UJRefugees.net

Reservoir Dog wrote: ↑Wed Jun 05, 2019 3:44 pm Chainsaw technology has come such a long way it's almost hard to buy a bad one. But in over 30 years of experience, I've never used better saws than the Husqvarna and Stihl that we're using now.

When we get some bigass 100 year old tree drop across our lines the 24" is the way to go. But for every day use, or if you're going to be at it for hours, then 16" - 18" is the way to go.

Most people don't realize how hard running a chainsaw for hours can be on your wrists. Once wrist fatigue sets in the situation can become dangerous.

Judging from what you've said, I'd recommend you look at the Stihl MS 271 series.

JackRabbit_Slim wrote: ↑Wed Jun 05, 2019 4:55 pm

Reservoir Dog wrote: ↑Wed Jun 05, 2019 3:44 pm Chainsaw technology has come such a long way it's almost hard to buy a bad one. But in over 30 years of experience, I've never used better saws than the Husqvarna and Stihl that we're using now.

When we get some bigass 100 year old tree drop across our lines the 24" is the way to go. But for every day use, or if you're going to be at it for hours, then 16" - 18" is the way to go.

Most people don't realize how hard running a chainsaw for hours can be on your wrists. Once wrist fatigue sets in the situation can become dangerous.

Judging from what you've said, I'd recommend you look at the Stihl MS 271 series.

I doubt I'll ever be at it for hours. Mostly just cutting up whatever fell across the yard, paths or the driveway. Sounds like a 18-20" is probably best for what I'll be doing. I guess if I get ambitious down the road I can look into the Husqvarna 460 or similar 24" saw.

WestTexasCrude wrote: ↑Wed Jun 05, 2019 9:52 pm I'll add my endorsement of Stihl. I bought my first chain saw maybe 5 years ago. 12''- big enough for the small pruning jobs I do around here, not big enough for what OP is talking about. 16-18'' would be perfect. I maintain all my equipment in immaculate condition, and like RD said, your Stihl saw could be sitting idle in your garage for like 9 months but as soon as you get that puppy out of it's case, fires up the the first and every time.

megman wrote: ↑Sun Jun 09, 2019 12:53 am

WestTexasCrude wrote: ↑Wed Jun 05, 2019 9:52 pm I'll add my endorsement of Stihl. I bought my first chain saw maybe 5 years ago. 12''- big enough for the small pruning jobs I do around here, not big enough for what OP is talking about. 16-18'' would be perfect. I maintain all my equipment in immaculate condition, and like RD said, your Stihl saw could be sitting idle in your garage for like 9 months but as soon as you get that puppy out of it's case, fires up the the first and every time.

Is this the same Stihl you came on here on old UJ whining you couldn't get it to start? And then shot down every idea someone put to you?

FreakShowFanatic wrote: ↑Sun Jun 09, 2019 2:11 am

megman wrote: ↑Sun Jun 09, 2019 12:53 am

WestTexasCrude wrote: ↑Wed Jun 05, 2019 9:52 pm I'll add my endorsement of Stihl. I bought my first chain saw maybe 5 years ago. 12''- big enough for the small pruning jobs I do around here, not big enough for what OP is talking about. 16-18'' would be perfect. I maintain all my equipment in immaculate condition, and like RD said, your Stihl saw could be sitting idle in your garage for like 9 months but as soon as you get that puppy out of it's case, fires up the the first and every time.

Is this the same Stihl you came on here on old UJ whining you couldn't get it to start? And then shot down every idea someone put to you?

Your mother is fickle megman, everyone here knows that.

JCW wrote: ↑Sun Jun 09, 2019 2:25 am I think it meant your mother is hard to fire up but that's because he has no idea which buttons to push, being a basement-dwelling virgin.

megman wrote: ↑Sun Jun 09, 2019 2:38 am

JCW wrote: ↑Sun Jun 09, 2019 2:25 am I think it meant your mother is hard to fire up but that's because he has no idea which buttons to push, being a basement-dwelling virgin.

Well now it makes perfect sense.

megman wrote: ↑Sun Jun 09, 2019 12:53 am

WestTexasCrude wrote: ↑Wed Jun 05, 2019 9:52 pm I'll add my endorsement of Stihl. I bought my first chain saw maybe 5 years ago. 12''- big enough for the small pruning jobs I do around here, not big enough for what OP is talking about. 16-18'' would be perfect. I maintain all my equipment in immaculate condition, and like RD said, your Stihl saw could be sitting idle in your garage for like 9 months but as soon as you get that puppy out of it's case, fires up the the first and every time.

