here we go again

[Spike60]

Ya know Ed, I hadn't really thought about that; customers loading up on supplies to avoid shortages down the road. I probably wouldn't let anybody buy every file in the store like you did.   Can't let anyone clean me out on anything and have nothing for other customers. Gotta keep all my customers supplied and working.

But I need to give this some thought because a couple of the bigger tree companies can buy a lot of stuff in one visit in normal times. If these guys start loading up, I'll just have to manage things as they unfold. Kind of like when a major storm hits. Always give priority to my regulars vs guys calling around.

Does anybody know if the Stihl dealers are as wiped here in the US as up in Canada? Those poor guys are so brow beaten on only selling Stihl bars and chain I could see some of them sitting empty waiting for more. I don't stock anything for Stihl so it doesn't matter to me, but I'd hate to see this whole thing be like toilet paper was a year ago.

[ehp]

Lots of stihl dealers got Oregon bars and chains and files . My dealer retired on Monday cause he can see whats coming down the road . He sold out to another guy which is suppose to keep the place going so I bought pretty much everything he had in stock that I will need down the road . The new guy just bought the store but not the inventory which seems rather weird . Stihl got another 100 ES 20 inch ES bars in stock on Monday.  No 24 inch light bars but I got lots from the last 100 that came . Husky here may even be in worse shape. The big tree company smashed a saw on Monday and warehouse had 1 saw which they took . A 565 . Husky dealer got 2 husky riders show up beat up pretty bad in shipping . Said no thanks and sent them back . Husky phoned and told them there is zero riders coming as they have none 

[Firewoodjoe]

I'm trying to let my forwarder catch up so I'm sitting around a little and was reading Husqvarna wasn't doing very good the last quarter of 2020. I'm not trying to add to the situation but maybe there's more to the story than we see🤷🏼‍♂️

[ehp]

yes there is , Husky is coming out with some new saws and getting rid of old stock is just smart business and get rid of the old saws at alot higher price than having to sell them at a lower cost . Here a stihl 462 was about $300 more than a 372 or a 572 but I'm sure that gap will be alot closer once everything settles back down . I do not see the stihl price going lower but the husky price going higher , $2,000 chainsaws will be here to stay boys like it or not 

[SwampDonkey]

I know my Husqvarna 555 clearing saw jumped $300 last year and it took 2 weeks to order in. Over $1700 out the door. : I was told by Stihl, no saws available. Then after I get the Husq. I get a call the next day and they said my saw was in. I had called two dealers, both said no saws. So hard to tell, might be a pricing game. : : I believe like anything the government gives you a tax rebate on, will drive up the price. If you're using the saw for a living, they know the tax man gives tax rebate on saws and parts even as an employee.

Canada Tax credits for employees that buy their own power saw at their expense for use in forest operations....chainsaw, clearing saw, tree trimmer saw

[Spike60]

Can't put any faith in the projected dates that units will show up. In most cases they continue to roll further out. Just when you think they're going to ship next week, they get kicked out another couple weeks. But the opposite is sometimes true as happened with your stihl. I was down to just two 550's and they were supposedly 3 weeks out. Then the truck pulls in and there they are. Wish that would happen with the 395's.

[Firewoodjoe]

Well I just had 3-372s delivered. No questions and no problems. Took 3 days to be on my door step. $780 each. That's delivered with bars and chains.

[ehp]

I agree , you just never know . I had a talk with my GMC/Chev dealer last night , They were down to 1 pickup which they were holding just to have a pickup , they got 165 pickups on order but have zero idea when they are to show up  but 5 showed up yesterday , you know its pretty bad when every person that works there is told to put their pickup in the line up outside to make it look like they got pickups to sell

[ehp]

thats a good price on 372 as well

[DHansen]

thats a good price on 372 as well

I was thinking the same thing.

[Firewoodjoe]

That's actually more than I paid last year. By about $60. 

[Al_Smith]

Most of you folks live where you can find a stocking Husqvarna dealer .They are rare as a hens tooth in this area .The only Husqvarna products you might see are at Lowes, TSC etc .Although I seldom need a repair part if so I order it through Amick's in North Carolina .Stihl you can find many  stocking dealers .

[mike_belben]

My local co-op is stocked pretty well in stihl, husky and parts.  

[Spike60]

Well from what I can gather this situation has gotten worse for just about everybody. @ehp, how are things up there?

I'm still pretty good on the pro stuff, other than 395's and 372's. Have them both on order, and most spoken for already. This supply mess has caught up to me on the homeowner saws though, as I didn't load up on them as much. Only 400 series model I have is a dozen 460's. Last of the 445's and 450's went out last week. Have a few 135II's and that's it for the homeowners. Even out of 545's, which had become a decent seller. Haven't run into any problems with parts or accessories so far.

Glad I don't need to shop for a pick up truck.

[Skip]

Got a new Ford F250 on order ,was at dealers yesterday   asked where all the new cars were ? Lot looked almost empty, said they can't get them in cause of microchip shortage, no idea when my truck will be in ???. Husky dealer told me last week  good luck finding a new 4wd rider trying to find left over from last year probably have to make a road trip  >:(.Idid get the parts I needed  : .
 

