My two Stihl's.

[LD1]

While I never tried a 290 Farm Boss the 361 truly is superior. At first I thought it was broken because it flex so much but then figured out that was a FEATURE and not something broken.

The 290 is a turd compaired to what you have there. You wont regret it one bit. And the newer saw's AV's are awesome as well. Thanks to the coil springs. The saws of yester-year with the rubber buffers werent nearly as smooth to operate.

Now I know to not even try to start the 361 without gloves on because I skinned the back of my hand the first time I tried to start it. There is no way I could start that thing without the compression release feature.

Are you by chance left handed????

 

[Gale Hawkins]

The 290 is a turd compaired to what you have there. You wont regret it one bit. And the newer saw's AV's are awesome as well. Thanks to the coil springs. The saws of yester-year with the rubber buffers werent nearly as smooth to operate.



Are you by chance left handed????

I will try holding it in the right hand and jerking with the left.

When working with tools I can go either way. Use to drive my Dad crazy that I could use an axle just as well either way.

 

[LD1]

I will try holding it in the right hand and jerking with the left.

When working with tools I can go either way. Use to drive my Dad crazy that I could use an axle just as well either way.

Too bad they dont make a left handed saw for you south-paws:laughing:

 

[xyz123]

I'm a little confused. What does right and left handed have to do with starting a saw?
I always have left hand on top handle and grasp T handle with right hand to start.

 

[LD1]

I'm a little confused. What does right and left handed have to do with starting a saw?
I always have left hand on top handle and grasp T handle with right hand to start.

That would be bass akwards for me:confused2:

I grasp handle with right and start with left.

Your not drop starting them are you:laughing:

 

[GeneD14]

Congratulations on your new saw! I run a 20" bar normally on mine and it eats up the wood like crazy. I also have a 25" bar for bigger logs. Anyway I hope you enjoy you new saw.

 

[xyz123]

That would be bass akwards for me:confused2:

I grasp handle with right and start with left.

Your not drop starting them are you:laughing:

My way comes in real handy cold start racing too :thumbsup:.

Only way I have ever started a saw unless it was on the ground and I still use right hand to crank it.

[ame]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RVHXhf6UoNA[/ame]

 

[Gale Hawkins]

Congratulations on your new saw! I run a 20" bar normally on mine and it eats up the wood like crazy. I also have a 25" bar for bigger logs. Anyway I hope you enjoy you new saw.

Thanks. I think I will. I had some big stuff that I was just bypassing due to only having the small 021 Stihl. I got it new after my nice Echo left town the day some new neighbors moved back to AR.

I swear going from 16" to 20" feels like four extra foot.

 

[Gale Hawkins]

I'm a little confused. What does right and left handed have to do with starting a saw?
I always have left hand on top handle and grasp T handle with right hand to start.

Same here. That is fine with the 021 but with the compression (even with it released) of the 361 the rope did not come out so the saw slapped my right jerking hand and knocked off some skin.

If I jerk with the left and the same thing happened it it would just slap my palm which is tougher and does not bleed as much.:thumbsup:

 

[xyz123]

Same here.

Do you recognize that bell tower or clock in above video.

 

[Coyote machine]

GH,
Congrats on finding/buying the saw you wanted. I suggest getting an in tank fuel filter for the saw from your Stihl dealer and changing it out along with the new bar you said you will get. Best is to run two new chains per bar and when both are worn out replace bar and chains. Flip bar over every other time you sharpen the chain and clean out the air filter with compressed air, each time you sharpen the chain.
As to making starting a high comp saw easier, try putting it on the ground use left hand to hold top handle, and right foot into the underside of trigger handle, release compression, pull up slowly but smoothly just enough to get a burp out of the saw and then switch off choke to start on the next pull. (Its not necessary to get the cord to pull out of the rewind too far- just enough to get her to turn over and burp). Have chain brake engaged for safety when starting, and as soon as saw starts release the brake once you have a good grip on the saw and feel in control of it.
I occasionally find it useful to see how the guys at the shop start a saw, because they have to do it so often they often have 'trick' methods to keep from doing shoulder/hand/arm damage.
Seafoam good! Stihl synthetic oil- also good; that's also why they give a 2 year warranty on new saws used with it exclusively. They have added ingredients to keep ethanol gas from doing internal carb damage, from rust forming on passageways where the water inherent in ethanol as it breaks down will cause rust that can't be accessed when doing a carb cleaning, thus rendering a good carb into junk.

