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bea175 Offline OP
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Thinking of purchasing this saw , anyone have any experience with it?


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I deal with them all the time in the shop. You can't go wrong. I'm sure someone will be along with a superior choice!

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They don't just hand out Stihl dealerships, or we would probably have one. I get along really good with Husqvarna though.

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Mine has been good except the oiler clogs. They're kinda heavy vs the same money range Husqvarna. Stihl products are hard to beat for reliability. I'd drive a Stihl truck and run a Stihl outboard if they made them.


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I think you will do just fine with the Stihl, it's a good choice. I personally would want a longer bar, 20" seems pretty short unless you are just pruning trees with it.


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I split the difference and went with a 271 for a light powerful, and a 362 for the big limb cutter, vs. that way.

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I run a 360 with a 20" bar, perfect for farm chores and cutting winter wood Bea.


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I have the precursor to the 311, the MS 310.
A 20" bar with a chipper chain is about all this saw wants. If you stand on it, it will bog down. I have been happier with mine since putting on a 18" bar.

My 310 is 14 years old and has cut about 12 cords a year since I bought it. Replacing a fuel line ($5.00) has been the only work it's needed outside of normal maintenance

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ya know you can get the mdl 391 w/more power for the same weight. might cost a nickel more.

mine is a 20 inch bar & chain, and it's a horse in my view.

it replaced a poulan 3400, and it's night & day difference.

i wanted a prof. model, but i wasn't willing to pay for it, for what sawing i do.


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The chain transition to the wider bite occur up at the 360 range, and man what a difference that makes in cutting bigger pieces.

I had a 20" on my 270, and was cutting big pieces, it worked but what a huge difference making the jump up to 362 with the wider chain.

Guess I'm trying to say that both width (bite) and bar length matter.


Last edited by Spotshooter; 10/07/16.
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I guess it depends on what you are going to use it for.



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Originally Posted by Spotshooter
The chain transition to the wider bite occur up at the 360 range,


It's a Stihl. When you buy it, you can spec what bar and chain you want. You don't have to take one set up off the shelf, the way the counter-jockeys like 'em....

I bought a 260 pro and the dealer stripped off the .325 safety chain, sprocket and 18" bar, and added the 20" inch bar and 3/8th pitch full chisel chain I wanted.....

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I have a Stihl MS310 that I did the muffler mod on and then retuned the carb. It runs a 20" bar just fine.


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bea175 Offline OP
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I could go with a 18 inch bar but was thinking the 20 would be just a little better for sawing bigger pieces of wood


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The MS311 is a good saw. Saws in this quality range are "landowner saws". Tend to be a bit heavier than pro saws, run lower rpms, have a narrower power band, and will need serviced sooner--but it's intial price is a fair amount less too.

I would recommend the 20 inch bar also, heavier but a longer reach and more versatile.

Not to make your choice more difficult, but consider the Husky 455 Rancher. Although 5cc smaller, it's lighter and rated for more power (a manufacturer's rating doesn't always tell the story though). Plus I think its less money.

I've used both, but not the current ones, and things change every couple years these days.

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It will handle a 20" just fine.

I would also be looking at the Echo cs-600, it has several features I like better than the Stihl.

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Originally Posted by Jim_Conrad
I guess it depends on what you are going to use it for.



The most important question to answer before anyone can give a recommendation.


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absolutely. a two saw family gives some flexibility at the cost of maintaining two saws.

an additional thought is that's i'd never choose a saw with lesser hp over a higher powered saw at the same weight level.


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I chose one with both. Higher RPM, higher power, full pro saw, and only 40 bucks more than the Farm Boss from Stihl. Been using it about six years and have used it enough to be on the third bar. Replaced the air filter last year and have needed no other repairs.

My only downside is whenever we had family wood cutting days I would have a fight to use my own saw and everyone wanted to use it over their saws.


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your point is totally understandable. in general there's roughly three corners to the triangle. that is, price, power & weight.

a young dude loves the power, damn the weight.

a old dude like me loves the power but is willing to trade for a bit of weight reduction.

the other leg is money/price. the gov't is printing the stuff everyday, so no worries there.


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