Husqvarna vs. Stihl

[art]

Better than an Oregon chain? Why? All the dealers only seem to carry Oregon chain.

Being a dealer with Stihl and a past husqvarna dealer which we gave up about ten years ago I will tell you what the oregon chain wholesaler told me. "You will see your customers more often"! Stihl holds an edge longer which probably means a better grade of steel. There are other little things such as the groove to get the bar oil to the rivets, the teeth are sharpened before the the chain is put together so less chance of the filings being around the rivets when you get it.

 

[Sawyer Rob]

Stihl saw chain has better metal composition.

I use to run a lot of Stihl chain, it's harder and IF you keep it out of the dirt, it stays sharp a bit longer... BUT, it's also harder to sharpen, so I call it a wash...

I buy Oregon chain now and it cuts/works just fine for me...AND it cost quite a bit less than Stihl chain...

SR

 

[John_Mc]

I use to run a lot of Stihl chain, it's harder and IF you keep it out of the dirt, it stays sharp a bit longer... BUT, it's also harder to sharpen, so I call it a wash...

I buy Oregon chain now and it cuts/works just fine for me...AND it cost quite a bit less than Stihl chain...

SR

X2. I've run Stihl Chain. It's certainly good chain. The teeth are harder, so it does hold an edge longer (if you don't hit dirt/stone/metal, it doesn't matter: any chain will need sharpening). It definitely takes more effort to sharpen it, however, and it's more expensive.

I now run Oregon chain all the time. Slightly softer, so it can lose it's edge a bit faster, but it sharpens easily and cuts well and runs smoothly. I'm cutting mostly hardwoods (Beech, Oak, Maple, Hickory, Black Birch), or whatever that last big storm blew down.

I generally plan on touching my chain up after each tank or every other tank of gas (or whenever it's not "self-feeding" into the wood), but I tend to be obsessive about sharp chains (as a chainsaw safety/felling instructor once said: You don't sharpen a chain because it got dull, you sharpen it to keep it from getting dull.) The sharpening break also gives me a chance to "self-assess" how I'm doing. Something I don't pay enough attention to while I'm in the midst of cutting.

 

[Gary Fowler]

I have both Husky and Stihl and much prefer the Stihl. It cuts faster and starts easier. The Husky seems to have too much compression and just snatched the pull cord out of your hand when it hits the hard pull. I like that my Stihl has no primer bulb to pump to get it primed. My Husky was always a real bear to start and almost impossible to start after running it for a while. It would have to cool completely to start if you let it set 5 minutes after running it hard. If immediately started (within a couple of minutes) after working it started OK. My Stihl takes about 3 pulls to start when cold and just one pull after it warms up.
I rarely use the Husky now.

 

[RayfromTX]

I lovw my Stihl saws and I've used them for 34 years. The older ones were better but they work great. One pull with the choke and one without and away it goes.

Seriously thought what I really love is my chain sharpener that holds a round file and a flat file and sharpens the tooth at the same time as it files down the guide to the perfect depth. 4-5 passes per tooth and the saw is sharper than new and I can use it down until there is almost nothing left. It is made by Pferd. Make sure you get the right one for your saw chain and buy a box of the correct flat files and round files. I bought mine from treestuff.com but I see them on Amazon. Oregon chain is fine and sharpens easily. No chain will stay sharp when you hit rocks and I do a bit of that when I'm cutting stumps so it is good to use chain that sharpens nicely. The pros use oregon chains.

 

[yomax4]

I'm looking for a New/Different saw as well. I'd like to find a nice 036,360,361. I did see a new Echo CS600P-27 for $529 out the door. Never owned an echo and would rather buy a nice used Stihl or 562XP but I seldom ever see nice ones. No XP's at all.

 

[gsganzer]

I'll only buy the "pro" models of either Stihl or Husky. I have a 25 year old Husky 225R brush cutter that still runs strong. With saws, I like the Husky XP and recently bought a 550XP. It's been a great saw with plenty of power for my needs, but the chain lube is a miser even on the highest setting. I'm told that it's pretty common with the newer saws for environmental reasons.

I think if you buy the pro line of either, you'll be fine. I have checked out some of the Echo stuff and was pretty impressed with how it feels, but I have no experience running them. Folks say they're some of the easiest starting equipment they've used.

 

[xyz123]

All brands have good saws and bad ones. You just got to do your research of which model numbers to avoid.

 

[newbury]

Better than an Oregon chain? Why? All the dealers only seem to carry Oregon chain.

Being a dealer with Stihl and a past husqvarna dealer which we gave up about ten years ago I will tell you what the oregon chain wholesaler told me. "You will see your customers more often"! Stihl holds an edge longer which probably means a better grade of steel. There are other little things such as the groove to get the bar oil to the rivets, the teeth are sharpened before the the chain is put together so less chance of the filings being around the rivets when you get it.

Stihl chains require sharpening less often but more effort for sharpening. If you only sharpen chains ON the saw this might be a wash.
But if you sharpen off the saw then time is lost changing chains more often. And if you sharpen with an electric grinder I expect the difference in effort expended is minimal.

The groove for oiling is both good and bad. It allowed Stihl to use oilers that put out less. So in the US the 660's would tend to run on the dry side.
In Australia the 660 saws were sold with a different oiler that put out more. I bought one for each of my 660's. Now with a 36" bar I can sling oil off the end. And with a 42" bar I can mill WITHOUT an accessory oiler.

