which is a better saw? husky 372XP or sthil ms 460?

[treefarmer87]

which do you think is better?

[ladylake]

 Niether, both are good.  Steve

[Collima]

Ive had both. Ran husq for years. Switched to stihl a while ago.  I have 3 460's couple 361's and the 880. Love them all. The only thing I don't like about stihl are the newer gas and oil caps. I don't know how many times I picked my saw to go cut a tree and oil spilled all over my leg.
Nonetheless, both saws are good. I'm just in a stihl kick right now

[bill m]

What criteria do you use to determine which is better? The 460 is 76.5 cc verse the 372xp is only 70.7 so is the Stihl better? The 372xp weighs 13.4 lbs and the 460 weighs 14.6 so is the Husky better? IMO the 372xp is better. 1.2 lbs lighter and there is not enough of a power difference in the 460 to justify the added weight. I am a Stihl man all the way but when they stopped importing the 440 I switched to the 372xp. I would not buy a 460 because of the weight. Now that the 440 is available again I am back to Stihl.

[thecfarm]

I would have to say dealer support. I ran a husky now,but would think nothing about running a Sthil if I liked the dealer better.

[treefarmer87]

im getting ready to buy a new saw for felling. the dealer in town carries both husky and sthil, he likes sthil better. the husky is $829 and the sthil is $929.

[lumberjack48]

 [Buy the Sthil] 8)

[smwwoody]

Matt,

Come see me before you buy a new saw.

Woody

[Buck]

day in, day out I like the Stihl. I have had Husky also. I have really neglected my Stihls and they just keep on.

[treefarmer87]

woody, i will. i want something bigger than my 360, that is at least 75 cc

[lumberjack48]

I don't know much about these new saws, i was a Husky man threw & threw. even with all the trouble they gave me, i had to have 9 Husky's to keep 6 running, 3 in the shop, the dealer really liked me   Then one night i had a few drinks with Con the Stihl dealer, he set me up with a couple display models that he wanted broken in for a sawing contest, will to make a long story short i never looked back.
I couldn't believe the difference, the chock lever didn't fall off, the switch didn't quit working, the muffler didn't come lose, i didn't have to adjust the saw every time the weather changed,  my landing man wasn't breaking motor mounts, ect.
The 044 Magnum II  was my favorite

[treefarmer87]

my dad had a 44 when i was a kid, and i wish he never would have sold it

[SwampDonkey]

I know when comparing brush saws, the Stihl is easier to start and doesn't need to "warm up" in the colder weather. The Husky brush saw, you'll here them bog out until they get warmed up. I've run mine now for 5 years, with a rebuild last spring, seals and bearings. I like working on a Stihl FS550, nothing complicated and you can have one stripped down in no time. Got to clean the air filter daily for good torque and power. Some of the crew guys will run to a shop for every little thing to be fixed because the shop owner has got them spoiled by fixing it right then and off they go. Nothing wrong with that, and no fault of the shop, but it reeks of laziness and $$ from the pay cheque. The things I keep on hand are a clutch, front end drive, pull cord assembly, handle bar and elbow, shaft and throttle cable assembly. That's all that wears out, slap one back on is 5 minutes and back cut'n. Savings? $$hundreds. ;D

[quietrangr]

Husky takes less pulling effort to start, and I think starts quicker. Husky has a nicer chain adjuster screw. Husky is a little smoother. Six years ago, I wanted a heated saw, and could get a 440 sooner. I used it for a couple of weeks, then sold it for the reasons above. Then again, I ran 361s (smoothest ever saw) for about three years until I went to a smaller saw, 346 Husky. All that said, the 440 and the 372 are close enough that the dealer could make the difference. They're both good saws.

[treefarmer87]

swampdonkey those sthil brush saws are nice

[lumberjack48]

I was kind of misunderstood about shop work, i did my rewinds, springs & rope repair, carb rebuilds & cleaning, boots, reed replace, coil, solid state replace, point setting & replace, clutch shoes, spring & replace, auto oiler gears or replace, keeping lip off bar, & tip replace on a stump with a hammer & punch, all chain filing done by hand & chain repair, and if new chain needed, i usually had some made up, if not i'd put one together, i bought by the roll, ect this was done on the job site, i had a old 48 pass school bus on the job for a warming shack and shop.

My Hushys were in town for heli-coil to put mufflers back on, seals, scored piston and other warranty work, case replace , my crew would drop a tree on one once in a while, or run over one, things happen when you have 2 skidders, feller buncher, hand feller, hand limber, landing guy, loader truck, 2 semi's, these were the good days.

[JohnG28]

It might make sense to stay with Stihl since you already have a 360.  This way your bars will be interchangeable, as well as chains. Won't have to worry about different bar mounts or different chain gauges.  Just a thought.

[treefarmer87]

that is a good idea johng28. i had 2 jonsereds and changed parts all the time.