Thread: show us your chainsaws

Originally Posted by 7mmsaum

The light bars are flexible for sure, and the toughest bars are great for splitting planets in half

But you get used to them quickly and horses for courses, you use each when the benefits are required

Understand the task and set the saw up accordingly


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Yeah, that's a fair statement. I found the 361 was unhappy with a light bar with only the inside bumper dog on it - it was enough distance between the bar and the dog for a side pull when the saw was hauling against the dog to put a flex on the bar. I fitted a set of slim matching dogs the same length as the factory single dog (they are an order in from Stihl not a stocked item). Sorted that out, and stopped the issue of the saw pulling against the alloy of the clutch cover when cutting through the crutch of an avo or the like. Didn't seem to do the same when the solid bar was on it, and to be fair the weight difference on a saw that size was barely noticeable. Looked a bit stupid I thought with the full size dog pair on it, the dog spikes looked half the length of the bar on such a small saw!!!

Originally Posted by No.3

Yeah, that's a fair statement. I found the 361 was unhappy with a light bar with only the inside bumper dog on it - it was enough distance between the bar and the dog for a side pull when the saw was hauling against the dog to put a flex on the bar. I fitted a set of slim matching dogs the same length as the factory single dog (they are an order in from Stihl not a stocked item). Sorted that out, and stopped the issue of the saw pulling against the alloy of the clutch cover when cutting through the crutch of an avo or the like. Didn't seem to do the same when the solid bar was on it, and to be fair the weight difference on a saw that size was barely noticeable. Looked a bit stupid I thought with the full size dog pair on it, the dog spikes looked half the length of the bar on such a small saw!!!

I'm running a standard 20 inch on my 362 and don't feel the need to go light on that.
Mind you it would be really light with a light bar on it!
I'm thinking I might move on my 880 as getting to bloody heavy for me to lug around.
Not even a light bar could help that beast.
Replace with the 900! When it turns up.
It might even get 7mmsaum to change brands!


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Originally Posted by andyanimal31

I'm running a standard 20 inch on my 362 and don't feel the need to go light on that.
Mind you it would be really light with a light bar on it!
I'm thinking I might move on my 880 as getting to bloody heavy for me to lug around.
Not even a light bar could help that beast.
Replace with the 900! When it turns up.
It might even get 7mmsaum to change brands!


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The only reason I tried a light bar on the 361 is to stop it planting itself when you put the saw down (not that it's a problem). I actually preferred the normal bar for weight in the cut, it made the saw feel weird and powerhead heavy like it needed another 10" (she yelled). I run an Oregon 22" bar (which is a couple of drive links shorter than the equivalent Stihl offering being not so fat) and that's about perfect for the standard oiler. If the chain is sharp it will pull more teeth but it will likely be short for lube!

I have seen and handled an 880, but never used one in a cut. I can understand about the heavy to lug around thing, they are a beast and an absolute weapon of a saw.

My firewood log pile has been threatened by a gum with an ever increasing lean on it. Trouble being its 2m on the wrong side of a 9 wire fence, and I have resigned myself to having to cut the fence, drop said tree then restrain the fence. Groan! I had even toyed with t he idea of building up a massive pile of firewood logs for the tree to drop on

Then @HuntBeta visited the bright ideas department and said "why don't you repurpose those dirt bike jumps made from earthmoving tyres and have the tree hit those instead of the fence?"

Seem like a far less work intensive option, so relocated the tyres with the tractor, and for good measure piled a decent sized firewood log on top. @Ross Nolan 's dog wandered by to add perspective.



The tree has been leaning badly for the last decade, so it had built up quite a deal of tension in it. so when it went (bore and release) it went off like a gunshot.



End result was just what the doctor ordered. Tree down out of the way and fence intact

My less than impressive chinese stihl. It doesn't rev very high, something wrong with the oil dripper, not at all reliable. I'm not sure how much more to throw at it before she is retired.

Id like to invest in something better, but I dont use it often enough, but would like to cut my own firewood.

It just took a cherry tree down, which it did with limited success.

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Originally Posted by XR500

My firewood log pile has been threatened by a gum with an ever increasing lean on it. Trouble being its 2m on the wrong side of a 9 wire fence, and I have resigned myself to having to cut the fence, drop said tree then restrain the fence. Groan! I had even toyed with t he idea of building up a massive pile of firewood logs for the tree to drop on

Then visited the bright ideas department and said "why don't you repurpose those dirt bike jumps made from earthmoving tyres and have the tree hit those instead of the fence?"

Seem like a far less work intensive option, so relocated the tyres with the tractor, and for good measure piled a decent sized firewood log on top. 's dog wandered by to add perspective.

The tree has been leaning badly for the last decade, so it had built up quite a deal of tension in it. so when it went (bore and release) it went off like a gunshot.

