choosing new saw

[geoff1969]

hi all long time lurker of the forum and some great information in here .. 
im in the market for a new saw been looking at the stihl ms391 farm boss also the ms381 but cant seem to get any real review about ms381 from people , the reason for the new saw is the old homelite = about 20 years old is passed its day and need some thing bigger to cut firewood for personal use , firewood being cut mostly involves big wind blown australian blue gums .. any feed back on either of these saws apriciated . cheers

[Ward Barnes]

hi all long time lurker of the forum and some great information in here .. 
im in the market for a new saw been looking at the stihl ms391 farm boss also the ms381 but cant seem to get any real review about ms381 from people , the reason for the new saw is the old homelite = about 20 years old is passed its day and need some thing bigger to cut firewood for personal use , firewood being cut mostly involves big wind blown australian blue gums .. any feed back on either of these saws apriciated . cheers

Howdy Geoff:  I cannot help on the MS 381, however, I have owned the forerunner to the MS 391 the MS 390 for a number of years and cut a lot of firewood with it.  The only thing I had a problem with the 390 was this spring after the saw had set with old gas in it for most of the year and wound up having to replace the carb.  Other than that it has been a very reliable saw using both the original 20 inch bar length and now an 18 inch bar on a lot of wind downed trees including, oak, maple, and other trees that the wind brought down.

God Bless, Ward and Mary.

[CTYank]

I'd suggest also for your consideration, in no particular order,
Solo, Dolmar, Echo, Husqvarna, Poulan. You should be able to find a saw from them that'll have a notably lower life-cycle cost than Stihl, and many with better power and/or weight.

For one, the "new" "Poulan Pro" PP5020 is a real ripper for $200 now in the USA. Got mine for $180. Strato-scavenged. 20" bar with full-comp chain may be a bit much in Aussie gum trees, but there's the option of skip chain or smaller bar.

Just watch out for contraband. It's getting to be big-time from Shanghai.

[gspren]

 One of my brother in laws has a 390 that he liked until trying my 044 now he wishes he had got a pro saw. Many of us firewood cutters don't NEED a pro saw but if you can afford one (new or used) the pro saw will still make you happy when it's 20 years old and the cheaper saw is shot. JMHO.

[Clam77]

Welcome to the forum Geoff!!

What is your price limit??  If you can afford it, and you want to go with Stihl, I'd spend the little extra and jump up to the MS362.  It's in the same power range as the 391, and as gspren said, being in the pro class it's a bit more durable in the long run.  I have a 362 and love it- no problems.

Someone else will be able to contribute on the other brands for saws comparable in size and power. 

[geoff1969]

hi thanks for the replys the ms 362 is retail at $1449 australian dollars
                                        ms 391 is retail at $1199 australian dollars
                                        ms381  is retail at $1249 australian dollars but the shop can do me a deal on the ms381 for $ 1050 , and seems to be a more power full saw and listed as professional use , was also told though the ms381 was and is the older design / style of saw but is intended for the hard wood = more torqe to drag the chain through , i have used the ms391 and this saw was only about 4 weeks old done about 8 hours running ,{ friends saw } and was very impressed with it , husqvarna saws are more expensive than the stihls and im not realy keen on them ,  when it comes to the makitas the dcs6401 = $870 and the dcs7901 = $950 but the regestered dealers for the makitas are about 45 minute drive away for me ..

[Ianab]

Of the Stihls the 381 sure seems the best deal for that price. A bit heavier than the 362, but more power.

I still wouldn't discount the Makita / Dolmar. I have a PS7900, same as the Makita 7901 and it's a great saw. About the same weight as the 381, but more power (79cc vs 72cc), and for $100 less.

But in the end buying from the dealer that you prefer is a big factor as well.  The deal on the 381 does seem like a good one and I'd choose that over a 391 for sure, just by virtue of it being a "pro" saw.

Ian

[T Welsh]

geoff1969, Take the saw for a test drive! and compare it to the one above and below in price range. and match it to what you are going to do with it. And what Ianab said has a lot to do with the saw after the purchase, you need to have a good dealer behind any machine. You will need saw chains after a year or so and files and other stuff. but if it does break down and you need parts, it gets old traveling 45 minutes to get parts. Tim

[geoff1969]

hi ian
yes buying from this local dealer is more convient also i have purchased other equipment off him for my lawn mowing business and he has the aproach i sold it to you , i service it for ya , old style service type dealer , he tells people if in doubt about the performance of any machine ,bring it in as a turn of a screw or quick check over is free , and can save manny hundreds in repairs .. = cant beat service like that ...

hi T Welsh
yeh thats a good idea will ask him if he has a demo one i can test to see how i fill using the saw and compare them .

appreciate the feed back from members will keep you updated on final decision , now i just have to sweeten up the wife so she gives me the cheq book  .  :D

[Clam77]

We don't have the 381 listed here.. wish we did...    :-\

[geoff1969]

hey clam77 maybe you could get one sent to you . but i have noticed with different machinery not only saws , theres the basic right product across the board for everyone , but then only some selection of different models avalible in diffrent countrys = maybe e-p-a pollution standards or some thing ....

cheers mate

[Cut4fun]

I used to post on a Aussie chainsaw forum and the guys I told to give the Makita 7901 a try has never looked back. Best bang for the buck over there for you guys.   I ran 16" to 32" bars on mine and even ran a fiends with a 36" once to try and see. No problems pulling it. 

