Husqvarna or Stihl petrol chainsaw

APDIY · Post by **APDIY** » Tue Feb 08, 2022 1:32 pm

I'm wanting to buy a petrol [2 stroke] chainsaw for general green roundwood cutting away from an electric supply.
As the first step, should I select a

Husqvarna

or a

Stihl

As a guide, I'm considering something like the Stihl MS 211 C-BE or the Husqvara 435 11

Many thanks

dewaltdisney · Post by **dewaltdisney** » Tue Feb 08, 2022 3:38 pm

AP have you seen my thread on mini cordless chainsaws. I have a McCulloch petrol and a Titan mains but I use the mini the most since I got mine through a lead from London Mike on here. Please have a look before you commit viewtopic.php?f=25&t=105075&hilit=mini+chainsaws. One point I would make is that it is the chain that does the work, the power units are all much of a muchness. Get the cheapo petrol and decent chains.

DWD

Oops, Sorry you already have seen it

APDIY · Post by **APDIY** » Tue Feb 08, 2022 5:23 pm

Many thanks for your valuable contribution, as ever.
I've still got a mini cordless chainsaw on my wish list but prices are all over the place
and most seem to come directly from China.
The recent storms have snapped off or uprooted so many trees that surgery prices have soared
and I've got access to ''cords'' and ''cords'' of green round wood.
However, I''l check ScrewShed

as you suggest.

dewaltdisney · Post by **dewaltdisney** » Tue Feb 08, 2022 6:13 pm

I use Rotatech or Oregon chains. Both give good service.

DWD

Dave54 · Post by **Dave54** » Tue Feb 08, 2022 6:36 pm

I know someone who bought a Makita 36V cordless before Christmas. He's well chuffed with it.
If I was looking for a petrol machine I'd have a look at Tanaka. Not the cheapest, but I bought a brush cutter three years or so back, and it's a lovely machine.
Not the cheapest though.
Apparently a lot of Americans prefer them to other brands.

kellys_eye · Post by **kellys_eye** » Tue Feb 08, 2022 10:21 pm

I now have FIVE chainsaws! I even surprised myself when I totted up the total

Two Titan (screwfix) petrol versions, one Titan corded (couldn't resist as it was on offer at £39) and two battery chainsaws courtesy Aldi.

I got the Aldi battery jobbies only because I already have a dozen of their 5Ahr batteries (and two chargers) and buying two of their chainsaws was an ordering error by Mrs - but not one I regret as they work very well indeed for what they are.

Can't fault the Titan stuff either. Yeah, sure, they're not anywhere near being a Husq or Stihl but I'd only go to those prices if I was taking down a forest - cutting random 'green' stuff and chopping logs for firewood is a 'waste' of a Husq/Stihl. If I need access to one (Stihl) I'll just borrow the F-in-Laws!!

If you look after your chainsaw it will last as long as you need it to - that part is key. Spares for the Titan (mainly the carb as repairing a carb isn't worth the effort when a replacement costs £11....) are cheap - real cheap. Check out spares for a Stihl or even getting one serviced! But even a Stihl will go mammaries skywards if you don't care for it and, as DWD says, spending money on decent chains makes a big difference and a large part of ensuring you get good service from your machine, whatever the make.

APDIY · Post by **APDIY** » Thu Feb 10, 2022 12:17 pm

dewaltdisney wrote: ↑Tue Feb 08, 2022 6:13 pm I use Rotatech or Oregon chains. Both give good service.

DWD

Oregon chains are the ones I've used except when Aldi has had their ''own' brand on special offer - I have a couple of their electric chain sdaws which have Oregon 'blades'/chain holders.
Do you use a file or a machine to sharpen your chains - I use a machine, from Lidl, which seems effective.

kellys_eye · Post by **kellys_eye** » Thu Feb 10, 2022 2:27 pm

When you get to the point of having to sharpen regularly it's very easy to pick up the skills using a simple hand file and only takes a few strokes (giggidy) to get you back on track.

