I was wondering if anybody is using the Stihl cordless chainsaws? What do you think?
With a brushless motor, they advertise 30-40 minute battery life (36 volt)- with full power for the duration.
It is also said that the batteries will retain about 80% capacity after 500 charges.
The MSA 160 CBQ weighs 10.8 lbs with the battery, which is probably comparable to their smallest gas powered chainsaw with a bar/chain/gas/oil.
Now I know a bunch of Tim Taylor's are going to immediately say it is a sin to even think about a chainsaw with a motor instead of an engine.
Seems like it would be perfect for limited situations where you need to carry a saw, but rarely use it, and not so great for most situations requiring a real saw.
This Husky looks perfect for what this guy is doing...while hanging from a rope.
Too sacrilegious to comment on!
🙂
N
I don't see the advantage of it over a gas powered saw at all. Certainly not cost. It cost more than double than a MS 170. If you use it long enough, you would have to run back to the home or office and wait while recharging the battery. That doesn't sound too convenient to me. With the MS 170, just refill the tank and continue on. Even for small jobs, the gas powered saw seems to be more convenient. The Stihl gas powered saws are known to be very reliable, you just gotta drain the fuel tank if you are going to store it for more than six months or so-same with any gas powered saw.
You're not really cutting down on emissions. Probably worse. That electricity to charge the battery has to come from somewhere and if the electrical generating plant is gas, coal or nuclear powered, that means even more emissions, or the high cost and terrible problem of storing spent nuclear waste that has a half life of 500,000 years. Converting energy from one form to another is far from efficient. I'm not sure what the conversion rate would be in this case, but it's something like 5 units of coal or NG equals to 1 unit of electricity, and then maybe 5 units of electricity would equal to 1 unit of battery charging. It's something like that. Might be better or could be worse.
About the only advantages that I see is that it may produce less noise. It's not a big deal to me. A $0.10 set of ear plugs would do wonders if it's a big concern. Cheaper than forking out an extra $170 to go 'electric' just to cut a few branches on line. But, hey, that's just me and my $0.02 worth.... YMMV.
The electric start chainsaw they once made was real handy for that. It was small and light and one hand friendly.
For occasional use I see the advantage for the same reasons I sold my coveted Ryobi gas powered drill and bought a 36V battery powered one, no need to haul gas around stinking up the truck and then not starting when it hasn't been used in a few months, for real saw work or everyday use it wouldn't be the right tool.
In addition in the western US, there is often restrictions on power saws in the summer fire season, I am thinking for light brushing work you might be able to still use a battery operated saw, only possible sparks would be if you rocked your chain.
SHG
I could see that being very useful. I don't need a saw every day, and keeping my husky in working order for the occasional project is a hassle.
If you need to cut line on a regular basis, then not a good fit.
Nothing quite like firing up a chain saw first thing in the morning, in some subdivision.
I can see a lot of potential for a silent chain saw.
I have a troybilt 20v li-ion chainsaw and 8ft pole saw, that I've used occasionally on jobs. I have 2 batteries and it does okay for small jobs and small brush. Definitely not a tool for people who use their saws a lot or heavy duty line cutting, but it has it's place.
> I can see a lot of potential for a silent chain saw.
Around here, firing up a chain saw is guaranteed to have someone show up wondering who is making that noise! There have been instances when I don't want the neighbor (or for that matter, the owner) around when I'm cutting line. I don't mind going and showing them later but I don't want to be distracted by sometimes silly guidance (they're standing behind me trying to wave me over to be on line when I can look back and see the gun and the line behind them!)
I've owned Stihl saws for 25+ year and wouldn't hesitate about their electric saw but lately, I've been avoiding a lot of cutting... just setting markers on line (yes, RTK in the woods!) and brushing between them so there is no real need to cut anything larger than what I can handle with a machete.
I did demo their electric saw about 18 months ago. Great power and easy to handle. To carry along to supplement a sharp machete is how I would use it, but like I said, I've been 'cutting down' LOL! on using a chain saw. With my very limited saw use for survey needs, I opted for a new MS250 a year ago. It will last me as long as I'll need a saw!
I was out of town for the weekend, but was thinking about battery powered lawn tools...specifically the weed trimmer.
I agree that for almost every situation, a gas powered saw is way better.
It does seem like this electric saw has a couple advantages -
1.) Not having to start the engine repeatable (the guy trimming the tree).
2.) Lower noise or at least noise that is not recognized as a chainsaw.
3.) Much reduced fire hazard - you could leave it "idling" on the ground all day.
4.) No hassle about fuel.
I won't be buying one, but they are interesting.
The downside of electric power tools
I bought the complete line of Troy-Bilt battery yard tools about 3 years ago for home use. As far as their performance, A+. The downside is that they have already discontinued the battery packs (which last 2 or 3 years), so I'm not sure what I'm going to do when my current replacements go dead. I'm a little PO'ed about this "planned obsolescence", since these electric motors can last for decades, and there isn't much else that can go wrong with them.
The downside of electric power tools
I have a Batteries Plus store 5 minutes from my house, went there, they don't carry it or any knock offs, and they said they can't rebuild mine because they don't rebuild Li-Ion batteries. The guy even looked into special orders and said nothing is available. I got my last two from some store on the internet that still had them in inventory, but I'm pretty sure the well is running dry.
I guess if you stick with a popular brand like Black and Decker, you might be able to get knock offs, but I'd be a little leery of Stihl since they are not a major player in the home/electric tool field, it's a bit of niche market for high end electric chiansaws.
> The "poor" surveyors plan "B" 😉
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The "poorest" surveyor plan "C" 😉
http://www.amazon.com/Putsch-One-Man-Crosscut-Saw/dp/B0033B6BJW
Use braided flagging to make a sling...carry it on your back.
DDSM:beer: