hehe yeah lopping branches is one of the best uses for a cordless recip.Quote:
Originally Posted by PNWbrit
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hehe yeah lopping branches is one of the best uses for a cordless recip.Quote:
Originally Posted by PNWbrit
Yo Brit, how are ya....long time no chat.Quote:
Originally Posted by PNWbrit
Good on ya for getting the spring reinstalled.
Anyhow, take the cover off, and check the pulley sheave for a little slot on its outer edge. pull a loop of cord out, and slip cord in slot, make a couple turns against spring pressure, using tension on the string to turn the pulley. Let loop out, and test tension on handle. Should be just enough so the cord springs back smartly, but when pulled out as if to start the saw, it doesn't get overly tight (which could mess with the spring)
Reinstall and go "pull on" that Poulan......heh
lemme know if you need any work done at the cabin.
why would you even waste your time with the rest of the typing? would you ski on a pair of 170 rossi rental skis from 1995 unless you were trying to make yourself look like a moron?Quote:
Originally Posted by PNWbrit
looking for a good deal on any of the 3 different Husky 346XP's, if anyone wants to explain the difference between the models thatd be sweet as well. anyone got any advice for me on where/which to buy?
STIHL 460 w/ 28" bar full skip ftw. No idea what you need it for but this saw is badass. Chicks dig it.
brag: D Douglas Dent gave me my C faller cert right before I quit fire. He's da man. I learned more from him in 3 days never seeing him touch a saw than I learned in 10 years from every tom dick and harry hotshot/smokjumper out there.
Hobart for life
p.s. tbh, i've used the smaller STIHL farm boss 036's in AK and those are the shit for trees under 8" dbh (running 20" chains). So easy to throw around w/ plenty of power
husky 272's were the shit back in the day, but seems they went downhill after those.
I believe they are called Truckee Handcrew now.Quote:
Originally Posted by BGnight
Them's fightin' words son!Quote:
Originally Posted by VC
Looking at the state of hotshots now it's such a joke. So many crews that are barely type 2 worthy are getting IHC status.
(I started on THC!)
couloirman:
The 346XP NE (new edition) is 5 cc larger than the now discontinued 346XP ( there's only been these two models......) The NE has 0.4 more hp, as well as a broader torque band...slightly lower peak rpm.
An excellent saw, and best in its class. I own one of each. Both have been woods ported. My latest one is 54% faster than it was in stock form. It will dang near keep up with a stock 440/441/460 Stihl in small wood, or any 5 hp saw.
However, a Dolmar 5100S has similar power, is a tad heavier, but cheaper---hard to find, with poor dealer support. I own two of them. Search my rbtree You Tube videos, and see me running one with a pipe installed!
Quote:
Originally Posted by BGnight
Not a chance! The 372 XP is the best 70 cc saw made....period. More advanced port design than the 272....which stihl finally copied with the quad transfer ported 361......I've owned 6 of them...most fully woods ported.
There is one better 13 pound saw though, which is the 7900 Dolmar. 79 cc's, lighter by two pounds than a 385 Husky, and faster in stock form. I like them so much, I have three of them. No good for firefighting, no dealers or support out west.....
044/440 Stihl was also awesome, now replaced with the heavier, strato charged 441.....EPA rules means all old saws will be gone soon---including the great 460, 660....etc etc and on and on.
http://i265.photobucket.com/albums/i.../DSC00398a.jpg
Bore cut that shit!
Yeah, I admit I'm no saw mechanic. I just remember the next series of saws that came out (37somethings) were blowing up all over the place. I started using stihls shortly after and have been biased ever since. I just love the low end Stihl's have and my god they're so much more solidly built. Huskies are like screaming banshees.Quote:
Originally Posted by rbtree
Doug Dent asked me if I was German. I said yes. He said "you know your ancestors made that saw"....so awesome
(sorry, I just think he's the man)
This thread makes me miss the old days. What I'd give to be throwing chains 15' chapparel/manzanita right now..........ok maybe not.
The Husqvarna is at the cabin where it gets used for real work.Quote:
Originally Posted by Lone Star
This is my "rock" chainsaw for Light suburban yard work and getting out of the driveway after November windstorms.
Plus I dig the green and purple neon.
Thanks RB.
I'll give it a try.
Quote:
Originally Posted by rbtree
hmm, on their website I see no 346NE. They've got 346 XP G, 346 XP E Tech Triobrake, and the regular XP.
