What saws are you running

[babalu87]

Since we all know what kind of stoves/inserts we all have I figured a saw thread may be useful.
If (and what saw doesnt) any saws have that little thing that maybe the next guy knows what wrong with it.

Anything I burn that isnt a pallet comes from my 6 acre lot I live on, plenty of Red/White Oaks and Pine trees
Not many of those E Z to split Maples though

Jonsered 2054
Carb screws tend to back out and there I was thinking it was my fuel mix :red:
Now if I can just get it to stay on idle

 

[Eric Johnson]

I use a 1998 Husqvarna Model 55 with an 18-inch bar and .325 safety chain. It was a gift from my Dad, who cringed every time he thought about me using my old Jonsereds 90 with no inertial chain brake. He also feels that an 18-inch bar is way too big for the kind of wood I cut. He says, "if your bar is never too short, it's always too long." But that didn't slow me down last summer.

 

[bruce56bb]

1996? husky 51. just started using it again after 3 or 4 years of not burning wood.
recently bought a new bar and chains and changed to the 18" verses the original 16".
on a side note, the new bar and chains made it feel like a new saw. best $80 i've spent in a long time.

 

[quads]

Stihl 026. 20" bar.

I bought it used from a neighbor for 50 bucks. Was missing a few screws and things (like me), but nothing affecting performance! And the chain brake is.......broke. Maybe not quite as powerful as my old Sachs was, but sure a lot lighter. And starts way better than the Homelite before that, or the McCulloch even before that.

 

[wg_bent]

Husky 136. Their smallest saw with new 16" bar and chain it's a very nice saw. Cuts well, and seem much tougher than the previous saw I had...a Poulan.

I don't cut as much wood as Eric does (I still want to know if your trying to heat the local WalMart Eric). This year I've accumulated about 7 cords but that saw has probably easily cut 20 so far. (Oh the pain to watch my neighbor burn all that wood I gave her before I bought a stove)

For a wood burner, I'd reccomend getting something with a little more HP, but I like my saw since it doesn't vibrate at all, and it's easy on the back cause it's lite and has modern safety features.

 

[snowfreak]

I'm running a Craftsman 16" bar 60% of the time for the smallish stuff and a Husky 55 Rancher with a 20" bar for the bigger stuff. When I got the Husky I realized how much I wanted to replace the Craftman. Problem is I can't kill it, can't sell it for much, so I guess I'll keep using it to the very end.

 

[Bushfire]

I'm using a Husky 141 from Lowes. So far no problems, although I don't have anything to compare it to as this is my first saw. Cuts real well and it easy to handle as the bar isn't too long. I also have saftey pants and head, ear and eye protection - a must in my opinion, especially as I doubt many of us ahve had training on these extremely dangerous pieces of eqipment. In fact, i'm trying to convince some people at work (long time chain saw users) to offer some safety and technique training for us amatuers.

So am I reading that this is not really a husky, but something else in a orange cloak?

 

[BrotherBart]

1991 Poulan Pro 405+ 65cc 20 inch bar (Old Yaller) for serious arguments with big oak trees and a 2004 Poulan 1975 Wood Shark for limbing and bucking smaller stuff. After using it for a couple of weeks the Wood Shark is in serious danger of having the ChainsawBuddy permanently attached to it.

Splitter is a 1988 Duerr. Bought the day after I realized it was a hell of a lot cheaper than my neighbor was paying for his son's college tuition. The boy was splitting his wood for him.

Since Old Yaller fully fueled and oiled up weighs over 23 pounds, I see a lighter saw on the horizon to give the wrecked left elbow and back a little breathing room. Until a big oak pisses me off that is. Sorry Husky and Stihl guys. It will be another Poulan. Gotta keep the family together.

I will try to get a pic of the Poulan my neighbor still uses. Made in the 50's. The thing could rip a Pontiac in half.

 

[bruce56bb]

lmfao........vintage poulan vs the pontiac. set it up and i'll sell tickets and popcorn

 

[Sandor]

Echo CS-346
Stihl 025

Maybe a Husky 55 in my future!

 

[SeanD]

Stihl MS440 w/24" bar
Stihl MS270 w/16" bar
Echo CS300 w/14" bar

Also have an old McCullough 610. Weighs a ton. Take it along in case I pinch the bar on another saw.

 

[whenley]

Solo 100CC twin cylinder - 24" bar
Stihl 038 20" bar
Stihl 029 18" bar
Echo 3450 14" bar
Homelite XL-12 16" bar

Of those, the two Stihls and the Echo are the workhorses. That little Echo is an awesome saw - limbing and logs <8"
it cant be beat. Light and reliable. The Stihls are great also. The 038 will get up and talk!
Stihl RS chains on all three of them.

The Solo twin is flat scary - that thing will throw some chips!, but no safetys whatsoever. Rescued it from a neighbors junk pile/shed. Too
heavy for practicality, like carrying a 12" cinder block around.
The Homelite is dad's old saw from the mid '60's. Still runs pretty well - but man it is loud!

Worth in VA

 

[BrotherBart]

Solo 100CC twin cylinder - 24" bar
Stihl 038 20" bar
Stihl 029 18" bar
Echo 3450 14" bar
Homelite XL-12 16" bar

Of those, the two Stihls and the Echo are the workhorses. That little Echo is an awesome saw - limbing and logs <8"
it cant be beat. Light and reliable. The Stihls are great also. The 038 will get up and talk!
Stihl RS chains on all three of them.