End result was just what the doctor ordered. Tree down out of the way and fence intact

That's actually a bloody neat idea - not that I have a surplus of earthmoving tyres loafing. Last one I dropped was a half rotten shelter belt tree, knew it was dodgy and took steps including tying it off so it could only fall one way and moving well out of the way real quick when it started moving etc etc. It did everything it was supposed to, apart from the dodgy rotten secondary trunk that I couldn't cut off it and which decided not to fall over with the rest of the tree it was attached to. Once the main started moving the secondary tried to stay upright hanging onto mid air as the rest of the trunk below and beside it moved away. The secondary eventually caught up with gravity and dropped, then pivoted and leaned against the mesh and wire fence right next to it popping the staples, once the staples popped it somehow hopped over the fence and lay down beside it without busting anything. I should have video'd it, it looked like a cartoon tree falling over and leaving the branches behind. Still don't know how it did what it did.

Old school with a Shandawa 757 and a Fiat 640.

Originally Posted by Dama dama

Old school with a Shandawa 757 and a Fiat 640.
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Attachment 272940

Go the Shindaiwa! I mean, what would Japanese engineers know about small engines or cutting tools.....

Have begun the process of thinning our rapidly growing pine forest. The 6.6Ha of pines planted in 2017 need roughly 50% thinned now as the crowns are already deeply interlaced. Am getting about 20 trees to the tank of gas, as there can be quite a bit of faffing around when one gets hung up. Only 135 tanks of gas till this lot will be done


Have gone to the dark side and bought a 67cc Stihl. 2.5kgs lighter than my Husky 395's and almost as much boogy. Just keep it screaming, as it doesn't have the torque of the 95cc saws. That 2.5kgs certainly makes a difference at the end of the day.

Originally Posted by XR500

Have begun the process of thinning our rapidly growing pine forest. The 6.6Ha of pines planted in 2017 need roughly 50% thinned now as the crowns are already deeply interlaced. Am getting about 20 trees to the tank of gas, as there can be quite a bit of faffing around when one gets hung up. Only 135 tanks of gas till this lot will be done
Attachment 273761

Have gone to the dark side and bought a 67cc Stihl. 2.5kgs lighter than my Husky 395's and almost as much boogy. Just keep it screaming, as it doesn't have the torque of the 95cc saws. That 2.5kgs certainly makes a difference at the end of the day.

Did you get the 400c? 1.5kg to the kg
My fencing pointing saw is the 362 at 1.6kg per kw.
My 500i is 1.24kg per kw, and you can tell!
I run a 25 inch light bar and 28 light bar.
It is a weapon!
Just waiting for the 700i to come out and will sell my 880 and buy that 700i!

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Yep. Got the 400c. V 1. The latest version has not got here yet, and appears to have more issues than the original. Just running a 20 inch light bar at the mo, but might drop to the 18 inch light bar, cause I can. Thinings are 250-350 dia, so no need for 200mm of bar sticking out the other side. My Husky's, well I have half a dozen different length bars for them, so no need to run a long one on the 400.

A few things I don't like: those quarter turn filler caps, they are purpose designed to let shit fall into the tanks. The muffler could have been better designed to blow exhaust away from the saw and bar, and for a professional saw to not come with 2 sets of dogs....well.

But the saw revs so beautifully, works hard. I like the captive bar nuts....and she's so light!

Originally Posted by XR500

Yep. Got the 400c. V 1. The latest version has not got here yet, and appears to have more issues than the original. Just running a 20 inch light bar at the mo, but might drop to the 18 inch light bar, cause I can. Thinings are 250-350 dia, so no need for 200mm of bar sticking out the other side. My Husky's, well I have half a dozen different length bars for them, so no need to run a long one on the 400.

A few things I don't like: those quarter turn filler caps, they are purpose designed to let shit fall into the tanks. The muffler could have been better designed to blow exhaust away from the saw and bar, and for a professional saw to not come with 2 sets of dogs....well.

But the saw revs so beautifully, works hard. I like the captive bar nuts....and she's so light!

Put a photo up before it goes under the bully

I think the MS400 is one of the better saws Stihl has made,I think if it hadn't been released at about the same time as the 462 & 500i,it would have been more popular.

Originally Posted by XR500

Yep. Got the 400c. V 1. The latest version has not got here yet, and appears to have more issues than the original. Just running a 20 inch light bar at the mo, but might drop to the 18 inch light bar, cause I can. Thinings are 250-350 dia, so no need for 200mm of bar sticking out the other side. My Husky's, well I have half a dozen different length bars for them, so no need to run a long one on the 400.

A few things I don't like: those quarter turn filler caps, they are purpose designed to let shit fall into the tanks. The muffler could have been better designed to blow exhaust away from the saw and bar, and for a professional saw to not come with 2 sets of dogs....well.

But the saw revs so beautifully, works hard. I like the captive bar nuts....and she's so light!

Very true on two counts - that little ridge around the 1/4 turn caps is a true shit catcher, and the single dog - what were they thinking??? A brush is almost a necessity to clean that crap trap before you pop the caps when you need to fuel and oil up the saw. I'm not sure about the 400, but the earlier saws have a pair of lightweight dogs you can order in that fixes the single dog mange. Vast improvement on the MS361...