I've probably bought at least 30 chainsaws over the years. Many were at
auctions or garage sales and needed work. Some of those I was able to
get running, others became boat anchors or got sold at our own sales.
Others I bought new. Those generally worked well, but only once!!!!

It seems that chainsaws are made to be used once, and thrown in the
trash. It dont matter if they were bought new, or use ones that were
just rebuilt, they all have one thing in common, THEY ONLY WORK ONCE!

I've added gas stabilizer, used costly premium gas without alcohol,
tried draining the gas, even blowing out the carb. None of this matters,
if the saw is not used for a few weeks or months, it will never run
again, (at least not without rebuilding the carb, and probably more
repairs).

And none of this takes into account the amount of times a person has to
pull the string to get that ******* started. It often rivals the amount
of strokes your arm would make to use a hand saw. And by the time you do
get them started, you're probably too exhausted to cut the damn tree.

After spending over $200 to get my Stihl professionally rebuilt, which
occurred after I had already spent 3 full days working on it, and at
least $50 for parts, I had a well running saw. It started quickly, and I
trimmed several branches and cut down a small dead tree in an hour.

But it never fails, a few months later we had a bad storm, and there
were 7 large trees knocked down. I grabbed the Stihl, and spent 2 hours
pulling the string. Thats when I went to the local tool rental place and
asked to rent a chainsaw, only to find out they stopped renting
chainsaws, because people always brought them back broken. (I asked if
that was because of the people, or just an inheritant tendency of all
chainsaws to break down after every use).

- TIME TO CHANGE -

About 8 years ago, I either sold the last of the gas powered chainsaws
for parts on Craigslist, or threw them in the trash. I went and bought
an electric chainsaw. I was very pleased. It started immediately, was
quiet, and worked perfectly after it was not used for months.

Aside from needing long cords and not having the longest bars, this
seemed to be a dream come true. But there had to be a a flaw I had not
yet found. I found it after about a combined use of 8 or 9 hours. THe
flaw is that the chains get loose, and soon they come off the bar. Once
they are off the bar, they can not be put back without a difficult
struggle, which can take hours. After they are put back on the bar, they
are never tight, and will come off soon again. This is because these
small electric saws dont have a tightness adjuster like the larger gas
powered saws have.

My last electric saw became useless after probably 10 hours total usage,
simply because the chain could no longer be tightened and kept popping
off, which cost me at least 2 hours of frustration each and every time,
to get it back on, only to find it off the bar again, after a few
minutes of use. I finally tossed it in the trash. Now, I am facing the
same thing with another saw........

I think my days of chainsaw use and ownership are over!

We just had a storm, I am coping with 6 trees down, and doing all the
cutting with a sawsall on the smaller branches, and just pushing the
trunks into a pile, with my farm tractor, to be burned.

If anyone has any other suggestions for cutting up trees, WITHOUT a
Chainsaw, please post them!

wrote:
I've probably bought at least 30 chainsaws over the years. Many were
at auctions or garage sales and needed work. Some of those I was able
to get running, others became boat anchors or got sold at our own
sales. Others I bought new. Those generally worked well, but only
once!!!!

It seems that chainsaws are made to be used once, and thrown in the
trash. It dont matter if they were bought new, or use ones that were
just rebuilt, they all have one thing in common, THEY ONLY WORK ONCE!

I've added gas stabilizer, used costly premium gas without alcohol,
tried draining the gas, even blowing out the carb. None of this
matters, if the saw is not used for a few weeks or months, it will
never run again, (at least not without rebuilding the carb, and
probably more repairs).

And none of this takes into account the amount of times a person has
to pull the string to get that ******* started. It often rivals the
amount of strokes your arm would make to use a hand saw. And by the
time you do get them started, you're probably too exhausted to cut
the damn tree.

After spending over $200 to get my Stihl professionally rebuilt, which
occurred after I had already spent 3 full days working on it, and at
least $50 for parts, I had a well running saw. It started quickly,
and I trimmed several branches and cut down a small dead tree in an
hour.

But it never fails, a few months later we had a bad storm, and there
were 7 large trees knocked down. I grabbed the Stihl, and spent 2
hours pulling the string. Thats when I went to the local tool rental
place and asked to rent a chainsaw, only to find out they stopped
renting chainsaws, because people always brought them back broken. (I
asked if that was because of the people, or just an inheritant
tendency of all chainsaws to break down after every use).