[Al_Smith]

If you think about it most if not all of the electronic devices used on automobiles come from the Pacific rim .What just happened ? They just got a giant container ship stuck sideways in the Suez canal .Most if not all Ford plants are on the eastern side of the USA . So across the Indian ocean , through the canal, through the Med than over the Atlantic .Don't forget just because it says" Made in USA" doesn't mean all of it .--just saying ---

[DHansen]

If you think about it most if not all of the electronic devices used on automobiles come from the Pacific rim .What just happened ? They just got a giant container ship stuck sideways in the Suez canal .Most if not all Ford plants are on the eastern side of the USA . So across the Indian ocean , through the canal, through the Med than over the Atlantic .Don't forget just because it says" Made in USA" doesn't mean all of it .--just saying ---

So true!
Back when Ford still made the Crown Vic, I saw a breakdown diagram of the origin of the parts.  I was surprised.  Spindles from Europe, sensors from Japan it was 80% imported content.  It seems this is in most manufacturing today.

[Real1shepherd]

It is just that....major appliances, cars/trucks, etc are mutts. What we used to call Heinz 57's.

And not to really knock down the Millennials or the Gen Z's but they've been brought up to believe everything is disposable. Get the five yr warranty on that expensive LG washer you just bought because in five yrs it will be toast. And once you've been raised with that, you believe it.

An us 'old coots' are just babbling about the days of yore......what do we know....lol.

Kevin

[ehp]

Spike its pretty bad here , were back in real lock down again for another month , I got a new ms 400 from my bobcat dealer cause he is now a stihl dealer but the normal stihl dealers have zero saws in stock and none coming , I help place the order with the bobcat dealer cause they had no idea on what to get, They could place a order for 24 saws once period , if you ordered 6 then thats all you got and you may not see any more saws until late fall or 2022. My Husky dealer has been phoning me looking for saws cause they have zero saws and was told June or later before maybe seeing any from husky , My gmc dealer had 3 pickups where 150 in stock is normal . The company that makes our cable and chokers for logging has been down now almost 2 months and not sure when they will be back making stuff . I bought 3 spares cables and 12 chokers before they shut down so I'm good . I know guys waiting on parts sense Oct. to fix machines so they can go to work . Used saws are getting what they were in price when brandnew , my friend that owns a marina is sold out of boats and motors till 2023 , thats right people bought boats for the 2022 late august shipment and put a heavy down payment on something that may never show up , no stoves, fridges, dishwashers,washers and dryers or pretty much anything at stores . Its pretty bad 

[Al_Smith]

Another thing if you think about it ,this lock down has been  going on nearly for a year .Things like chainsaws no one had money to spend on them and the buying public is much larger than for professional users .This thing is like coming out of a depression ,takes time .All I can say in this time of 10 dollar 2 by 4 studs for an 8 footer  is batten down the hatches because it won't be over in a month .Good heavens a 4 by 8 sheet of 3/4" plywood for 95 bucks and they whine about $3 gasoline .

[ehp]

Problem is Al , people are spending more money than ever before on saws and toys and you cannot compare the USA to here on lock downs as were far worse and have been all along and were over a year here . Houses are selling for crazy amounts like $200,000 over asking price is normal now , its got to the point now they just tell everyone to bid and the highest bid wins 

[realzed]

Ed - Have you used the 400 at all yet and if so what are your thoughts on it?

[realzed]

OOPs - sorry I see you did a critique of it so far in another thread, while I was asking the question here..

[Spike60]

Ed, does that example of no saws til late in the year just apply to that new stihl dealer, or is it all of them? That's way worse than down here. How are repair parts? So, far so good on most Husky parts. Got a 550M2 laid up waiting for a coil, but that's it. But I'm ordering more on the fast movers just in case. Don't need to get surprised and with what's going on, can't assume that every part is a day away. In some cases it's more than my regular parts cabinets can hold, so I got these parts bags hinging on nails in a store room. Kind of a mess, but it's temporary and ya can't fix saws without parts. Sales manager of local Chrysler and Ford stores Told me they have vehicles sitting there that they can't repair for lack of parts. Trucks on either lot are mighty scarce.

Maybe with all these shortages more dealers and customers will "discover" the Husky 565, as it's about the only saw you can order and have shipped the same day. It's as close to the 572 as the 555 is to the 562 and it just sits up there in the warehouse and hardly anyone orders it. I do pretty good with the 565, but most dealers don't stock it.

[ehp]

Spike , I know a couple bigger stihl dealers and they got zero saws and cannot get them , we can stihl get some parts for saws but that department is getting less and less each day , The bigger husky dealer here has zero saws and cannot get any and believe me they are trying to get saws as they supply the county workers which is a big amount of sales per year for the dealer . I have seen a few dealers with echo saws in stock . It kind of like this Spike , you try your best not to break anything cause you may end up sitting waiting to get parts , Tires are quite hard to get and I mean hard , companies are phoning tire shops trying to buy the old take offs cause they cannot buy new tires