 

[Industrial Toys]

That's funny. All my Stihl saws put out great gobs of oil, all over everything.

 

[tractorshopper]

Not to hijack, but with the discussion of chains, does anyone have experience with the more expensive carbide type chains? Thoughts if so? I suck at sharpening and am thinking of buying one like fire depts have for demo. Supposed to cut through anything and last a long long time. Then you can send back for sharpening.

 

[Industrial Toys]

It might cut through anything, but bear in mind, it might not last as long as you think. It's always different when the tax payer is footing the bill. Cost is no object!

Apparently the rep for my Oregon Cordless saw, cuts a cinder block, then uses the on-saw sharpening system (that takes a mere few seconds) and then demonstrates how the chain again cuts wood.

 

[xyz123]

I did that with the oregon power now that oregon sent me to test out when they were new. Cut a brick part way used the on saw sharpener and was able to finish the cut. Couldnt do that with a regular 3/8LP chain

Good little homeowner deal with saws that run Picco 3/8LP.



I would look into carbide chain for a FD = TS

I just bought a ole FD saw that they couldnt use anymore due to the brake not working. Just had normal chain on it too.

 

[Rock Crawler]

Not to hijack, but with the discussion of chains, does anyone have experience with the more expensive carbide type chains? Thoughts if so? I suck at sharpening and am thinking of buying one like fire depts have for demo. Supposed to cut through anything and last a long long time. Then you can send back for sharpening.

If you suck at sharpening, maybe consider a half decent quality sharpener and you can then buy 3 Forester or Oregon chains to a standard single Stihl chain, and let the machine sharpen the chains. That removes you and your skills from the equation.

I run all Forester bars and chains, but I am good and quick at sharpening chains on the bar. I carry 3 chains in the case, but really only swap a chain out if I goober it up by hitting something that anyone but a goober would avoid.

forestershop.com

 

[ArlyA]

Since we work in the dirt and dull chains rather quickly, we asked the same qestion to our local chain supplier. There response was something to the effect "we charge XYZ to sharpen carbide chains.. We advise staying with standard ones" so we didn't get one. The fire department use them to cut through walls embedded with nails and they're not going to change out a dull chain while going that.

Not to hijack, but with the discussion of chains, does anyone have experience with the more expensive carbide type chains? Thoughts if so? I suck at sharpening and am thinking of buying one like fire depts have for demo. Supposed to cut through anything and last a long long time. Then you can send back for sharpening.

 

[tractorshopper]

I was looking at the Rapco chains. IIRC, they charge like $15 to resharpen. I pay $10 around here. I try to sharpen them with hand file and the electric tool, but they never seem to last very long like a brand new chain. I've heard of people getting 5-20 times more cuts out of the carbide chain so was thinking that may well be worth it if true. I just don't want to drop a hundo and find out it's not much better.

I'm no pro and don't run saws enough to really get to expert status. I use them to clean up, trim, or occasionally fell a tree. Seems I spend more on new chains and trips to the store that would make me believe it would be nice to have a long lasting chain on each saw that is ready for when needed each time and just have to send off once in a while for sharpening by the maker.

Some testimonials on their site say they have cut 20 cords of wood on one sharpening. That may be a lifetime of cuts for me.

 

[tractorshopper]

Oh, and on topic, I really like my Echo saw. Best saw I have owned. It's a 14". My 20" is an old Poulan Pro. When it dies, I'll probably buy another Echo or Stihl or Husky. Am watching this thread for that experience as well.

 

[Jchonline]

I have both, cut 50 or so trees a year. I dont have a preference. They are both great saws. Currently my choice is a Stihl MS 362 for the felling/bucking and a MS 241 for the limbing. For limbing the lighter the better...I have been considering an electric for this as well. Have 2 Huskys and still use them also.

 

[John_Mc]

I've only used a carbide chain a couple of times. It was brand new, so should have been sharp. It was very slow compared to my freshly sharpened steel chain. I just don't have the patience to use one. Plus, if you hit a rock, the chain is still trashed, only now you can't use it until you take it somewhere to get sharpened

It's not hard to learn how to sharpen a chain well by hand. In fact, it's not hard to learn to sharpen one better than some chains cut new out of the box. The key to getting good, consistent results is to use a file guide. I've met dozens of people who think they can sharpen very well with just a bare round file. I've met only two who actually can do what they think they can do.

One of the better saw chain sharpening instructional videos I've found is by one of the guys who teaches the Game of Logging classes here in Vermont: The Art & Science of Sawchain Sharpening It goes over a couple of the guides available, and how to use them. The guides are inexpensive, and easy to use. The video is not free, but it's well worth the $6.99 download fee if you want to learn how to sharpen chains correctly.

 

[goeduck]

I have both, cut 50 or so trees a year. I dont have a preference. They are both great saws. Currently my choice is a Stihl MS 362 for the felling/bucking and a MS 241 for the limbing. For limbing the lighter the better...I have been considering an electric for this as well. Have 2 Huskys and still use them also.

The MS 241 is a rare bird, it gets good reviews but does not seem too popular. I have been eying it for limbing as you use it for. How do you like it? What size bar do you have on it? What saw chain?