I need a recommendation for a chainsaw that as a homeowner I can also on the ground or climb with to cut medium size trees like Siberian Elm and mature White Spruce and Colorado Spruce and occasionally a Green Ash. I also cut smaller invasive things Buckthorn (which is usually < 4" diameter) trim branches, Tartarian Honeysuckle bush, White Mulberry. The property also has some wild native areas where a handful of cottonwoods have grown quite large. In addition to a wooded yard, I have a small prairie savannah restoration area where I’m removing trees.
I have an Oregon 16" battery-powered chainsaw and I actually need to request warranty service after only a few months of use. The bar length is all I need 90% of the time. I love that it can sharpen the chain on the fly. I love that it automatically oils the chain. I love that it’s not insanely loud and vibrating and there is no gas to go bad. And that I can service the chain while still climbing the tree. But it couldn’t handle cutting down the spruce trees – there’s something wrong with the motor and the chain ripped a hole in it.
I am assuming approximately a 20" gas would be required for what I do. My previous experience was small gas engines is quite negative, which is why I went for the battery powered.
Stihl or Husqvarna. Pick based on the dealer network in your area.
How often use it will depend on if you want homeowner grade or professional grade. Either should do fine. An MS250 will work well for those tasks or if you feel like spending extra money an MS261.
I haven’t yet tried the electric saws from a real saw manufacturer to give my input there but something like the DeWalt DCCS623 pruning saw sure is handy. Not sure the DeWalt and Milwaukee of the world though make long term good chainsaws yet. You’ll likely run into the same issue you ran into with your Oregon.
Our climbers always run 14 inch bar/chains on the Stihl MS 210 T C-M that they climb with. Keeping the chain correctly sharpened matters a lot as it cuts down on operator fatigue A LOT. We had one climber that wanted a Stihl MS 250, which is a rear handle homeowner grade saw. I appreciated the much lower price, the machine was powerful, and when the nipple for the fuel return line to the tank broke (a weak point on this model) I was able to create a much better designed connection.
For my own personal use I am considering purchasing a Milwaukee top-handle climbing saw (I have several of their batteries from purchasing impact guns and other electric tools) to supplant my gas powered Echo climbing saws.
Thank you so much for the reply. To have an all-in-one chainsaw that I can use on the ground or in a tree, I think I need 20" bar. I appreciate thinking of saving cost. For the large cottonwoods, my more wealthy neighbors with the larger storage spaces in their houses are willing to help because the trees endanger their properties during flood season (dead floating tree + high wind —> smashed docks + boats + trees + stairs).
I have a Milwaukee pole saw and recently purchased the extension for it. It’s a nice tool, I cut up most of a mature fallen black locust with it no problem. I’ve seen combo handheld/ pole extension Chinese electric saws for under $150 on Amazon I wouldn’t hesitate to trial. It’s nice that you get both tools in one.
Thank you for your knowledgeable reply. As a homeowner I prefer to have an all-around chainsaw that I can use on the ground to remove whole trees or in the canopy to trim branches back from the house. I made the mistake against a friend’s advice of planting directly underneath some trees on all sides before removing them, so now I have to climb and lower pieces one-at-a-time. The spruce trees are up to 18" diameter at ground level.
I have a Sthil MS 271 farm boss… 18 inch bar.
It is a great saw… powerful but also a bit heavy.
To work smaller stuff about a month ago I bought a Sthil MS 162… much lighter… has a 16 inch bar still plenty stout. I have been cutting trees up for firewood including some 14 15 inch oaks and it does a great job of that.
It does not cut as fast as the more powerful 271… but it is still plenty fast, and a lot easier on my old joints and muscles.
My Stihl 025 Farm Boss has run flawlessly for almost 20 years now. But every time I use my buddies Stihl 021 I wish I had one of those. Anything I need the 025 for that I can’t do with the 021 I probably shouldn’t be doing.
Most of my friends have moved to electric saws now. I’ll do the same if I manage to outlive my 025.
Using a larger and heavier saw while in the tree can be safely accomplished but at the least I would consider using a shorter bar/chain combination while actually climbing. It will be safer, but it will also be much easier to maneuver the saw through the canopy of the tree. Finding someone at the chainsaw shop who knows their stuff and can advise you on which bars will fit your saw will be very advantageous. I have a guy who could tell me off the top of his head which drive components I needed to swap in order to change a pole saw from one style of chain over to another, better one. He’s the guy I would go to and ask about a 14 inch bar on an MS 250.
I’ve ran chainsaws for almost two decades. When you own a sawmill you also run chainsaws a lot. Which means you also repair a lot of chainsaws. I’ve been deep in the bowls of several brands. I dont like saying negative things about specific brands. So let me just say that I would now recommend Stihl. Their farmboss model would serve you well.
Gas saws do require more knowledge to operate. They are extremely reliable if you gain a good understanding of how they work, but that is a whole thing on its own. But if you follow the instructions to a T and never use ethanol fuel in them, it should be good.
Stihl MS261 is hands down the best 50cc saw available, if that’s what you want. I only have experience with the standard, non-electronic carbureted version. Much lighter than farmboss with more power. But, farm boss is also fine for reliability.
