Chainsaws....

[alwaysFlOoReD]

Yeah, one of the first thing I did when I started running two stroke small engines was order a screwdriver kit so I could adjust the carb.
I have 2 poulen pros 50cc. They work fine. One runs slightly better than the other. I also invested in a file, that definitely makes a big difference.
I don't have any experience with other brands.

 

[91stranger]

i'll keep saying it. DONT BUY A POULAN..... You know why they are called poulans right? Because you are always pullin, and pullin, and pullin, and pullin and it still wont start lol. There's a reason why they are so cheap..... Any real wood cutter will not recommend buying a poulan even if it's the "pro" series. If you want cheap saw you can buy a no name 60cc chainsaw for less than $150 on ebay. There's reasons why people stick to good brands. I've used stihl, craftsmans, poulans, Husqvarna's, mccullochs and the stihl is the easiest to use, lightweight and got plenty of power to chew thru 20" logs like nothing. with cheap saws you have to use a screwdriver just to get the gas and oil caps off so theres an extra tool you have to carry with you. With my stihl the gas and oil caps twist right off without the use of a screwdriver. I will literally take that saw (with no extra tools other than a wedge) and cut anywhere, all day long with no break downs. Just because one person had a bad stihl shouldn't give them a bad name.

Buy the ms250 and put a full chisel chain on it and you won't regret it. I got rid of all my big, heavy saws because this cuts easier and weighs less..... All my plastics are in perfect shape and still using the same spark plug it came with 3 years ago. All I do is flip the bar every season.... Can't say that about a poulan….

 

[8thTon]

Ahh yes, reminds me of why I stopped bothering with chainsaw discussions. Best of luck.

25 year old plastic Craftsman/Poulan, modified like hell and still cutting:

 

[91stranger]

Boy that chainsaw barely looks used after 25 years.... What do you cut? One Christmas tree each year for the last 25 years? LOL J/K don't get hurt feelings over this post. Chainsaws are just like power tools.... Buy it right or buy it twice. Yeah sure cheap chainsaws will do the job but not as good as others. I used to be the same way and I swore my 42cc craftsman was good enough and then it broke the "heavy duty" crankshaft. Ended up getting a stihl from my father in law for Christmas and would pick that saw over 2 free working craftsmans….. To each their own. I just don't want someone saying "buy a poulan because it will cut wood for half the price" and then Rusty can't or don't want to use the saw because it sucks.... I'd be pissed if someone recommended a poulan, then I bought one, then realized they sucked and need to buy a different one..

Here's a good example:
Joe Schmo and Billy Frilly are building a 20'x30' deck for a customer. Joe is using a cheap black and decker drill he picked up at Walmart and Billy is using a Milwaukee drill. Each works on one end of the deck board and meet in the middle. Well Billy ends up at the 3/4 mark while Joe is struggling to get 1/4 of the deck board screwed down..... See where I'm going with this? A tool that works is just a tool but a tool that performs damn good is a necessity. Same goes with sockets, cheap sockets will get the job done but good sockets will not round the heads or rust.... Any REAL man knows the difference between a tool and good tool.

Moral of the story: DONT BUY A POULAN.

 

[8thTon]

Boy that chainsaw barely looks used after 25 years.... What do you cut? One Christmas tree each year for the last 25 years? LOL J/K don't get hurt feelings over this post. Chainsaws are just like power tools.... Buy it right or buy it twice. Yeah sure cheap chainsaws will do the job but not as good as others. I used to be the same way and I swore my 42cc craftsman was good enough and then it broke the "heavy duty" crankshaft. Ended up getting a stihl from my father in law for Christmas and would pick that saw over 2 free working craftsmans….. To each their own. I just don't want someone saying "buy a poulan because it will cut wood for half the price" and then Rusty can't or don't want to use the saw because it sucks.... I'd be pissed if someone recommended a poulan, then I bought one, then realized they sucked and need to buy a different one..

Here's a good example:
Joe Schmo and Billy Frilly are building a 20'x30' deck for a customer. Joe is using a cheap black and decker drill he picked up at Walmart and Billy is using a Milwaukee drill. Each works on one end of the deck board and meet in the middle. Well Billy ends up at the 3/4 mark while Joe is struggling to get 1/4 of the deck board screwed down..... See where I'm going with this? A tool that works is just a tool but a tool that performs damn good is a necessity. Same goes with sockets, cheap sockets will get the job done but good sockets will not round the heads or rust.... Any REAL man knows the difference between a tool and good tool.

