Pick me a 90cc and up CC chain saw.

[hedgerow]

Like the title says I am looking for a new or close to new 90cc saw. I had a 694 Solo for ten years it was a good saw but no decompress. I am getting older with shoulder issues and couldn't start it any more. I sold it. I don't use a big saw a lot at the farm but when I need one we need one and don't have any one I can borrow one from. I am not color blind so I am looking for the best starting saw value out there. I have several brands of saws but the main ones I use is a echo 360 I mostly use in my bucket trailer. My firewood making saws 038 and 461 Stihl  and a 6403 Makita. I have own all of them since new 038 doesn't get used a lot. 461 is four years old 6403 is almost 10 years old. They have both been great saws. Had to put a kill switch on the 6403 lately but other than regular maintenance both have been great saws. A 36 inch bar will cut any tree I have on any of my farms. I did throw a 36 inch on the 461 since I had sold the 694 it worked ok but it was a load. 461 is stock. Not really looking to redo it. 

[ehp]

395 husky, no more needs to be said 8)

[Fether Hardwoods]

ehp, Agreed 395's are hard to beat.

[HolmenTree]

I sold my 395XP that I bought brand  new 8 years ago.
I went back and restored my old Stihl 066's , using them to this day. Best 90cc saws ever.
Still lots of parts availability. 


 

 

[sawguy21]

Not a lot of choice left in that range. 395 or 3120XP from Husky  or MS661 and MS880 from Stihl. My back tells me go with the lighter one.

[Corley5]

I liked the 395 I had.  Great saw.

[wild262]

         I"d go with a older 066 or 660 as Holmen suggested.  If your like me, you won't run it that much, but when you need it, nothing replaces CC's.  That's why I keep a ole vintage 2094 around.  But if you want to buy new, a 395 or 661.

[weimedog]

I like my Husqvarna's even have a 298xp, bet its been a while since any one talked about them! The 394/5 are big heavy beasts and do what they were designed to do. I'm partial to the old style MS660's and even back to the 066's if you can find them clean.parts are still available through Stihl dealers and that is huge. The 390 Husqvarna's are my choice for everything but milling though. For me its A toss up between them (390's) and the 660's. I have both BTW. AND the 660 clones, too. Which is another point, unlike the 390's there are a ton of aftermarket parts for the 660's, plastic, covers, pretty much everything. That could be a selling point and tip the scales for some. So its easy to patch them up as well if needed. And actually I like the 385's just as much as the 390's but they don't qualify. They are like a big 372. 

[lxskllr]

What's that old saying; "No one got fired for choosing Stihl"? Something like that anyway.

:^P

[Dave Shepard]

The only saw currently being run in my lineup is my 395XP. 100+ tanks of fuel, never adjusted, I've only taken the air filter cover off three times to show people you don't have to clean the air filter. Push the decomp, pull once with choke, another pull with no choke and it's running. A real 066 would be great, but they are scarce these days. 

[Pine Ridge]

I would pick a 395 xp over a 660 or 066 any day.

[hedgerow]

I haven't been around a Husqvarna in many years. A buddy that I used to cut wood with bought a 372 it was a great running saw back then within a couple years he move out of the area. I am just a little worried about the M-Tronic set up on a new 661 I don't know any one that has had one and the dealers around here don't even stock any bigger than a 461. Used big saws around here don't exist. Too scared to buy a used saw on the internet sight unseen. I see a few what look to be nice used 660 out there on the internet. I under stand most of the time people are not like me if they own a big saw its been used and used a lot that's why they own it. Looks like a 395 or a 661 are around a $1200 saw for the  power head. It isn't any thing I have to buy right now. I used the 694 after harvest before I sold it and got down all the big stuff I need to take care of for a long time. I can always put a big bar on the 461 and get by for a while. The next big saw I buy should be the last big saw I ever need. Thanks for all the reply's.

