Husqvarna 2100CD

[Spike60]

OK, the Mac 125 tale.....

Driving back from a meeting and stopped in a little small town bar about an hour from home to have a beer. Had a Husky or Jonsered hat on and a guy in the corner asked if I had anything to do with chainsaws. Told him I was a dealer and all and he mentioned some "big ole McCulloch" he was selling. Was owned by the farmer next door. Original bar and maybe chain; took down a few large hedgrow trees and that was it. Wanted $200 for it, but wasn't sure of the model. Gave him my card and he calls the store the next day and says it's a SP125. Went up that weekend and bought it. There are some deals out there.

I'm not into the big muscle saws myself, but like my second 111S, there was a collector in MA that really wanted a Mac 125. He also had a very mint Jonsered 70E that I wanted. So, the deal was the $200 that I paid plus the 70E. He was expecting to pay a lot more than that and I told him I knew what 125's were going for, but I got it cheap and let's both be happy. He got a great deal on the 125 and I got the 70E for free. I'm more into sharing/swapping with other collectors than flipping saws for money. I sell 300 saws a year in the store, so I don't need the hobby side of it to be a revenue stream. Some of these guys that are out there flipping saws are a little short on integrity IMO, but we don't need to go there right now.

[Al_Smith]

 :D At one time a certain E-Bay seller ."Just David " would hype up McCulloch 610 and 650 model saws and would list them for $400 a pop .He must have had them stacked up like cord wood .I heard later he was finding them though internet forums .It amused me how gullible people are about the value of things .
On that model I've lost count how many I've owned and at this time have three in my shed.The best one still looks brand new that I bought for my son that had a defective oil pump .I think including every thing,purchase ,oil pump plus shipping I've got about  $75 in it . 

[Real1shepherd]

OK, the Mac 125 tale.....

Driving back from a meeting and stopped in a little small town bar about an hour from home to have a beer. Had a Husky or Jonsered hat on and a guy in the corner asked if I had anything to do with chainsaws. Told him I was a dealer and all and he mentioned some "big ole McCulloch" he was selling. Was owned by the farmer next door. Original bar and maybe chain; took down a few large hedgrow trees and that was it. Wanted $200 for it, but wasn't sure of the model. Gave him my card and he calls the store the next day and says it's a SP125. Went up that weekend and bought it. There are some deals out there.

I'm not into the big muscle saws myself, but like my second 111S, there was a collector in MA that really wanted a Mac 125. He also had a very mint Jonsered 70E that I wanted. So, the deal was the $200 that I paid plus the 70E. He was expecting to pay a lot more than that and I told him I knew what 125's were going for, but I got it cheap and let's both be happy. He got a great deal on the 125 and I got the 70E for free. I'm more into sharing/swapping with other collectors than flipping saws for money. I sell 300 saws a year in the store, so I don't need the hobby side of it to be a revenue stream. Some of these guys that are out there flipping saws are a little short on integrity IMO, but we don't need to go there right now.

Great story......I would say 'it was all in the hat!'. Without wearing that hat, there wouldn't have been any deal.

Sometimes saws are looking for a home and the hat was your intro.

Some of these guys that are out there flipping saws are a little short on integrity IMO......
You could say that(and did)....lol.

Kevin

[Tacotodd]

Bob, THAT was a very good story and telling about an example of being in the right place at the right time. Congrats and enjoy your new (to you) toy/tool!

[Spike60]

Yes, it was the right place at the right time. And like Kevin said, if I didn't have the hat on, the other guy never would have started a saw conversation.

[FATBOY2017]

What do you guy's think? I have a low use 2100CD XP which I use occasionally when I need to drop some big stuff, it spends most of it's time idle. The paintwork in some places on the metal parts has flaked off, like they do. I don't want to strip it to repaint, do I touch it up or rub it down and mask and respray it, or just leave it? What would you do?

 

[doc henderson]

it looks good as is, unless you are getting corrosion in the unpainted areas.  a spray paint will not last as long as the original finish and then may look worse in the long run.  IMO.

[Pine Ridge]

I masked and painted my 288xp in places that the paint was bad, it looks OK , but i almost wish i had left it as is. Your 2100 looks good to me.

[FATBOY2017]

I think you're probably right, it sometimes makes it look worse trying to paint things, I suppose it's either leave it or strip and do it properly, it's not too bad, just on the handle and underside, it has no corrosion just missing and loose paint. It just spoils a good example a little.

[doc henderson]

If the case is magnesium or aluminum you should be ok.  If you mask it off you can always touch that area up now and then.  use a self etching primer and implement paint and it might do ok.  depends on your goal in painting it.

[Al_Smith]

Just as a word of caution do not ever store a chainsaw directly on a concrete floor .What will happen is the blue clay slurry which is a component  of Portland cement  contains alumina which is real close in atomic number to aluminum and  will cause a reaction and try to make the saw part of the concrete .The infamous white death will ensue over time .----A lot of people do not know this ----

[FATBOY2017]

Thank's for the heads up, I store mine only on wood floor as a long time ago I saw the effect of concrete especially on mag cases, not pretty!

[doc henderson]

had a thought and not recommending it, but for a daily user, could mask off and put undercoating on the handle and bottom.  just a thought.  some might not like the feel.  might look nicer than the contrast between old and new orange paint.  to make it look new would have to start from scratch.

