saws. It's a MS 250 not MS 290 so it's quite similar to my saw. Thanks for all the info!

 

[EatenByLimestone]

Oh, your father needs to upgrade his saw! Problem solved! Have you bought your Dad his Christmas present yet?


It should be fine. I used to have a Craftsman/Poulan 42CC w/18” bar. It wasn’t the best, and would bog at times, but with a sharp chain it got the job done. The chain was a cute little thing! And those files…

 

[Caw]

Yeah it's basically the Stihl version of my saw. His chain is in awful shape yikes . He dropped it off this morning and I just looked at it. After I shape this up it should work just fine.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

A good chain makes a difference!

 

[Caw]

Yeah I have a much younger half brother who he said uses it and clearly doesn't maintain it well. I'll be spending a good 45 minutes taking it apart and cleaning it tonight then give it a good sharpening.

I sharpen my chain every 2-3 tanks of gas depending what I'm cutting. No point in using a dull chain nothing good comes from it and it takes like 7 minutes to sharpen.

 

[DonTee]

I have one of the 2 in 1 sharpeners for both my saws. I carry it in my pocket in the woods and sharpen as soon as it needs it.

I was watching my dads neighbor trim a tree recently with a Poulan “Wild thing” saw. His chain was so dull that it started smoking. He kept on cutting and soon after the chain broke

 

[Caw]

Yeah I'm not sure why people voluntarily use dull tools. Significantly increases the risk of injury and it just takes way longer. It only takes a few minutes to keep chains sharp once you get good at it.

 

[salecker]

I have one of the 2 in 1 sharpeners for both my saws. I carry it in my pocket in the woods and sharpen as soon as it needs it.

I was watching my dads neighbor trim a tree recently with a Poulan “Wild thing” saw. His chain was so dull that it started smoking. He kept on cutting and soon after the chain broke

He got lucky and the chain breaking probably extended the life of the saw till the next dull chain

 

[Caw]

He got lucky and the chain breaking probably extended the life of the saw till the next dull chain

He got lucky that's all that happened. A dull chain might struggle with wood but would have no issues cutting though the user.

 

[EatenByLimestone]

I always took the refill of gas/bar oil as a chance to run the file. It gave me a rest so I didn’t get tired and do something stupid.

 

[Caw]

I always took the refill of gas/bar oil as a chance to run the file. It gave me a rest so I didn’t get tired and do something stupid.

Yep. I used to do every tank but it became a little much when I'm doing 5+ tanks a day. Now I do every 2, sometimes 3 if it's softer wood, when bar oil runs low. Unless I find a hidden nail or knick something then I'll file right away. Works well for me.

 

[bigealta]

I have an ms250 as well. Certainly can cut well. Same starting procedure.
I found using a headlamp magnifier has greatly improved the sharpening process. U can actually see the edge clean up and burr form so well that you know exactly when u get the perfect edge.

You see so well with it that i've gone to completely free hand filing.

I think this cost me like $10 at HF. Best $10 i ever spent on chainsaw items. Also great for pulling splinters.

 

[bigealta]

My 029 super and MS 250 both have "18" " bars.
BUT the 029's really is 18" while the MS250's is closer to 16" maybe 16 1/2" or so.
Not sure how they get away with calling that an 18" saw.

 

[Caw]

The bar on my 440 is 17" from the spikes at the base and they call it 18". Manufacturers doing manufacturer things.

I actually like that though since I like 16.5-17" splits for the stove. I can just tip the bar and nip the log for the perfect length every time. Easy breezy beautiful.

 

[salecker]

He got lucky that's all that happened. A dull chain might struggle with wood but would have no issues cutting though the user.

What i meant was he was lucky he didn't wreck the saw.
I have got a few saws that were seized, and the chains were dull, dull, and extra dull on the seized saws

 

[bigealta]

Saw a guy down the street do the same thing when Wife and i were walking dog. I saw the smoke cloud from 1/2 way down the street. Looked like an outdoor fire but i heard the saw screaming. When we got close enough to see, it was a guy trying to cut down the only "tree" in his front yard. Maybe it was 10" diameter or so. Looked like a dogwood tree. Didn't get to close but he wasn't even 1/2 way thru it. The saw was not cutting at all but burning it's way thru the small trunk. I wanted to go help the guy but didn't want to overstep. So we just kept walking listening to the screaming saw the rest of the way home.
'

 

[Caw]

Man this chain is so messed up. Saw started right up but I spent a good hour filing trying to balance the teeth but I can't get it to cut straight got the life of me and I'm very good at this. I'm going to kill be brother. I'm just abandoning ship and going to put a new bar and chain on it for my dad for Christmas and have this chain professionally fixed. It's still got plenty of life.