Moral of the story: DONT BUY A POULAN.

That’s called maintenance. Actually I recommend he NOT buy a Poulan, because they had messed up the design of the newer ones. I also recommended he not buy a plastic Stihl because it’s the same junk at twice the price. It’s you that seems all worked up in a Stihl fanboy froth, just as always happens in on line discussions about chainsaws.

I try to prevent people from wasting their money on the Stihl brand thing, because they think their getting something special for the extra price when they just got ripped off. Sorry if that made you butt hurt, but it’s the truth.

They are tools and I use them hard, heating my home with 90% wood for 15years. My old McCullochs run as well as my old cheap Poulans and various RedMax and clones.

 

[97RangerXLT]

Ahh yes, reminds me of why I stopped bothering with chainsaw discussions. Best of luck.

25 year old plastic Craftsman/Poulan, modified like hell and still cutting:

View attachment 40303

that looks exactly like a grey version of the 20+ year old Poulan that I have.

AJ

 

[Snoranger]

Have you tried starting the 455 the right way?

 

[8thTon]

that looks exactly like a grey version of the 20+ year old Poulan that I have.

AJ

It is exactly that. It was a fun project - in addition to changing the ports, the cylinder was turned down and the crank was moved to increase compression, the crank was modified and I 3D printed molds to make case fillers. It runs damned well and I still use it regularly.

 

[sgtsandman]

All I've ever had was Stihl and they have worked well for me but your mileage may vary. I had an 18" Farm Boss before my current MS-311 with a 20" bar. The Farm Boss was stolen, otherwise, I would probably still be running it.

I've liked their chainsaws so much I bought one of their string trimmers and blower/vacs.

 

[rusty ol ranger]

I have a stihl ms250 and it's my go-to saw.
Why not just rebuild the 455 rancher? I just bought a jug/piston kit with a carb for $50 with Nikasil plating for my 55 (same thing as a 455 but a little older).

That Rancher isnt even worth rebuilding. Ill fix my 30 yr old mcculloch before that thing.

Ill look into the MS250...

I seen the non adjustabie "intelli-carb" bs, i figured it was prolly just a gimmick, but switching carbs aint a big deal.

 

[Snoranger]

That Rancher isnt even worth rebuilding. Ill fix my 30 yr old mcculloch before that thing.

Ill look into the MS250...

I seen the non adjustabie "intelli-carb" bs, i figured it was prolly just a gimmick, but switching carbs aint a big deal.

Talk to @PetroleumJunkie412 about megasquirt.

 

[ZMan]

I bought a 16" Husqvarna back in 2012. I got 4 years out of it before it became hard to start. Over a year and a half I took it to a couple guys who would get it running good, but the next time I'd go to use it it went right back to how it was. Said screw it and bought a Milwaukee 18v in 2018. Cuts just like my Husqvarna. Put the Husqvarna bar on it since the Milwaukee chain was made specifically for the saw. Now I can run all the s56 chains I have lying around. I have 2 batteries so I can cut for a while depending on the size of the logs. I won't go back to gas at this point, unless I have a bunch of big logs I need to cut

 

[adsm08]

I like my CS2172. I got it almost new, and it has always been a bear to get started, but the engine is finally getting broken in and it is starting easier. I think using E-free fuel and keeping fresh stuff on hand helps.

 

[85_Ranger4x4]

That Rancher isnt even worth rebuilding. Ill fix my 30 yr old mcculloch before that thing.

Ill look into the MS250...

I seen the non adjustabie "intelli-carb" bs, i figured it was prolly just a gimmick, but switching carbs aint a big deal.

EPA doesn’t like people fiddling with carbs, that is why a lot of them are becoming non user adjustable.

As far as Stihl vs others... I have converted many users to Echo and I have yet to have a complaint about power, ease of starting or cutting speed.

Yes my freebie one has a scored piston... it was tortured. Air filter was crushed (which is how it scored the piston) the goon actually pulled the bar studs out of the case by using a 1/2” drive ratchet to tighten the bar. It got no love at all and spent its 10 year life in the back of a truck.

In other news I dragged my great grandfathers old Super EZ Homelite out from under my work bench yesterday. With a little gas poured in the carb it runs awesome for a little bit. I suppose the diaphragm is petrified. I will say new chainsaws don’t sound like that anymore... it sounds freaking awesome.

 

[Dirtman]

I've only ever owned one chainsaw. A homelite xl12 some old lady gave me for cutting her grass when I was 14. I don't cut much wood but that old hunk of junk still works great anytime I need it.