new saw

gonna spend $300 - $1000 on a new saw. Replace my 18" pos poulan with an 18" new saw. The power equipment dealer that I plan on buying from carries stihl, husqvarna, echo, among others. I was leaning towards Husqvarna, the 450 Rancher size at 18", others here mentioned the 5 series. And then...

Picked up a 261 and 462 today from the dealer in town. Guy starts the 261 and says it needs to idle for 30 seconds on choke to 'calibrate' and then after what seemed like less than 30 seconds he proceeds to pin the throttle. After about 10 seconds I try to get his attention and tell him to stop...