New chainsaw...I had to share

[Treeguy]

Buy the saw in your name on the warranty card, save the receipt for taxes. Stihl only knows what gets filed on the card. We may or may not have done that for purchases for some of our frequent flyers who may or may not use the saws professionally. Who's to say? As far as Husky saws go, they were bought out by Maytag Appliances anout eight years ago. They used to be really good saws. The bean counters got involved, and quality isn't what it used to be. Stihl is still owned by the Stihl family, no shareholders to answer to, etc. Stihl's saws are either made in Virginia Beach, or Germany. I make no comission, and have no ties to the company, fwiw.

Yeah, Husky isn't what it used to be. It's a hardware store saw now.

M first saw was an original Husky 40. Awesome saw. The new ones seem to be hanger queens.

 

[KITROBASKIN]

(Our Stihl dealer only gives us a 30 day warranty. Unreal.)

Does Treeguy use ethanol free fuel?

My dealer told me that Stihl does not offer sales or discounts very much, and that dealers don't get that much of a markup and therefore don't offer much in the way of special sales either. Wondering if Scout24 will comment.

Regarding where manufactured: The battery charger for my electric Stihl chainsaw and string trimmer prominently displays that it is made in Slovakia.

 

[Treeguy]

Nope, no ethanol here. Only premium goes in the saws and the chipper.

And Stihl is notoriously cheap. One day the Stihl promotional truck set up shop outside our dealer, and they had all kinds of stuff in the truck, but all they would give us were stickers. We pointed out we had seven Stihl saws in the truck and all they would give us were stickers. Give me a file, or a hat, or a shirt, something I can use. Nope, just stickers.

Great saws, but cheap *** *************!

 

[scout24]

Stihl "Dealer Days" every couple of months. If you sign up with your email, they'll send you sale notifications. MS170's will go for $159, MS250's for $299, and 50-100 off the higher priced saws once in a blue moon. The dealers don't make that much, on the lower priced equipment, the margin about covers salary to unpack and assemble the items. Saws show up as a powerhead, you have to take the side cover off, unbox the bar and chain, and assemble for display. Treeguy- The individual dealers have a lot more latitude for that stuff, we as dealers couldn't get t-shirts from our regional rep! There are 7 or 8 places within an hour of me to buy Stihl though, so we tried to be very competitive and make it up in volume and service work...

Kitro- The Lightning line of products is new for Stihl, and the chargers, batteries and equipment are seperately covered by 3 year warranties. This applies to the equipment with removable battery packs. If they're built-in, the whole piece is covered by that same warranty. I had not seen the Slovakia on the chargers, thanks for the heads up!

 

[KITROBASKIN]

Interesting. I was surprised that I would not be able to get a 'new in box' chainsaw when I purchased. The dealer explained that they set things up then sell it to consumers.

That said, the dealer did give me a blank battery shell when I asked. My reason was to lessen dust and particles from entering the battery opening of the chainsaw during transport and storage. Later he gave me 3 standard safety glasses when we purchased the string trimmer. And another time, I asked if he could sell me one of those orange plastic chain/bar protective sleeves for safer transport and to protect the chain (my chainsaw did not have a case). He gave me a bar protector that fit a longer bar and I cut it to fit.

Love that chainsaw.

 

[Treeguy]

Stihl "Dealer Days" every couple of months. If you sign up with your email, they'll send you sale notifications. MS170's will go for $159, MS250's for $299, and 50-100 off the higher priced saws once in a blue moon. The dealers don't make that much, on the lower priced equipment, the margin about covers salary to unpack and assemble the items. Saws show up as a powerhead, you have to take the side cover off, unbox the bar and chain, and assemble for display. Treeguy- The individual dealers have a lot more latitude for that stuff, we as dealers couldn't get t-shirts from our regional rep! There are 7 or 8 places within an hour of me to buy Stihl though, so we tried to be very competitive and make it up in volume and service work...

I wasn't raggin' on you. I was raggin' on the cheap shmucks in the Stihl promotional truck.

I got $80 off my 461 from the dealer. I thought that was pretty good. Cost about $1400, tax in. We've given him a lot of business over the years. $15K+ easy.

 

[eart]

Eart- At the MS170/MS180 pricepoint, there is zero advantage to buying used. 170 should run you $179.00 and if you buy a six pack of the Ultra mix oil we were selling for $14.00, you double your warranty to 2 years. Maintenance issues are similar to larger saws- nobody likes replacing air filters, cleaning spark arrestors, etc. Used homeowner saws get run dry on bar oil, have bad gas run through them, crappy mix oil, get pinched in cuts and have the clutches abused, etc. If you really want a used saw, buy at a shop and ask that the muffler and carb be removed to look for scoring on the intake and exhaust sides of the piston and cylinder. Either side would be terminal, and not worth fixing unless on a pro series saw. (MS241, 261, 362, 461, etc.)