- TIME TO CHANGE -

About 8 years ago, I either sold the last of the gas powered chainsaws
for parts on Craigslist, or threw them in the trash. I went and bought
an electric chainsaw. I was very pleased. It started immediately, was
quiet, and worked perfectly after it was not used for months.

Aside from needing long cords and not having the longest bars, this
seemed to be a dream come true. But there had to be a a flaw I had not
yet found. I found it after about a combined use of 8 or 9 hours. THe
flaw is that the chains get loose, and soon they come off the bar.
Once they are off the bar, they can not be put back without a
difficult struggle, which can take hours. After they are put back on
the bar, they are never tight, and will come off soon again. This is
because these small electric saws dont have a tightness adjuster like
the larger gas powered saws have.

My last electric saw became useless after probably 10 hours total
usage, simply because the chain could no longer be tightened and kept
popping off, which cost me at least 2 hours of frustration each and
every time, to get it back on, only to find it off the bar again,
after a few minutes of use. I finally tossed it in the trash. Now, I
am facing the same thing with another saw........

I think my days of chainsaw use and ownership are over!

We just had a storm, I am coping with 6 trees down, and doing all the
cutting with a sawsall on the smaller branches, and just pushing the
trunks into a pile, with my farm tractor, to be burned.

If anyone has any other suggestions for cutting up trees, WITHOUT a
Chainsaw, please post them!

I've got an electric Wen that I've been using for probably 15 years or more for
routine yard cleanup/maintainence and I'm still on the origional chain. Just
picked up a newer one at a garage sale for $5, just in case. A few occasional
swipes with a file, occasional chain adjustment, and keeping it oiled is all it
has taken.

My old stihl sometimes takes a little work to get it going, but usually a squirt
of gas into the carb will get it going quickly if it is being stubborn. That one
is probably 20-30 years old.

Do you keep them lubed and sharp?

On Wed, 24 Jun 2015 13:25:56 -0500, wrote:

I've probably bought at least 30 chainsaws over the years.

Just shoot yourself. Save us the agony.

On 06/24/2015 01:25 PM, wrote:
I've probably bought at least 30 chainsaws over the years. Many were at
auctions or garage sales and needed work. Some of those I was able to
get running, others became boat anchors or got sold at our own sales.
Others I bought new. Those generally worked well, but only once!!!!

It seems that chainsaws are made to be used once, and thrown in the
trash. It dont matter if they were bought new, or use ones that were



I don't do much heavy-duty sawing so just bought an electric chain saw.

Have had it for years and it still works fine.


Just need to make sure the chain is tight and has oil, before I use it.

wrote:
After spending over $200 to get my Stihl professionally rebuilt, which
occurred after I had already spent 3 full days working on it, and at
least $50 for parts, I had a well running saw. It started quickly,
and I trimmed several branches and cut down a small dead tree in an
hour.

But it never fails, a few months later we had a bad storm, and there
were 7 large trees knocked down. I grabbed the Stihl, and spent 2
hours pulling the string.


My (very used , free) Stihl is out by the shop , been sitting for months
.. Probably with gas in the tank . Bet a quarter it won't take more than a
handful of pulls to get it started - BRB - 10 to be exact . This saw doesn't
have a primer bulb , just choke 'er and pull . The Poulan and the Homelite
both fired right up the other day when I needed them too . Perhaps the
problem is how you maintain the saws ? Do you ever go over them for loose
bolts and missing pieces ? Keep the chain properly tensioned and sharp ? Use
the proper bar oil ? Check and clean/gap or replace the spark plug ? Wash
and re-oil the air filter and check the fuel filter in the tank ? Replace
cracked/leaking hoses and primer bulbs ? I do all the above , and my only
problem stems from trying to cheap out on a bar .

If anyone has any other suggestions for cutting up trees, WITHOUT a
Chainsaw, please post them!

I hear primacord works . A bit noisy though .

--
Snag

On Wednesday, June 24, 2015 at 1:27:09 PM UTC-5, wrote:
I've probably bought at least 30 chainsaws over the years. Many were at
auctions or garage sales and needed work. Some of those I was able to
get running, others became boat anchors or got sold at our own sales.
Others I bought new. Those generally worked well, but only once!!!!

