Trail saw

[JIMG]

Interested to hear people's preferred trail maintenance saw. Light but with some guts? Maybe take it skiing with me? There's nothing makes a man feel humble like stepping over a hemlock blowdown with skis on.

 

[ElevatorGuy]

Something that could have a rough life that’s relatively cheap to replace? Ms180 with a 14”. Something with real power, Ms261cm with an 18”. Vastly different in price.

echos 50cc’s are nice as well at a good price point.

 

[Ford3000]

Echo 4310, pro grade, light and reliable.
Stihl MS180, won't start as easy as the Echo in the cold,
but will be cheaper.
Most important to me would be dealer support, without
it you will spend a lot of time searching for parts, Stihl
definitely comes up trumps here, they are all over the place.

Though parts are becoming a problem to get with this ongoing
covid and wars hiking up prices on what is available.

If you have an older reliable saw, then use it for trails and replace
it with the same model or a newer one if that suits better, two saws
the same can be helpful if you need a part swap in a hurry.

Echo gets my vote for easy starting in all weather, and no At or MT
to play with your head when it starts to loose the plot or breaks altogether,
no need for a reset when its very cold or very warm in comparison to the
last time the saw was used and now has a redundant map in its head.

 

[thinair]

I vote 2511t. I take mine everywhere with me, sledding, sxs’ing and even hiking with it in my pack. With a few mods or even better ported, they rip.

 

[JIMG]

Three for echo. Interesting. I only ever used an echo battery saw. Never heard of the 4310, never used a 261 either. The stihl looks pretty close on paper, 4310 looks very light weight.
I have a yard sale 2156 I was putting together for this but I expect I am going to find it a heavy old thing on longer treks on foot or ski.
That 2511t looks cute and handy, maybe a tad small?

 

[jr27236]

Love the echos but their top handle saws are a little bulky to be. I would get a second hand MS192t or a MS193T. Throw a 12" b&c on it and it is an ideal little saw for carrying around

 

[ElevatorGuy]

I had an echo 303t, nice little saw too. No experience with the 2511.

 

[Gullet]

I go towards the cheaper saws for that role.
Yard saw, camp saw, trail saw is all the same saw to me.
You may have to leave it on the trail sometime (unless you want to carry it out walking lol).
I leave mine @ camp all day while Im hunting.

I use a 14" '03 Poulan Pro 220 42cc chrome bore.
Damn thing ALWAYS starts in any conditions.

 

[SimonHS]

MS241CM - if you can find a good one. Just a bit lighter than a 261, but slightly less power.

 

[mrxlh]

My vote is top handle 192/3/4T of course if you can swing it 020/200T or 201T.

 

[Ford3000]

Three for echo. Interesting. I only ever used an echo battery saw. Never heard of the 4310, never used a 261 either. The stihl looks pretty close on paper, 4310 looks very light weight.
I have a yard sale 2156 I was putting together for this but I expect I am going to find it a heavy old thing on longer treks on foot or ski.
That 2511t looks cute and handy, maybe a tad small?

The Echo CS 4310 has no where near the power of a Stihl MS261.
It is a better saw for trail work, its not like your going to be logging
with it, but it will cope with a 18" trunk across the path, will not do
it like a larger saw will, but the larger saw will be a lot heavier.

I do not like Mtronic or Autotune, its just something more to go wrong,
and you will need to take it to a dealer to read codes to diagnose.

The Echo, has an ordinary carb, easy to rebuild when or if required.

There is a cheaper Echo, 34 or 35 cc, also has a carb, weights 8lbs,
and is cheap to buy, talking about the 352 or its newer replacement
the 3510, with a 14 inch bar, or even a 12 " bar will do quite a bit.

If your going to be clearing trails, cutting close to the ground then
a longer bar will keep you from bending, 18" light weight on that
Echo CS-4310 would work well in that situation.

