Discussion
Keeping an eye on a couple of second hand Stihl's on ebay as an alternative to keep borrowing a mates Ryobi, but I've seen several ads for Woodfield saws which seem ridiculously cheap (£70 for a 61.5cc with 20" blade, or £90 with an Oregon bar and chain). I'm thinking if it looks to good to be true there's probably a reason, anyone got one?
I think Stihl are really good, and can't comment on the particular budget make you are looking at, but I got a 45cc saw with a 45cm blade for £100 off e-bay. I've had it for a while and it's done plenty of work, it starts first pull, and has plenty of power.
For professional use I think you need the quality of a stihl or similar but for general use I think the cheaper ones can be fine.
For professional use I think you need the quality of a stihl or similar but for general use I think the cheaper ones can be fine.
RizzoTheRat said:
Stihl would be my preference as it's what my father's always had, but wondering if a cheapy one is going to be good enough for the job of chopping up firewood every year or more hassle than it's worth. The Ryobi I've borrowed isn't great but it gets the job done.
Chopping up firewood is what I use mine for. Like I said, hassle? It starts first time, it cuts up wood. That's all there is to it really. One thing, don't be tempted by a cheap top handled one.
Oh and use the money saved to buy a chainsaw helmet, chainsaw gloves & trousers.
It's pot luck - I bought an Echo new (a good make) and it lasted less than 40hrs before it blew up - it turned out to be a manufacturing flaw but as it happened after a year - tough.
The main difference between the good makes and the cheap ones is parts availability - however the new parts for my saw were £150 - I could have bought a new cheap saw.
From this my partner simply buys cheap saws and chucks them when they break.
I bought new Husqvarnas as they are nicer to use and should last a long time.
The used saws on Ebay sell for far too much - 10+yr old Stihls seem to fetch 50% of their new cost - I'd rather buy it new and sell it at 10yrs old on Ebay.
The main difference between the good makes and the cheap ones is parts availability - however the new parts for my saw were £150 - I could have bought a new cheap saw.
From this my partner simply buys cheap saws and chucks them when they break.
I bought new Husqvarnas as they are nicer to use and should last a long time.
The used saws on Ebay sell for far too much - 10+yr old Stihls seem to fetch 50% of their new cost - I'd rather buy it new and sell it at 10yrs old on Ebay.
Get a stihl, I have a new ms181 and it is awesome =)
I bought a still leaf blower for £40 at a car boot a couple of years ago, it is battered to hell and covered in cement or something but it always starts.
The best thing with the bigger names is the parts supply, it is pretty much all available next day from the interweb and there is a wealth of info on fixing them.
My top tip is to buy the stihl sharpening set for your chain and learn how to use it, the sets are £15 tops and keeping the chain sharp makes the world of difference =)
If you bugger it up too much then a new chain is only £20 or so but it is easy with a bit of practice.
I bought a still leaf blower for £40 at a car boot a couple of years ago, it is battered to hell and covered in cement or something but it always starts.
The best thing with the bigger names is the parts supply, it is pretty much all available next day from the interweb and there is a wealth of info on fixing them.
My top tip is to buy the stihl sharpening set for your chain and learn how to use it, the sets are £15 tops and keeping the chain sharp makes the world of difference =)
If you bugger it up too much then a new chain is only £20 or so but it is easy with a bit of practice.
Renovation said:
The used saws on Ebay sell for far too much - 10+yr old Stihls seem to fetch 50% of their new cost - I'd rather buy it new and sell it at 10yrs old on Ebay.
2nd hand saw on ebay are too expensive. I bought an stihl ms170 new. I paid £135 for it and comes with a 3 year warranty. At the time, they where selling for over £100 2nd on ebay. A mate of mine is a tree surgeon and said I would be fine with this saw for what I wanted it for. So I reasoned, if the saw wasn't up to what I wanted if for, I could flog it on ebay for nearly what I paid for it and get a bigger one. To be honest its a little under powered, and a larger saw would have been better. But I only use it for cutting fire wood and it has done everything I wanted it to. I bought one of these from the bay a couple of years ago and it's been great. I only use it maybe 20-30 hours per year but to date I can't fault it.
I couldn't really justify a professional chainsaw for the use I have.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/NEW-2015-THE-BEST-POWERF...
I couldn't really justify a professional chainsaw for the use I have.
