Recommendations for a new saw

[Stoneyacrefarm]

Extremely well said.  8) 8)
Buy yourself a pro saw.
Maintain it well and run it without worrying.

[teakwood]

I'm amazed at all the worry of something going wrong with a pro saw. Yes, it can happen but, generally, after they make it past the first few hours, they just run and run and run. Assuming the owner isn't doing something silly like using bean oil or thinking they know more than the maker about oil ratio's, revving the engine with the brake on, running with carb misadjusted, using stale gas,  etc.

Treat it right and it will almost certainly treat you right. I buy a saw and don't plan to work on it for many years, beyond normal air filter, cleaning and adjusting. IMHO, there is too much worry and not enough confidence.

I totally agree with you, very well said. I have 5 Pro Stihl saws and since 20 years i use them with Stihl oil at 50:1 and have never had one single problem other than the normal repairs on wear parts! I don't get the discussions over oil ratios.

[xXStanXx]

Just got back from picking my new saw up a while ago. Decided to bite the bullet and get the 550 XP with a 18" bar. And the dealer experience was for sure the way to go. I called ahead to see if they had one in stock and if they could set it aside for me and the guy said no problem. I walk inside, ask for the salesman I talked to, and he had the saw set up, filled with fuel and bar oil, and had made sure it was running properly before I got there. He made sure I left with the necessary fluids and made sure I got the extra 2 years of warranty. All I've got to say about that is Husqvarna is making off like bandits with their premix fuel, but I guess buying 3 cans at $10 a can for 2 extra years of warranty isn't so bad.

I will say you for sure need to make sure you use the right starting procedure (warm vs. cold engine). By the time I got home and went to start the saw up again it hadn't been run for probably an hour. I figured I'd try the cold start procedure which didn't work. It definitely took a few tries at the warm start procedure to get it going but once it did it ran great (FWIW it's easily 25C or warmer today).

Thanks to everyone for all the help!

[sawguy21]

Congratulations!!! I am really glad to hear you had a good experience with the dealer, makes all the difference.

[thecfarm]

Now get that saw dirty and broke in.  ;D

[xXStanXx]

Now get that saw dirty and broke in.  ;D

That's going to have to wait for a few weeks probably. I want to build a nice wood shed to store wood in up at our hunting camp which will involve lots of cutting and splitting. Will probably end up doing close to 3/4 of a cord and then maybe some extra just to get rid of some dead fall. Until then I might just have to live with trimming some branches off of a spruce tree at home.

[Stoneyacrefarm]

Congratulations on the new saw purchase.  ;)