Ms661 bars

[Coolcraigster26]

Tough call there. You mod them the warranty will be gone. You don't and they suffer from heat. Best advice from is to buy another muffler and mod that or buy a done up dual port from the guys here at OPE. Pulling the screen helps. Be mindful of mud daubers. They suck.

who can I get in touch with to purchase modded mufflers?

 

[Coolcraigster26]

I remove the screens as soon as I buy any piece of equipment.

 

[Coolcraigster26]

I bought the saw with a 36" bar. Dealer couldn't get it with a light bar. So now I'm gonna go with tsumura 28" lightweight or a stihl es light. And I would like to do muffler mod. Any advice on muffler modding? Just open the factory outlet or modify the baffle also? Trying not to make it ear blistering loud

 

[Lightning Performance]

Read the threads here. It's all here. Use the search engine. I'm bad at finding threads here.

 

[Lightning Performance]

I bought the saw with a 36" bar. Dealer couldn't get it with a light bar. So now I'm gonna go with tsumura 28" lightweight or a stihl es light. And I would like to do muffler mod. Any advice on muffler modding? Just open the factory outlet or modify the baffle also? Trying not to make it ear blistering loud

So manys ways...
Sell the 36 if you need loot. Stihl bars sell well.
Go do the oil pin mod. Run it some and decide if you need the big bar or not. 36-42 is a must for large stumps over five feet across and milling large tree trunks to 32" wide for live edge. If you cut smaller you don't need them.

 

[Coolcraigster26]

Couple more questions. Bought the 661 with 36" bar and it has 3/8 .063 setup. Going to buy 28" stihl es light bar and chain also. On the 28" should I go with .050 or .063? Also how can I find a stihl dealer here to purchase the bar and chain? Also i see alot of talk about running skip and semi skip chains with longer bars. Whats the point of doing that? Easier to pull a skip chain im guessing? Trying to get educated here.Thanks again

 

[Dub11]

Couple more questions. Bought the 661 with 36" bar and it has 3/8 .063 setup. Going to buy 28" stihl es light bar and chain also. On the 28" should I go with .050 or .063? Also how can I find a stihl dealer here to purchase the bar and chain? Also i see alot of talk about running skip and semi skip chains with longer bars. Whats the point of doing that? Easier to pull a skip chain im guessing? Trying to get educated here.Thanks again

I'd gun for the .063 it oils better and you can buy a roll of chain to make loops from if you'd like.

And on the whole full skip, semi skip debate it probably kind of depends on what ya cut. Some say the skip allows better chip clearance. I have some of loops of all 3 and really cant tell the difference. Granted I haven't had to use my 36" bar all to often either.

 

[Coolcraigster26]

I'd gun for the .063 it oils better and you can buy a roll of chain to make loops from if you'd like.

And on the whole full skip, semi skip debate it probably kind of depends on what ya cut. Some say the skip allows better chip clearance. I have some of loops of all 3 and really cant tell the difference. Granted I haven't had to use my 36" bar all to often either.

Thank you. I cut mostly oak here in south texas. All the different chain configurations get confusing. Haha. I'm learning. The 36" probly won't get used much but I will keep it around just in case. It will mostly have 28" on it

 

[Dub11]

Thank you. I cut mostly oak here in south texas. All the different chain configurations get confusing. Haha. I'm learning. The 36" probly won't get used much but I will keep it around just in case. It will mostly have 28" on it

I run full comp just to keep things simple.

 

[Dub11]

And what are you using to sharpen your chains?
I use them 2n1 sharpeners and have pretty good results. And they only work with full comp.

 

[Skeans1]

I’ll run full comp up to 28” after that it’s semi skip even on the grinder it can still take 10 to 15 minutes a chains and full skip for the 60” that chain vibrates too much for my hands.

Another side note some guys like semi skip is they can gear up the saw from a 7 to an 8 pin sprocket which can help with chains adjustment.


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[Skeans1]

So manys ways...
Sell the 36 if you need loot. Stihl bars sell well.
Go do the oil pin mod. Run it some and decide if you need the big bar or not. 36-42 is a must for large stumps over five feet across and milling large tree trunks to 32" wide for live edge. If you cut smaller you don't need them.