Thanks scout24, I hear what you're saying. I'm in Canada, so the saw runs runs a bit more expensive here. All in all it'll be about $300 Canadian new (here). I'm not opposed to spending the money if it lasts, but, I have dreams of learning to do a bit of my own wrenching. I was hoping to pick up a used (but decently rated) unit off craigslist and try to refurbish it. I gotta admit, a chainsaw has been on my Wishlist for a while but it's far from being a daily necessity. I think I'd be very reluctant to mess with a brand new $300 saw, whereas a 50-$100 purchase would be more acceptable for learning/disassembly. Is that a crazy idea?

 

[Treeguy]

I don't mean to be a stick in the mud, but unless the saw you buy for $50 is from a good friend, the saw won't be worth $5. As for Craigslist, the garbage saws I've seen for sale there made my stomach hurt.

But then again, I'm a snob.

 

[Chauncey Gardiner]

Anyone that's spent ten minutes huffin n puffin while trying to get a cheap chainsaw to start, will most certainly tell ya, you're not a snob cuz you want a saw to start by the second or third pull. :sweat:

~ Chance

 

[markr6]

It's crazy how small engines vary so much when it comes to starting. I don't know about chainsaws or if they're much different, but I've used lawn mowers that were just a huge pain to get running. In contrast, the basic nothing-special $250 Troy Built I got at Lowes 10 years ago start every time on the second pull. There's never any doubt. Sometimes it will start on the first pull, a weak one that I don't even intent do start it with...just a "warm up" if that's even a thing.

Also a Hitachi leaf blower I got for $129. Two light pulls on choke, then ALWAYS starts on the third right before turning off the choke.

Trimmers always seem to suck, I don't know why.

 

[scout24]

Eart- I'm with Treeguy on this- Anything used is a huge, frustrating gamble. I'd hate to see you get something with the intent of being able to use it, and wind up spending more to repair it than you would buying a new saw. Please consider buying new, and maybe asking the shop nicely if they have a junk saw you can have to take apart, or finding one on Craigslist at that point.

 

[campingnut]

I looked at used before my purchase of a new 250 and the decent ones were only $75-$100 less than a new one. I agree, unless it was from a friend, I would buy new and only cry once.

 

[eart]

I looked at used before my purchase of a new 250 and the decent ones were only $75-$100 less than a new one. I agree, unless it was from a friend, I would buy new and only cry once.

Thanks for all of the advice everyone. This has been my experience too. I'll save a bit and most likely go for a small stihl ms170.

 

[Treeguy]

Thanks for all of the advice everyone. This has been my experience too. I'll save a bit and most likely go for a small stihl ms170.

Excellent!

Remember: chainsaws are a ton of fun and they are incredibly dangerous. I don't know what your experience level is, but keep your mind and eyes on what you are doing. Almost every injury I've seen, and I've seen many, happened during a "casual" cut, not a technical one.

 

[scout24]

Good choice! The beauty of buying a 170 from a dealer instead of a comprable saw from a big box or hardware store is the Stihl dealer can get, or has in stock, every part of that saw down to the screws that hold the handle together. Try getting parts or service for a Poulan... Let us know when you get it, and what you think when you use it!!!

 

[KITROBASKIN]

What an excellent, useful thread about chainsaws!

Tip for new users:
Reading the instructions is a good idea: Like reading and taking heed of making sure the bar oil pathway is kept free of wood debris when flipping the bar or other maintenance tasks.

And when you learn where to position the choke setting; reliable, prompt startups will occur just about every time. (As was mentioned earlier)

 

[Tac Gunner]

Been an interesting read and didn't expect to stumble onto a chainsaw thread here. Have to say the old Stihl MS290 Farm Boss my dad bought about 14 years ago is still an absolute brute. 20" bar and it doesn't blink an eye at anything. The number of hours on the thing is hard to say but besides a new bar and of course chains, repairs have been minimal. I have spent a lot of time with it and learned a lot about cutting trees along the way and wouldn't trade it for anything else. I have used a coupe of Husqvarna saws and they just don't hold a candle to Stihl.

I can say though, when it comes to string trimmers I will take a Husqvarna 324L any day. Ours is about 12 years old and still going strong. I really like the 4 stroke convenience of it.

 

[campingnut]

So it has been two months and I love this saw more and more I use it. I have ran about 8-10 tanks of gas with zero issues. I sharpen the chain every tank of gas, but I was wondering how often do you flip your bar?

 

[scout24]

If you haven't flipped it yet, now's a good time. Some people never flip it, some tree service guys flip it once a day... I don't think there's a set in stone recommendation. Just come up with a system that works for you. After every gallon can of fuel mix? Beginning of every cutting season?

 

[campingnut]

After every gallon can of fuel mix? Beginning of every cutting season?

I like both of these ideas because they are easy to measure...