What is the best battery operated chain saw

[Industrial Toys]

When my dealer friend showed me the Oregon Battery powered saw, with integral chain sharpener, I had to have one. I just carry it in my Utility vehicle in case of a downed tree accross the road, so I really have not used it much. Also, the special chain and internal stone are a bit pricy. I have also used it in a basket for trimming branches.

Reminds me. I should go out and fetch my Oregon batteries. Lion aren't supposed to be left in the cold, so I hear.

 

[lostcreekranch]

Bang for the buck, the HF Lynxx 40V chain saw and pole saw .... can't be beat.

4V Lithium 14 in. Cordless Chain Saw

4V Lithium Cordless Pole Saw

While you're at it ...... get the blower too.

4V Lithium Cordless Blower

Search for HF coupons.

I've got an Echo 18" chain saw and 12" pole saw for the big stuff.

 

[k0ua]

Something to think about.. I have one of the old Greenworks 18volt saws. It worked pretty well, but only used it once in a while. It used NiMh batteries. Guess what went dead. Of course the battery is dead. Now fast forward, I have many Ryobi 18 volt tools all using the 18 volt Lithium batteries. I have 3 batteries and way more tools. None of the Lithium batteries have went dead yet, but of course they will eventually. BUT I am constantly using and rotating charging the batteries because I have so many tools for them including the pole chainsaw which works pretty well. I would like to have the new 18 volt brush-less chainsaw they just come out with. Here is my thinking, if you buy a 40 volt saw and having nothing else that uses the 40 volt battery platform, you run a risk of killing the battery from disuse. Now maybe you but more limbs and things than I do, but I have several drills and impacts and saws that use my 18 volt platform so my batteries will always be used and charged and ready to rotate out. That is the main reason I would buy the 18 volt brush-less chainsaw over their 40 volt saw. Just something to think about. I even thought about building an adapter to let my greenworks saw which is now useless on a ryobi battery. I don't want to even invest in another 50 dollar greenworks battery because it would just go dead from disuse after a while too. I would rather invest the money in a new saw.

 

[ededic]

We got my dad a Husqvarna battery operated for Fathers day this year and I am pleasantly surprised how much power and longevity it has.

He is no longer able to start the gassers so this was a real life saver for him to carry in his side by side UTV. He uses it to cut firewood right along side of his sons and it is light enough not to tire him out.

 

[John_Mc]

Reminds me. I should go out and fetch my Oregon batteries. Lion aren't supposed to be left in the cold, so I hear.

I had not heard that. I know batteries tend to do better when they are not cold, but I did not think storing them in cold was an issue (except perhaps if you get WAY down in temperature). When I used to do winter camping, we'd pull the alkaline batteries and replace them with Lithium due to their better cold-weather performance - though perhaps those were different technology than the Lithium-Ion batteries used in these tools?

 

[HillStreet]

I used my DeWalt recip today pruning trees and it worked fine here at 18 degrees F. However, I will take this advice and leave it stored inside when not in use.

 

[HillStreet]

Oh another comment. A battery operated chain saw? Never in my life would I think that would work but after reading the comments above I think it has a good future in the right application.

 

[John_Mc]

Oh another comment. A battery operated chain saw? Never in my life would I think that would work but after reading the comments above I think it has a good future in the right application.

It wasn't all that long ago that the battery operated chainsaw were all junk, but there are some decent ones out there now.

 

[Industrial Toys]

Heck. Battery powered lawn mowers are gaining popularity quickly!

 

[shooterdon]

Heck. Battery powered lawn mowers are gaining popularity quickly!

There is a battery powered zero turn

 

[Industrial Toys]

Is that how many turns it can make on a charge? lol

 

[k0ua]

Is that how many turns it can make on a charge? lol

Zero. Duh!

 

[4570Man]

There is a battery powered zero turn

I think I’ll keep my 30 hp diesel mower. I could see the usefulness of the battery saw but a lot of the battery stuff is near useless.

 

[mopardude318]

Ive had excellent results with all of the Milwaukee M18 fuel tools. Their new chainsaw is on my list.

 

[sea2summit]

There is a battery powered zero turn

There is also a battery powered welder on the market.

 

[beowulf]

This is a very timely post for me. I have gas powered chain saws for firewood and such, but have wondered about whether a battery operated chain saw would 1) really work well enough, and 2) be a good option for walking the fence line and cleaning up limbs and trees that fall across my barb wire fences taking them out, and really thick bushes that intrude. We have 90 acres - fenced and cross fenced and I have to walk to get to most of the fencing and there are some very steep areas. Carrying my gas chain saw down some ravines and back out at my age, 75, is not easy. So I weighed my smallest gas powered chain saw (Husq Rancher 455) and it was a bit over 17 lbs - I don't know how much gas it had in it then. Then saw that the 40 volt battery powered chain saws were in the 10 lb range - I don't know if that was the weight with the battery on or not. If so, well, 7 lbs is not a huge difference in weight - but still important when in steep terrain, so I am still debating if I want to spend $150 + on a saw and more on an extra battery. I want an extra battery because I will be a long way from the shop on winding back "roads" and once I am out there I don't want to have to come back in on a slow tractor.

