Smooth light and powerful ...

[trapper]

I am the odd one regretting buying the 261cm.  Below 10 degrees f it wont start.  even on its best days at least 7 pulls to start,  sometimes it wont start let sit 10 minures and then it starts.  times it dosent like to start in hot weather.  Been to dealer 3 times and he says nothing wrong with it.  Sent an email to stihl 2 weeks ago and no reply.    

[mike_belben]

Most all of us have degenerative disc disease in our lumbar spine by now.  The upper leg muscles are engaged by the brain to add stability to the lower spine, when the abdomen muscle are too flabby for the job.  If youve got sore quads you need to start working your abs and obliques and deadlifting in a better postural position because that is the root of it.


While standing tall, chest out like a soldier at parade rest minus the hands.. Feet shoulder width apart, butt cheeks and stomach muscles full clench.  Now squat low with your butt out and your chin high as if youre in a noose, spine vertical as possible, shoulder back, no slouching or cell phone neck.

 Pull the load into your gut or chest and heave up from the legs while still keeping spine tall and vertical.  Youll look like a powerlifting gorilla, which the ladies like more than a broken old man.

[barbender]

Clark, if your intention is to put yourself into a lowly and humble situation, the Polaris Colt is a great place to start! I have enough humbling situations in life that come along naturally so I try not to seek them out😁 Honestly, I'd love to have a Colt for the kids to make laps around the yard on. Otherwise, I want a nice new sled, just the same way I'll grab my Husky 562 and try to forget the ol Homelite top handle saw I found under my Grandpa's work bench and got running for my first saw😊

[mike_belben]

Homelite super 2 for me.  

Id rather be caught in the woods holding a donkey than that saw!

[sawguy21]

I have a Super 2 that has cut a LOT of campfire wood. Noisy little beggar gets the job done.

[Al_Smith]

The little Super 2's are what they are . Actually competition for the McCulloch mini Macs back in the day .Both come in two styles, those that run good and those that don't run at all .These days more so the later than the former .

[farmfromkansas]

My neighbor scored the cylinder on his ms260.  Was that from running too long at a time? He does not use the synthetic oil.

[sawguy21]

What oil does he use at and at what ratio?

[DHansen]

I have heard more than once that running 32:1 will run the saw hotter than 50:1 I have no idea how much hotter, and if is combustion chamber temp, exhaust or crankcase temp.  But my assumption is it has to be combustion chamber, and that would cause increased crankcase and exhaust temps.  I have been running 40:1 in my saws since 1985 and see no issue, but I keep thinking I should switch to what the manufacturer is recommending.

[DHansen]

Looking at the list of saws lledwod already has, all that is missing is a 339xp or a Echo 2511P.  Light an smooth.  As for power, they both do well for me.

[realzed]

As a 3 year owner of a 261CM - 20" bar / .325 RS chain, I personally can't say enough good things about how the saw operates, feels, and cuts..  
Best money on wood cutting related tool I've ever spent - and over decades I've had a owned a few other chainsaws and periodically used many other brands and sizes!
  

[barbender]

Trapper- if you are doing the starting procedure correctly and it fails to start in the cold, I would find another dealer to look at it. Nothing worse than an unresponsive dealer- actually there may be. An unresponsive manufacturer, if Stihl hasn't responded, is pretty crummy. They need to do better.

[lledwod]

I broke down and bought a Stihl 261. Will have it in hand next week. 1st new saw I have ever bought  I'll let y'all know how it goes.

[kantuckid]

You might want to visit a physical therapist. There is probably some easy things you can do to lessen your pain. I've experienced that as I've gotten older and the proper stretches can make a world of difference.

Somewhat old thread but I'll chime in- the above is very much true for a back with issues or a back you simply want to keep operational-read up on McKenzie techniques, Philates and Yoga stretches-all have merit. 
Your hands and wrists are a tougher "fix", my nephew, a surgeon, (in our discussing my CTS release surgeries some years ago) told me that on the cadavers in med school the damage appears as what looks like a carpet burn on the carpal tunnel nerves. The release surgery works for me but truth be known, even after a properly done after recovery you'll never had the strength you once had in your hands or wrists. I was able to no longer be forced awake with pain, numb hands on the steering wheels and began riding motorcycles again after a couple year hiatus from the numb/dead hands thing. 
The reality is that chainsaws, string trimmers and other vibration making machines are maybe the result of the devil and hand doctors as they do their magic number on your hands over time. 
My shoulder being a full rotator cuff tear and probably one like many others which has self-healed from previous  tears over the years is yet another light chainsaw reason I had to go smaller and need a decompression valve or assisted start saw.
What I call my "senior saw" is a Stihl 241 (I also have a Stihl 170 bought for log joints and as a little utility saw (a son has my little top handle saw on what seems to be permanent loan ;D) which is NLA new in the USA but were I faced with choosing a new saw it would be a:
 non-chip/Motronic MS261, Stihl Pro 260, Echo 501P or a Husquavarna 543XP. 
Know that the more effective cure is to know there is no true cure for the hands and wrists other than to change your activities as CTS release is not an actual fix, it's a way to alleviate symptoms like pain and numbness-the nerve damage is gonna remain!  Honestly, if I'd stayed a FT mechanic I'd have had serious job issues with my hands before I retired. 
Another nice and very common result (I've experienced) of worn out hands/wrists is trigger finger-so far an injection works for me. My tractor mechanic is nearly my age and he's got the surgical fix what with a serpentine scar the length of his more problematic fingers. Smashed and smacked hands also are common with hard work-stop that "stuff" or suffer something sooner or later is the moral here. 

[kantuckid]

I am the odd one regretting buying the 261cm.  Below 10 degrees f it wont start.  even on its best days at least 7 pulls to start,  sometimes it wont start let sit 10 minures and then it starts.  times it dosent like to start in hot weather.  Been to dealer 3 times and he says nothing wrong with it.  Sent an email to stihl 2 weeks ago and no reply.    

Was your saw hooked into the Stihl computer program or not? If not, he doesn't, cannot know, if it's got an issue. 
So I learned on my puter chip Motronic MS241 recently. 

[trapper]

both dealers said  it was

[Al_Smith]

It's a never ending often talked about  topic ."why did I cook my saw ?" It's more than just what brand of oil and mix ratios .Restricted exhaust ,air flow blocked by chips build up .Tuned incorrectly .My dealers fault .Dull chain .Ethanol gasoline . It all adds up if you have several failures of the previously mentioned .
It will be a very cold day in July if I would ever own a chainsaw I had to take to a dealer to get tuned up .
Now that rant over my fav light weight is an 024 Stihl .Not a hot rod my any means but it's got enough to get the job done and didn't break the bank .Cost me all of $50 from a dealers "dead pile ".It obviously was not dead . ;)

[lledwod]

New saw in hand; my 1st new saw ever! Too early to tell, only a couple tanks through it. It does have issues starting when warm sometimes.

 

[lledwod]

The current project; cutting logs for my next cabin. Logs are 28-32' and 9-10' at the top. The Toyota has been my poor mans skidder for over 15 years. Amazing thing won't die. 
 

 

 

[Greenhighlander]

Congrats on the new saw and thanks for sharing the pics.  Great to see kids who get to live life .  
Good luck on the cabin 

[thecfarm]

Good looking peeled logs there!!
With my saws, when warm, I turn the choke on than off and they start on the first pull. This is starting up in about 10 minutes. Don't know what your manual says on a warm start.