Even cheaper echo 590 cousin just hair over 400 has decomp. Still way better saw then the plastic ones. CS-590 Timber Wolf | ECHO-USA.com
Talk me out of a 460 Rancher
- Thread starter NibbanaFarm
- Start date
I’m a bit of a chainsaw freak. I have stihl and husqvarna. I have several pro saws and one not pro saw at this point. First off decide what your budget is. If money is no object at all get a ported 500i. I have one and it’s totally insane but I realize that’s not for everyone. If I could only keep one of my other saws it would be the 562xp. That’s a great all around saw it can run a 20” bar pretty well and it’s not heavy. I’ve used lotta saws I started with a 455 rancher. wasn’t a bad saw but I got all into the pro saws. There’s cheaper nice saws but im Not sure your budget.
I like both brands but the one thing that bothers me about stihl is how dirty the air filters get compared to my husky’s.currently i Have194t,200t,543xp,346xpne,262xp,562xp,jonsered 2066, stihl 066 and the ported 500i.
I like both brands but the one thing that bothers me about stihl is how dirty the air filters get compared to my husky’s.currently i Have194t,200t,543xp,346xpne,262xp,562xp,jonsered 2066, stihl 066 and the ported 500i.
jyoutz
Super Member
Agree. I’ve had a Stihl 038 pro saw for about 25 years and it still runs great.If you're only on a couple of acres and don't make firewood, a farm and ranch saw will probably do.
I don't think the "reputation" of the big top 2 (stihl & husky) carry too far over into their HD, TSC retail line.
Buying a "pro" saw even tho your not a logger or professional arborist definitely has advantages in terms of longevity, reparability, and dependability.
ECHO has a very good lineup that I think are far superior to these big 2 homeowner offerings. They also have a very good warranty. (that I've never needed)
The worst thing to do is buy a too small (cc's) to begin with. Disregard how long of a bar you can buy to fit it. Displacement matters and for chainsaw milling, even more so. My 2 newest saws are 50 and 60cc's to fill in under my 70cc 044 Stihl. That strangely has gotten heavier in the 20+ years that I've had it.
Both of my new saws are Echo. The cs 490 is light and a great little limbing saw but I discovered that there's a better "pro" option that I was unaware of. I don't recall the number/model. $300 +/-
My 60cc is a cs 620p, this is the pro edition of the 590 Timberwolf. $600 out the door about 2 years ago. It's got some chit with it and even the cs hot rodders both stihl and husky don't have any bad words other than a couple of extra ounces of weight and a few hundred less rpm's.
Check this out on YouTube, that's where I did my homework.
arto98607
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If I understood correctly, the OP does not want a chainsaw with "microelectronics", so that pretty well eliminates 500i, "the first ever chainsaw on the worldwide market with electronically controlled fuel injection" - according to Stihl.
I agree with OP, no autotune or computerized chainsaws for me ever, and will stick with ones where I can manually tune L & H jets.
I agree with OP, no autotune or computerized chainsaws for me ever, and will stick with ones where I can manually tune L & H jets.
sea2summit
Elite Member
I’m sorry but this is completely unhelpful. There are many grades and sizes of saw with those two brands. You’re basically saying “I had cars and I didn’t like them so I got a Honda civic.”
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sea2summit
Elite Member
500i is starting to see a lot of issues. Not with the “i” but with how light they went on other components to try and keep it competitive in weight/power ratio with the 46x I think. Lot of broken handles due to thin metal and other breakages not common in their other pro grade saws.
OP
NibbanaFarm
Silver Member
Thanks for the replies.
Just to clarify a couple things. All chainsaws may or may not leak oil. None of them should be dumping a tank of oil overnight. I've had a number of saws and none of them leaked very much oil if any except that for new 445, which after spending a couple months at the dealer now doesn't leak any.
AFAIK, the longest bar for the 445 is 20". It looks like the lesser Echo recommended has 2 different specs for the bars. One includes a 24" and the other doesn't so I'm not sure about this.
I want a 24" or longer bar. That's why I'm buying a new saw. The saw must have a compression release. I don't want a saw with any type of electronic fuel management. I don't have the knowledge or training to work on these engines. If I can't repair and tune my own saw then I don't want it. I don't want to be at the mercy of these dealer's stratospheric hourly rates and long wait times.
