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

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!

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

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.

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.

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

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

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

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.

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.

I guess it depends on what you are going to use it for.

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.....

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

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

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.

Casey

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.

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

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.

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.

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.

I run an ms290 "farm boss" with 18" bar and full chisel chain and my brother has the ms310 with 20" bar. Both are good, dependable, long lasting firewood saws. That said they are heavy and tiresome to run for extended periods for the power output. A couple years ago I bought a Husqvarna 445 with 16" bar which is considerably smaller and lighter {10 lbs vs 13 lbs} and not only is it much more comfortable to run for long periods but it actually cuts faster too. Haven't used the farm boss much at all since I got the Husky.

I run a 24" bar on MS 310 with no problems. Nice for limbing and no hassle when bucking up the rounds on the ground.

I have a farm boss and a 362. The 362 has a compression release and that is a good enough reason to own it.
They both use the same 20 inch bar and I can use the same chains on either saw. Hopefully they will outlast me.

I have the MS311 and it has been a good saw but I have not extensively used it. I did have a problem with the oiler clogging but that seems to have resolved itself. It is on the heavy side but I have an older small Echo that I use for trimming smaller stuff so it is manageable using the combination. I have the 18 inch bar on mine.

With my stihl saws I've always been able to choose less than what seemingly is required. They have such great power and good chain configurations, I'm able to chew through a 20" red or white oak with just an MS 250 with a 16" bar.

I zip through 10-15" oak and hickory with a little MS 170 with a 14" bar.


My MS 290 with 20" bar hardly gets used anymore.


I also know how to properly hand file all my chains to near new sharpness. Surprising to me how many men have to carry their saws to a dealer to get them sharpened. Pathetic.

And my oiler never gets clogged. Run a dull saw and you'll generate a lot of fine powder and will paste things up. Least that's my hypothesis.

If anything, my saws are bleeding bar oil all over the workbench. Have rest them on old burlap to keep them going from 'mike brown' all over the place.

I bought this saw back when I needed to clear about 3/4 acre of land for my Pole Barn build. Agreed, replace the safety chain with full skip and 20" bar and go cut chit.....mine has never had an issue!

I've got an MS260. It's only about 10lb., decompression for easy starting, anti-vibration. Keep the chain sharp and you can work all day with it - let the saw do the work. You can cut just under twice the length of the bar no problems if you know what you are doing. I've been cutting firewood for close to 10 years with this one and it's been a workhorse. You pay more for the 'pro' models, but it can be worth it if you have the coin to spare. You can put longer bars on, but there's no real point. With a 16" or 18" bar, you can cut a 30" log and you get better torque with a smaller bar. Longer bars are easier to bog down. Nice to have a bar that's bigger than most of the logs you cut so it's done in one cut. I love Stihls, but Husqvarnas are good too. Buddy of mine used a husqvarna on his Alaska mill to mill spruce planks for his cabin. Worked it hard, but got some great lumber out of it.

311 sounds like their neophyte line. At 036 you get the full size chain.
Whatever shop you like best is the way to go. We have a Stihl dealer. They don't have a clue compared to the Husqvarna guy down the street.

Good saw. I have a 20" bar and a 16. Not that much for another bar and chains. The 16 inch is handy for smaller stuff.