chainsaw for lots of small tree removal...???

[Panhandler80]

I have a Husqvarna Rancher 455 that for the past 8 years or so has been a great saw. It saw literally hundreds upon hundreds of hours of use after hurricane Michael and is still going pretty strong. However, it's about a 14 pound rig. I'd like to cut a couple 300 yard shooting lanes at a little piece of property of mine, and the trees consist of knee-sized pines and scrub oaks. I see no point in doing all of that with such a large saw. As such, I'm thinking about buying something a little smaller, BUT... by smaller I don't mean sub-par quality.

Recommendations?

Sticking with Husqvarna be nice, but not essential.

 

[Corvus Corax]

Stihl 020 arborists saw. New models are called the ms201t. Top handle style. Plenty of power. Might have a lot of bending over to do with a short bar, but very light. We use and abuse them at work and they don’t quit. We use ms362’s a lot as well and they are a pretty good medium duty not quite pro level saw.

 

[Corvus Corax]

 

[Ranger 692]

I’ve got a few saws I use, my favorite is my cheap little Stihl MS170 with a swapped out .050 chain from the dainty little .043 chain that comes with it, installed on a 12” .050 bar to keep rpm’s up. Chainsaw snobs(I have been one in the past) look down on these little homeowner rigs but for the money, it’s a nice dependable lightweight saw that gets it done for smaller trees and limbing without fatigue. And I have LOTS of hours on one.

 

[Mt Al]

This answer may illicit hate and questioning my masculinity.

For similar small diameter/brush work I bought a Ryobi battery operated chain saw. Already had the batteries, got one more. As long as the chain's sharp, I've been impressed with battery life and how long it's lasted while getting abused. It's not close to a gas powered one, no question, but it's doing the job I bought it for very well. I throw it and one battery in my truck for random fire wood gathering when the right tree/log is next to the road.

 

[Panhandler80]

I'm not going to go to the battery route. Father-in-law next door two. I took one out the woods two years ago with three batteries and was not able to finish the job. Battery for around the house he is not a bad idea though

 

[Finch]

Walmart clearanced several Green Works battery operated tools several months back. I bought a leaf blower, hedge trimmer, and chainsaw for really cheap. I'm also impressed with battery powered chainsaws. They are quiet and very light.

 

[PNWGATOR]

Stihl MS170 gets the most use of all of my saws. It’s an awesome tool and very capable. Love the idea of swapping the bar to a 12” with heavier chain! Think I paid about $150 for it on sale at the saw shop.

 

[Jimbob]

Have used big stihls in the past for firewood and cutting trails/shooting lanes. When my Dad bought a Stihl ms170 it was like working with a dream. It's not good for firewood and big logs but PERFECT for trail trimming. I bought one this spring and it serves me well.

Last year with a friend, we opened up a few km's of trail with two husky's, One was large and a bear to handle when nocking back wrist size alders, the smaller was one was a pleasure to work with. So, ya you're on the right track by getting a small light saw that is suited to the job, just makes the work more enjoyable.

I wanted to get an arborist saw, stihl has some really cool lightweight ones, but more than double the price of the basic 170 I couldn't do it. I don't use a saw enough to justify the price.

 

[azpredator]

I bought a Stihl ms250 for the exact same reason and couldn’t be happier. Only complaint is when my wife see me cutting next to a big saw and questions my manhood

 

[Panhandler80]

I was looking at the husky 440 for a little bit, but there are quite a few 1 star reviews and almost all for the same issue... sounds like she likes to shut down and not restart. No thanks.

https://www.lowes.com/pd/Husqvarna-440-18-in-40-9-cc-2-Cycle-Gas-Chainsaw/1000257539

I'll look into that MS120 that has been mentioned twice. There's also a Stihl dealer that I pass on my right each day on my way home from work.

 

[William Sublette]

My friend had a stihl weedeater with basically a skill saw blade on it, instead of string.

It made for easy clearing of baby cedars in the pastures.

 

[William Sublette]

 

[Akwoodchuck]

Was using a couple of other guys' Husqys doing work at moose camp yesterday, cutting alder and spruce....they would not stay running. Was wishing I'd brought my Stihl.....

