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.