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/NEW-2015-THE-BEST-POWERF...
Yep, go Husky or Stihl every time. The reason the old saws fetch so much is because of the drop in quality - an old Stihl 041 from the 1970s/80s will still fetch £150-£200 all day long, because they are all magnesium build and last forever - and you can still get pretty much any part new, for cheap.
The newer generation saws use much more plastic, and are crippled by emissions regulations so they run super-lean and often can't even have the carb adjusted, not what you want really when you consider that they could be used at any altitude and need a richer or leaner mixture.
The newer generation saws use much more plastic, and are crippled by emissions regulations so they run super-lean and often can't even have the carb adjusted, not what you want really when you consider that they could be used at any altitude and need a richer or leaner mixture.
Try Mitox. My local place does these, and they're not big enough to want to have them back all the time, so I picked mine up from there. It's been great so far, bar needing a little 'runnier' chain oil in this weather than what I had left in the shed.
They do a big range and in that range they have different 'grades'.
Starts easily, cuts well, easy to adjust. I was using mine at the same time as the blokes doing my garden where using their Stihls - didn't suffer much in the comparison for me.
Everyone goes on about Stihl or Husky, but generally these guys are using theirs all day every day.
They do a big range and in that range they have different 'grades'.
Starts easily, cuts well, easy to adjust. I was using mine at the same time as the blokes doing my garden where using their Stihls - didn't suffer much in the comparison for me.
Everyone goes on about Stihl or Husky, but generally these guys are using theirs all day every day.
Willy Nilly said:
I would assume a second hand chainsaw has been nicked unless the seller can prove otherwise.
I've had my chainsaw over 10 years now but the box and the receipt are long gone. I could tell you the name of the retailer, but he'll have forgotten me by now and I doubt that his records go back that far.So how could I prove that I didn't steal it?
I have an MS170. it's done me proud and now tends to get lent out to friends rather than me using it.
Now don#t laugh but has any one used an electric one? My neighbour had a huge conifer tree he wanted cut down. I went at it with my saw and he with his. I had a go with the cheap electric one he bought from Lidl and I have to say it's very impressive, plenty of torque, light and the chain stops dead the instant you release the trigger.
Now don#t laugh but has any one used an electric one? My neighbour had a huge conifer tree he wanted cut down. I went at it with my saw and he with his. I had a go with the cheap electric one he bought from Lidl and I have to say it's very impressive, plenty of torque, light and the chain stops dead the instant you release the trigger.
I did wonder about an electric one but then I'd still need to borrow a petrol one to dismember trees to a size I can fit in the car. you can even get rechargeable ones these days but no idea how powerful they are and 20 mins battery life could get frustrating.
Got my eye on a Stihl MS170 on e-bay that's collection only (so hopefully keep the price down and unlikely to be stolen IMO) and looks to be in good condition. Only 30cc and 12" cut but probably enough for what I want. However earlier comment about people only getting rid of them when they're a problem has got me wondering if it's worth spending double on a new one knowing I can always sell it for a decent price. It sounds like several people have had cheap ones without major issues too.
My main trouble is I'm a skinflint and don't want to spend too much cash on a saw in order to save money on gas central heating
Got my eye on a Stihl MS170 on e-bay that's collection only (so hopefully keep the price down and unlikely to be stolen IMO) and looks to be in good condition. Only 30cc and 12" cut but probably enough for what I want. However earlier comment about people only getting rid of them when they're a problem has got me wondering if it's worth spending double on a new one knowing I can always sell it for a decent price. It sounds like several people have had cheap ones without major issues too.
My main trouble is I'm a skinflint and don't want to spend too much cash on a saw in order to save money on gas central heating
If you can't run to Stihl of Husqvarna, have a look at McCulloch. They are under the same conglomerate as Husqvarna and use the same engines. I've got CS400, even the ID label lists Husqvarna as the manufacturer. It is great for cutting up branches and logs and have felled a couple of trees without two much effort, although you'd want something a bit bigger if felling was the main use.. Very easy to start, it has some sort of system to assist this automatically.
Tips for a reliable saw. Good quality 2t oil carefully mixed, give the chain a quick tickle with the sharpening file after every use and don't let it run out of chain oil.
Tips for a reliable saw. Good quality 2t oil carefully mixed, give the chain a quick tickle with the sharpening file after every use and don't let it run out of chain oil.
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