 

[Dustin4185]

How big of stuff are you talking? Carrying on a machine or in/on a pack? You mentioned skiing is the only reason I ask. I love my power saws, but for that role, I would look at a Silky Katanaboy. I keep one in my truck and can pull it out and cut stuff up to 8 inches faster than I can dig my truck saw out. I have the Echo 303T and a 241 I use on the ATV and UTV. I even carry the 241 in the tractor after storms.

 

[JIMG]

I have a couple of areas I am thinking about. The hemlock blowdowns are fairly serious, 18" to 24" range. I know I probably need to go get those now on the tractor with some 70cc. There are also an areas of dense cedars more in the 8-12" range. Other than that just the more expected trail stuff, shed limbs, brush. I am thinking of options for bringing a saw in on a strap or pack while skiing or hiking, camping.
Pray tell, what exactly is a Silky Katanaboy?

 

[BlackGreyhound]

I have a Husqvarna 543XP for sale right now. It's a really nice little, light saw that has plenty of power to pull 18" x .325 bar. It is a great fit for what you are looking for, because that's exactly what I use it for. Only reason I'm getting rid of it is that I just picked up a MMWS 201TC which will replace it.

 

[Ford3000]

I have a couple of areas I am thinking about. The hemlock blowdowns are fairly serious, 18" to 24" range. I know I probably need to go get those now on the tractor with some 70cc. There are also an areas of dense cedars more in the 8-12" range. Other than that just the more expected trail stuff, shed limbs, brush. I am thinking of options for bringing a saw in on a strap or pack while skiing or hiking, camping.
Pray tell, what exactly is a Silky Katanaboy?

That's some serious cutting, a chainsaw with wheels
to carry its large cc's might be in order.

 

[Philbert]

I love my power saws, but for that role, I would look at a Silky Katanaboy.

I was thinking something similar.

Carrying a saw in a backpack, also means carrying fuel and oil? I was thinking ’battery’. Then, the ‘safety guy’ in me started thinking about chaps, helmet, etc. Quite a lot of stuff to take along skiing ‘just in case’.

A number of trail maintenance guys tell me that they carry the large, folding, Silky saws with them, which cover a lot of their needs for branches, limbs, small logs. Fit in a side pocket.

Might not be the thing for a larger service project.

Philbert

 

[Ford3000]

I was thinking something similar.

Carrying a saw in a backpack, also means carrying fuel and oil? I was thinking ’battery’. Then, the ‘safety guy’ in me started thinking about chaps, helmet, etc. Quite a lot of stuff to take a long skiing ‘just in case’.

A number of trail maintenance guys tell me that they carry the large, folding, Silky saws with them, which cover a lot of their needs for branches, limbs, small logs. Fit in a side pocket.

Might not be the thing for a larger service project.

Philbert

18 to 24" hemlock, with a silky, could probably turn around drive
back to the shed and get a big saw and have it cut before he would
have made any noticeable impression with a silky.

 

[Gullet]

Poulan Pro 220 42cc 14" bar new 3/8 LP flat ground Stihl chain.
I have $15 in it minus the chain.
Horrible air filtration (I dont use it everyday) spongy AV system.

As far as power goes, its surprising.
I've had better, but they weren't THAT much better.

If it gets stolen, I still sleep well that night.
It's been a excellent saw for me.

 

[JIMG]

It's pretty unrealistic to think I can pack in enough saw to deal with those hemlocks and expect to have any fun.
For the limb, brush and cleanup type work, however, there are some very good options here to ponder.

 

[Dustin4185]

18 to 24" hemlock, with a silky, could probably turn around drive
back to the shed and get a big saw and have it cut before he would
have made any noticeable impression with a silky.

When the tragic fires in Gatlinburg happened, a NPS employee cut all the fallen trees out of the road with a Silky Katanaboy and a tow strap. I cut 12”-16” poplar with mine in a matter of a few minutes. 24” hemlock would be doable for sure. I would definitely prefer a power saw in that situation though.