Ah gotcha......just went to website...
The Differences" "G" model has heated handles. the plain XP is the one you want. The third model has a weird extra chain brake lever....over top of rear handle. Never seen one...can't imagine anyone buying that odd saw. All three have the 50 cc, 3.8 hp motor.
If you seriously want one, pm me. I get saws from a dealer in NY State..his prices are great....I think I paid $425...........way below normal list price. Gotta keep mum, cross state line sales are frowned upon.....by Husky. Get it with a 16 or 18 inch bar and .325 chain.
This is obviously not the most exciting post ever, but I thought it worked great, so I'm sharing it for the collective to ridicule. I have a small wood stove in a cabin in VT and frequently rent to fancy pant New Yorkers. etc. Wood stoves are Greek to many, so I have to make it idiot proof in every way. So, I have to cut my logs so they easily fit inside... kind of "bite size" for easy filling. It sucks trying to cut a 16" or 18" log in half and takes forever. My solution was to use my wheelbarrow upside down without the wheel. It works great and is actually very safe. I've only barely nicked the bottom of the barrel and had maybe two logs get "pulled" up. Here's my answer to what was previously a dangerous very problem:
http://i342.photobucket.com/albums/o...cabin/WB01.jpg
http://i342.photobucket.com/albums/o...cabin/WB03.jpg
No waste, either!... The saw dust is then "recycled" for the composting toilet:
http://i342.photobucket.com/albums/o...cabin/WB05.jpg
heh....WWDDD?Quote:
Originally Posted by BGnight
[/doug dent twang] "Don't cut that tree" [twang]
:p
This thread needs some revival. We're putting a wood stove in our place and I need a saw. Have been leaning towards Stihl because we have at least two dealers close by. Seems like the MS 290 FarmBoss is a good saw been around a long time and is their "most popular" saw. Get's some good recommendations in this thread.
Would like to try to keep the purchase price in the $400 range....any other Stihl models I should consider. I have run saws before and grew up cutting wood with my brother and dad so I've been around chainsaws all my life but do not have a tone of experience running one. Looking for something strong, reliable and relatively straight forward(as far as chainsaws as concerned).
IMO Stihl! I've been an arborist for 25 years and this all I've ever used.
I just finished a couple of weeks of sawing with an older 026 Stihl with a 20" bar ,a 37 Husky & a 78 Husky. The smaller Husky was a pain to deal with & the pull handle broke from the abuse of having to start it all the time. The Big Husky with the 26" blade ran like a champ & was superior on the bigger trees,but it was heavy on long days of cutting.
The 026 Stihl was light,cut extremely well ,& was super reliable.It always started on the 2nd pull. For ease of use & reliability, I would give the edge to the Stihl if I had only one saw to own.
That being said, I had some issues with Stihl on service.
LT, the MS 290 is all the saw you need. It is underpowered and heavy compared to a pro saw, but it will work well for you are many years. If you take care of it, it will never need major servicing, which is a good thing, as it's odd design is not conducive to easy repairs.
Personally, I have run many different saw brands in my nearly 40 years as an arborist. Stihl and Husqvarna are second to none, but Stihl has the best dealer network....Dolmar makes great saws, as does Solo..well one or two models anyhow, but both are poorly represented in the US. Jonsered saws are rebadged Husqvarnas. Shindaiwa has good but outdated products....Zenoah/Redmax was bought out by Electrolux, the parent company that sells the Husq/Jons saws, as their new strato-charged engine design is good. Edho saws are OK...for homeowner use.
If anyone on this board would like an old, heavy, beat up saw, I have a Husqvarna 480 CD that I don't use and will sell for $150 sans bar and chain. It is 77 cc and is built on the same chassis that the venerable 2100 later was built on. It has great compression and runs like it was new. I also have 2 2100's and want to sell one, but for $400.
We recently removed the largest tree to be cut residentially in the Puget Sound area in 13 years..... a 10.5 foot diameter giant sequoia that was damaging an ~$5 million house in The Highlands. I ran a 72 inch bar for the first time ever, which was mounted on one of the 2100's, as my ported modded Husky 3120 was sporting a 60 inch bar. It took me over an hour to make the buttt cut, with those two saws, plus a 42" equipped 660 Magnum Stihl, while the butt was held with a 90 ton crane. The butt was only 2-3 feet long and weighed 6500 lb. Above it, a 20 foot section weighed 27,000 lb! The tree was 158 feet tall, 98 years old, weighed appx 115,000 lb, and produced about 89 yards of chipped debris, and well over 10000 board feet of wood, which went to a craftsman on Whidby Is, who will make it into something unique....
