Echo CS-590 Timber Wolf vs Husqvarna 460 Rancher

[bkellyusa]

I have owned mostly Husqvarna and Stihl for the last 30 years. Have had Husky's and 3 Stihl's. Nothing bad to say about either of them. The Stihl's I have are slightly more user friendly but I think the Husky's last longer. At my age I need to worry about the saws weight and with that I am going to sell my Stihl 390 and buy an Echo CS4910. My primary reasons are the attractive price, the power to weight ratio is the best on the market in that class and from people I know who own them, including a professional, Echo's got a great reputation. Plus, while I don't have much trouble starting either of my Stihl saws the Echo is supposed to be super, super easy to start. The 4910 also has a decompression valve. For me it's a no-brainer choice.

The only drawback is that Echo doesn't yet have all of the accessory support that the other two have. In my area you can find parts, chains and bars a lot easier for the Husky and Stihl than you can for the Echo and bars and chains for the Husky and Stihl are very high quality.

Let us know what you decide and why you chose the particular saw you get.

 

[in2b8er]

Hi guys. I ended up buying an ECHO CS590. The main reason i bought it over a Husqvarna is the price. The ECHO has a good reputation, it’s made in Japan and because I was able to buy it at Home Depot, I opened a Home Depot credit card and paid $311 for the saw after taxes. That’s over $100 cheaper than a Husqvarna 455 and it’s more powerful. I’ve had a 42cc craftsman for the last 5 yrs and that saw would struggle with certain jobs but was good enough for me for 95% of the work I did. So bottom line good reputation on quality, good power, and a great price is why i bought it. It did take me like 20min to start that saw the first time though. Hopefully it will be easier to start in the future. What I didn’t know is that echo covers carburetor adjustments for the first 30 days after purchase so after I ran it once at home, I didn’t hear it four stroking. I brought it in to a local dealer and had them look at it. They told me the saw ran fine and had good power so they didn’t adjust anything. I wanted them to make the saw run a little richer so that I wouldn’t burn out the piston and the guy told me the saw is running as it should, and they weren’t going to mess with it. Plus the EPA doesn’t want them to adjust saws to run too rich. I asked him if the EPA will buy me a new piston and cylinder when it burns out from running too lean and he told me that as long as I use fresh gas that’s appropriately mixed with 2 stroke oil I shouldn’t have that problem.

 

[Nutball]

It is winter, so they will run on the lean side in the cold, and may not 4 stroke any. The tricky part is finding a tune that works in all weather, which isn't really practical. It can get too cold to run a chainsaw without adjusting the carb. It can also get too hot to where it is blubbering rich and slow, but it shouldn't get that bad. Make sure you open the carb heat shutter when using it in cold weather, and be sure to shut it when temps get above 50deg. Letting the engine heat the carb and intake air can help richen it slightly in the cold, and prevent ice buildup. The procedure is in the manual. I recommend Red Armor oil for better protection. It doesn't burn off as easily as some other oils, so it will help keep the engine wet inside in extreme conditions. Just don't add extra oil to the gas "just to be safe" because that will lean the mixture further.

 

[Oakie]

Good advise given above. Not surprised the dealer you did not buy the saw off
was hesitant in adjusting it. I would have offered to pay him to do the job as he
needs to get something for his time, may be that would have resulted in him agreeing
to richen the saw up, post a video of the saw cutting, let it warm up first, show a few
throttle pulls out of the wood so we can see it accelerate from idle, then do a few cuts
lifting the weight off the saw a time or too so we can hear the engine note change, it
should four stroke when lifted and clear up again when put back in the cut.

As above, colder weather requires more fuel, hotter weather a little less.

 

[in2b8er]

Good advise given above. Not surprised the dealer you did not buy the saw off
was hesitant in adjusting it. I would have offered to pay him to do the job as he
needs to get something for his time, may be that would have resulted in him agreeing
to richen the saw up, post a video of the saw cutting, let it warm up first, show a few
throttle pulls out of the wood so we can see it accelerate from idle, then do a few cuts
lifting the weight off the saw a time or too so we can hear the engine note change, it
should four stroke when lifted and clear up again when put back in the cut.

As above, colder weather requires more fuel, hotter weather a little less.

I was under the impression that if any work was done to the saw, i.e. adjusting the carburetor they could file a warranty claim with echo or bill echo for the adjustment. It’s single digits in Michigan right now so I’ll be back to post a video in March. Thank you for the feedback.

