Chainsaw Question

[Jason Christenson]

Does anyone have any experience with McCulloch Chainsaws? Menard's carries them, they may be a store brand. I assume that they are not professional grade but I'm wondering how they stack up against Craftsmen or Poulan.

Thanks.
Jason

[Jon Shively]

Quite honestly Jason, if you aren't mechanically inclined or planning on working on it yourself, whatever brand you choose is only as good as the service personnel working on it for you. I suggest you find a smaller family type store that provides tuneups, chain sharpening and buy whatever they are most comfortable working on/selling. You will be time and money ahead. With that said, I have run only Stihl's for the last five years. Before that, whatever was on sale. The Stihl has outworked, outstarted, outperformed all past chainsaws combined! But I heat solely with an outside woodburner and my saw is a needed tool. This is only my suggestion not knowing your intent or abilities.

[Gordon Seto]

Does anyone have any experience with Mculough (sp?) Chainsaws? Menard's carries them, they may be a store brand. I assume that they are not professional grade but I'm wondering how they stack up against Craftsmen or Poulan.

Thanks.
Jason
I have their electric version. It has plastic drive sprocket on very primitive roller pins. Don't expect it to last.

I won't link Craftman, poulan and professional grade in the same sentence either. As suggested, good local service should be high on your consideration. Stihl, Husky, Echo are some better brands to consider; but they are more expensive.

Gordon

[James Carmichael]

It's not a store brand, but it is a consumer-grade saw.

[Steve Schlumpf]

Jason, I have a McCulloch 3200 (14 inch bar, 32 cc engine). Been using it for 3 years now and I like it. Was given to me as a Christmas gift and I know it was purchased from the local Menards. Have had no problems with it and for small tasks it works well.

When I received the saw I had just started looking at heavy duty saws and wanted to get a Stihl - but... it's a gift and figure when it dies I will go get the Stihl. So far it runs great!

If I could make a suggestion - get a chainsaw (any) with more than a 14" bar. You may not need it at first but you do have to plan your cuts and many times will have to rotate the log just to rip it in half. Not exactly a safe operation when working by yourself! A longer bar would help by being able to make a single thru cut and be done with it.

[Jason Christenson]

I probably should have pointed out that I will most likely use whatever saw I end up with solely to cut bowl blanks.

Also, for the record, I was not linking professional grade with Craftsmen or Poulan.

Jason

[Steve Schlumpf]

Jason, most of the time I use my 14" saw for bowl blanks - works fine. One change for me lately is that I just picked up a larger lathe and went from a 12" to a 16" swing. Now the 14" bar is no longer so user friendly - if you know what I mean.

[Jon Shively]

Wasn't trying to link any to any category either. Just trying to cover the bases. For occasional use, should be okay, but without service personnel, if it is in need of maintenance you could be better off buying from the store you end up using to service it.

I didn't go to a Stihl until I depended only on wood heat 100%. It just became a little more important then! grin

[Jim Becker]

McCulloch along time ago was a well-respected pro brand and line. The name lives on, but seems to be consumer focused. (The same holds true for a few other brands...) I bought a consumer saw from the 'borg right after we moved to this property. It was about $200. I burned it out in one weekend dealing with two trees that had to come down...it wasn't operator error, but a defective clutch. Unfortunately, I didn't actually use it until after the one year warranty period ran out. So my $399 Stihl actually cost me $599 when you count the unsalvagable original purchase. As Jon says, for occasional limbing and some basic firewood, a saw from the 'borg can be fine, but if you plan on using it for cutting larger turning blanks (heavy load on the saw...trust me), consider investing in a Stihl, Husky, etc. They also start easier...and every time including after sitting for a long period of time unused.

[Ian Abraham]

I'm wondering how they stack up against Craftsmen or Poulan

About the same :(

Unless you just want a disposable saw for garden trimming etc get one of the better brands.

Stihl and Husky make 'Pro' grade and 'homeowner' grade saws. But even their homeowner saws are a big step up from the throw away cheapies.

