Quality Chainsaws - Husqvarna & Stihl the only options?

[Rhyolith]

I asked about chainsaw training a while back (chainsaws-t102407.html), now it looks likely I will get in for free in the next year or so thanks to my volunteering work. So I've started to think about the expensive business of getting a good chainsaw.

My question is whether Husqvarna and Stihl are the only "quality" chainsaw manufacturers? I am not interested in which of those two is better (plenty of that to look at already) but whether there are any others worth a look... particularly any with better build quality, as I am not overly impressed by the short lifespans of either of these under 'professional' use.

Also are there any British chainsaw makers? I think this has been asked before and the answer was no, but worth reminding myself.

I am under the impression that older or vintage saws are better build quality but more dangerous, is this true? There always seem to be a number of old British maid ones on eBay.

 

[Woodmonkey]

I used stihl for years professionally as a tree surgeon and never had a dud, so not sure what you mean by that.
Echo are pretty good for cheaper far Eastern made saws and most Swedish brands seem pretty decent such as jonserad or McCulloch.

Edit: i would definitely stay away from vintage ones, chainsaw safety features have come a long way in the last few years (and chances are they'll be knackered anyway)

 

[AJB Temple]

I would also take a look at the Greenworks professional (not DIY version) battery range. I have been quite impressed and the trade supplier I use for machinery is shifting a lot of them to pro tree guys. 80v and 40v.

 

[Selwyn]

Makita oo

 

[Phil Pascoe]

I spoke to one of the local chainsaw carvers and asked if he always used Stihl - he said yes, everything else falls to bits.

 

[NazNomad]

Are the new Stihl saws as good though? I thought they were becoming a throwaway item as there's no carb adjustment?

I have an ancient pre-chain-brake Stihl, beast of a thing, superb saw.

If I were in the market for a new saw, I'd seriously be looking at Husqvarna.

 

[Chip shop]

The lads 'round here use Stihl for hardwood and Huskys for softwood. All my kit (chainsaws, hedge cutter & strimmer) is Stihl, and I wouldn't consider anything else.

When I worked in the woods, anyone who turned up with a Jonsered saw got laughed at as they used to blow up after a couple of days hard graft.

Are the new Stihl saws as good though? I thought they were becoming a throwaway item as there's no carb adjustment?

Yes. My latest saw is a MS460 which has had some serious grief and has not let me down once in 3 years. I've never had need to adjust the carb. I had a Husky 254 about 10 years ago and it was a complete pig.

 

[Phil Pascoe]

When did chain brakes come into being? I had a 20" McCulloch in the early '70s that had one.

 

[Chip shop]

When did chain brakes come into being? I had a 20" McCulloch in the early '70s that had one.

My Dad gave me a Danarm when I first started. I think it was from the late sixties and I'm pretty sure that didn't have a brake, it had no damping either, so could rattle your fillings loose. But I seem to remember saws being sold as late as the mid nineties with no brakes.

Edit: a quick Google (I've got painting to do..so any excuse) reveals the chain brake came into production in '72 and the quick stop in '82.

 

[murdoch]

I've just bought a new saw, went to 2 local retailers of stihl and husqvarna and neither would sell me a stihl!!!! Both places repair and service and say in the last few years stihl quality has really dropped. Bought a husky 550xp, amazing compared to the older models, felled and cut up around 10 large trees and it's great, really well built.

 

[duncanh]

We tend to use Stihl at work but have a couple of old Huskys as well. I've always preferred the Stihls but that's probably just what I'm used to as that's what I was trained on. And I have an MS180 at home. My boss prefers the Husky's but, again, probably just through habit.
The recent Stihls at work are newish 261c's and 2 out of 3 have an issue stalling often when the chain brake is one. It's well documented but annoying. Apparently the issue is now resolved but if I was buying I'd avoid those. It's to do with the bearings and not the computer control. The computer control is a bit concerning if it needs resetting out in the woods.
Our Stihl MS660 occasionally won't fire after a refuelling/lunch break - annoying and we haven't tracked down why. It gets fairly hammered though.
The main reason we go for Stihl is that we get a good discount at our local dealer

Echo have a good reputation.
My Bosch electric one stopped working after a couple of years.
My Lidl electric one still works after 2 years

 

[Ant-h83]

We use stihl as a rule, I find they are a bit more robust than husqvarna's but the huskys are a bit more powerful, echo Makita and dolmar are all good competitors but it just depends how much you will be working the saw and how easy spares are to get hold of,
If your mechanically minded you could always consider a complete saw kit from hutzl, they are high quality Chinese copies of the older stihls, a few people in the Arb industry have tried them out and only have good things to say about http://m.huztl.net/cateList-2971.html


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[undergroundhunter]

Ive got a 70s McCulloch and it has a chain brake but no damping (gets tiring after a while), when I got it it had the wrong bar fitted so I had to order a replacement. It's a beast of a machine 75cc so loads of power, I don't really work it that hard it was more for cutting fire wood than felling a forest. I used to work for a stihl agent about 8 years ago they were really good quality and reliable (and easy to get spares for). I recently went to a country show where they were doing some chainsaw carving and I did notice that all the guys there were using Husqvarna saws.

Matt