It seems that chainsaws are made to be used once, and thrown in the
trash. It dont matter if they were bought new, or use ones that were
just rebuilt, they all have one thing in common, THEY ONLY WORK ONCE!

I've added gas stabilizer, used costly premium gas without alcohol,
tried draining the gas, even blowing out the carb. None of this matters,
if the saw is not used for a few weeks or months, it will never run
again, (at least not without rebuilding the carb, and probably more
repairs).

And none of this takes into account the amount of times a person has to
pull the string to get that ******* started. It often rivals the amount
of strokes your arm would make to use a hand saw. And by the time you do
get them started, you're probably too exhausted to cut the damn tree.

After spending over $200 to get my Stihl professionally rebuilt, which
occurred after I had already spent 3 full days working on it, and at
least $50 for parts, I had a well running saw. It started quickly, and I
trimmed several branches and cut down a small dead tree in an hour.

But it never fails, a few months later we had a bad storm, and there
were 7 large trees knocked down. I grabbed the Stihl, and spent 2 hours
pulling the string. Thats when I went to the local tool rental place and
asked to rent a chainsaw, only to find out they stopped renting
chainsaws, because people always brought them back broken. (I asked if
that was because of the people, or just an inheritant tendency of all
chainsaws to break down after every use).

- TIME TO CHANGE -

About 8 years ago, I either sold the last of the gas powered chainsaws
for parts on Craigslist, or threw them in the trash. I went and bought
an electric chainsaw. I was very pleased. It started immediately, was
quiet, and worked perfectly after it was not used for months.

Aside from needing long cords and not having the longest bars, this
seemed to be a dream come true. But there had to be a a flaw I had not
yet found. I found it after about a combined use of 8 or 9 hours. THe
flaw is that the chains get loose, and soon they come off the bar. Once
they are off the bar, they can not be put back without a difficult
struggle, which can take hours. After they are put back on the bar, they
are never tight, and will come off soon again. This is because these
small electric saws dont have a tightness adjuster like the larger gas
powered saws have.

My last electric saw became useless after probably 10 hours total usage,
simply because the chain could no longer be tightened and kept popping
off, which cost me at least 2 hours of frustration each and every time,
to get it back on, only to find it off the bar again, after a few
minutes of use. I finally tossed it in the trash. Now, I am facing the
same thing with another saw........

I think my days of chainsaw use and ownership are over!

We just had a storm, I am coping with 6 trees down, and doing all the
cutting with a sawsall on the smaller branches, and just pushing the
trunks into a pile, with my farm tractor, to be burned.

If anyone has any other suggestions for cutting up trees, WITHOUT a
Chainsaw, please post them!

My older brother was in Special Forces during the Vietnam war and he told me about how they downed trees with detonator cord. He said one wrap around a tree trunk would cut through it when set off. When I was a kid out in the country, we blew stuff up all the time. Now the fraking terrorist have ruined the fun we used to have on the farm. o_O

[8~{} Uncle Tree Monster

Oren wrote:
On Wed, 24 Jun 2015 13:25:56 -0500, wrote:

I've probably bought at least 30 chainsaws over the years.

Just shoot yourself. Save us the agony.

On Wednesday, June 24, 2015 at 1:27:09 PM UTC-5, wrote:

I think my days of chainsaw use and ownership are over!

We just had a storm, I am coping with 6 trees down, and doing all the
cutting with a sawsall on the smaller branches, and just pushing the
trunks into a pile, with my farm tractor, to be burned.

If anyone has any other suggestions for cutting up trees, WITHOUT a
Chainsaw, please post them!

Call someone to cut-up and haul-away that has a wood burner. I bought a used Pro Mac 10-10 for $25 yrs ago...heavy and loud, but it still works great.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Tjsf0eXA-e8

On 06/24/2015 07:25 PM, wrote:
I've probably bought at least 30 chainsaws over the years. Many were at
auctions or garage sales and needed work. Some of those I was able to
get running, others became boat anchors or got sold at our own sales.
Others I bought new. Those generally worked well, but only once!!!!

It seems that chainsaws are made to be used once, and thrown in the
trash. It dont matter if they were bought new, or use ones that were
just rebuilt, they all have one thing in common, THEY ONLY WORK ONCE!