Cheers

Ian

[James Carmichael]

Jason, I have a McCulloch 3200 (14 inch bar, 32 cc engine). Been using it for 3 years now and I like it. Was given to me as a Christmas gift and I know it was purchased from the local Menards. Have had no problems with it and for small tasks it works well.

When I received the saw I had just started looking at heavy duty saws and wanted to get a Stihl - but... it's a gift and figure when it dies I will go get the Stihl. So far it runs great!

If I could make a suggestion - get a chainsaw (any) with more than a 14" bar. You may not need it at first but you do have to plan your cuts and many times will have to rotate the log just to rip it in half. Not exactly a safe operation when working by yourself! A longer bar would help by being able to make a single thru cut and be done with it.

I don't know the first thing about cutting bowl blanks, but a bigger bar does not equal a bigger or more powerful saw, in fact, it works just the opposite, so be sure to match the motor to the bar.

[Jim Ketron]

Buy the best saw you can afford!
I have 2 Stihls the 250 with 18" bar and the 361 pro with a 25" bar.
both do a great job cutting turning blanks!
Cross cutting is no problem, it's when you rip the log face grain and get the long shavings is when you need the power to keep the RPM up enough so the long shavings won't clog up the saw. also a slow rocking motion while sawing face grain helps to keep the RPM's up by not using the full length of the chain as you cut.
A Chainsaw is like any other tool purchase, you get what ya pay for!
I say buy as good brand of Chainsaw that you can afford! you will be much happier in the long run and you can always sell a good brand a lot easier when you want to upgrade to a larger saw if the need arises!
Jim

[Bernie Weishapl]

I have a C-man 18". It is good for cutting bowl blanks but for heavy duty cutting forget it. I am saving my pennies, nickels and dimes for a Stihl.

[Richard Madison]

And regardless what brand you get, it will perform better and last longer if you use StaBil or equivalent fuel stabilizer in all your small engine fuel, all year long. It keeps the gas from turning into goo during the off season. I use it all year because it's impossible to predict exactly when the "off season" will begin for each tool. My 23 year old Echo trimmer still starts every time, and it has never been professionally serviced. Just gets a new sparking plug every 4 or 5 years whether it needs it or not.

Another tiny hint: modern two-stroke engines are designed to run at full throttle and high rpm, so don't "lug" it down.

[Ian Abraham]

yup, old gas is the death of many small two strokes. If you aren't using it for a while then tip out the gas in the tank, and start it up. Let it idle untill it stops to use the last bit of gas in the carby. If you have old gas left, just pour it into your car / truck / tractor. A very small amount of 2 stroke oil wont harm a 4 stroke.

The other cause of frustration is blunt chain. Get a basic guide and file kit and practise till you can keep the chain razor sharp ;)

Cheers

Ian

[Tim Gruss]

I personally run a Stihl MS310. My father runs a Sears chainsaw they are made by ECHO. ECHO are used by many of the carvers out there. They are commerical quality saws and have a very good reputation. The only problem I could see with my dads is weight,very heavy for a small saw. I have had a new homelite and had a really hard time getting parts locally. I couldn't even buy a drive sprocket from the Home Depot I purchased the saw from. Home Depot and Lowes do not offer parts or service for what they sell, keep that in mind when making your purchase.Tim, Treasureswoodworking.com

[Jason Christenson]

Wow, way more advice than I expected. Thanks.

Jason

[Brodie Brickey]

Jason,

I have an 18" McCullough 34cc (I think). I have only had one problem with it and that was a fuel filter that needed replacing. I've had it for about 3 years and I don't use it very much as I spend my time on smaller stock a lot.

Whichever saw you get, you will want to consider a couple things:

Minimum 18" bar
40cc or better
Local repair available.
Chainsaw chaps.

Anything else is gravy.

Your lathe may only be a 14" swing, but the log is 20" across, you're still going to need a good sized bar. You need to be able to apply the power.