[wild262]

     Hedgerow, I see your point in being a bit shy of buying a saw with an electronic carb.  I for one am the same way.  Pretty much 'old school' in a lot of ways when it comes to my equipment.  If between the 395xp and the 661, I'd have to pick the 395.  I really don't think you could go wrong with that model.  And I'm not the only one here that thinks so.  Stick one of those lite weight bars on it, and it should serve you many years.      Cut safely. ;)

[mike_belben]

Ive never run a big stihl, but ive had my 395 for about a decade and NEVER had to work on it. Ive never changed the plug and only tweaked the screws a time or two. I think i greased the clutch bearing one time when i changed sprockets.  Thats it. Its my big felling saw, big firewood saw and lumber milling saw so it gets its share of action.  I will never part with it.  Every time the wind clangs a piece of tin at 3am, i grab the 12G and run straight to the shed where my girls live to be sure theyre still tucked in. Daddy wont let em hurtcha babies. 


 

[reride82]

I have a pair of 395xp's and a 650 stihl for my big saws. My favorite is the older 395 as it fires on the first or second pull, then the newer 395 which can take up to 10 pulls but is usually in the 5-6 pulls. The 650 is decent, but it vapor locks once in a while and is incredibly cold blooded. I probably should do a carb rebuild on it or just get rid of it. Long story short, I love the 395xp's.

Levi

[hedgerow]

So were's the best place to order a 395 from? Not a lot of dealers in my area. 

[krustysurfer]

I haven't been around a Husqvarna in many years. A buddy that I used to cut wood with bought a 372 it was a great running saw back then within a couple years he move out of the area. I am just a little worried about the M-Tronic set up on a new 661 I don't know any one that has had one and the dealers around here don't even stock any bigger than a 461. Used big saws around here don't exist. Too scared to buy a used saw on the internet sight unseen. I see a few what look to be nice used 660 out there on the internet. I under stand most of the time people are not like me if they own a big saw its been used and used a lot that's why they own it. Looks like a 395 or a 661 are around a $1200 saw for the  power head. It isn't any thing I have to buy right now. I used the 694 after harvest before I sold it and got down all the big stuff I need to take care of for a long time. I can always put a big bar on the 461 and get by for a while. The next big saw I buy should be the last big saw I ever need. Thanks for all the reply's.

Local Stihl dealer refused to sell me a 661 for milling slabs. Dealer said they couldn't give me a warranty if i did so with that saw- they probably knew something i did not- the dealer said Mtronic could run lean and fry the powerhead in a milling set up. the dealer tried to talk me into the 880 which is $700+ so it forced my hand into the 395xp because of budget constraints and desiring a peaceful marriage. My 455R has served me well for almost 10 years- i Love Husqvarna Saws - stoked your happy on your saw! post up some slabbing picks after you get going. aloha td

[Greyhound]

So were's the best place to order a 395 from? Not a lot of dealers in my area.

I'd order from here  http://wickedworksaw.com/husqvarna.htm  Ported of course since I'm spending your money. 

[sawguy21]

krustysurfer, it doesn't sound like the dealer has much if any experience with milling applications. Talk to somebody who has.

[hedgerow]

So what happen to the Husqvarna brick and mortar stores. I don't go to many small engine shops as I do my own work and usually buy parts on line because I usually don't need them right away. I thought yesterday was a nice day around here so I would go for a drive. Looked on line for Husqvarna dealers within 60 miles of home. Three were listed I knew the one was a large dealer as I had tried to buy a zero turn mower from them years ago and they were a large Husqvarna saw dealer. Pulled up to the first one shop closed. Headed to shop two it had changed hands and only carried Stihl. Headed to the last one that used to be a large Husqvarna dealer not now. He currently sells Stihl and Echo he couldn't say enough bad about Husqvarna and them putting there saws in the farm stores. So are the brick and mortar stores gone?

[krustysurfer]

krustysurfer, it doesn't sound like the dealer has much if any experience with milling applications. Talk to somebody who has.