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1373/...0fe129ba_b.jpg
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1073/...5ccdcf0d_b.jpg
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1203/...67a8b940_b.jpg
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1377/...0eeb4c43_b.jpg
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1318/...9d697562_b.jpg
http://farm2.static.flickr.com/1217/...7e65a5cf_b.jpg
This should be stickied. Good info.Quote:
Originally Posted by rbtree
Damn, that is a nice slab!!!
Thanks everyone, much appreciated. Just found a local Husky dealer as well, actually a little closer than the Stihl dealer so Husky is in the running. Husky seems a little less $$.
We live at 6500' the Stihl guy is telling me I need a MS311 or the MS390(which he has one of) or the MS391 due to power for cutting cord wood. Also advising me I need a 25" bar. Is this BS just trying to upsell a saw jong? Not real interested in the $500 price tag that comes with the saws he's recommending but definitely don't want to save a little just to find I should have spent a little more.
EDIT: Only foresee needing to cut about 3 cords per year for personal use. Saw will most likely see action helping friends cut as well. Definitely see this saw doing way more sitting around throughout the year than working.
That there is some nice wood, and one helluva saw job
I'm happy to hear it went to a craftsman.
Read back in this thread. I like my Husky 455 a lot. I live at 7000 ft and cut even higher, so you should regard that dealer's advice with suspicion. You may have to adjust the carb settings, but a homeowner saw like the Husky 455 or the Stihl 290 should work fine as high as 10,000 ft. The main reason to get a big saw/bar is for cutting big wood. If you're cutting cordwood that's 18" or less diameter then there's no reason to get a big saw.Quote:
Originally Posted by LT
The 290 or 455 will be fine.....or, if I could get the hot starting problem solved with one of my Dolmar 5100S saws, I'd sell it to you for about $250...a far better saw than either of those, lighter with equal or more power... a full pro saw! the muffler modded saw puts out about 4.5 horsepower, the other about 5.5. I like the saws but am going to replace them with two more ported 346XP Huskys..by far the best current 3 cube saw.
Awesome thanks. I've read through this thread in it's entirety 3 times. Some of the opinions/advise is 3-4 years old so just trying to make sure it all still applies today. Wanted to make sure the elevation thing wasn't a huge deal with the saw I was considering as it's not always apparent where some folks doling out advise live.Quote:
Originally Posted by Meadow Skipper
Thanks RB and Meadow Skipper.
Rbtree , that last post was awesome . Thanks for putting it up .
+2 on that! They grow em big on the left coast! Enjoyed the pics. Climb safe.Quote:
Originally Posted by FLEX
In my time reading this forum, the rbtree stoke posts stand out as some of the most truly outstanding stoke posts going.
fkna awesome.
Righteous pics RBT!
Sorry for the cut and paste BUT some one might be running this. I know there are MANY old fire dogs on this site so this is straight from the AK jumpers. Also I deleted the IC name ...:wink::wink::wink::wink:
Hope this is not a repost
I ran one in AK and didnt like the SAFETY DEVICE so please pass this info round. Dont know if vid will work...
Going round robin in SJ and Hotshot circles:
Stihl 361C Safety Problem: Stuck Throttle due to "Safety Device" -- video
Video of the saw problem is attached. If you don't have sound capability, please observe the chain during this problem demonstration. No injuries have been reported to my knowledge. It is my understanding that this model saw was just added to our inventory so it might not be in widespread use yet. The SMJ whom demobed late last night said it appeared to be a design issue where any amount of debris could cause the "safety" throttle guard to jam.
A preliminary SAFENET has been filed. The IC, or the sawyer(s) involved will submit a follow-up once they get back to the base. Unknown when they'll actually arrive.
I met with Bill Miller this AM and he is aware of the problem. We may very well need to pull this model from service or take other actions that will make the saws safe to use.
I've got a higher quality (much larger file size) version available but the BLM file size restrictions render it useless. You can pick up a DVD of it my office if you'd like.