Is this the same Stihl you came on here on old UJ whining you couldn't get it to start? And then shot down every idea someone put to you?

HowieTheHat wrote: ↑Sun Jun 09, 2019 3:53 am

JackRabbit_Slim wrote: ↑Wed Jun 05, 2019 1:19 pm Any resident lumberjacks, foresters or arborists up in here?

I live on 40 acres of mostly forested land in rural Pennsylvania and my old chainsaw is no longer cutting it.. heh.. I've just about melted my eyeballs reading reviews on Husky, Echo, Stihl etc. The Husky Rancher 455-460 sounds like a popular model but the Echo CS-590 seems to have more solid reviews from non kool-aid drinking folks. I'm looking for a clean up saw, I'm not planning to clear cut my property but I do have some larger standing trees that need to come down. Storms are always bringing down trees and causing issues around the property on trails and occasionally blocking my driveway. I don't wanna spend much more than $400-600 on a new rig. Input?

Hey Howie, I'm also hunting for a good all around belt sander for projects around the barn, shed, and house. I'm currently building a new workbench and will need one to clean up 100 year old black walnut boards that I'm using for the top. I also plan on refinishing the hardwood floors in my house, so it'd be great to buy one for both jobs. The Makita 11Amp 4x24" runs about $250 and looks like a solid unit. What would you suggest?

Well, as far as chainsaws go...I have had a Husqvarna for years. It isn't a homeowner model, but rather a professional grade. I stopped using Home Depot type crap long ago. Stihl will give you a great model...and as I said...Husqvarna is top grade. I have never had a problem with mine. Now for your wood....a belt sander isn't going to give you what you want. For smoothing the wood for a benchtop or other furniture...you should really consider finding someone who will joint and plane your boards for you so that they get to what is called "co-planer" meaning both sides finished and smooth and parallel with each other...in other words...on the same plane with each other. A belt sander isn't what you are looking for to refinish floors also. You will need to rent a floor sander from Home Depot. They have really improved over the years as they used to be the belt type sanders and now they are more like random orbital sanders and will do a better job with much less chance of you screwing the floor up. Hope this helps.

JackRabbit_Slim wrote: ↑Mon Jun 10, 2019 10:36 pm
Thanks Howie.. planning to stop in and check out my local Stihl dealer this week. I'll admit though I'm sort of intrigued by some of the high tech lithium chainsaws out there.. made a trip just this afternoon 20 miles to the closest ethanol free station to fill 5 jerry cans to run my tractor, ATV, trimmer, etc etc and sometimes I get to thinking I might not miss this bullshit. Charging batteries for my drills is a much easier/cheaper alternative to all these gas powered machines. Hey it's the future..

Anyway as for my bench top having the boards planed and jointed etc sounds great but this is just a work bench in my garage and frankly finding someone to do that, paying for it etc all sounds like a pain in the ass. What's wrong with just cleaning the boards up with a sander and calling it a day?

Flumper wrote: ↑Mon Jun 10, 2019 10:52 pm

JackRabbit_Slim wrote: ↑Mon Jun 10, 2019 10:36 pm
Thanks Howie.. planning to stop in and check out my local Stihl dealer this week. I'll admit though I'm sort of intrigued by some of the high tech lithium chainsaws out there.. made a trip just this afternoon 20 miles to the closest ethanol free station to fill 5 jerry cans to run my tractor, ATV, trimmer, etc etc and sometimes I get to thinking I might not miss this bullshit. Charging batteries for my drills is a much easier/cheaper alternative to all these gas powered machines. Hey it's the future..

Anyway as for my bench top having the boards planed and jointed etc sounds great but this is just a work bench in my garage and frankly finding someone to do that, paying for it etc all sounds like a pain in the ass. What's wrong with just cleaning the boards up with a sander and calling it a day?

The answer is yes.

I think Howie's only point is that if you are going to use old wood that is probably WAY better than you can buy today, then why not go all in and make something really well built. Alternatively, a middle of the road approach might be using a table saw (if you have one) to square up the edges so you get good linear joints. If no table saw, maybe a hand saw with a fence. Then use the sander to get the top surface right once you have them joined.