 

[bkellyusa]

Can anyone tell me if it's true that Echo Chainsaws seem to take longer to break in than other brands. I've heard that several times without any explanation.

I am about to buy an Echo CS4910 so I'd like to know in advance.

Thanks in advance for any response.

 

[Nutball]

Not that I know of. The little 2511t seems to take a couple tanks of gas to smooth out and run stronger, but any other saw seems to run well from the start as long as it is tuned properly.

As for cold weather, I've had a Stihl 291 not want to run in weather colder than 45-50 degrees. It really is asking a lot to expect them to run in any weather with no adjustments. They tell you in the manual how to adjust the carb for a reason, but when you try, the EPA put something there that prevents you from making it run better. Lean running means more nitrogen oxide emissions and more broken down OPE that need high emissions mining and manufacturing plants to build replacement parts.

 

[Oakie]

Any engine needs time to bed in and form a proper seal between the ring and the cylinder wall.
How long it takes depends on the materials used in the ring and the cylinder wall, and how hard
those materials are.
What I will say about any Echo I had that with a cat in the muffler need to be kept an
eye on, as they run dam hot when they are new / tight tolerances and that cat sitting close to the
cylinder holds a lot of heat, give them work to do but don't rev them up out of the wood, and let them
idle for thirty seconds before stopping them so the fan cools them down.
Every saw is different, depends on the tune, if you are not getting enough fuel into the cylinder
you are also not getting enough lubrication into the saw, this also causes the engine to run hot
because it is too lean.
I read about so many saws packing up after only a half hour or a few tanks, so keep an eye for lean
running, use a good quality oil at 40 or 50:1, make sure its tuned, and refrain from crazy revs out of the wood.

 

[Kletus]

Mine came in like that on a trade. Started scoring on P+C. To lean from factory. Saw ran fine. You would not even know it was happening running it till it is too late someday. I just pulled it down to muffler mod is how I found it.

Just be sure to check your tune. Your dealer should be able to do that for you if you dont know how.

View attachment 983
View attachment 983 View attachment 984 View attachment 985 View attachment 986

Notice the 590 has only one piston ring. The 620 has two.

 

[Kletus]

I like Echo's because they use a 3 step chrome plating process for the cylinder bore. Japanese bearings are some of the highest quality bearings you can buy. The Japanese have building 2 stroke engines for decades and know their business. The limiter caps are a pain as well as a detriment to the longevity of the engine. Case in point, where I live the altitude is 1200 feet when I go into the mountains I sometimes cut fire wood anywhere from 4500-9000 feet in the Gila forest. You have to adjust the high speed mixture more than the limiters will allow. Fuel oil mixtures and temperature need to be compensated for by adjusting the high and low speed mixture more likely than the limiters will allow. The EPA has struck again. When I bought mine they both had a lifetime warranty on the ignition module stated in the warranty.

 

[schneiderschainsaw]

Very annoying when we pay our money and get what is a damaged product. I think Echo build a
good product and can not understand why some saws come like this, while other are rich.
I had three SX501 saws, all perfectly tuned from new, one CS352 that seemed to wander off tune,
it drove me nuts until I decided to stop chasing the ghost and left it set rich, sold that one and bought
a Makita EA4300, cracking saw for what it is, sadly Makita have now decided to produce no more
gas powered saws, should I sell or should I keep it, I bought two to have spares, even so, not happy
with Makita.

I think that you should write a letter to Makita or call them on their comment line. A lot of people are not happy with their choice including myself. I would not sell the EA4300 as it is a good saw. Parts should be available for a long time. I actually sell Makita chainsaws and service them and am not happy with their decision either. My customers are tree professionals and I certainly do not have anything to sell them after these are gone. Battery chainsaws are years away.

 

[schneiderschainsaw]

I sell Echo 590 chainsaws and offer a comparison with the Husqvarna 555. The motors are the same size and they both work quite well. I would take a 590 over the Husky 460. However, the Husky 555 is more like the Echo 620 and they are priced very similarly. Both have improved air intake and exhaust systems over the Echo 590 or the Husky 460.

 

[Oakie]

I sell Echo 590 chainsaws and offer a comparison with the Husqvarna 555. The motors are the same size and they both work quite well. I would take a 590 over the Husky 460. However, the Husky 555 is more like the Echo 620 and they are priced very similarly. Both have improved air intake and exhaust systems over the Echo 590 or the Husky 460.

