Echo Top Handle Discussion

[Spike60]

A wealth of info in this thread, and not at all surprising. So........plenty of thanks to all of you guys for helping out. Lot's of thorough and well targeted posts.

Spoke to my distributor rep and it's pretty much a go at this point. Going to take a close look at everything when I'm down there for the Exmark meeting in 2 weeks. He understands my maximum sales from limited SKU's approach, AKA cherry picking vs a "representing the line" mentality.

Should be a good meeting, and the bar in the hotel we stay at is real good. LOL

 

[Wood Doctor]

I think we may have raised some eyebrows from Stihl top-handle chain saw owners. These top-handle Stihl saws do not walk on water by any means. I now have two Echo saws that are nearly 20 years old that run flawlessly and have been easy to keep going -- CS-340 and Cs-3400. I would not trade either one for a Stihl top-handle saw that today costs two to three times as much. That's MHO.

 

[hseII]

I think we may have raised some eyebrows from Stihl top-handle chain saw owners. These top-handle Stihl saws do not walk on water by any means. I now have two Echo saws that are nearly 20 years old that run flawlessly and have been easy to keep going -- CS-340 and Cs-3400. I would not trade either one for a Stihl top-handle saw that today costs two to three times as much. That's MHO.

I run 3- 200Ts & that’s because I have great dealer support.

When they finally cost more to repair than to be replaced by MM 355Ts, I will own 355Ts.

 

[Rob Stafari]

My friend who runs the local tree service also was the town stihlership for many years before selling it off. He won't consider another ground saw besides stihl, despite me proving my dolkita is superior . That being said he runs all echo top handles and an echo pole saw. Has had very good reliable performance for years. He won't use saw lanyards. Says he would rather buy a new saw than risk someone getting hurt on the job. Chit happens and they will get dropped. Why would he drop a 600+ dollar saw out of a tree when the little echos perform just as well for him and cost so much less. I have two 200ts, but if I were to buy a smaller top handle, it would be a 2511 without a doubt. My other friend has a 150t he swears by, but I've heard him fighting to get it tuned and wasn't impressed. I've never seen a tuning screwdriver touching one of the little echos and the get the snot ran out of them daily. Not that they wouldn't benefit from it, but they keep running well enough despite the fact.

 

[malk315]

@Spike60 Bob we ended up getting a CS355T and so far we love it. I had further chatted with Mason @huskyboy about it and decided to pull the trigger.

We will see how it goes once we get some more time on it, but so far it's been fantastic. The plan is to use it as a backup for MS200T which needs a few new parts installed I plan to do soon -- part of which will be to check and replace the intake boot if it's got any problems.

So far the only nit I can come up with for the CS355T is that the holes you pour the fuel and oil into seem kind of small. But it is great not having to deal with flippy caps -- normal caps on the echo saw are much easier to deal with. One other thing we did was to put Stihl 3/8 LP (Picco) chain on it. It comes with Oregon 91VXL chain and we kept that loop for a spare.

I didn't read this entire thread -- just stopping in. It's been difficult to keep up with OPE lately and hope to get back on track once winter approaches!

Cheers.

 

[usmcbuckwild]

I have worked over Echos (355t qnd 2511t) as well as Stihls (200t, 201t, 193t) and to be 100% honest: I think the Echos win out. They are more ergonomic, easier to work on, respond better to mods and are much more affordable. Yes, the 200T set a pretty high standard (when properly modded) but also set a pretty high price point.

I work with several tree services, one of which turned me on to the Echo saws. I started playing with them and found them to be much more receptive to basic mods as well as port work than their Stihl counterparts. I talked 2 of the other tree companies (both of which were stalwart Stihl only companies) into trying a single modded 355T for 1 day. At the end of that day, each and every one of the climbers and bucket operators from BOTH companies demanded 355Ts from their bosses. These guys run modded 201T and 193T every day. I sold 8 saws in 1 day just letting the actual cutters use it, not the guy in the office make the call. I did nothing outlandish with the saw; same basic recipe Mastermind and several other known porters use. Muff mod, VERY MILD timing change, a little port reshaping, minimal change in upper transfer height, small change in lower transfer “intake” and a good tune with the bar buried in wood. Totally different saw from stock. Overall it took me about 2 hours to mod each 355T. But, I do each one separately.

