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stihl 090 worth buying for milling or just an antique/collectible

Started by recurve60, April 27, 2018, 11:42:47 PM

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recurve60

I have an opportunity to buy a stihl 090 for milling in excellent shape with a brand new electronic ignition.  i currently mill up to 30" softwood with a 288xp and it mills fine.  just want to know opinions on the stihl 090 and if it is all it is cracked up to be.  I can purchase it for around $500-$700 canadian dollars.  any input is appreciated. i may mill up to 48" softwood occasionally if i get the 090.

sawguy21

Grab it before it's gone, the 090's are in demand. It is a beast for milling.
old age and treachery will always overcome youth and enthusiasm

thecfarm

Model 6020-20hp Manual Thomas bandsaw,TC40A 4wd 40 hp New Holland tractor, 450 Norse Winch, Heatmor 400 OWB,YCC 1978-79

recurve60

been running chainsaws for 10 plus years, only milling for last few months, i work at a chainsaw dealer now apprenticing as a mechanic with the owner who has 40 years experience

outinthewood

Yes as already said grab it ! However as for milling when I was running a single power head set up I used one of my 090s but when I changed to a double ended bar I decided to run two 2101 XPs, lot lighter and extra hand oiler, then just bought a new mill and with that got some of the new Oregon Hyper skip ripping chain which as an experiment I'm running a 72" bar with two 576 XPs which much to my surprise is doing the job just fine. The Hyper chain has 2 then 20 dls then 2 cutters etc etc the chain gives a rougher cut but for what my aim is it's fine. So my 090s are for now just running 60"s to cut of root plates and cutting stems to size. 

thecfarm

outinthewood,welcome to the forum.
Another chainsaw miller!!
Model 6020-20hp Manual Thomas bandsaw,TC40A 4wd 40 hp New Holland tractor, 450 Norse Winch, Heatmor 400 OWB,YCC 1978-79

thelogsmith

There's no replacement for displacement. You'll appreciate the cubes when sawing the bigger stuff. The power head weight not so much. I'm a husky fan but if I could get my hands on a couple 090's for my double ended bar set-ups I'd probably retire the 2100's  
tk1400, husky 2100's, a 298, 372's a 357 and a token stihl. john deere 317 skid steer. cut it twice and its still to short!

davetown12

My brother and I just sold our 090's. We have done a ton of chainsaw milling. That is a great price for an 090 but if you're milling softwood the performance may not be as good as the HP suggests. The 090 runs slower than modern saws and uses .404 chain means more kerf and slower cuts. We even ran double 090s and they would cut through anything but not that fast and chain dulling was severe b/c engines would not slow down when you hit knots. We run square chisel chain with our custom grinds and cut very fast and very smooth using Stihl 046M, 066M, Husqy 576XP, and 395XP (all single power head) with up 42" bars.

Brad_bb

I paid $1650 plus shipping for my 090 plus the 66" granberg alaskan mill.  I had to put about $500 in the 090 because it sat for so long on the shelf from the previous owner(new carb and complete regasket and bushings in the case).  I thought I got a really good price, even with the $500 I had to put in it.
Anything someone can design, I can sure figure out how to fix!
If I say it\\\\\\\'s going to take so long, multiply that by at least 3!

beauj5

Buy it!  Check eBay and see what they go for... you can't lose money on it and they are a piece of history. And they are awesome to run. As far as using it to mill with, there are better saws for that job.  I have an early 090 and I use it just for the hell of it to cut big wood because I can. If I'm doing production work or milling, I use my 880 or 660.  But, like I said, if you have the money, it's a good buy and you won't regret it when you fire it up and run it. 
When the road forked, I went straight.

T540xp, 562xp, 034 super mag, 044, 460, 576, 056 super mag, ms460, 066, ms880, 090.

homestead090

I'd buy it...Why? I have two! New member here, and posting about my set up too much probably but that's why we are all here I guess. I've been using an 090 in a 60 inch granberg mill. Also have the parts to set it up with a 36 inch bar. The 090 is perfect for milling. Mine is stock except for removing the governor for a bit more chain speed, no problems yet. I'm mainly milling big stuff. 36 inches on average up to 50ish inches so far. White oak being the toughest wood. The 090 has lots of power, 137cc and plenty of torque. I can bog the saw down and it just keeps on cutting, not sure how the new saws would handle that as they are built more for speed it seems. It's also very cool, sounds great, all metal, etc. I recently broke my flywheel (not sure how that happens). and in a search for an old one, ended up buying a second 090......still need the flywheel. So now I have two. I got my second off eBay last week for $650. It needs a few parts but pretty much every part for the 090 is still available through Stihl or you can buy dirt cheap Chinese parts off eBay. Again, I feel with milling, there's no such thing as too much power. Even if you are milling small stuff, the 090 is nice. With a sharp chain, you just breeze through cuts whereas when I'm watching videos of other saws milling, it looks painfully slow. Even with a big saw, chainsaw milling is so labor intensive, I'd make it as easy on yourself as possible, especially at that price for a good running saw. I've got some videos if you are interested of milling with the 090. You can click on the little youtube icon to the left by my user name. I'll be posting more as I can. I wouldn't mind having a 3rd saw if you don't want it! 
Furniture maker and wood collector.

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