Thanks to Mike McMillan for taking the time to notify us of the problem and get a video shot back to the base. Thanks to Heith Hoerdeman for being willing to make the demo after a long hard shift.
Take care,
Bill Cramer
Chief, BLM-Alaska Smokejumpers
I was able to open the little video attachment and play it, but have not been able to get it uploaded in a playable video format. The .3gp version times out or says there's a broken link possibly because of a query. The converted .avi version has no image of the saw only the image of the sound of the chainsaw revving. It's clear in the video that the throttle sticks and continues running when the hand is removed from the trigger. This is a serious safety issue even if the video is not available. I'm sorry I do not have the technical ability to present this chainsaw video properly. Ab.
abercrombie
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Picked up a Husqvarna 460Rancher on Friday. Dealer was way more helpful and closer than the Stihl dealer, so it made a tough decision that much easier. Cut our first truck load yesterday, performed flawlessly and was a blast...so I think I did OK.
Thanks, ya'll.Quote:
Originally Posted by YetiMan
I'm gonna try to ski a bunch this winter....got my knee fixed (hurt it on the job two yrs ago). I have a Canon 7D and 5D Mk ll to replace my aging 1D Mk ll...and am gonna try to get back doing some serious ski shooting. It's been too long since I sold my work....(my first published photo was way back in 1982.......
lots of tree work and wildlife, both flora and fauna at www.flickr.com/photos/rbtree
Awesome job & pics rbtree. This is my buddy ironically with the initials RB. Best climber i've ever seen.
http://i221.photobucket.com/albums/d...g?t=1281453679
http://i221.photobucket.com/albums/d...g?t=1281454427
Nice to have him as a neighbor. Actually he's doing a little trim work @ my house today!
I was in the market for a chainsaw for up at elk camp and camping for cutting dead fall. I did not want to spend a ton of money saw I am only going to use a couple times a year, but did not want to get one of the cheaper Husky's or Echo's at Home Depot with a 14" blade...which was all that was in my $200 to $250 budget.
You never know what size of tree you will be cutting...or if there will be a big tree that will block the road on a jeep trail..plus with the Colorado elevation that we camp at, you have much less power...which is kind of offset by the fact that all the wood is Aspen or Pine and pretty soft.
So, after looking around on Craigslist and emailing some people who never responded, I found a guy selling a factory refurbished Makita DCS540 and a 20 inch bar, $200. Did a little research on the saw, which is built by Dolmar, and decided it should work for my needs.
The saw had never been started since the rebuild and I watched him put gas and oil in it for the first time...it kicked on the third pull...adjusted the choke back down and first pull it started right up and ran really nice. I am not 100% sure about a factory refurbished saw, but the parts that they did not replace on the case and stuff looked like they were in good shape and that it was not beat on too hard. Came with all new tools and a manual. Guy that sold it to me said he had a logging business in Montana and they use the same model of saw a lot and he had like 4 sitting there that were used. He said he paid $275 for the lot of refurbished saws.
Anyone have any experience with this saw or the Dolmar equivalent? They got really great reviews several years ago when they were being made. 54cc, 3.3 HP.
Anyhow...stoked to cut some wood for archery season this weekend.
http://i264.photobucket.com/albums/i...4/b4bcb904.jpg
Nice find, I have a saw on my short list.... but so are new windows for the house
Thanks...there was no way I could make it another year of hunting without one. Last year we only hunted the weekends (Elk Archery) and luckily the place we camped had a bunch of leftover wood from the previous year, and we had a buddy with a really crappy saw that cut up some small stuff to get us through. This year, we have 2 weekends of scouting (and cutting), two weekends with three guys, and 2 straight weeks with 4 to 6 guys at a time.Quote:
Originally Posted by grskier
Gonna need a HUGE stack of wood for nightly fires and for in the tent stove. Hoping this saw works for me. Looking online, there are luckily a bunch of Dolmar and Makita full service shops around Denver if anything goes wrong with it.
Also, will be really nice to have for summer time camping....there will certainly be less deadfall around camp by the time we are done. There is soooo much though, that I don't think it will even be noticable!
Score! Dolmar's a good saw! I can't find the ad on CL though...he already sell them all?
I will PM you his name and number. You can call him and ask if he has anymore. Looks like he took the ad down. When I talked to him last night, he said he had a couple he was selling.Quote:
Originally Posted by khakis