Yes, I like the Echo saws, though I found the Makita saws gave more power
in stock form and were also good value for money, I had both, liked the Makita
saw better.
Now am on the Echo brand, really all that is left if you want to avoid
Autotune or Mtronic.

 

[Oakie]

I sell Echo 590 chainsaws and offer a comparison with the Husqvarna 555. The motors are the same size and they both work quite well. I would take a 590 over the Husky 460. However, the Husky 555 is more like the Echo 620 and they are priced very similarly. Both have improved air intake and exhaust systems over the Echo 590 or the Husky 460.

Was accidentally locked out of my account here, so only able to post now.
Makita / Dolmar do not care, they have their mind made up.
As for parts, even last year when I decided to sell my last two Makita EA4300 saws
I could not find parts, I was on other forums, people looking for crank seals, they changed
the seals a couple of times, made it even more difficult to know which ones to get, but
getting them was impossible, they were listed as in stock, but when you tried to order
they were not available.
Other parts too were not available, that is why I sold mine, if I could have stocked up
with a few oil pumps, a set of crank seals, a few air filters, a backing plate or two
for behind the bar, and a spare coil I would have bought all these parts, but no luck.

 

[schneiderschainsaw]

Hi, I will sell Makita gas chainsaws and gas outdoor power equipment as long as they are available unlike many of the other Makita dealers. I believe that they are good equipment for the money. I will also support them with parts and labor if needed for up to ten years. As a service center I am required to support them as long as parts are available. However, as a dealer I am stocking parts for the future of any piece of machinery that I sell so that I can support equipment for ten years. Steve

 

[schneiderschainsaw]

I also forgot to say that I have applied to be an Efco gas outdoor power dealer. If I get approved I will have three chainsaws that are considered professional level with the largest being 65cc. I will know more about this in the near future. Thanks,
Steven

 

[Oakie]

I also forgot to say that I have applied to be an Efco gas outdoor power dealer. If I get approved I will have three chainsaws that are considered professional level with the largest being 65cc. I will know more about this in the near future. Thanks,
Steven

To me, Efco is the best of the Chinese saws, they are no longer made
in Italy, they are not the saw they once were, the GSH are the home saws
and the GS are the more up market saws, I would not call them pro.
I bought one last year, a GS-520.
This model has the habit of shearing the key on the flywheel, the key
is built into the flywheel, it is very thin, and is like an upside down half moon,
the radius-ed part of that key is what touches the slot in the crank, so very little
meat where it counts.

Six months later, am still in contact with EFCO to get them to take back the saw,
it never worked correctly from new, and finding the sheared key explained why.
.
I intend to do a write up and post it everywhere to make people aware of the
difficulty in dealing with EFCO.

 

[schneiderschainsaw]

Thanks for the warning. Steven

 

[Oakie]

Thanks for the warning. Steven

I don't mean to discourage, but this has been my experience.
The dealer I bought the saw off could have helped, but said it
was perfect when it left his place, not true, he said it was tested,
not true, no fuel and not a smidge of oil residue in the tank.

I did not trust him, asked for my money back, he refused,
I contacted Efco in Italy, they told me the importer would be
in touch with me shortly, that was probably a month ago,
no contact from the importer, the importer and the dealer
will support each other, so it will be down to Efco to step
up and help, the person dealing with it in Italy is no in her
office until the 29th, so won't know anything until then.

Either way, its not how to treat customers, and I will take them
to whatever court deals with this kind of situation, they think
they can hide behind their desks, that won't work like they think.

 

[Oakie]

The Efco GS line of saws could be good, if they spent more on better
materials, the engine in mine seems good, if they used better material
in the key that holds the flywheel that issue would be no more,
its not a clam shell, it is however bolted into a cheap plastic frame,
that frame needs attention,the plastic is easy to break, brittle rubbish,
they could easily make it from better plastic, or even aluminium and
up the price a little, people will pay when they are getting their moneys
worth, as things stand, your definitely not, had I seen one in real life I would
not have bought the one I did, I based my decision on the older models,
that were better made.

Stihl use good plastic, even Makita plastic was good, echo could be
better but does not seem to give many problems, those
friction jointed semi transparent tanks may or may not hold up in the
long run, time will tell, the bar studs are stripping out of the CS-352
models, seen it locally, seen an odd one online, this needs improved.