War: Husky vs. Stihl

[jjmk98k]

 there we go.... THAT just put WAR back in this thread!



Yeah, hard to think Stihl has such a large stranglehold on the pro logging market.... otherwise they should be able to BUY Husqvarna!

[sawguy21]

I am not going to touch this one. No how No way :P

[SawTroll]

.....   : I just hate marketing bs and Stihl IS king when it comes to marketing bs.

No doubt about that - they win that one by a wide margin.... :D :D 8)

[MISDH]

Great information guys!  I really appreciate all of your responses, and have learned a lot more than I ever would have thought of.  I'm leaning toward the MS361, but had a MS 260 in my hands and really liked it.  The 4,000 trees I'm cutting down are Austrian pine, average 10" dbh,  (up to 18"-22" for the big ones at the base), most are probably 14" to fell.  I'll be dropping these down "rows",  felling 3-4 at a time, cutting in 16' lengths, and triming the branches off the tops for reduction (tight working quarters).  Then I've got to pull them out to make working room for the next batch.  Once this is done, I'll be cutting 10-20 hardwood trees each year for fire wood.  The dealer says I can buy two MS290's for the price of the 361, and won't be able to tell the difference.  I've got a Dolmer dealer even closer that I'll be visiting before I make a decision. My Husky dealer is too far away, but I'm still considering them.  Thanks again everyone, this has been a great forum.

[TexasTimbers]

I get tickled when I see people get all riled up defending a huge corporation that doesn't give a bandicoot's behind if you live or die. Both companies make great saws. Some particular saws in certain classes shine and some stink.
I have Stihl and Husky and am fixing to buy a Dolmar weedeater that weighs half of my heavy Stihl and cut twice as good. Buy the tool not the brand. If someone is proclaiming one brand over another just let them run around thinking it matters. Their ignorance isn't hurting anyone but them.

[SawTroll]

The dealer says I can buy two MS290's for the price of the 361, and won't be able to tell the difference.  .....

I surely wouldn't trust that dealer - he is way off the mark...... : :

[Ken]

Interesting topic.  For years I ran Huskys until the local Stihl dealer offered me a deal I couldn't refuse.  Ever since Stihl has certainly been my saw of choice.  The MS 361 is a solid saw that performs extremely well.  The 440 Stihl is probably the most dependable brand of saw I have ever owned.  Haven't had a chance to try out the new 441 but don't like the idea of it being quite a bit heavier than the 440 (1.5 lbs I think). 

As we do not have a lot of overly large timber to cut here in the east we only use 16" bars normally.  If you don't need a longer bar why bother  :.  The saw is going to perform that much better with less teeth too push through the tree. 

Although this thread, to date,  has only discussed power saws I would like  to recommend that anybody who is thinking of a thinning saw to consider the 550 Stihl.  Bulletproof saw that is consistently more reliable than the equivalent Husky model. 

My two cents worth.