45mins is nothing to drive one way, go get you one if the saw feels right to you in your hands.

[petefrom bearswamp]

My Echo cs600p is an awesome saw and far less $ than a comparable  Stihl (which is a great saw also)

[geoff1969]

hi all
just an update on the saw , i went with the stihl ms381 with 20 inch bar = very very impressed with it heaps of power and very comfortable to use , the only down side to it is the chain is a full chiesel chain { stihls own brand } and seems to loose its edge quick wood is clean not dirt covered etc , was thinking maybe a semi chiesel might hold its edge better in hard wood { aussie gum }, would this be correct ?? also impressed with the fact the saw came with 4 year warrenty ...
cheers , deeply apreciate the help from you guys , geoff1969

[lumberjack48]

Thats the only chain i'd run is full chisel, there has to be a little dirt some where for it to loose its edge.

The thing is with semi chisel it don't cut as fast so you don't notice the edge is gone like you do with full chisel. It gets dull just as quick, but being it cuts slower to start with a guy will keep on cutting with the edge gone.

So if you want to cut wood slower, semi chisel is the better choice.

I would much rather throw an edge back on the full chisel.

[geoff1969]

hi lumberjack48 , you took the words right out of the mouth of my mate at the shop he told me the same thing = a cutting edge is a cutting edge ... i never thought to ask him though but have herd you can sharpen chains differently for wood that may have dirt in it , so thay do hold there edge better ,

[lumberjack48]

I never tried it with a full chisel chain, on the semi chisel or chipper chain we filed the cutters at about a 20 degree angle when cutting dirty wood. Again it slows your cutting down, but you can keep on cutting longer. I would go though a chain a day working the landing if the wood was dirty.

When cutting stumps lower i filed my chain straight across, it pulls the dirt out with the wood chips. The main thing when cutting stumps is never pull dirt in to the cut. Run the bar straight in to the stump an cut around clock wise keeping end of bar in the stump at all times, this way your not pulling dirt in to the cut.

[geoff1969]

hi all thought i would give you all another update on the sthil ms381 , its now done about 6 hours cutting = { yeh i know not much but im only doing personal firewood = im not pro like you guys } and the saw is realy getting better andbeter ever tank of fuel i put in it = its realy starting to open up , = im very happy with it all round , had the chain touched up by the shop and thay put very slight different angle on the cutters = a bit like lumber jack 48 said  , it dose cut a little slower but not enough to be concerned about , well not for me considering it only used for personal use , but seems to realy hold the sharp edge much better .. just need to look now into a new set of cutting protection leg chaps the old ones are dirty smelly and about 15 years old = time thay where updated ...
cheers geoff1969

[lumberjack48]

I'm glad its going good, fun to run a saw when it cuts. Now  take a close look at the top edge of the cutter. When the edge is gone you'll see a shinny edge on the cutter, follow the same angle an depth of the cutter. With long slow straight strokes, file until the shinny edge is gone all the way to point of cutter, then its sharp. Touch up the cutters as soon as you feel it cutting slower, its as easy as pie just keep at it.

[thecfarm]

No idea where you are from,but in my area a local guy puts on a class on chain maintenance and sharpening at the high school.

[geoff1969]

well thought i would give another update on the saw stihl ms381 , fantastic done a fair bit of cutting with it now both hard wood and soft wood , and its realy opening up the more its used , excellent saw , realy fill i made a good choice with it , easy to start hot or cold , fuel consumption is good , very pleased with it   8).... appriciate the advise and feed back from the forum members on here { thanks guys }..
cheers 
geoff1969

[mad murdock]

Glad you are pleased with it. A good saw is one tool that given reasonable care, will last for years, and give faithful service to you.

[geoff1969]

ok guys quick question as you know ive got the stihl ms 381 = 76 cc 3.9 kw , im running a 20 inch , 50 cm bar at present and mostly cutting up hard gum but some of it is getting a bit big , was thinking maybe a 26 inch bar and chain , what would your thought be on this and prefered chain type , or what would the maximum size bar and chain you would fit to this size of saw ...... ps the saw is going fantastic = just the wood keeps getting bigger  :D

[customsawyer]

You might want to go to a skip tooth chain on the longer bar.

[Clam77]

Stihl recommends a max of 30" bar for it... you can probably do a 32" if you need to.