Can’t beat the Echo TH saws. With slight mods they sell themselves. Just my honest opinion.

 

[72thing]

I'm no climber, arborist, or professional anything. I ran a MS200T for a while that was awesome, but my tendinitis got so bad I couldn't hardly run it anymore. I sold it, and now that my elbows are better, I sorely miss it. I demoed a 2511T Echo and was very impressed with it, especially for 25cc. I just can't justify it since it would sit most of the time.

 

[Dub11]

I'm no climber, arborist, or professional anything. I ran a MS200T for a while that was awesome, but my tendinitis got so bad I couldn't hardly run it anymore. I sold it, and now that my elbows are better, I sorely miss it. I demoed a 2511T Echo and was very impressed with it, especially for 25cc. I just can't justify it since it would sit most of the time.

I'm waiting for them to make a 2511 with a rear handle.

 

[72thing]

A rear handle version would be nice, too

 

[pro94lt]

My friend who runs the local tree service also was the town stihlership for many years before selling it off. He won't consider another ground saw besides stihl, despite me proving my dolkita is superior . That being said he runs all echo top handles and an echo pole saw. Has had very good reliable performance for years. He won't use saw lanyards. Says he would rather buy a new saw than risk someone getting hurt on the job. Chit happens and they will get dropped. Why would he drop a 600+ dollar saw out of a tree when the little echos perform just as well for him and cost so much less. I have two 200ts, but if I were to buy a smaller top handle, it would be a 2511 without a doubt. My other friend has a 150t he swears by, but I've heard him fighting to get it tuned and wasn't impressed. I've never seen a tuning screwdriver touching one of the little echos and the get the snot ran out of them daily. Not that they wouldn't benefit from it, but they keep running well enough despite the fact.

Show him a break away lanyard... they break at 15lbs or so

 

[Rob Stafari]

Show him a break away lanyard... they break at 15lbs or so

I have one and have shown and talked to him about it, but he won't budge. Still not as safe as just not having a lanyard and sacrificing the saws. They are his saws, so who am I to argue.

 

[J. Dirt]

Kind of a new guy around here, but figured to jump in on this one. These things are great!! Left to right , top to bottom 330t, 2511t and 355t The 330t is about 7 years old It really woke it up with a muffler gut job, some airbox mods and a bit of timing advance. The 355t has a bigger opening on the muffler and a few things in the air box done it’s about a year old. The 2511t is about a week old and I’ve already gutted the muffler and opened the outlet. On the 330 and 2511 they have cat mufflers so they are pretty restricted. I have to say I love them all! Especially this little 2511! Super light and has some other features that are pretty nice. It’s hard to see size comparison not in person, but here’s the 355 in my hand and the 2511 below. Both sporting a 14” bar. I’ve got to say so far the only thing I’m not crazy about on the 2511 is the hanging ring. I do climb some and I’m a bit skeptical of it for two reasons. One it’s very thin and two it seems to be mounted to the handle and AV system instead of the body of the saw. Just seems like no reason to wear out the AV and not give a solid mount. The 355 has sort of the same thin ring. Im partial to the one on the 330 I guess.

 

[Wood Doctor]

J. Dirt said, "... The 355 has sort of the same thin ring. I'm partial to the one on the 330 I guess."
---------------------
So am I. Note that the much older CS-340 and CS-3400 have a ring with the same strength.