 

[Wellsdw]

Top handle over 3-4” because you can hold with one hand and cut with other. 1-3” clearing blade on a 35cc or bigger weed eater/brush cutter, Is my go to. Don’t forget to shoot concentrate herbicide into those stumps (other than pine) or you will have a friggin mess in a couple years

 

[Yellowknife]

For cutting survey lines in alder or black spruce (which is very similar to what you might be doing) I prefer a fast revving pro saw in about the 50cc class. Current versions are either the Husky 545 or 550xp or the Stihl MS261. The pro saws are a couple lbs lighter than what you currently have, have MORE horsepower, and most importantly they rev very quickly, which is ideal for limbing or clearing small diameter brush and trees.

Drawback is that they aren't cheap. But they are good. If you think you will use one enough, either one of those will both completely replace your Rancher 455 and be vastly nicer to run for clearing small stuff.

I've used top handle arborist saws for clearing line too... don't recommend it. The decreased leverage and reach is a real drawback cutting close to the ground.

 

[Randle]

I have a top handle 14 " and a 20" and if it is more than a few saplings I use the 20 because I don't have bendover as far, and more HP, and it is too tempting to use the top handle one handed ( not recommended at all) Always keep two hands on a chainsaw...the kick bar is there for the second hand to engage it if needed

 

[Panhandler80]

I can't say that the top handles have much appeal to me. I've got quite a bit of time behind a rear handle saw and I feel like the extra reach and ability to pivot blade approach by moving just one hand is nice.

 

[Panhandler80]

For cutting survey lines in alder or black spruce (which is very similar to what you might be doing) I prefer a fast revving pro saw in about the 50cc class. Current versions are either the Husky 545 or 550xp or the Stihl MS261. The pro saws are a couple lbs lighter than what you currently have, have MORE horsepower, and most importantly they rev very quickly, which is ideal for limbing or clearing small diameter brush and trees.

Drawback is that they aren't cheap. But they are good. If you think you will use one enough, either one of those will both completely replace your Rancher 455 and be vastly nicer to run for clearing small stuff.

I've used top handle arborist saws for clearing line too... don't recommend it. The decreased leverage and reach is a real drawback cutting close to the ground.

Husky 555 still 13# dry weight. Not exactly light. 4.3 hp, though. Damn! You could push a small boat with that thing. I think the best move is just keep the Rancher 455 as my "big saw" and then pick up a quality little guy for the task at hand (cutting these shooting lanes) and for smaller jobs around the house.

 

[Panhandler80]

Top handle over 3-4” because you can hold with one hand and cut with other. 1-3” clearing blade on a 35cc or bigger weed eater/brush cutter, Is my go to. Don’t forget to shoot concentrate herbicide into those stumps (other than pine) or you will have a friggin mess in a couple years

I wasn't planning on herbicide. Pines will die. Was going to cut oaks about an inch above the ground. These things will bush up like nobody's business. There is SO LITTLE FOOD where I hunt. A) They will browse those oak leaves (the eat pine straw for crying out loud), and B) In a year or two the oaks will bush up a little bit. When they get too tall to see deer, I'll bush hog it. They'll make a great transition / staging zone from my woods, to a fence, to a mowed lane, into recently planted pines. Deer will think they have cover, but depending on wind (and which end of 300 yard strip I'm on), I'll be between 13 and almost 40 feet in the air. POW!

Red is my property. Pines (half more more of which are down after storm), turkey oak, palmetto. Black line is fence that recently went up. S of black fence is neighbor. Cattle / Timber folks with about 500,000 acres. Blue is an access road they keep mowed. Green are pines that went in about 2 years ago. Can still see deer slipping through them, and will be able to for another 2-3 years. The green dots in the red is the 300 yard piece i want to remove. won't be very wide. Maybe 10 feet. Letting those oaks bush up and be a little cover butting up to that fence will be very nice.

Until this year, I hunted the blue strip. The folks who hunt all around me have always given me TONS of room and didn't mind me hunting the property line. Land owners don't feel the same way. After fence went in they made that abundantly clear. Kind bull shit considering I hunt by their rule in an effort to grow nicer deer, share trail cam pics with neighbor, tell them when I kill, tell them which ones I'm after and which one's I'll let live.

Whatever. Half a mind to get this lane cut and go back to brown and down days if they want to be dicks about it. Went out after the season had been over a few weeks, but before antlers had dropped... just watned to see who all might still be on the hoof. Plan was to check trail cams. I had two cameras out. One on their property looking at mine, and one that fence in diagram below looking onto their property. Both cameras gone and a business card was left lashed to tree with surveyor tape in their place. Uncalled for, IMO.