APDIY · Post by **APDIY** » Thu Feb 10, 2022 9:22 pm

kellys_eye wrote: ↑Thu Feb 10, 2022 2:27 pm When you get to the point of having to sharpen regularly it's very easy to pick up the skills using a simple hand file and only takes a few strokes (giggidy) to get you back on track.

A very valid point when I'm out in the woods and far from the mains. T Y
ALSO
Thanks for increasing my vocabulary by your use of ''giggidy''

APDIY · Post by **APDIY** » Sat Feb 19, 2022 1:49 am

kellys_eye wrote: ↑Tue Feb 08, 2022 10:21 pm I now have FIVE chainsaws! I even surprised myself when I totted up the total

Two Titan (screwfix) petrol versions,. . . .

Can't fault the Titan stuff either. Yeah, sure, they're not anywhere near being a Husq or Stihl but I'd only go to those prices if I was taking down a forest - cutting random 'green' stuff and chopping logs for firewood is a 'waste' of a Husq/Stihl. If I need access to one (Stihl) I'll just borrow the F-in-Laws!!

If you look after your chainsaw it will last as long as you need it to - that part is key. Spares for the Titan (mainly the carb as repairing a carb isn't worth the effort when a replacement costs £11....) are cheap - real cheap. Check out spares for a Stihl or even getting one serviced! But even a Stihl will go mammaries skywards if you don't care for it and, as DWD says, spending money on decent chains makes a big difference and a large part of ensuring you get good service from your machine, whatever the make.

Mny thanks for this guidance.
I had a look at the Reviews if the Titan petrol [2 stroke] saws and rather too many came up with the same problem I and others have had with Tool Tech machines = they start and run ok, heat upo, stop, need to cool to ambient before they'll restart.
Discussion here
viewtopic.php?f=11&t=104384

kellys_eye · Post by **kellys_eye** » Sat Feb 19, 2022 9:38 am

I tend to use my chainsaws 'non-stop' i.e. use up a whole tank of fuel in one go (like when Mrs and I prep a load of firewood) and it rests for as long as we take to stack the cut wood - this seems to be sufficient 'cooling down' to avoid seeing any restarting issue since I haven't come across this as a problem - yet!

A full tank runs the machine for 30-40 minutes. More than enough running time to create a 'pile' of firewood or chop a decent amount of trees down.

dewaltdisney · Post by **dewaltdisney** » Sat Feb 19, 2022 12:49 pm

My old McCulloch can be a bugger to start and it seems a precise number of priming squirts is key. Even more so are restartings. I narrowed the spark plug gap a gnats and that helped. It is fine when it is going and it is now 20 years old.

DWD

kellys_eye · Post by **kellys_eye** » Sat Feb 19, 2022 1:36 pm

My first chainsaw was a McCulloch and it was great - until it started to go wrong..... the usual carb issues (new carb sorted it) but then the clutch started playing up and I bought a Titan as in intermediate solution. Of course, I never went back to the McCulloch and ended up selling it for spares.

Grendel · Post by **Grendel** » Mon Feb 21, 2022 9:43 am

To go back to the original question , I've used both and frankly find them to both be very similar. I've got a sthil but that's more because I also have a couple of sthil combis and other tools so just stick to the one brand. I do have a McCulloch , same sort of size as the sthil although I always got the impression that it had less power. I haven't used it for a while , it needs a new tensioner , one of those five minute jobs I just haven't gotten round to yet. Recently a friend gave me a bosch electric chainsaw which he said had a tensioning problem but I'm beginning to think he just never tightened it up properly as I've used it without problem. Good to have both petrol and electric as both have their pros and cons.

APDIY · Post by **APDIY** » Sat Mar 12, 2022 7:49 pm

Thanks for that info, Grendel. I agree that electric and 2 Stroke have their places. My neighbour is so ''allergic to noise that it's rumoured that they made a complaint to our Council about the Dawn Chorus.
So, electric at home and 2/ away.