Buying a Husky 435 as my first saw

[GoStumpy]

Hey everyone!  Been doing some reading on here, and decided on this saw as the best combination of budget, size, and longevity...

Birthday present from the wife, hurray!  Will be bought from a well-respected local dealer in case I need help locally...

I will be using it pretty much exclusively for campfire wood, I go on two group trips per year where we are always borrowing chainsaws, as well as I camp with the wife about a dozen times per year...

I used a saw for the first time last year, an old homelite from the 70's... realized I needed one before I got through my first cut

So, I am a total newbie when it comes to owning a chainsaw.. What I'm interested in learning is what needs to be done at the end of the season, start of the season, how often do I sharpen the chain (thinking between trips), how to sharpen the chain, etc...  Any good resources besides just browsing these forums?

As of Saturday I'll be a proud new owner and if nothing else just want to say hi!

Have a great Easter weekend!

-Tyler

[ladylake]

 
Try and find gas without ethonal and use Stabil or Sea foam in it.  Make sure it's tuned right, a lot of new saws come set too lean and will burn up in a long cut.  Try and start it every couple of months. Also if it's been sitting for a while and it doesn't sound right or rev up good don't run it get the carb cleaned.   Steve

[WDH]

Don't leave gas in the saw.  That one simple thing will mean a long worry free life.

[thecfarm]

I suppose you have chaps,hardhat,face shield,eye protection, steel toes boots?Sharpening a chain takes time to learn. A big subject on here. It took me a few chains to get the hang of it. I sawed on one poor logs quite a few times.
I forgot to welcome you to the forum. Glad you brought from a dealer. A good one can be a great help.

[Ward Barnes]

Hey everyone!  Been doing some reading on here, and decided on this saw as the best combination of budget, size, and longevity...   As of Saturday I'll be a proud new owner and if nothing else just want to say hi!

Have a great Easter weekend!

-Tyler

Tyler:  Glad to have you here.  There are a number of YouTube videos out there that can help the new Saw owner.  Just be sure to read "between the lines" on them and use the videos for what they are worth.  As an exercise try and spot any safety/non-safe habits that some experienced chainsawers have let creep into their everyday practice and "Don't Do Them Yourself".  Talk with your saw dealer, tell the dealer I'm a new bee.  Let him/her teach you the right way.  See if you can talk to his service person as well.  He/she sees all the problem saws that come into the shop and can tell you how to avoid most of them.  And by all means read the owners manual - cover to cover.

God Bless, Ward and Mary.

[beenthere]

Welcome to the forum.

As you already know, there is lots of reading material on the forum to help you out.

The safety things are important, and may already be on your list of things to get or to use.

One thing I would stress, is to NOT let someone else use your chainsaw. That in itself will prolong the life of the saw and its ability to perform well for you in the future. Volunteer the saw only with you at the user end.

Sharpen the chain before it becomes dull and always keep it out of the dirt (ground, rocks, dirty bark, etc.). 

Enjoy the trip.  8)

[GoStumpy]

Wow, thanks for all the welcomes! 

I am a safe person for sure, never broken a bone or had stitches at 27

When I used a chainsaw last year, we had goggles  & gloves, I doubt we had hearing protection...

I'll be using safety glasses, gloves, and hearing protection for sure... Full-face mask looks good, perhaps my dealer can give me a decent enough deal to make me say yes on that one ;)  I do have steel-toe boots that I will use, good idea on that one!

Chaps though, not really sold on those... Safe use of the saw KNOWING you don't have chaps on is enough for most, no?  I won't be cutting 3 cords of wood at a time, that's for sure!

Running the saw out of gas is something I've read to ensure longer life, a month-ish is OK to leave fuel in, right?

So if I have a Jerry-can of Gasoline, what would a good oil-fuel mix ratio be?  35-1 for a new saw?

My dealer is charging me a $10 'set-up' fee, tuning the saw, testing it out, and show me how to use it... That should solve the out-of-the-box tuning issues a lot of people have

[beenthere]

Chaps though, not really sold on those... Safe use of the saw KNOWING you don't have chaps on is enough for most, no?  I won't be cutting 3 cords of wood at a time, that's for sure!

