I'll toss in my $.02. One of my father in law's hobbies is cutting
down trees on his property and cutting firewood. He has two Stihl
saws. He had two that he used for years and cut thousands of cords of
wood with, and recently replaced both of them (when he ran them over
with his uniloader.
But these are the toughest saws I've ever seen. The old ones had been
run over in the woods a couple of times and survived! Amazing
considering the weight of the uniloader. And I've been out with him
dozens of times where the saws cut constantly for six or eight hour
days. The old ones (and they were pretty old) started on the first or
second pull every time. If I were buying a saw there is no way I'd get
anything but a Stihl. Their smallest has a 'micro-kerf' blade that
makes more of the smaller motor. I think that it can be had for ~$150.
Make sure to buy premium gas and not to let fuel sit in the saw for a
long time. Also watch what you are doing. I have a long-sleeved
T-shirt that has a big hole in the corner from one that got too
close...
Good luck (and be careful),
Paul Parkanzky
parkanz1@msu.edu
|