Thread: Chainsaw Help

I used a stihl farmboss 030 for many years and it is an excellent machine, although the vibration made my hands shake after a day's chainsawing. Before that my father had used it on his farm. The stihl was very durable bit not cheap. I had to replace it for safety reasons because it did not have a chain brake.
I replaced it with a cheap MTD yard machine chainsaw. It's a 55cc machine with an 18inch /50cm bar and it cost about $375, from memory. I love the fact that it is almost vibration free. I have used it to cut quite a bit of red gum firewood which it handled easily.
At the same time I bought a 12volt electric blade sharpener and I wish I had one of these years ago!
A mate of mine swears by his Huskvarna and wouldn't buy anything else,
Hope this helps

Joey Trucker

You may not realise that this is an Australian forum and the brands of chainsaws mostly won't relate to us here in Australia although I recognize McCulloch. But if you buy a saw with an 18 inch bar it will handle the pine no problem because any saw with an 18 inch bar will have a motor size to match the requirements to suit that bar.

The main thing is how much use are you going to give it. If you are going to use it every couple of weeks to cut firewood and the fire wood is hardwood don't buy the cheapest you can buy but get a middle price range and stick to the well known brands.

One other thing if you are going to give it a lot of use test them all out and feel the weight because if you are using it all day it can become tiring lifting it constantly.

I've only ever owned one chainsaw, a Husqvarna, it goes like the clappers, has excellent safety features, is not too heavy, no real vibration and is great for cutting fence posts/large logs and for cleaning up after storms

Vote 1 Husqvarna!

First thing, do not buy it at a big box or borg, find a chainsaw dealer in you area, see how they treat you, if you like the shop, and they treat you right, see if they have a good used saw for sale.

Basically I'll only buy Husky or Stihl, they are both good saws, and if they dealer does in house service, you should be good to go.

Barry is right, 18" is all you need.

Find a good dealer, you will be happy you did, buy a spare bar, and at least one spare chain.

Buy a good hard hat/face shield/ear muff set up, good gloves, and a set of chaps, as well as good boots, the chainsaw don't give a darn if it cuts wood, or flesh and bone, cuts all of them real well.........

The dealer should be able to let you run the saw out back of his shop, he will have some logs set up and you can have a go, if you are not sure how things work, ASK HIM to give you some pointers.

Chainsaw kill and maim people every day, they are not toys, there is a darn good reason they cut wood like butter, they are sharp and they are made to!

Buy a good chainsaw file guide, learn to use it, use it every second tank of gas, you chain will last longer, you will cut faster and straighter, and you will be less tired, trust me

Sorry about all the dire warnings, but it happens all the time, someone wants a chainsaw to do what you are talking about, and they go to the borg and buy one, take it home and chop off a limb, don't be that guy!

Another site that is just the bomb for chains saw is the chainsaw forum on the ArboristSite.com go there and ask for some help, you will get it.

Well that was long winded, sorry....... hope it helps!

Cheers!

over here the chainsaw dealers run safety courses - could be a good thing

Thanks for the advice

Originally Posted by joeytrucker

...I will be using it to cut down some pine trees about 12-18inches in diameter and maybe some small stumps into fire wood...
JoeyTrucker

Hi Joey, welcome!

First, the advice you've gotten is all sound advice. You cannot go wrong with either a Sthil or Husqvarna. Both top brands and they do make a decent line of homeowner saws which cost less--just don't "under buy" to save a dollar or two.

As you have gotten good advice, I wanted to actually comment about your statement I quoted. I don't know where in California you are. I have logged in Idaho, Montana, Washington and Oregon--all US states.

Depending on where you are located, the age of the trees and how quickly they grew that you plan on cutting down, these trees can be tall. This means danger to both your surroundings--are you located in a rural area, are these forest trees, or is this all but a residential area?--and danger to yourself and those with you.

At 18", those trees can be 50' to 60' or taller. And seeing how you are perhaps using this wood for firewood--is it dead standing timber? That raises the danger issue considerably.

My point is, please be careful. Do purchase your saw from a real saw dealer like Stu advises, one who can talk with you and perhaps pass along some personal and local advice.

Take care, Mike

Geez, good point Mike, I thought he would be bucking up logs, felling trees is a whole other animal :eek:

I learned from a friend of my Dad's, he was a pro for 30+ years, and gave it up when he got tired of dragging around a chainsaw, and became an electrician, but we still cut a lot of dead standing trees for fire wood, you could just go on to "Crown Land" (in Canada...eh) and cut the dead stuff. That guy could drop a tree anywhere you wanted him too.

I also learn at the knee of my grand father, dad, and a couple uncles.

If you need some trees dropped, look into getting someone to help you, if you have not done a lot of it.

Nice catch Mike!



The last big one we brought down, right in the middle of Tokyo!

Joey

Very good advice in the previous posts. Above all you should be seeking competent advice and preferably your first sorties into the forest should be with a competent person. There is a lot that can go wrong with potentially disasterous consequences.

On the subject of saws, you should probably be looking at an engine size between 50cc and 70cc depending on your budget and estimated frequency of use. In the mid range I have found Husquarna to be exceptional while in the top range Sthil Magnums are amazing. I currently have a large Solo (90cc)which is probably not as good as the Husky or the Sthil, but is well made and good value. Sthil in the mid and small range seem to rely nowadays on reflected glory from their larger bretheren.

If you decide on cheaper brands (and they may be good value) just check availability of sprares and the recommendation of perhaps more than one dealer. MuCulloch for example, in Australia does't enjoy a good reputation. There are also a huge amount of new brands that have emerged.

Good luck. Stay safe.

Regards
Paul

Hey Stu,

Largest I've fallen is a 16' Cedar. It was about 150 foot long on the ground. Springboards and the whole bit. The side hill it was growing out of was roughly a 30 degree slope.

I once was helicoptered onto ledges in the Idaho Panhandle to fall Yellow Pine peelers. We got 1 33' and a single 16' log before the limbs. These trees were about 4' in diameter chest high.

Falling trees was something I really was good at. Rolling a rubber-tired logging skidder 240 some feet down a hill in 4 1/2 rolls--breaking the machine in half--sorta ended my logging career.

Many are the times I literally had trees explode from the growth tension when falling them, roots rip out of the ground from 8' trees when they start to go, be thrown through the air while walking and bucking the downed trees.

Tis a dangerous job. But with care, it is an occuaption or pursuit that is mostly safe...

Take care, Mike