Which site did you find for tuning the saw?

 

[Gale Hawkins]

Saw Carb Tuning

One article on large saw carb adjusting.

http://www.treeworld.info/f40/stihl-ms361-upgrades-options-6901.html

Page after page of Stihl MS 361 upgrades and options links.

 

[troutsqueezer]

Chainsaw banter, really?

I want to thank the OP if this thread for helping me come around to the fact that I spend way too time reading useless junk on this forum and it is time to move on to doing something a little more productive with my time. Looks like this has caused me to "jump the shark" as it pertains to TBN.

Troutsqueezer, checking out. I know you all will miss me.

Enjoy your forum, I'll be out on my tractor...

 

[Gale Hawkins]

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=v4-Rm1Gng_w&feature=related]STIHL MS460 (Ported) - YouTube[/ame]

Guessing my 361 is going to be a tad slower?

 

[xyz123]

There is no comparison between a stock 460 and 361 let alone a ported 460 :laughing:

 

[Gale Hawkins]

There is no comparison between a stock 460 and 361 let alone a ported 460 :laughing:

Man you messed up my day.

Has anyone played around with the 8 tooth vs. stock 7 tooth drive gear on these classes of Stihl's? I bought a new 7 tooth one yesterday and it was under $7 so if the 8th is not that much more it would not brake the bank. It may bog the engine on a full cut. There was no bogging in the one cut I made with the new chain yesterday and it went really fast.

From tool and die I understand cutting rates of different metals and cutting tools usage.

At some point will a chainsaw be cutting so fast that the cutting edge will fail quickly or is that not a problem with cutting wood?

Even with the little 021 the chain can throw some sparks even when the hard dead tree is free of dirt, etc.

 

[xyz123]

Man you messed up my day.

Has anyone played around with the 8 tooth vs. stock 7 tooth drive gear on these classes of Stihl's? I bought a new 7 tooth one yesterday and it was under $7 so if the 8th is not that much more it would not brake the bank. It may bog the engine on a full cut. There was no bogging in the one cut I made with the new chain yesterday and it went really fast.

From tool and die I understand cutting rates of different metals and cutting tools usage.

At some point will a chainsaw be cutting so fast that the cutting edge will fail quickly or is that not a problem with cutting wood?

Even with the little 021 the chain can throw some sparks even when the hard dead tree is free of dirt, etc.

Talking 3/8 right? I have ran both 7 and 8 on them depending on bar length and type work at hand. 7 more torque for bucking cuts and 8 more chain speed for limbing

 

[Gale Hawkins]

Talking 3/8 right? I have ran both 7 and 8 on them depending on bar length and type work at hand. 7 more torque for bucking cuts and 8 more chain speed for limbing

Yes 3/8 chain.

Have you noticed any shorter chain life or more adjusting required when running the 8?

 

[Gale Hawkins]

[ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XQaVIys23WE&feature=related]MS361 vs MS460 - YouTube[/ame]

This guy has both 361 and 460 ported saws and prefers the 361.

 

[Furu]

Congratulations on a getting great saw, you will like using it.
As you posted the chain was very dull. From that comment and the look of the bar I would definitely replace the bar and/or get the old bar dressed as the wear on your new chain from a damaged bar is significant. (Looks like you got a new bar already from a later post)
I would also look at replacing the drive sprocket as running with a DULL chain not only can damage the bar but can damage the sprocket. With a new bar and chain you might still have a worn out sprocket which will cause quick wear and damage to the new bar and chain. At least inspect the drive sprocket for wear.