Hey *Saw Guy* good morning!   naw they have plenty of experience- I do trust them, not with my money though(personal flaw of mine... maybe it is theirs? maybe a little of both)
  Holland Michigan(where we are) used to be one of the largest furniture MFG towns in the USA, we have had many furn. mfg. shutter over the last few decades however, Hermann Miller and others are still here milling up wood, producing furniture, and out competing the Chinese for now with dutch ingenuity.(whew that was quite the run on sentence there and no coffee yet)
  The Local Stihl dealer has several 880s floating around town here in a few milling operations (one is a pallet mfg so their 880s are going hard every single day i believe)- they really know their stuff ;) furthermore they also have experienced plenty of shady homeowner contractor types who break stuff and then try to return broken equipment when it was their own fault for the failure. so their reluctance at selling me a MS661 is understood on my end and why there is no bad blood with them(even though they have taken forever to give money back on a Echo CS800 we had ordered) however when they found out what i was going to do with the Echo they balked and and gave me a few choices to choose from. The Stihl dealer offered the 880 with a solid warranty or a Echo 800 Stihl ms661 with no real warranty in place- (30 days) or a full  refund- we chose refund and hoofed it down to Husqy Dealer -
where Uli Husqvarnason (my woodchopping alter ego) got his hands on that 395xp! that 395 that has not even been run by me yet! 8)  i have not decided what alaskan milling setup (skip tooth? Round chain? or changing sprocket to accommodate .025 bar and chain?-i am worried about snapping & flying chains though if i try that) to go with yet as well as i am trying to find a not too old Big (Sub 100cc's)  Mcculloch Saw as a backup machine that will give me an excuse for my wife to play with chainsaw engines ;D in the garage/workshop we are in the process of building.

Sorry OP for hijacking this thread.... raker raker gud buddy over and out- td

[mike_belben]

So were's the best place to order a 395 from? Not a lot of dealers in my area.

No idea where you are located but the cumberland farmers co-op has a brand new one on the shelf in crossville tennessee.  Theyre the best saw shop we have, 2 great guys work in it and they deal husky and stihl.  I cant say enough good about those boys and im sure theyd mail it.  I think it has an $1100 tag on it but i could be wrong.  Been there atleast 3 yrs.

A decade old 395 still brings $800 or so. 

[smoked]

I had the same problem finding a Husky dealer with one on the shelf.  The one I found close would order one but only came off list price about 5%. When I called back for more info, I had to leave a message and got no reply.  My Stihl dealer did give me 2 years on the 661 knowing I am not commercial and knowing I would do slabbing with it.  They several ready to go out the door with 36" .50 3/8 and gave me a decent discount.

The statement about mtronic going lean while slabbing concerns me a bit.  I wonder if it was a concern about the unknown or if it was real experience?  I have had mine about 18 months and have probably 30 tanks slabbing so don't do a tun of work with it, but am happy so far.  On one 90+ degree day a had one hot start porblem but one pull with the throttle open got it going.  Other than that, very easy starting saw!  I also liked that I could run .50 bar and chain.  I don't think Husky has a .50 36" bar?

[hedgerow]

Smoked
Thanks for the reply. I don't think I am going to buy the 395 Husky there isn't enough price difference to mail order one and have no dealer support. Its good to hear from someone with real live experience with the 661c. I won't be using this 90cc saw a ton either. I am just a farmer that needs to take down a big tree once an a while and need a saw with a 36 inch bar on it. After shoulder surgery starting my Solo 694 with no compression release is a no go so I sold it. I have enough farm expenses for this year so I think after the first when things are slow for these dealers I will see whats the best price and maybe try to get the dealer to extend the warranty time out as I won't be using this lot a ton. You and yours have a great holiday.  

[Weekend_Sawyer]

I have the 661 C-M and the 261 C-M. Love em.

My dealer tried to tell me that if I used the 661 for milling the warranty would be void. He was wrong.

I contacted Stihl via their "Contact Us" button on their web page and asked them directly if using the saw with an Alaskan mill to mill lumber would void the warranty. The answer was no.

I printed out that email and attached it to my owners manual.

Jon