Stop buying CHINAsaws at McLowesDepotMart. Buy a Stihl and it will outlast you.

i wentelectric only over the issues mentioned here. I dont do a lot of chain sawing but wheni do i dont want to be repairing the saw!!!!

so i bought 4 or 5 electrics over the years. when one breaks i just swap saws till the job is done....

On 06/24/2015 03:44 PM, bob haller wrote:
i wentelectric only over the issues mentioned here. I dont do a lot of chain sawing but wheni do i dont want to be repairing the saw!!!!

so i bought 4 or 5 electrics over the years. when one breaks i just swap saws till the job is done....




Just had a look at mine...it's a Remington (electric)

If the chain does slip off, it only takes a minute to put it back on.


If I remember to make sure the bolts are tight before I use it, the
chain stays in place.

wrote in news:e00moa1m5i22k6g3loavou9nv9j7o2u4ac@
4ax.com:

On Wed, 24 Jun 2015 13:25:56 -0500, wrote:

I've probably bought at least 30 chainsaws over the years. Many were at
auctions or garage sales and needed work. Some of those I was able to
get running, others became boat anchors or got sold at our own sales.
Others I bought new. Those generally worked well, but only once!!!!

I have an old Homelite Ranger that is still going after 15 years.
I am on my 3d carburetor tho. When they start getting cranky, I just
buy a new carb for $45 or so. A couple of screws and I am going for
another 5 years. I do try to remember to start it up now and then and
cut up something. Run it out of gas and don't store what was left
over. Pour it in the truck and mix up some new gas next time you are
cutting something

That's exactly how I care for my Stihl, that is, when the season is over,
run it out of gas. If I'm not going to use next season, I'll run it
anyway just to keep the lines cleared up. It has one of those semi-power
starters, too, and that is very helpful. Never has any problems with it

philo wrote in :

On 06/24/2015 03:44 PM, bob haller wrote:
i wentelectric only over the issues mentioned here. I dont do a lot
of chain sawing but wheni do i dont want to be repairing the saw!!!!

so i bought 4 or 5 electrics over the years. when one breaks i just
swap saws till the job is done....




Just had a look at mine...it's a Remington (electric)

If the chain does slip off, it only takes a minute to put it back on.


If I remember to make sure the bolts are tight before I use it, the
chain stays in place.

I also have a Remington electric that I use for small job. But, just
last week the plastic tension adjuster cover, that also covers the rear
end of the bar, broke. Along with it went the little plastic stop that
holds the steal bolt/nut in place when adjusting tension. Think I'll
just get another electric chain saw.

On 06/24/2015 08:45 PM, Boris wrote:
philo wrote in :

On 06/24/2015 03:44 PM, bob haller wrote:
i wentelectric only over the issues mentioned here. I dont do a lot
of chain sawing but wheni do i dont want to be repairing the saw!!!!

so i bought 4 or 5 electrics over the years. when one breaks i just
swap saws till the job is done....




Just had a look at mine...it's a Remington (electric)

If the chain does slip off, it only takes a minute to put it back on.


If I remember to make sure the bolts are tight before I use it, the
chain stays in place.

I also have a Remington electric that I use for small job. But, just
last week the plastic tension adjuster cover, that also covers the rear
end of the bar, broke. Along with it went the little plastic stop that
holds the steal bolt/nut in place when adjusting tension. Think I'll
just get another electric chain saw.




I normally perform all kinds of odd-ball repairs to keep things
going...but in the case of a chain saw...where safety is a real
issue...I'd probably opt for a new one too.

On Thu, 25 Jun 2015 01:45:26 +0000 (UTC), Boris
wrote:

philo wrote in :

On 06/24/2015 03:44 PM, bob haller wrote:
i wentelectric only over the issues mentioned here. I dont do a lot
of chain sawing but wheni do i dont want to be repairing the saw!!!!

so i bought 4 or 5 electrics over the years. when one breaks i just
swap saws till the job is done....




Just had a look at mine...it's a Remington (electric)

If the chain does slip off, it only takes a minute to put it back on.


If I remember to make sure the bolts are tight before I use it, the
chain stays in place.

I also have a Remington electric that I use for small job. But, just
last week the plastic tension adjuster cover, that also covers the rear
end of the bar, broke. Along with it went the little plastic stop that
holds the steal bolt/nut in place when adjusting tension. Think I'll
just get another electric chain saw.

I have a Remington too. Bought it for very little at a yard sale but
had to buy an new oil cap/bulb, and maybe the hand shield. The company
had all 2 or 3 parts I needed.

Oh, the chain was on backwards too. I'm lucky I thought of that when it
wouldn't cut.

For a guy who t hought he would never use a chain saw, I've used it
quite a bit. One time the snow knocked down a tree over my gate and
with the 2 feet of snow and the fence and the gate and part of the tree,
if I hadnt' had a chain saw, I couldn't have gotten out of the yard.

Another time a 50 foot cottonwood tree fell on my yard, and I certainly
don't want other people doing things on my yard.

But something made the main case break recently. I plan to glue it. If
that doesnt' do it, I'll look into buying a new case. And I have a
smaller one that sparked when I bought it, so it was cheap. But if I
see one at a yard sale I'll buy that too, and if nothhign works when I
need one, I guess I'll buy new.

A friend lent me a pole saw which used a Remington one size smaller than
mine. The handlet would have fit mine too but would have been heavy and
hard to control..


I don't see why the chain woudl come loose on an electric one more than
a gas one.

On 06/24/2015 10:33 PM, micky wrote:


I have a Remington too. Bought it for very little at a yard sale but
had to buy an new oil cap/bulb, and maybe the hand shield. The company
had all 2 or 3 parts I needed.

Oh, the chain was on backwards too. I'm lucky I thought of that when it
wouldn't cut.



Pardon the dumb joke:


The chain goes one way for cutting the tree down,

then you put it on the other way for cutting the tree up!


Got that from my Spanish prof when I asked her a question and all she
told me was "English is a dumb language"

For a guy who t hought he would never use a chain saw, I've used it
quite a bit. One time the snow knocked down a tree over my gate and
with the 2 feet of snow and the fence and the gate and part of the tree,
if I hadnt' had a chain saw, I couldn't have gotten out of the yard.

Another time a 50 foot cottonwood tree fell on my yard, and I certainly
don't want other people doing things on my yard.

But something made the main case break recently. I plan to glue it. If
that doesnt' do it, I'll look into buying a new case. And I have a
smaller one that sparked when I bought it, so it was cheap. But if I
see one at a yard sale I'll buy that too, and if nothhign works when I
need one, I guess I'll buy new.

A friend lent me a pole saw which used a Remington one size smaller than
mine. The handlet would have fit mine too but would have been heavy and
hard to control..





Pole saw


I finally got a pole saw/pruner

Now that is one hell of a great invention~
I don't see why the chain woudl come loose on an electric one more than
a gas one.

On Thu, 25 Jun 2015 06:09:57 -0500, philo wrote:



The chain goes one way for cutting the tree down,

then you put it on the other way for cutting the tree up!

Good to know for when I build that shed I've been thinking about.

Got that from my Spanish prof when I asked her a question and all she
told me was "English is a dumb language"

On 06/24/2015 01:25 PM, wrote:

[snip]

Aside from needing long cords and not having the longest bars, this
seemed to be a dream come true. But there had to be a a flaw I had not
yet found. I found it after about a combined use of 8 or 9 hours. THe
flaw is that the chains get loose, and soon they come off the bar. Once
they are off the bar, they can not be put back without a difficult
struggle, which can take hours. After they are put back on the bar, they
are never tight, and will come off soon again. This is because these
small electric saws dont have a tightness adjuster like the larger gas
powered saws have.

My first electric chanisaw (Remington?) had that problem. Even at first,
I had to adjust the chain frequently. After awhile, I'd just get about 3
seconds of sawing before the chain came off (and it took a lot longer
than that to get it back on for another 3 seconds).

[snip]

--
Mark Lloyd
http://notstupid.us/

"Well, why did the Puritans come to this country?" a teacher asked his
history class. "To worship in their own way and to make other people do
the same" was the reply." [Frank Zindler]

On Wednesday, June 24, 2015 at 12:34:33 PM UTC-7, Uncle Monster wrote:
On Wednesday, June 24, 2015 at 1:27:09 PM UTC-5, wrote:

rant from guy who knows nothing about saws deleted


My older brother was in Special Forces during the Vietnam war and he told me about how they downed trees with detonator cord. He said one wrap around a tree trunk would cut through it when set off. When I was a kid out in the country, we blew stuff up all the time. Now the fraking terrorist have ruined the fun we used to have on the farm. o_O

[8~{} Uncle Tree Monster

Yep, back in the day you could walk into any hardware store and buy one or more sticks of dynamite. I liked Dad's method of blowing stumps. He was a firm believer in "if a little is enough, a lot more is better". Wasn't much left to clean up except to fill in the hole when he was done.

Harry K

On Wednesday, June 24, 2015 at 11:27:09 AM UTC-7, wrote:
I've probably bought at least 30 chainsaws over the years. Many were at
auctions or garage sales and needed work. Some of those I was able to
get running, others became boat anchors or got sold at our own sales.
Others I bought new. Those generally worked well, but only once!!!!

It seems that chainsaws are made to be used once, and thrown in the
trash. It dont matter if they were bought new, or use ones that were
just rebuilt, they all have one thing in common, THEY ONLY WORK ONCE!

I've added gas stabilizer, used costly premium gas without alcohol,
tried draining the gas, even blowing out the carb. None of this matters,
if the saw is not used for a few weeks or months, it will never run
again, (at least not without rebuilding the carb, and probably more
repairs).

And none of this takes into account the amount of times a person has to
pull the string to get that ******* started. It often rivals the amount
of strokes your arm would make to use a hand saw. And by the time you do
get them started, you're probably too exhausted to cut the damn tree.

After spending over $200 to get my Stihl professionally rebuilt, which
occurred after I had already spent 3 full days working on it, and at
least $50 for parts, I had a well running saw. It started quickly, and I
trimmed several branches and cut down a small dead tree in an hour.

But it never fails, a few months later we had a bad storm, and there
were 7 large trees knocked down. I grabbed the Stihl, and spent 2 hours
pulling the string. Thats when I went to the local tool rental place and
asked to rent a chainsaw, only to find out they stopped renting
chainsaws, because people always brought them back broken. (I asked if
that was because of the people, or just an inheritant tendency of all
chainsaws to break down after every use).

- TIME TO CHANGE -

About 8 years ago, I either sold the last of the gas powered chainsaws
for parts on Craigslist, or threw them in the trash. I went and bought
an electric chainsaw. I was very pleased. It started immediately, was
quiet, and worked perfectly after it was not used for months.

Aside from needing long cords and not having the longest bars, this
seemed to be a dream come true. But there had to be a a flaw I had not
yet found. I found it after about a combined use of 8 or 9 hours. THe
flaw is that the chains get loose, and soon they come off the bar. Once
they are off the bar, they can not be put back without a difficult
struggle, which can take hours. After they are put back on the bar, they
are never tight, and will come off soon again. This is because these
small electric saws dont have a tightness adjuster like the larger gas
powered saws have.

My last electric saw became useless after probably 10 hours total usage,
simply because the chain could no longer be tightened and kept popping
off, which cost me at least 2 hours of frustration each and every time,
to get it back on, only to find it off the bar again, after a few
minutes of use. I finally tossed it in the trash. Now, I am facing the
same thing with another saw........

I think my days of chainsaw use and ownership are over!

We just had a storm, I am coping with 6 trees down, and doing all the
cutting with a sawsall on the smaller branches, and just pushing the
trunks into a pile, with my farm tractor, to be burned.

If anyone has any other suggestions for cutting up trees, WITHOUT a
Chainsaw, please post them!

Yep. Learn to run a saw and something about them. I have had many over the years
McCulloch (50s), Homelite (used and new 70s), Jonsered (basket case rehabbed 80s), Stihl beginning in the 80s, Husky (90s), Currently running 5 Stihls from a little 192T (14") up to 441 (32"). Not one of them every gave me a problem starting or keeping the chain on. Been processing a minimum of 10 cords/yr since late 70s.

The earlier used saws finally had their life gone and were too far behind the technology to maintain, replaced with better saws.

One clue: If it takes more then 3-4 pulls with choke on to "pop" the carb needs attention.

Harry K

On Wednesday, June 24, 2015 at 1:27:09 PM UTC-5, wrote:


I've added gas stabilizer, used costly premium gas without alcohol,
tried draining the gas, even blowing out the carb. None of this matters,
if the saw is not used for a few weeks or months, it will never run
again, (at least not without rebuilding the carb, and probably more
repairs).


That's partially true, they do need to be used occasionally and not just once a year.

My 1st good chainsaw was a Poulan 3400 that I used for 20+ years and never replaced anything except worn out chains from to many sharpenings and a new bar or two. Probably cut a couple of hundred trees with it. My current saw is a Stihl 036 Pro and have been using it for about 8 years. Had to change the pull cord once. I keep a 5yr supply of firewood by using it plus cleanup of downed trees so it gets a good workout.

They get used at least once a month, sometimes more, and always start on the 2nd or 3rd pull. The chain needs to be kept tight to keep it from coming off. Depending on the bar, some need to sag less than 1/4", and the Stihl bar is tight + 1/4 turn of the adjustment screw.

Electric saws are ok for limbs & saplings but not much more. The 'chainsaw-on-a-stick' pole saws are nice until it gets pinched in a high large limb and you can't get it loose without an extension ladder and choice cuss words.

Harry K wrote:

One clue: If it takes more then 3-4 pulls with choke on to "pop" the
carb needs attention.

Harry K

Are you talking with or without primer bulb ? I don't feel bad if mine (no
bulb Stihl) starts in 8-10 pulls when it's dead cold . Once fired usually 1
or 2 .

--
Snag

On Thursday, June 25, 2015 at 1:01:49 PM UTC-7, Terry Coombs wrote:
Harry K wrote:

One clue: If it takes more then 3-4 pulls with choke on to "pop" the
carb needs attention.

Harry K

Are you talking with or without primer bulb ? I don't feel bad if mine (no
bulb Stihl) starts in 8-10 pulls when it's dead cold . Once fired usually 1
or 2 .

--
Snag

Without. I have only had one saw with a bulb (MS192T). Stone cold in the middle of winter a saw should "pop" with no more than 5. I do have an MS310 that has eaten a couple hundred cords. It has gotten some stubborn occasionally and takes lots of pulls. I don't use it often any more (have better ones) so I haven't done anything about it. Annoying part is it will "pop" after 10-12 pulls and then next time I pick it up weeks later will do it with 2 or 3.

Harry K

wrote:
I've probably bought at least 30 chainsaws over the years. Many were at
auctions or garage sales and needed work. Some of those I was able to
get running, others became boat anchors or got sold at our own sales.
Others I bought new. Those generally worked well, but only once!!!!


My husqvarna been going on 10 years occasional use. Never drain gas. Always
starts up. Never serviced.

Greg

Harry K wrote:
On Thursday, June 25, 2015 at 1:01:49 PM UTC-7, Terry Coombs wrote:
Harry K wrote:

One clue: If it takes more then 3-4 pulls with choke on to "pop"
the carb needs attention.

Harry K

Are you talking with or without primer bulb ? I don't feel bad if
mine (no bulb Stihl) starts in 8-10 pulls when it's dead cold . Once
fired usually 1 or 2 .

--
Snag

Without. I have only had one saw with a bulb (MS192T). Stone cold
in the middle of winter a saw should "pop" with no more than 5. I do
have an MS310 that has eaten a couple hundred cords. It has gotten
some stubborn occasionally and takes lots of pulls. I don't use it
often any more (have better ones) so I haven't done anything about
it. Annoying part is it will "pop" after 10-12 pulls and then next
time I pick it up weeks later will do it with 2 or 3.

Harry K

Well , I can't complain , this saw was given to me . It needed some work ,
mostly a carb cleaning and new bar and chain , So far the worst saw I own is
the only one I actually bought , but I really can't complain much about that
one either . I gave 75 bucks for it used probably 15 years ago . It saw
light use mostly until we moved up here and I started heating wirh wood ...
now I have 3 , with extra power heads for 2 of them . It's nice to have a
spare ready to go if you accidently touch a rock or get the bar bound !

--
Snag

"gregz" wrote in message
...
wrote:
I've probably bought at least 30 chainsaws over
the years. Many were at
auctions or garage sales and needed work. Some
of those I was able to
get running, others became boat anchors or got
sold at our own sales.
Others I bought new. Those generally worked
well, but only once!!!!


My husqvarna been going on 10 years occasional
use. Never drain gas. Always
starts up. Never serviced.

Greg

Same here. Did replace the piston ring before it
wore to the point where it could catch the
exhaust port. New ring and gasket, $25.
You get what you pay for, eih?
Great saw....