Board logo

Chainsaw recommendations
Benzine - 25/10/22 at 04:55 PM

Evening all,

I have a Titan electric corded chainsaw which has served well for 5 years. It went with a bang and a puff of smoke this afternoon. I was getting annoyed with it anyway as the oiler was always rubbish and I needed to drain and clear it often.

I also have a load of timber to cut up for firewood (will need seasoning for a year) so I'll be using it more. I don't mind if it's electric, battery, 2 stroke, just wanting something reliable that dispenses oil like it should.

Cheers

[Edited on 25-10-2022 by Benzine]

indykid - 25/10/22 at 05:20 PM

I'd always turn to Stihl for gardening equipment. It just...works. Spares are available if needed too.

Not cheap, but if you're going to be giving it a workout, you'd be better with something that's not a toy.

James - 25/10/22 at 05:51 PM

Stihl is obviously the top name and I have a 18(?)" blade one which is great.

However, I've just bought an EGO battery powered 19" mower which is fantastic and so as I already have the battery and expensive charger am thinking of getting an EGO strimmer and potentially a small chainsaw too for smaller diameter stuff.

So I'd recommend you at least look at the EGO chainsaws.


Oh, and if you haven't already... but the proper bloody PPE for chainsawing- trousers and helmet/gloves etc!!! There's an Oregon kit of everything you need for £70ish at Screwfix.

Cheers,
James

David Jenkins - 25/10/22 at 07:53 PM

quote:
Originally posted by James
Oh, and if you haven't already... but the proper bloody PPE for chainsawing- trousers and helmet/gloves etc!!! There's an Oregon kit of everything you need for £70ish at Screwfix.



Good call - I have the protective leggings - they are not the most glamorous or comfortable things, but the chainsaw can easily kick around with some force, especially if you're not an experienced user. I've never caught the leggings, but I have had the saw go a bit close to them occasionally. I do wear goggles and heavy gloves as well, before anyone says anything!

russbost - 26/10/22 at 08:14 AM

From experience I'd steer well clear of anything petrol unless you're going to buy absolutely top quality, all the cheaper stuff the carb gaskets fall to bits with the modern bio fuels, olus they are noisy & smelly, only any real advantage if you're 50ft up in the air on a tree, otherwise I think the electric stuff beats it hands down.

If you're going to have access to mains power then why not stick with corded, it's cheap, quiet & does the job, if you want the versatility of cordless, then you're probably going to spend 4 - 6 times the price for anything with decent battery life & the larger the battery, the heavier the tool, for high tree work I'd have thought light batteries & several of them, if it's on the ground weight is far less of an issue

Budget end corded I've had a few McCulloch & Einhell over the years, all served me well & cost peanuts

indykid - 26/10/22 at 10:39 AM

The main players have an electric range, both battery and wired. There are odd husqvarna units kicking about too. People don't buy corded chainsaws to go logging so most of the used ones look nearly new.

The working end is usually cross compatible with their petrol counterparts so you should get a decent bar and decent oiling system.

Benzine - 26/10/22 at 09:45 PM

quote:
Originally posted by russbost
From experience I'd steer well clear of anything petrol unless you're going to buy absolutely top quality, all the cheaper stuff the carb gaskets fall to bits with the modern bio fuels, olus they are noisy & smelly, only any real advantage if you're 50ft up in the air on a tree, otherwise I think the electric stuff beats it hands down.

If you're going to have access to mains power then why not stick with corded, it's cheap, quiet & does the job, if you want the versatility of cordless, then you're probably going to spend 4 - 6 times the price for anything with decent battery life & the larger the battery, the heavier the tool, for high tree work I'd have thought light batteries & several of them, if it's on the ground weight is far less of an issue

Budget end corded I've had a few McCulloch & Einhell over the years, all served me well & cost peanuts


Good points, thanks. Sometimes have mains but always have a decent generator available that easily coped with my titan chainsaw. I think getting a better corded one is the way forward.

geoff shep - 28/10/22 at 11:44 AM

I've just gone to battery for all of our garden tools - it is worth researching it and going for a single brand as you can then use the same batteries/chargers across the range. We went for Cobra.

We have the 40v lawnmower and although you can get 40v hand tools, they are quite heavy so went for the 24v version for everything else - chainsaw, trimmer, hedge cutter. All work from the same battery and I have to say they are better than the mains versions they replaced.

https://cobragarden.co.uk

[Edited on 28/10/22 by geoff shep]

tilly819 - 28/10/22 at 04:41 PM

Hi Ben,

We had an old Huski which died last year so replaced it with a Stihl MS181 16" bar (Ballpark £300) with the easy start. Couldn't be happier with it. I was sceptical about the easy start at first but it was well worth it. Bought it with the posh fuel (approx £25/5litres) which also gets you the extended 5 year warranty. 5 litres was enough to fill our 12m3 wood shed. One thing to note (the guy in the shop told me) You have to hold the trigger when you engage the choke or there is a bit of the mechanism that can get broke. Not a problem; just how it works.

We heat primarily with wood now so it cut and ringed about 12m^3 ready for this winter. Never missed a beat. I'm looking forward to getting it out in the next few weeks to start on some big windfalls ready for next year. I plan to keep running it on the posh fuel as it does not seem to "go bad" if you leave it in the tank which we inevitably do. It's a sipper not a gulper. It runs out of fuel before it runs out of bar oil; that was one of my main criteria when buying as the old Huski would run out of oil first which is a big no no for me. Oiler seems to be good. I did have one hiccup with it not flowing enough oil a few weeks ago but it was my own fault for not cleaning out the cover where the drive gear is so it got all full of oily sawdust and blocked the bar feed. Cleaned it out and carried on. Also a big fan of not needing any tools to change / adjust the chain. Again I was a bit sceptical about the mechanism (more things to go wrong) but it seems well built.

Bottom line: Ideal for ringing up / firewood duty. If you are planning on doing a lot of felling with the full bar length in the tree it would be worth going up an engine size.

Anyway that's my 2p on the subject.

Cheers,
Tilly

Benzine - 4/11/22 at 09:38 AM

Thanks for the replies everyone! Very helpful

Benzine - 6/2/23 at 11:51 AM

I went with another corded chainsaw but spent more. Chain tensioner is done by a dial on the side so no screwdrivers, oils better, cuts great, better handle, and a sharpening lever which is very handy. Had it about a month and got through loads of wood. Someone else on site with a Makita petrol which keeps having to stop for fuel a chain tensioning.

Pictured next to old titan. I'd still recommend the titan for light use.