[Real1shepherd]

Strangely, the concrete 'cancer' is a geographical thing. Here, you can store them directly on a concrete floor....even a sweating one in the winter with no signs of corrosion.

Just to safe, I tell everyone to go down to a local farm store/coop and buy piece of rubber horse mat and store your saws on that....end of story.

Kevin

[Real1shepherd]

What do you guy's think? I have a low use 2100CD XP which I use occasionally when I need to drop some big stuff, it spends most of it's time idle. The paintwork in some places on the metal parts has flaked off, like they do. I don't want to strip it to repaint, do I touch it up or rub it down and mask and respray it, or just leave it? What would you do?

Looks better than my two....but they've seen a lot of pro use.

Nothing is going to work from a spray can unless you have some auto paint made up. And then this whole idea of clear coating that, is just rubbish. If you're gonna stick it on a shelf, great....if you're actually going to use it then find a base coat match without using the clear coat.

Clear coating a chainsaw is like over restoring a car....like the saying goes, they are only original once.

Kevin

[chet]

I prefer my saws ta look like me. Showing wear from years of service, but still able ta git-er-done.  :D

[Spike60]

And if you make them too pretty you get distracted worrying about dinging up the new paint and you avoid using them.

[FATBOY2017]

No danger of that! This saw always makes my smile when I use it! I am always looking for any excuse to get it into work! I have many other saws to do most of the work I do, but this old girl still surprises me even after all these years, it reminds me of how far ahead of the opposition they were when they came out!

[Real1shepherd]

And if you make them too pretty you get distracted worrying about dinging up the new paint and you avoid using them.

Exactly.

I had a custom rifle made once and I fell down a hill with it in rocks. I held it up in the air somehow the whole way down. I took the beating saving the rifle....never again, just stupid....lol.

Kevin

[Real1shepherd]

No danger of that! This saw always makes my smile when I use it! I am always looking for any excuse to get it into work! I have many other saws to do most of the work I do, but this old girl still surprises me even after all these years, it reminds me of how far ahead of the opposition they were when they came out!

Well, I've said my peace many times about the 2100/2101. It was as close to a perfect saw as ever designed for large timber. IMO, Squeal didn't have anything close at the time. And it ushered in an era where all I saw on loggin' shows were a sea of orange.

Kevin  

[Al_Smith]

Depending on the location just about every make or model has had their day in the sun .Preference just depends on the user ,Ford /Chevy thing .
I personally have no favorite brand but own more McCullochs and Stihls than any other brands .In pure stock form saws within a specific displacement size will all cut about the same .For example I have both a 281 Husqvarna and an 850 McCulloch .Not much difference,same displacement .Then I have a Stihl 038 Magnum which I reworked of a slightly lower displacement that will out run both of them .

[Real1shepherd]

While I agree some marque models had their day, when the 2100CD came along for a pro saw in the PNW, it had no peers.

While MAC could have stayed strong, they just flat dropped the ball. Argue corporate restructure etc etc....they had nothing at the time that could compare.

Squeal was doing well when the 2100CD came out, but was soon eclipsed in popularity. Partner, Pioneer, Jonsereds....nah.

Of course, Electrolux Group AB came along gobbling up marques and changed the chainsaw world forever and not in a good way. The very landscape today you see in chainsaws was forever changed by Electrolux. Even though Husqvarna separated from Electrolux yrs ago, it was not the same company it had once been.

Worldwide, chainsaws are but a small percentage of overall sales in a company like Husqvarna. Kinda like the old days when Detroit's Big Three had racing programs and you could buy their muscle cars. They were just a fraction of the company sales, but got all the notoriety.

Kevin

[Al_Smith]

Husqvarna made arms and armor for knights of the middle ages .It goes back a long time .  McCulloch  died because the board of directors let it die .Robert P .became more fixated at moving a second hand used bridge from England than building engines .Stihl has survived and done very well because just like John-Deere and Caterpillar,dealer support .It's just that simple .

[Spike60]

The brands that Elux bought out likely survived longer than they would have on their own.

The industry currents that changed the saw landscape had as much to do with trimmers and blowers as with chainsaws. Used to be that most saws were sold in saw shops and those brands only offered saws. You wanted trimmers, you signed on with a trimmer brand. Backpack blowers weren't a big deal yet. It was against that background that Husky and Stihl began selling trimmers private labeled in Japan. Maruyama for Husky and I'm not sure who made the Stihls. It was this move to a full line handheld offering by both companies combined with their leading the pack on the saw side that left a lot of other saw brands behind. Trimmers, blowers (and concrete saws) are huge business in the more urban marklets. That is what allows Echo to remain a strong company even though their market share is limited on the saw side.

And unlike American brands such as Mac and Homelite, Husky and Stihl never lost sight of the professional saw business.

[Real1shepherd]

That's so true, Bob. We used to have two saw shops here that just catered to loggers and homeowners. The owner of one got sick and that shop closed. The other turned into a full line garden/lawn shop. While selling Squeal, they have a full line lawnmowers push & riding/weed whacker/blower sales as well.

The John Deere dealer has changed hands at least four times since I've lived here. They used to carry saws....I think Husky and then later Squeal. I haven't been in there for yrs....so I don't know anymore.

An now of course are the box store chainsaws where you go in and buy a saw with virtually no saw support by the store.

So I guess maybe the old saw shops of lore are a thing of the past?

Kevin