For budget saws I like the Echo line. In my experience the Echos have slightly less performance but with good reliability for the price. They seem to do less dumb stuff on the homeowner grade saws than Stihl or Husky do, like carbs with only 1 adjustment screw or half-baked chain tensioning setups. I currently have a CS3510 16" for daily use at work, which I’ve been very happy with. It’s very light and handy. They do benefit from a muffler mod and enriching the mixture a bit (requires removing adjustment screw limiters). I fall 20-24" trees using a double-cut with it when necessary, but it’s more of a limbing & thinning saw. I have not personally used the CS4510 or 4920, but if I was looking for a budget 45-50cc saw, I would try one.
Mainly what makes a chainsaw cut well is having a sharp chain.
I also have the Dewalt 60v 18" electric saw. For electric, 20" is too much for decent battery life. The problem with electric saws is they use very thin chains for a given bar length, so they are less robust, will throw the chain more often. The chain speed is not as good as a gas saw, but I am very impressed with the torque. It’s not my choice for all day use but is good for the right application.
I run saws for work and teach forest service chainsaw classes for volunteers and would be pretty reluctant to climb a tree with a 20" rear handle saw. It can be done, but a 14-16" top handle saw will be a lot more comfortable, safer to start in the tree, etc. Electric is pretty nice for being in trees.
There isn’t really an “all in one saw” for ground use and in tree use.
For in the tree use, you will want a "top handle " saw for the best control and safety.
A “top handle” saw can be used on the ground, but for best control and safety you would want a rear handle saw.
For what it worth, most of the time a 14 or 16 inch bar is plenty long enough to efficiently cut trees and logs up to 24 inch diameter .
The longer bars and chains are more expensive to buy and sharpen and rob power from the engine from chain drag.
I have no knowledge of this brand but it’s worth a shot to look for something similar for the price.
For reference I’ve cut some impressively large oaks with my Milwaukee pole saw. I wouldn’t recommend it for daily use professionals, but for homeowners and folks not cutting trees all day, it’s more than adequate and easy to use.
Your description is of 3 different saws or 2 saws which can switch-hit in different areas.
A saw for cutting large trees from the ground.
A saw for cutting trees in sections after climbing.
A saw for cutting brush on the ground.
I have a Husqvarna 460 with 24 inch bar. I have used it to fell trees up to 40 inches diameter. (Sweetgum get really big around here) It is a superb saw for working from the ground. I have a Dewalt battery pole saw which can reach 12 feet with the extension. It is a very good saw for trimming limbs up in trees up to about 18 feet (I’m 6 feet 2 inches so adding 12 feet for the saw gets me to 18 feet).
Be careful with battery pole saws. All are not created equal. My Dewalt pole saw has the motor out next to the cutting bar. Electric wires run from the battery in the handle up through the extension and into the cutting head to make it run. My Milwaukee pole saw has a battery and motor in the handle and a drive shaft runs from the motor up to a gear that pulls the chain. This design is inherently less flexible than the Dewalt design. It has the advantage that the power handle can swap for different heads such as the Milwaukee weed eater. I love the Milwaukee weedeater, but the Milwaukee polesaw is a bit less capable than Dewalt’s polesaw.
So what would I recommend? I would get a saw similar to the Husqvarna 460 and maybe add a 16 inch bar and chain. When climbing, use the shorter bar. On the ground, use the 24 inch bar. I know this is heavy, but I find the power is necessary when cutting trees. I would get a Dewalt polesaw specifically because the motor is out at the bar and chain. It can be used both for cutting ground level brush and limbs up to 18 feet high. I’ve used mine more for cutting ground level brush than I will ever use it for cutting high limbs. It significantly reduces the amount of bending over required when brush cutting.
Stihl MS250 with a 16" bar is my go-to saw. I use it for almost everything including felling trees up to 24" diameter. I keep the blade sharp with one of those combination hand held sharpeners Stihl makes.
I also have a 16" Dewalt electric but i fell out of love with it pretty quicky. It works, but the oiling apparatus is tempermental, i had to modify the torque gear to keep the chain on properly, and then of course there is the battery life issue. But its good if you just need to make a few cuts here and there.
The Sthil MS 162 is one of their newer models. 16 inch light bar and chain.
It replaces the MS 170… and cost around 200.00.
I cut a bunch of firewood with mine this month, yesterday and will do more today.
It has worked flawlessly.
I considsred several electeic/battery chainsaws… but decided against that. Way to many negative reviews on them at this point. Dont think they have quite perfected that yet.
Thank you everyone for bringing up electric pole saws that are convertible to be small light duty chainsaws. I have one by SunJoe, but it requires plugging it. I also have hundreds of feet of extension cordage in the “thicker metal wire hence lower-gauge, lower impedance” variety to reduce the chance of burning out the motor. The electric cord became nearly disastrous while climbing trees because branches would catch the extension cord, the cord was tied with a knot to the saw, the saw was on a sling clipped to my harness, and I was tied to the tree. Several horrible experiences there, so I got the battery saw for climbing.
The fact that the corded pole saw is corded gives it actually a lot of power. But the Oregon saw has the cool feature to sharpen the chain on the fly. Both suffered from the chain jumping off the bar after not that much cutting.
Having a pole saw is awesome because I can coppice trees at an overhead height to form hedges without using a ladder. My fruit backyard orchard is close enough to reach with a corded saw, but my nut trees and prairie restoration are further.
I’m going to look into the chain sharpening tool from Stihl because the chain on the pole saw I can never make as sharp as the day it came.
