Stihl vs husqvara chainsaws

Id have to recommend husky, I have a rancher 55 and it works perfect for smaller work and can tackle just about anything thrown in front of it. I find the stihl saws a little hard to look at, but they do work good. We have two where I work and they get nothing but abuse and seem to take it like a champ, but man they are ugly.
 
valin said:
Don't laugh......my old man picked up a small Poulin saw this year. It looks fairly wimpy, has a dinky little chain on it, but it's super light, and cuts just fine.
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Wondering if it the same one my dad has, older small saw in lime green with 14in blade. Doesnt look like much but 2 pulls maxs and its ready rip, hasnt failed yet.
 
I have 2 poulin pro series saws, [1 x 16" + 1 x 18" bars] + 2 Husqvarna saws.

Poulins:

work well after opening up the exhaust + removing the spark arrester screens.

The Huskys:

1 model is a 266 with a 16" bar is the best saw I have ever owned, the weight and power is just right and it cuts wood as good as any stock saw I have ever used!

1 model is a 365 XP with an 18" bar that I installed a 52 mm Big Bore kit, as well as a ported muffler, on...WOW!!!..need I say more?
 
Just to give you a heads up, since I worked for the company that made these saws. The Husky, Poulon, some Craftsmen, Jonsered all come off the same assembly line. Are they good saws, yeah for the most part. But you can't rate one based on a saw you had 20 years ago. Not the same company or animal. My .02 Go with the Stihl.
 
stinger440 said:
Just to give you a heads up, since I worked for the company that made these saws. The Husky, Poulon, some Craftsmen, Jonsered all come off the same assembly line. Are they good saws, yeah for the most part. But you can't rate one based on a saw you had 20 years ago. Not the same company or animal. My .02 Go with the Stihl.
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Wow thats good info!!! I was looking at huskies pro line. What are they like?


Thanks for all the replies keep them coming!!
 
i have a husky 357 xp its about the same weight but its 4.6 hp. it uses a 3/8 by .50 chain. the 346 uses a .325 chain. i looked at 346s before i bought this one. 357s are more money but a lot more hp. i had stihl saws before and the husky xps are a better saw in my opinion. you should see if someones got one to try out and make your own mind up.
 
I'm with the Orange(Stihl) crew, I have a Farm boss and that thing rips through wood. Fwiw if you put the right chain on it it'll be like cutting butter with a hot knife...
 
I have a Stihl MS250 and all I do with it is cut shooting lanes for deer hunting and help friends and neighbors cut fired wood. It is a little under powered for cutting stuff 12" and up but will do it. Always starts. Little maintainice. Like the chain adjuster. HATE the gas cap and oil cap. Don't seem to seal good. There the kind that turn 1/4" then flip over the cam. Broke one last winter. Oil everywhere.

Dad has a Husqvarna and likes it. I like his gas caps. Thread on with hex for spark plug wrench molded in cap. My friends own alot of Stihls, Husqvarna, and older Pollans.

All have there goods and bads. Engineer I work with use to log for a living and used both and said both are good saws.

Like buying anything buy the one that fit you.
 
Two of the best brands . . .

The Stihls tend to be a little more durable, and the Huskys are a little easier to service.

The 260 is a very nice saw. The 280 is an excellent light saw, has electronic fuel control, and can be ordered with Quick Adjust chain. The 310 is an excellent medium saw. You can run a 3/8 chain with the 310, but if you really want to throw the chips with a 3/8 move up to the Magnums (440 I think is the number) and a full chisel chain. The Husky saws use a higher model number for a comparable saw.

You can't go wrong with either brand.

If you use it for sustained periods (several hours), spend the extra money and move up to the Pro style which adds much better vibration damping. The Stihl FarmBoss 290 is relatively cheap and has a lot of power, so is a very good buy. However, if you use it for 8 hours a day you will still vibrate for hours after you finish.

The pic Valin posted looks like a 440 with a extra long bar (3ft maybe).
 
to compare any of these saws to one another if you are able to demo, make sure the chains are the same, stihl has a green link for safety chain, it doesnt cut anywhere near as good as the yellow linked chain, but you have to be careful with the yellow because more of a chance of kick backs.all stihl saws come with safty chain (green), i have seen people compare saws that have different chains on simular saws (not nowing any better) and pick the the one being pushed for more mark up! i know for a fact that stihl dealers around here do not make as much on a saw sale as compared to other brands! the only complaint that i have heard of is once the paint wheres off the bar and the customer sees the flame hardened bar they think the oiler isnt working right but it is there just used to the elcheepo (bic lighter brands)that have oil every where and usually dont last long enough to where the paint off or dont have hardend bars!
 
Johnsered are good chain saws, our have never let us down and we cut a lot of wood with it. At one point in time the chain oil was put in gas tank and gas in the chain oil tank. Had it cleaned out and what not. Still running like a top today. 53cc to, so it has a nice bit of power. All of them are good IMO. I just don't like the Poulan and the other cheaper brand chain saws, they don't seem to be as good all around compared to the other major saw companies.
 
We run Stihls...MS260 and MS341. You can't go wrong with either brand though. To us it came down to the local dealer. Same as sleds. If your dealer doesn't stand up for you, then you experience usually isn't a good one.
All you have to do is keep the saws clean and run a file through the chain after each tank of fuel. We have one old Stihl. Not even sure what model it is anymore cause the paint is all wore off. It still rips!
 
I bought a 395xpg husky last year 94 cc , Best saw I ever used. I have an old 510 stihl.It doesn't even have a chain brake on it, made in west germany, stihl running strong! I would rather a husky though!!!
 
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