Anyway, this post has caused me to be less concerned about how well they will work. So, now need to decide if 7 lbs difference is worth paying for another saw. The information here has been useful.

 

[Gale Hawkins]

I can not speak to the quality of our HF chainsaw and pole saw yet but since the blower and line trimmer are keepers that gives us 4 of the 40 volt batteries. With the blower cleaning off the bush hog before the cuttings cake on top of it is a short job now.

 

[John_Mc]

This is a very timely post for me. I have gas powered chain saws for firewood and such, but have wondered about whether a battery operated chain saw would 1) really work well enough, and 2) be a good option for walking the fence line and cleaning up limbs and trees that fall across my barb wire fences taking them out, and really thick bushes that intrude. We have 90 acres - fenced and cross fenced and I have to walk to get to most of the fencing and there are some very steep areas. Carrying my gas chain saw down some ravines and back out at my age, 75, is not easy. So I weighed my smallest gas powered chain saw (Husq Rancher 455) and it was a bit over 17 lbs - I don't know how much gas it had in it then. Then saw that the 40 volt battery powered chain saws were in the 10 lb range - I don't know if that was the weight with the battery on or not. If so, well, 7 lbs is not a huge difference in weight - but still important when in steep terrain, so I am still debating if I want to spend $150 + on a saw and more on an extra battery. I want an extra battery because I will be a long way from the shop on winding back "roads" and once I am out there I don't want to have to come back in on a slow tractor.

Anyway, this post has caused me to be less concerned about how well they will work. So, now need to decide if 7 lbs difference is worth paying for another saw. The information here has been useful.

From several reviews, the Milwaukee M18 chainsaw weight 10.6 or 10.7 pounds with bar & chains, but without the battery and with the bar oil tank empty. With the 12 AH M18 battery, it comes to 14 lbs. Filling the oil tank adds about another 0.4 lbs.

I've always felt the Husqvarna 455 was a bit of a pig for weight compared to it's power. The Husqvarna 450 weighs significantly less, and only loses a little on the power as compared to the 455. The Stihl 250 is similar in power to the Husky 450, but weighs about a pound less. The pro-level saws in that power range for both brands are significantly lighter.

When comparing published weights, remember that most gas chainsaws specified weight is for the powerhead only: no bar and chain, and tanks empty. The weights for the Milwaukee chainsaw above included the bar & chain.

I really like the Milwaukee saw. For me it would be a no-brainer, if I ever decide to own one (rather than just trying out my friend's), since I already have a fair amount invested in the Milwaukee M18 products.

Home Depot is currently showing a sale where you can get the saw with two of their 12 AH batteries for $399. However, this sale special comes without their RapidCharger (actually, without any charger). That's OK if you already have one. If you don't, you can charge it with their regular charger, but it takes longer (the RapidCharger is really nice for the larger battery sizes).

 

[Gale Hawkins]

While we went with HF 40 volt tools because the wife wanted a line trimmer that did not require a big jerk to start and the leaf blower is a work horse around the place the Milwaukee M18 line of tools may be what we standardize around.

We have the M12 flashlight (used daily for a few years) and the M12 grease gun that is awesome. The factories around here have moved to the M18 line they purchase from Fastenal (sp). Having one power source for many hand tools works for most. I have not seen the M18 chainsaw but I have not seen Milwaukee put their name on junk. I use the HF leaf blower of a couple hours non stop recently and started with 3 hot batteries and never had to wait only using one of our four chargers. The run and charge time was about 20 minutes using the blower in Turbo mode.

M18 is what I am looking at for 3/8" and 1/2" drive power tools to use when working on equipment. Cords are so yesteryear.

 

[sea2summit]

From several reviews, the Milwaukee M18 chainsaw weight 10.6 or 10.7 pounds with bar & chains, but without the battery and with the bar oil tank empty. With the 12 AH M18 battery, it comes to 14 lbs. Filling the oil tank adds about another 0.4 lbs.

I've always felt the Husqvarna 455 was a bit of a pig for weight compared to it's power. The Husqvarna 450 weighs significantly less, and only loses a little on the power as compared to the 455. The Stihl 250 is similar in power to the Husky 450, but weighs about a pound less. The pro-level saws in that power range for both brands are significantly lighter.

When comparing published weights, remember that most gas chainsaws specified weight is for the powerhead only: no bar and chain, and tanks empty. The weights for the Milwaukee chainsaw above included the bar & chain.

I really like the Milwaukee saw. For me it would be a no-brainer, if I ever decide to own one (rather than just trying out my friend's), since I already have a fair amount invested in the Milwaukee M18 products.

Home Depot is currently showing a sale where you can get the saw with two of their 12 AH batteries for $399. However, this sale special comes without their RapidCharger (actually, without any charger). That's OK if you already have one. If you don't, you can charge it with their regular charger, but it takes longer (the RapidCharger is really nice for the larger battery sizes).

Because the battery didn’t come charged wife went out and tester hers with one of my 4AH batteries, trimmed 5-6 ~2-3 inch branches then cut four rounds from a 12”+ (bar could barely reach through) deadfall pine before it was done. Didn’t cut a lot but if weight is a big concern the 4AH is half the weight of the 12AH battery. Compared to my 391 it’s light either way