One thing I don't so much like about the Stihl (or Echo presumably). And I don't know if this is true for all of them. I have a Echo trimmer that had a gummed up carb. I cleaned it out but needed to tune it because it wouldn't idle well. There is a plastic plug over the low speed mixture screw that prevents access. I watched a YT video and there is a special Stihl tool to remove this plug. So I can only assume that these are the same carbs as on Stihl chainsaws. I went to the local Stihl dealer and he refused to sell me the removal tool. Said they don't want people fooling with them. (And I understand that he wants people to pay him to tune their saws.) Anyway, I could have ordered it online but I ended up drilling the plug out in order to adjust the mixture which was no big deal. What I particularly didn't like was that this mixture screw took a microscopically small straight blade screwdriver to adjust it. Very hard to adjust when the trimmer is running. The Husqvarna mixture screws are very easy to adjust with the special tool which is available for cheap online.
I cut mainly firewood and general cleanup. I did rip some lumber just for fun but really don't plan on doing this often if ever. I have a very small Jotul 602 that I use to heat the living room above the normal house hydroponic heat which I set at 55F. Usually just burn the stove in the evening. The amount of firewood I cut is limited to the amount that this 61 year old can hand split. So not a whole lot.
Nibbana
Just to clarify a couple things. All chainsaws may or may not leak oil. None of them should be dumping a tank of oil overnight. I've had a number of saws and none of them leaked very much oil if any except that for new 445, which after spending a couple months at the dealer now doesn't leak any.
AFAIK, the longest bar for the 445 is 20". It looks like the lesser Echo recommended has 2 different specs for the bars. One includes a 24" and the other doesn't so I'm not sure about this.
I want a 24" or longer bar. That's why I'm buying a new saw. The saw must have a compression release. I don't want a saw with any type of electronic fuel management. I don't have the knowledge or training to work on these engines. If I can't repair and tune my own saw then I don't want it. I don't want to be at the mercy of these dealer's stratospheric hourly rates and long wait times.
One thing I don't so much like about the Stihl (or Echo presumably). And I don't know if this is true for all of them. I have a Echo trimmer that had a gummed up carb. I cleaned it out but needed to tune it because it wouldn't idle well. There is a plastic plug over the low speed mixture screw that prevents access. I watched a YT video and there is a special Stihl tool to remove this plug. So I can only assume that these are the same carbs as on Stihl chainsaws. I went to the local Stihl dealer and he refused to sell me the removal tool. Said they don't want people fooling with them. (And I understand that he wants people to pay him to tune their saws.) Anyway, I could have ordered it online but I ended up drilling the plug out in order to adjust the mixture which was no big deal. What I particularly didn't like was that this mixture screw took a microscopically small straight blade screwdriver to adjust it. Very hard to adjust when the trimmer is running. The Husqvarna mixture screws are very easy to adjust with the special tool which is available for cheap online.
I cut mainly firewood and general cleanup. I did rip some lumber just for fun but really don't plan on doing this often if ever. I have a very small Jotul 602 that I use to heat the living room above the normal house hydroponic heat which I set at 55F. Usually just burn the stove in the evening. The amount of firewood I cut is limited to the amount that this 61 year old can hand split. So not a whole lot.
Nibbana
500i isn’t for everyone. Most people won’t spend that much on a chainsaw. I’ve had mine a couple years and it’s been nothing but perfect. I can’t say how a stock one runs as I had mine ported before I even put gas in it. It totally walks my 066. Imo a great all around firewood saw size is in the 60cc range. Of if you wanna carry more weight a 70cc. Personally I’d everyday a 60cc over a 70 for the weight savings. Antivibe is to be considered too.
Hay Dude
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I love my bone stock 500i, but way too early to tell.
Actually REALLY like my 261C, too and have ran a lot of tanks through it. A real nice saw.
I haven’t detected that my 500i was weak from a structural view. I am more skeptical about the electronics. I wouldn’t want to handle more than a 500i with a 25” bar more than a few hours at this stage in life anyway.
I hope they both work out because they feel right and I want to ride off into the sun with them-maybe add a small climber this year.