Yes, but you might be able to get by with a good pair of loppers or bypass trimmers too. Cheaper, safer, quieter, no smell, and no gas to buy. guess it all depends on how big of saplings you are talking. Even then, i have a couple hand saws for myself. I hate dragging the chainsaw and safety gear out for a couple minutes of yardwork. My saws are religated to woods work.
Fine price, fine unit for those who are new to chainsaws. It will do the job for standard lawn maintenance.
Couple rules:
Mix the fuel correctly. If you have to guess, error on the side of too much oil vs too little. 2 cycle oils are not all made alike so read the bottle when mixing.
Leaving fuel in the unit is a bad idea. A couple of weeks is ok, anything over a month or two is going to reduce its life span. Try to drain it and run it empty when you know it’s going to sit unused.
Chain is cheap and dulls quickly. Get a second.
It’s fun to cut with a chain saw. It’s fun to walk on two legs. Be safe and you should be able to do both for a long time to come.
Yeah, im not so sure too much oil will damage your engine, within limits of course. But not enough oil can certainly fry your engine. But yes, 40:1 is a richer oil mix compared to 50:1. In reality either of these shouldnt cause any problems from my experience.
I am really contemplating this. I dont need it at all. I have 3 saws. But its pretty cheap for a chainsaw. But i sure wish they had the weight posted as a spec. Thats an important piece of info for a saw. I also had no idea they put those tip guards on homeowner saws now either. Probably a good idea, but man would that thing be a pain.
I do suggest getting some safety gear with this if you are new to chainsaws. Chaps at the minimum!
Homelite seems to have the same issue with their new chainsaws. This page: Chainsaws – Homelite lists the 16" saw as 42 cc (near the top), but then 38 cc in the features and specs.
I’m pretty sure this thing should be able to take down a tree. I bought the electric 14" homelite one from VMInnovations on the slickdeal a few months back and I took down a full sized bradford pear pretty easily. It did take a little longer to cut the trunk up, but I cut it from the top down without any problems on an electric one.
I’ve never used gas engine tools, so I’ve got some questions. How does one mix the gas and oil? Do you just eyeball it as you pour each of them into the tool’s tank? Or is there a special measuring cup/pitcher you can buy for such purposes? Does one normally pre-mix a large quantity to keep in on hand (in a container) for future use or do you need to try to mix just as much as to fill the tool’s tank? Is the oil just regular automotive engine oil or is there a particular version for tools?
I had one of these. Good saw…kinda.
I felled trees with it. I cut branches 13" in diameter without much of a problem. So for cutting, it DOES work.
The problem is it leaks bar oil. BAD. I would regularly open the case to find all of the oil had leaked out and now coated the saw. And when I was using it, oil sprayed EVERYWHERE! I was cutting some timber for firewood (before splitting it with an axe) and ended up with a 6-foot brown spot on the side of my house from the oil spray. Hopefully, when these were reconditioned, they fixed that gasket. I talked to the folks at HD, and they said they had heard that a lot from purchasers. They had a bunch of returns because of it.
Mine started up every time with, at most, three pulls. Always ran fine. Doesn’t vibrate a lot. I’m thinking of grabbing another at this price.
But I am definitely worried about how much these things leak.
–anthony
Go to Homedepot and buy a bow saw
for about $7.00. You won’t have to mix oil and gas.
Eyeballing it is a bad idea. Just don’t do it.
“Normally” is a funny word, whats normal for your lawn care company with 2 cycle trimmers vs whats normal for a rural homeowner who heats with firewood vs a suburban homeowner who wants to trim that pesky crepe myrtle? If you have the patience and measuring devices to mix 1 tank at a time that would be ideal. With today’s Ethanol laced gasoline, leaving it “too long” in a tank can cause issues with moisture.
A good compromise would be to get a small 1 - 1.5 gallon fuel can and some 2 cycle oil “one shots” or a fancy squeeze to measure container. Put 1 gallon of fuel in can, add one shot contents and shake (not stir). http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cKgF9H3wD3U
PLEASE get and use the proper safety gear to use a chainsaw! At a bare minimum, this includes safety glasses, hearing protection, gloves and good boots. You probably should have chainsaw chaps and a full face shield, and possibly a hard hat.
Spend some time reading the owners manual even if you normally don’t do things like that. Reading up on the intertubes is also a good idea. Think about what that chain can do to a log, then think how much softer your own limbs are. A chainsaw is like a Honey Badger, it just don’t care, and it eats what it wants.
