Do cheap mini-chain-saw work almost as well?

Define cheap. Define mini.

Many years ago I bought a corded electric chainsaw for cutting limb-wood around the yard and at my brother's place. I also used it to help split some bigger gnarly chunks for the backyard fire pit. I was happy with it. Not this make/model but similar size & price.

Is there a rental place nearby where you could get one for a test?

I bought one of the battery powered 6 inch mini chain saws a few years ago for around $ 60. It came with 2 batteries and an extra chain. It surprised me as to how well it works . I have cut down some small trees , maybe 2 to 3 inches in diameter to see how it would work. It did a good job. Much slower than my gas saw, but would work. I often grab it if I want to do some small trimming instead of going to the trouble of getting out the gas saw.

One thing is that they do not have the chain oiler so I put some oil on the chain with a hand held oil can.

Also, define "really work", which you address in your succeeding comments:

Regular oil, any petroleum oil you happen to have, no need for chain oil?

This is good to know. They range fromn $30 (though I'm reluctant to buy the cheapest) to 105, a Black and Decker which afaict so far the same battery as my B&D portable drill (which I bought last summer and have not used yet, but it would still be good to have the same battery.

In truth, I want one, but I probably don't need one. One of my neighbors put in a request to the Board for us to cut down a tree behind her property that is leaning on her fence and damaging it. There is a long-time mistaken belief in my townhouse HOA that the homeowners don't own the walkway easement behind every house, that the HOA owns it and is responsible for that land. They don't understand what an easement is, but in fairness, they are confused by the Parking and Driveway easement which the HOA really does own. So they are willing to pay for removing this tree, as they paid 10 years ago to remove 4 others.

I don't know about HOA's for n'hoods with separate houses, but townhouses need a walkway easement in back if only so a homeowner who is not end-of-group can get his lawnmower from the front to the back, or he'd have to have two lawnmowers, or go though the house. Also repairmen, contractors, and sometimes delivery men for things too big to go through the front door, but not the sliding glass door in the back.

We're short of money, because the documnents require a majority of ALL the owners to raise the dues, and we can't get a majority of the owners to vote on anything, let alone spending money, and I think it's a mistake to pay for things we are not obliged to pay for. I've raised this issue before over the years, but we are even more short of money now.

So yesterday, I finally went to look at the tree. I thought it was a tree. It's an overgrown weed! The thickest part is 2". Hiring someone to cut it down is ridiculous (minimum cost over $100, right?). I said in an email last night that I'd do it for free, and soon I thought, What a great excuse to buy a mini-chain saw. Maybe I'll even use it again. (And it has to be battery-powered because even my 100' extension cord won't reach that far.)

But in fact, I'll probably use a carpenter's saw, and "loppers" for smaller places. The weed is about 12 feet tall but much of it is spindly. I was just amazed at how unbulky it is. (And it hasn't broken the slat/picket it leans against. It's only bent it a little bit.) I sure hope I'm not so old and out of shape that I can't do this,easily I hope, with hand tools.

And in fact, they'll probably not ask me to do it anyhow. But some people fantasize about sex. I fantasize about tools.

It's been a couple years since I looked at the list (with pictures) of all the tools that Home Depot woudl rent**. At that time, they didn't rent these, but for that matter I didn't see them for sale either. I'd be surprised if they're already for rent, especially cheap ones. Rental places can't rent cheap ones because at least in some cases, the customers will use them hard and break them, and in all cases, how can they charge a fairly high price to rent out something that is cheap to buy. IME rental places only rent non-cheap, respected brands.

I soon after took a tour of the county waste disposal plant, and I asked the tour guide and he seemed to say I could include those cement pieces in my trash (implying among other things that they wouldn't break the machinery), but I find myself rather unwilling to do that, so I don't know what to do with those 30 pieces. Surpisingly, the pile of broken pieces, even though it was not native to those woods, doesn't bother me like the big block of cement, about 18" cubed, did. The big block was noticeable even from a distance, but the pieces just lie on the ground, about 4" high, and in 20 years they'll be covered by powdered leaves and silt from the occasional high water.

I use whatever oil I have handy.Pobably should use chainsaw bar oil as I think it is enviromently friendly. A pole saw I have recommends 30W motor oil. My oil can with the squirt nozzle has Mobil 1 oil in it and that is what I mainly use. Just give it a squirt to start and every few cuts another squirt. Probably not needed but that is just what I do.

You said you want to cut a 2 or 3 inch tree and it should work fine for that as I have done it just to see if it would on a couple of trees in my woods that were blocking a path.

I am impressed. When I saw them advertising them all the time on tv, I thought it was junk. The style of the ad just cried out "junk", but I think I was wrong.

You can cut a 2" or 3" tree with a simple bowsaw quicker than those cheap electric chainsaws. Yes, they cut. No, they don't cut fast.

Depends on the condition of your shoulder. My husband is bone-on-bone in there, and doesn't like the motion.

• 1 I bought my corded chainsaw for cutting quantities of limbs that were 3 " and larger. Under 3 " is pretty easy with the Swede saw. Even when I had the chainsaw out and plugged in, I'd still use the Swede saw for the small stuff. John T.

I bought a 10 inch electric chain saw on a pole for $65 about 10 years ago. I took down all but 4 feet of trunk of a 35 foot cherry tree with it. I have used it to prune my maple trees, a boulevard Honey Locust, and my apple tree. Surprised the heck out of me. I had a Remington chain saw and a Partner chain saw - both rather finicky 2 stroke gas saws. The electric never failed to start on a pull of the trigger while the Partner had a mind of it's own and usually refused to start withen there was work to do - while the high-strung Remington would tear the starter handle out of your hand half the time.(but would that little sucker cut wood!!!!!!) I finally just scrapped them both after not bothering to start them for years - preferring to use the little electric. Last time I used the gas saw was when a wind storm brought a tree down across the street and Isisn't want to have to string 150 feet of extention cord.

My brother had a cheap ($170-ish) 16 inch electric that he used cutting firewood and the brushes didn't last - nor did the bearings

If I find a killer deal on a lithium powered brushless 14 or 16 incher I might spring for it if I happen to have some spare change at the time.