Famous last words.  Is GoStumpy your future handle?
Chaps are THE one most important item (IMO).
That chain takes flesh with skin and meat out in a good 1/4 inch bite, and very fast. Likely won't even feel it, but the warm blood will let you know just before the cold sick feeling that something bad happened.
The saw can jerk and kick very quick and the chaps are a layer of protection that you will wish you had at some point in time.
But it is your choice. Not ours to make for you.

Tune up is usually needed on a new saw after 2-3 tankfuls of fuel have been run through it.

[Cut4fun]

My dealer is charging me a $10 'set-up' fee, tuning the saw, testing it out, and show me how to use it... That should solve the out-of-the-box tuning issues a lot of people have

I have never heard of a set up fee by a selling dealer. Wow  .    Cut-Safe   

[John Mc]

My dealer is charging me a $10 'set-up' fee, tuning the saw, testing it out, and show me how to use it... That should solve the out-of-the-box tuning issues a lot of people have

I have never heard of a set up fee by a selling dealer. Wow  .    Cut-Safe

In fact, a couple of dealers around here will double check the initial tuning before you take it out of the shop, and offer to readjust for free after you've run a couple of tanks of fuel through it.

[ladylake]

I like the dealer tuning,testing and showing how to run not the $10. That should be in the purchace price.  Also no running a new saw for 2 or 3 tanks and then getting it tuned, that was the old days when they came set rich.  Now get them tuned then run the 2 or 3 tanks and retune.   Steve

[thecfarm]

Not preaching to you,but someone on here once said a pair of chaps cost just about as much as an emergency room co-pay.

[WDH]

With the ethanol in the gas, my Stihl dealer told me that there is an incredible amount of power tools like chainsaw, leaf blowers, trimmers, etc. that they have coming into the shop because they won't run.  He says that leaving fuel with ethanol in a saw, even for week, is risky.  Add a good fuel treatment every time you buy gas, and do not leave the fuel in the saw for more than a few days unless you are running it very regularly.  Not sure if that is overkill, but it has worked well for me.  I ran my first Husky 61 for 25 years.  It still runs.

Also, your head is easy to cut open, so wear a hardhat when operating the saw, preferably one with a face shield and ear muffs.  It can kick back and hit you right between the eyes.  Some people will scoff at that, but don't pay any attention to them.  A chainsaw can instigate some horrific damage on flesh and bone.

[CTYank]

Chaps won't guarantee your safety, but I've found nothing better. I caught on last summer, tearing out some jeans at top of leg, while saw was returning to idle in a tangle of brush & people (tornado cleanup). Decided: chaps are cheap and I should use chain-brake whenever advisable. Similar self-instruction happened with face-screen (& helmet.)

Also, for your safety:
1. keep all body parts out of the plane of the chain- kickback WILL happen. Once can kill.
2. no monkey grip on front handle- keep thumb opposed to fingers.
3. keep feet spread, with your body angled left of the cut when bucking. Be ready to move.
4. keep plastic wedges handy to keep bar from being pinched when you mis-read a cut.
5. learn what to inspect every time before starting a saw.
6. learn how to cut without ever letting any part of bar hit ground/rocks/debris.

Chain needs filing when it's producing dust rather than chips. You could do like me and others and try all sorts of file holders & guides, or cut right to the end of the search with a guided file-holder like on from Granberg or Oregon. My Granberg is 35+ yrs old, and still lets me touch up a chain with a few strokes per cutter. K.I.S.S rules.

Big thing, IMHO, about storing OPE is to store such tools where temp and humidity stay reasonable and don't vary wildly.

[hisliptree3]

first of all wow thats a nice sized saw! i have had some experience running huskys and from my time on them i know you really want to watch the chain tension, and also always use fresh gas. and remember sea foam may cost 7$ a can but its well worth it!!!!!!!!!

[GoStumpy]

How to properly use seafoam?

Hard to find accurate info on interwebs about it!