Glen
You would mix up gas in a larger container…like a gallon gas can. I use a ratio rite for mixing my gas / oil and use suzuki cci 2 stroke oil. Before you fill up the chain saw, you would want to shake the gas can a little to make sure the gas and oil get mixed up well.
Scary when the chain is put on backwards.
Lets not forget the chain bar oil. This is a heavy oil that is used to lubricate the chain bar. You can buy it at most DIY stores as well as any Farm and Home store. Although I have a small Poulan Gas chain saw, I find the electric powered ones are handier around the house (assuming you have a long enough extension cord). They are easier to start, and stop when you let go of the trigger ;-). Also empty the gas tank, and run the engine dry if you are not going to use the chain saw within a week or two. Otherwise you will be visiting the small engine repair person.
I have one of these, and mine works great. I use it frequently, and quite honestly I am pretty hard on it. I’ve had mine for over a year now and have cut down many sizeable trees with it. The one thing I don’t like about it is the metal guard on the tip of the blade. None of my other saws had this, and it’s a little inconvenient sometimes.
I never had the bar oil spray problem that someone mentioned, but I did have problems with the bar oil leaking out in the case. This has happened to some degree with every saw I’ve owned. I talked to a homelite rep, and they suggested that I loosen the bar oil cap to release the pressure and then re-tighten it before storing the saw. That made a huge difference.
I mix my gas for this saw at 32:1 using suzuki cci 2 stroke oil. I’m sure this is probably overkill, but it works for me. My saw has probably already cut more trees that the average homeowner will in a lifetime, and I am very happy with it.
You don’t ‘eyeball’ the mix, but use a measuring cup or bottle to meter the oil out for 1 gallon at a time (shake well and often). Buy a dedicated 1-gallon tank and mark it so you don’t put it in the mower. The lawn tools aisle at your favorite home improvement store will have some measuring devices but the mix often comes in little pre-measured bottles for extra $. They also make special mixing cans if you’re using lots of mix (like for a dirt bike.) Only mix as much fuel as you will use in a set time period. Today’s 10% ethanol fuel will attract moisture from the air and be damaging to the engine after 2 months. 20% ethanol is good for about two weeks, tops. Don’t even buy that junk.
The fuel oil is a special low-smoke oil but you can use motorcycle/snowmobile oil if you’re careful. The bar oil is also a special thick product, but you can get away with automotive oil if you match the viscosity of bar oil.
I’ve not found it to be too critical. I’ve always just mixed one of the little 3 oz bottles with a gallon of gas and have had no problems. That gives me a 40:1 ratio and runs my saws fine as long as my plug is clean.
Exactly! Chainsaws are mandatory equipment in hurricane prone areas and I’ve taken both of mine apart more times than I can count. The chain is always getting stuck or coming off and must always be tightened.
Maybe that’s why it had to be factory reconditioned. Or if it has been factory reconditioned and they put the chain on backwards…
I would add, understand how dangerous they are. Never cut above your head. Kickback will kill you, and wearing appropriate safety equipment may keep you out of intensive care.
Don’t know if this is a decent saw but for $75 it’s hard for me to ignore even though I have two saws.
You are supposed to run the blade backwards for Zombies.
This is a cheap saw!
Got my Stihl 032 with 20" bar new in the 80’s, it has cut hundreds of cords, and still runs great.
I wonder if this one would stand up for years.
I run everything at 40:1, and always add Sta-Bil to all gascans.
5-:1 will fry it before 40:1 50:1 is less oil in the gas.
How easily does this thing start? I have an old Husqvarna which seems to be indestructible, but even with fresh gas and a clean plug seems to take forever to start - it’s almost to the point that by the time I get it started I don’t feel like holding it up to cut anything, so it’ll be useless against zombies…“Hang on! I’ll chop your head off once I get this thing started…Aaargh!”
Agreed, remember folks, these are 2 strokes and rely on the oil in your gas mixture to lube the motor as it is running. A 40:1 or I like 32:1 personally will pamper the little 42cc motor and keep her running happier.
Just a note, with any saw, don’t force the saw to cut, let the chain cut for you, and keep the bar oil filled up to not dull your chain. When you force the saw by pushing it down hard, you might end up with a chain jumping and ruin your day
Tip - use gas WITHOUT ethanol - the ethanol in gas accelerates the deterioration of plastic parts (fuel line, cheap carb parts, etc) and renders the product unusable. Do yourself a favor and buy the cans of pre-mix at the hardware store - a bit spendy but cheaper than replacing your expensive power tools.