Does anyone make a decent chainsaw?

[randallrayusa]

I bought 2 Stihl farm bosses and after less than 15 hours of runtime it one needs a new carburator!
I'm thinking Stihl is nothing but hype. Is there a decent chainsaw out there? Stihl is a major disappointment!!!!

 

[redline4]

It's a piece of machinery. Things fail. Sometimes sooner than later.
I'd have to assume Stihl warranty covered it?

 

[randallrayusa]

Sure that's why my new Ford stoped running after 30 miles. There is an unacceptable level of failure.

 

[randallrayusa]

The mechanic at ace hardware where I purchased it said nothing about warranty

 

[scarr]

I wouldn't base my opinion on a home owner level product. They are produced for the throw away user.

 

[randallrayusa]

Lol
Stihl should have that on thier advertising.
So verdict is in!
Piece of junk if not industrial.

 

[scarr]

I believe the current Farm Boss model is the MS271. There have been multiple Farm Boss labeled models from such as the 028, 029, MS290 and so on. All where lower tier products aimed at the home owner with occasional use. Does that mean they are terrible, no! It just means they weren't meant to run thousands of hours and take the abuse that the professional models do.

With that said if you had 2 fail inside of 15 hours I would suspect it's a user problem.

 

[randallrayusa]

Lol
Stihl should have that on thier advertising.
So verdict is in!
Piece of junk if not industrial

I believe the current Farm Boss model is the MS271. There have been multiple Farm Boss labeled models from such as the 028, 029, MS290 and so on. All where lower tier products aimed at the home owner with occasional use. Does that mean they are terrible, no! It just means they weren't meant to run thousands of hours and take the abuse that the professional models do.

With that said if you had 2 fail inside of 15 hours I would suspect it's a user problem.

No just one. I took down 9 dead pines. It runs fine like the last. I let you know after it sits on a shelf for a couple of weeks. Is it possible I'm setting it down wrong. That would explain everything.

 

[scarr]

Lol
Stihl should have that on thier advertising.
So verdict is in!
Piece of junk if not industrial

No just one. I took down 9 dead pines. It runs fine like the last. I let you know after it sits on a shelf for a couple of weeks. Is it possible I'm setting it down wrong. That would explain everything.

Obviously you need to smudge your garage with some burnt sage to get rid of the bad omens.

 

[randallrayusa]

Lol
I'm thinking more like take the sage to ace and get rid of crooked mechanic. Lol
He is already so fired.
It may be the Stihl representative rather than the saw.
Thanks for the help. The mechanic has already lied to me once. He actually told me that ethanol will not hurt a carburator.
That brings his veracity into question.
I will see if the problem persists with new mechanic.

 

[scarr]

Ethanol can hurt the carb of it sits for a few months or it will harden the diaphragm faster than pure petroleum.

Really ethanol can eat into aluminum over a long period of time. E85 rated vehicles are all stainless fuel systems or at least hard anodized aluminum.

 

[randallrayusa]

Amen
Ethenol is just bad all around.
If changing were I have it serviced works. I will owe Stihl an apology.
Thanks for the help it's just frustrating buy a new carburator after very little use.

 

[Bob Hedgecutter]

Okay, so what I take away from this is:
Perhaps do not buy saws from big department stores with no workshop backing.
At time of purchase- verify which party has the responsibility of registering warranty.
Is perhaps a victim of the type of fuel you are forced to use and not the quality or lack thereof of the machine.

You could have bought an Echo (renown for being tuned lean out of the box) for a whole lot cheaper and had worse problems in 15 hours.
If you have a gut feeling the "mechanic" is not up to par- perhaps you need to ask for the old carb back, strip it clean it add a new genuine carb kit and see if things improve.
I feel a bit lost at all the posts from the US related to fuel delivery issues- where I live and play around with saws, we just do not have ethanol fuel and can pick up a saw from the 1970's and the fuel lines/carb will be fine.

 

[Norm]

I wouldn't base my opinion on a home owner level product. They are produced for the throw away user.

Absolutely thinking same thing

 

[Norm]

Lol
Stihl should have that on thier advertising.
So verdict is in!
Piece of junk if not industrial

No just one. I took down 9 dead pines. It runs fine like the last. I let you know after it sits on a shelf for a couple of weeks. Is it possible I'm setting it down wrong. That would explain everything.

They do if you go to a saw shop, they explain levels of use, cost etc. Also recommend the proper fuel and mix for you. We only have one ace hardware that I'd say is never saw shop level. Pro shop type, bought my 500i there.

 

[stihlsaw101]

I wouldn't base my opinion on a home owner level product. They are produced for the throw away user.

WHAT ,,, I,ve never seen anybody throw a STIHL saw away. No matter what it looked like.

 

[CharlesMcElhaney12]

Stihl is one of the best chainsaw brands I have ever used. Currently, I am using Stihl 291 and it works perfectly fine. I have not changed chainsaw carburetor since I have bought this one. However, if you don't like it. There are many other brands such as husqvarna, echo, dewalt, makita, poulan. My personal favorite for garden and home use is Husqvarna 440 appears to be the best choice.

 

[schneiderschainsaw]

I had a Stihl 460 that would shut down when it got hot and was always hard to start anyway. It was not even four months old when I sold it.
- As for ethanol I have seen dissolved fuel lines and carburetor diaphragm damage in home owner level equipment such as Craftsman chainsaws that I got in for repair.
- As far as quality brands Stihl, Husqvarna, Echo, Makita, Efco and Maruyama all have ISO9001 levels of international quality certification. But that does not mean that all models are of the same quality. If you look on the internet for lemon cars you can see warnings for bad car models from every car company and outstanding models from each as well. I think that the same can be said for chainsaw brands. I would recommend that you check all models in the class that you are looking for if possible before you buy one.

 

[AlSmith]

I'm thinking like randallrayusa, Stihl has gone down the tubes IMO. I have 024 AV WOODBOSS that has been a fantastic saw all these years. Last week after the winter, it wouldn't start. I thought hell, I need a new one. Went to the Stihl dealer and bought one... damm thing had a mini bar and chain! Than I find out it's pretty much a throw away. I took it back and got my money back. Problem now is I'm having a hard finding a carburetor kit for it. I'm even looking to buy a Troy-Built chainsaw. Good luck to you Randall.

 

[Bob Hedgecutter]

I'm thinking like randallrayusa, Stihl has gone down the tubes IMO. I have 024 AV WOODBOSS that has been a fantastic saw all these years. Last week after the winter, it wouldn't start. I thought hell, I need a new one. Went to the Stihl dealer and bought one... damm thing had a mini bar and chain! Than I find out it's pretty much a throw away. I took it back and got my money back. Problem now is I'm having a hard finding a carburetor kit for it. I'm even looking to buy a Troy-Built chainsaw. Good luck to you Randall.

Come on- you are comparing what was Stihls smallest professional grade saw to what was Stihls smallest consumer grade saw- 024 to MS171.
Nothing wrong with micro bars and Picco chain for their intended use- just harder to file as you get older and eyesight diminish.