Electric-v-Petrol chainsaws..

I have this vision of this difficult to start engine - where I have the hassle of mixing oil and petrol. Where there is such a long gap in time between each time I might used it, the petrol will also have lost all it's volatile constituents making it even more difficult to start.

Perhaps someone will come along and say with modern electronic ignition and injection, self oil mixing that my experiences are long left in the past?

Personally I'd get an electric one, and if I didn't have a long enough cord I'd use a generator which can be used for other appliances as well!

Reply to
Fred
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Electric is limited in power and you need large gauge extension cord so you dont burn up the saw and have full power, you need to know voltage drop. Rent a gas unit. I have electric but I would not cut anything much over 14". Sthil has a good electric

Reply to
ransley

Anyone got any opinion or recommendations on the above?.

We need to take a tree down, not a big one and for half the price of someone coming to do it its quite a DIY job. Used a petrol before but for the amount it will be used and where it might be used in future to keep the Leylandii in control at the bottom of the garden, it doesn't really matter as mains will and can be around.

So any particular recommendations for either?..

Cheers..

Reply to
tony sayer

My preference would be for petrol. The logic being that you have freedom to work anywhere, and not having a wire to worry about is one less thing to distract you - which is my book is a "good thing" when concentrating on using the saw safely.

As for starting etc - I guess it depends on the saw. A friend has a Makita 14" petrol saw that seems easy enough to start even after long periods of non use. Choke on, turn it over twice with the ignition off, ignition on, pull and it starts first time. Restarting once warm is just a case of ignition on and pull.

Reply to
John Rumm

Daughter (apprentice tree surgeon) was helping some friends tidy / cut some fallen trees for firewood the other day. They had a Bosch electric and a Husqvarna petrol chain saw. She used both and whilst the electric was ok she said using it would 'take all day' so she used the petrol in preference.

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(Not her) She prefers her Stihl MS260 though. ;-)

For the OP, from what I've seen so far electrics are ok for the occasional and non trade type use as long as (as mentioned) you have a decent (heavy) and short as practical extension lead powering it.

Of course hand saws are potentially less dangerous [1] and still work on modern trees. ;-)

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i m

[1] Of the (luckily minor) accidents our daughter has witnessed so far most have occurred whilst using their Silky hand saws. ;-(
Reply to
T i m

Angle grinder?

Reply to
Alang

Hire a decent one rather than buy a heap of crap.

And the safety gear.

Electric ones are as powerful as the smaller petrols, but they are a pain in confined spaces with that cable..

Reply to
The Natural Philosopher

The answer is to run teh thiung dry, or empty it if goiing into storage.

2-stroke mix with modern synth oils is far less prone to plug fouling and carb gumming.

They are trickier to start than a 4-stroke. Each type of 2-stroke I have (chainsaw, hedge trimer, strimmer) needs a slightly different approach.

Still got to start the generator, and it may not have the power..

Reply to
The Natural Philosopher

I bought a Stihl petrol chainsaw a couple of years ago. I had to convince the web site that I bought it from that I was a competent operator.

One reason for choosing the Stihl is that it is the brand stocked by the local garden machinery centre and I may need spare parts in the future.

The saw cost a lot less than what I paid someone to take down a large tree near my house!

Reply to
Michael Chare

Typically electric chainsaws are in the 1000 to 2000 watt range, that's less than 10 amps even at full power. Not a particularly heavy load and I've certainly never experienced any significant (i.e. noticeable) drop in power on my Bosch 1800 watt chainsaw when I'm at the end of a long[ish] extension cable.

I've felled a *big* Leylandii with my Bosch 1800 watt, around 50 ft high and 18" diameter at the base. I never felt the chainsaw was underpowered for the job.

Reply to
tinnews

On the other hand I think kick-back is much less of a problem with electric chainsaws simply because of the much reduced rotating mass when compared with a petrol one.

Reply to
tinnews

I hate chainsaws and I can't think of any scenario where I'd use an electric chainsaw.

For big, remote, stuff, I use a petrol Stihl.

For firewood I use a reciprocating saw. This is within range of mains power, but I prefer a reciprocator to a chain, just for safety.

For light pruning, within capacity of a cheap electric, then I'd rather use a hand saw. It's hardly that hard work, is it?

For work at height, I don't want a cable to deal with too. I might like a cordless, if they ever get powerful enough.

Reply to
Andy Dingley

In message , tony sayer writes

Hi Tony, PETROL, smells good and sounds good, a mans chainsaw!

I've used both and felt that the petrol one was a lot easier, more umph and the lack of a lead was one less thing to worry about. You are going to get all the right PPE aren't you?

Reply to
Bill

I think there's a perception that real men use petrol chainsaws, particularly professional one from Stihl or Husqvarna. Certainly, I wouldn't consider a very cheap petrol saw over an electric saw.

My dad has a Perfomance Power electric saw, which (against my better judgement) has been absolutely fine and my Brother in Law has a Bosch electric one which he says he is happy with (I've never used it).

Electric saws are less fiddly, lighter weight, lower vibration, quieter and in my experience entirely adequate for occasional use on the types of project DIYers are likely to take on. I've not noticed the need for short extension leads; performance is much more dependant on the type of wood, and the sharpness of the chain.

P.s. word to the wise: Don't use your chainsaw to cut roots out. It's not worth it. Your chain will stay sharp for oh, about 30 seconds.

Reply to
Dave Osborne

I have a (relatively) cheap Bosch electric chainsaw - (think it was about 50 quid reduced from 80 a few years ago) which is used from time to time for 'pruning' the hedges and for logging up felled trees (softwood).

For occasional use it's fine. If you get the chance - avoid the fiddly 'spannerless' chain adjustment in favour of the conventional style of adjustment...

Friend up the road has a nice little Stihl petrol-driven saw - which seems to cut much faster than the Bosch saw...

Back at the last place I used a cheapie recriproicating saw from Screwfix to dismantle a long row of leylandii. This had the advantage that it wasn't affected by the odd nail, piece of wire fence etc embedded in the leylandii - but it was slower then a proper chainsaw..

My money'd be on the electric chainsaw, for occasional use....

Adrian

Reply to
adrian
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Where I work we regularly get people wanting us to get spares/accessories for stuff they bought online/elsewhere. Unless they otherwise give us regular custom they are told to go back to where they originally sourced the goods.

Reply to
Scabbydug

In message , Scabbydug writes

A strange business plan. Presumably they wish to pay for these spares so why do you not wish to sell them and have a satisfied customer, who may then come back in the future and become a regular, rather than some one who permanently crosses you off their list of helpful companies.

What reasoning stops you selling to them?

PS where do you work? I will note this so that I don't waste your time and mine by asking you for spares/accessories etc.

Reply to
Bill

In message , Bill wrote

It's probably the very reason why so many people now shop on line.

Reply to
Alan

Sounds rather like your employer has its corporate head a little too far up its arse then. It does not seem like a sound business plan for weathering a recession.

Perhaps you should suggest to them that if you gave a first rate spares and backup service to these people, they might actually convert some of them into new customers and divert them away from the online discount shops.

Which has the logical foundation of demanding heat from the fire before you agree to put a log on it.

Reply to
John Rumm

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