Not always a must more of it’s nicer to have a bar longer then 32 for stuff over 60”, one way it to cut windows in the back cut and block out the face or chunk out the face.


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[Coolcraigster26]

And what are you using to sharpen your chains?
I use them 2n1 sharpeners and have pretty good results. And they only work with full comp.

just hand files. Havent tried anything else. I'm ok at it but not great. If I don't have time I just take them to dealer. Is it easier to sharpen with the 2n1 sharpeners?

 

[Dub11]

just hand files. Havent tried anything else. I'm ok at it but not great. If I don't have time I just take them to dealer. Is it easier to sharpen with the 2n1 sharpeners?

Mind you I'm still feel like a newb but yes I saw a huge difference when using them and I find them very easy to use. Around here the stihl colored ones run about $50 and then the blue Pfreds are $35 lol. I have one of each and love them.

 

[Ryan Browne]

Couple more questions. Bought the 661 with 36" bar and it has 3/8 .063 setup. Going to buy 28" stihl es light bar and chain also. On the 28" should I go with .050 or .063? Also how can I find a stihl dealer here to purchase the bar and chain? Also i see alot of talk about running skip and semi skip chains with longer bars. Whats the point of doing that? Easier to pull a skip chain im guessing? Trying to get educated here.Thanks again

There's cheap Tsumura 28" lightweight bars on eBay in .050. Personally, I'd rather have both in .063 so you could entertain the idea of a toll of chain, but to be honest, most of us will never buy a roll, myself included, so it's not a big deal.

Regarding skip vs semi vs full comp, I hand file too and that's why I run skip or semi skip on longer bars. There's a darned lot of cutters on a 36" loop of full comp. A touch-up looks much less daunting if some of them are missing. There's other pros and cons to each sequence, chip clearance, vibration, cutting speed, etc, but after running them all on longer bars, filing time is the one that makes the difference for me.

Also, a couple of tips for you: if you want to improve the effectiveness of your hand filing, buy a chain vise from @Homelite410. He makes a really nice vise that can make a huge difference in your chain sharpening. And, give Gregg at Left coast supplies a call for some extra loops of chain. Great guy to do business with. Great prices on Oregon chain in whatever configuration you need it, and fast cheap shipping too.

 

[Coolcraigster26]

Ok got the 661 setup with a 12" light bar, picco 3/8, 10 tooth sprocket. Should be the ticket for limbing. Lol

 

[Dub11]

Ok got the 661 setup with a 12" light bar, picco 3/8, 10 tooth sprocket. Should be the ticket for limbing. Lol

Make sure your running the west coast dogs while limbing too.

 

[Coolcraigster26]

Make sure your running the west coast dogs while limbing too.

haha. Yes it's the R model so it has wrap handle and large sprocket cover also. A must have for limbing

 

[blacksmith]

On my 28" I run a full chisel. I use the Stihl 2 in 1 sharpener for touch ups while on the job. And if I rock one or hit metal and it's not too ruined I have a dremel with the sharpening stones for when you really need to take them down. Don't forget the 2 in 1 sharpener automatically takes the rakers down but when you are using the dremel take a look at your rakers because you may need to trim them as well! I use a grinder with a flap disk for that.

 

[Lightning Performance]

I recently ran all 050 up to 28" Still have plenty to use up. One 36 bar in 3/8 050. All the other longer bars are semi skip or full skip now running 404. I like the bump in rpm to get more oil on the long bars. Have one loop of 128dl RSLH in 3/8 and one 117dl full comp 404 RS. They fit my long GB. The rest is all 404 semi chisel and some chipper skip harverster chains. Got a 20 and 28 in 404 for the mill. Then along came that sweet Sugi lite 32 3/8 063. I'm good except for a 48 050 lp bar for finer hardwoods.
It's pretty easy to take down and buck 40" oak with a 28" 050 bar. Just knock out the face and bore the back center. Double buck the big ones or stand on them like I do. Cut all the faces then hop down to buck them. Easier on the nose sprocket and bar. 063 is a better choice for commercial work and long bars if your buying all new stuff.