 

[JohnnyBlade]

Kind of a new guy around here, but figured to jump in on this one. These things are great!! Left to right , top to bottom 330t, 2511t and 355tView attachment 147110 View attachment 147112 The 330t is about 7 years old It really woke it up with a muffler gut job, some airbox mods and a bit of timing advance. The 355t has a bigger opening on the muffler and a few things in the air box done it’s about a year old. The 2511t is about a week old and I’ve already gutted the muffler and opened the outlet. On the 330 and 2511 they have cat mufflers so they are pretty restricted. I have to say I love them all! Especially this little 2511! Super light and has some other features that are pretty nice. It’s hard to see size comparison not in person, but here’s the 355 in my hand and the 2511 below. Both sporting a 14” bar.View attachment 147111 View attachment 147113 I’ve got to say so far the only thing I’m not crazy about on the 2511 is the hanging ring. I do climb some and I’m a bit skeptical of it for two reasons. One it’s very thin and two it seems to be mounted to the handle and AV system instead of the body of the saw. Just seems like no reason to wear out the AV and not give a solid mount. The 355 has sort of the same thin ring. Im partial to the one on the 330 I guess.

How does the 2511 act with the 14"? And about what diameter limb would be ur max? In other words, the point wer u felt u should grab a bigger saw? I feel the 355t with a 14" can take on what ever u throw at it but the 2511 has my full attention. I know its not the same class of saw as the 355t, just wondering the power of it compared.

 

[J. Dirt]

J. Dirt said, "... The 355 has sort of the same thin ring. I'm partial to the one on the 330 I guess."
---------------------
So am I. Note that the much older CS-340 and CS-3400 have a ring with the same strength.

I’ve been looking for an older top handle or another 330 if you know of any!

 

[J. Dirt]

How does the 2511 act with the 14"? And about what diameter limb would be ur max? In other words, the point wer u felt u should grab a bigger saw? I feel the 355t with a 14" can take on what ever u throw at it but the 2511 has my full attention. I know its not the same class of saw as the 355t, just wondering the power of it compared.

I’ve always had a 14 on the 330 pulling 3/8lp .050 and I put the same on the 2511. The 355 I went with a 16” in the same 3/8 lp. Mainly the 14 on the 2511 for a bit more reach. I’ve heard of guys running a 1/4 .043 set up, but I haven’t tried it yet. As far as limbs/work the little saw is good for I’d say stuff to 6”-8” depending on wood type. It’s awesome for trees with tons of small limbs to buzz off. I did a willow with mine the other day and made a ton more cuts than I usually would just to get some run time on it and was extremely happy right down into stuff at about 10”! If you compare it to the 355 I’d say the weight and snappy throttle of the 2511 make it a winner for smaller limbing. The 355 obviously being bigger will pull a bit harder in a longer cut, but at that point it’s almost easier to send up a bigger saw and ditch the top handle all together.

 

[JohnnyBlade]

I’ve always had a 14 on the 330 pulling 3/8lp .050 and I put the same on the 2511. The 355 I went with a 16” in the same 3/8 lp. Mainly the 14 on the 2511 for a bit more reach. I’ve heard of guys running a 1/4 .043 set up, but I haven’t tried it yet. As far as limbs/work the little saw is good for I’d say stuff to 6”-8” depending on wood type. It’s awesome for trees with tons of small limbs to buzz off. I did a willow with mine the other day and made a ton more cuts than I usually would just to get some run time on it and was extremely happy right down into stuff at about 10”! If you compare it to the 355 I’d say the weight and snappy throttle of the 2511 make it a winner for smaller limbing. The 355 obviously being bigger will pull a bit harder in a longer cut, but at that point it’s almost easier to send up a bigger saw and ditch the top handle all together.

Very nice! That sounds pretty impressive for a 25cc saw! I was afraid that was gonna be the report.....looks like my decision hasn't changed for my spring time saw purchase....thank u! Make sure u report back as u use the 2511 more and get her broke in. Good or bad. Inquiring minds wanna know

 

[J. Dirt]

For sure! This was probably the 4th time it had been ever started! Sporting a gutted muffler of course. We don’t need this thingy do we?

 

[J. Dirt]

I’ve been looking for an older top handle or another 330 if you know of any!

Answered my own reply and picked up a gray body 330t on fleabay this morning!

 

[RI Chevy]

Nice