The Solo twin is flat scary - that thing will throw some chips!, but no safetys whatsoever. Rescued it from a neighbors junk pile/shed. Too
heavy for practicality, like carrying a 12" cinder block around.
The Homelite is dad's old saw from the mid '60's. Still runs pretty well - but man it is loud!

Worth in VA

Wow! A 100cc twin. Would love to see a picture of that hoss.

 

[CountryBoy]

I run a Jonsered 2036 16" blade and cut/split wood off my 40 acre farm. I also have a Mac 10-10, which is a heavy sucker, compared to the 2036, but it comes in handy for the dirty, grubbing work.

CB

 

[carpniels]

Husky 359 with 18" and 72LV chain.

Works like a dream.

Carpniels

 

[whenley]

Hey BB,
here are a couple of old pics of the Solo Twin. This is shortly after I dug it out of the barn. It took
a while to get it running. 20yr old fuel was like honey.
It truly is a beast. Takes some real guts to hold the throttle wide open, it screams. No safetys at all.
yeah, it is missing the air filter. But I do have the top cover.
I've only used it a couple of times, mostly for the novelty.
wbh

 

[BrotherBart]

Hey BB,
here are a couple of old pics of the Solo Twin. This is shortly after I dug it out of the barn. It took
a while to get it running. 20yr old fuel was like honey.
It truly is a beast. Takes some real guts to hold the throttle wide open, it screams. No safetys at all.
yeah, it is missing the air filter. But I do have the top cover.
I've only used it a couple of times, mostly for the novelty.
wbh

That thing does look like a beast. Start it, rip it a couple of times and the tree surrenders and falls over.

This is all I can hang on to:

 

[Mo Heat]

Sears Craftsman 18". Works ok with the new chain. Chain gets loose pretty quickly. Only a manual chain brake as far as I can tell. Someday I may look for the kit snowfreak put on his saw to keep the chain tight.

Dang, katooom! Your Solo is twice the size of my first 50cc Harley Davidson M-50 motorcycle. Unlike the photo in the link, mine was blue.

 

[drizler]

Husky 141. New saw after the old one blew up due to a carb hold down nut got ingested. Figure that one out; they said it had happened before so jus gave me a saw. New one starts like crap when cold always. Had to remove the limiter caps and it was better. Nice light saw though and not too much power but seems like plenty for anything I do. I have cut down some fairly big trees with this saw and it handles nice when it finally gets running.
Does anyone know how to disengage that cursed auto dump choke that the Feds pushed on all the manufacutrers. That stupid stunt works on engines that have a fuel primer bulb but of course Husy doesn't have one of these simple functional devices. I see they have that thing pretty well woven into the system so you can't just disconnect the spring so I am looking for ideas before I go in and reinvent the wheel. Sad how you have to go to so much trouble to get around the government and all for nothing. When is the last time you ran a saw for any length of time with the choke on. That auto dump choke must have been designed by a "Suit" for sure!

 

[wvstriper]

Stihl 361 20"
Poulan WildThing! 18"

I love the Stihl. Lot's of power and no vibration! The Poulan is a nice little (disposable) saw, it would be better with a 16" bar.

 

[kkesler]

Homelite C5 24" bar
Stihl MS260 16" bar

 

[Dr Bigwood]

I just bought a 1997 "Husquvrna 55". 18" bar. Found it on e-bay and am waiting for it to arrive from upper Michigan. It supposedly has had a complete tune up with a new sprocket.
I hope to get a a cord of wood delivered this week so I can get it cut, split and stacked. Gotta get crack'in!
The Jotul Castine arrives this week....... Getting ready to convert to wood....... Ah wood is good....
Doc

 

[DavidV]

Had to read thru this to see if I hadn't already answered.

Only Chainsaw I have ever owned is a 14 inch Poulan. 3 years now. I've cut so dang much wood with that thing I can't believe it's still running....and iti runs like mad. Put a new Oregon bar and chain on it this year. Just last week I cut a whole truck load and trailer load of 3-4 foot logs into smaller more manageab le stuff so I could split it all by hand. I've topped trees, dropped trees, cut up stuff that's storm casualty....you name it. Used it for construction demolition and once, late last year, I watched in horror as my sister in law used it to dig a 20' long 4" deep trench to landscape around a flower garden(thus the new chain and bar). I keep thinking that it's definately going to drop dead now.....but it doesn't.

 

[AKFireMan]

Brand new Husky 353 with a 20" bar and a Stihl 026 with an 18" bar (old faithful). I was pleasently suprised with how well the new husqvarna works, I have been a faithful Stihl user for years.

 

[Runs With Scissors]

katooom, That SOLO is N.I.C.E. !!




In no particular order of usefulness.....

Two sears (poulan) 3.7ci. one heavily modified, cuts like a beast and Im wondering when its going to explode.... 18" 20" bars

One Stihl 015L Cute lil thing for when the limbs fall. 12" bar


Homey Super XLao. Tough, dependable, loud, 18"bar


Homey SXL12 same as above but thinner and more powerfull 22"bar


Homey Super EZao, Just for kicks

Homey 4-20 gear drive 24" bar, Heavy, loud, ancient looking thing. Makes children cry......

And not last nor least.....


Homey SXL-925 . 85cc's of rip snortin, chip throwing, log devouring power, 26" and 32" bars. Makes ADULTS cry. :ahhh:
..
.


Thats whats in current rotation, theres more in the shed waiting to be cleaned and tinkered with.



If anyone has old saws that need a good home, Send me a P.M. And we can work something out.