MS200 rear handle or MS260 Pro

[MasterBlaster]

Do you think the filter's gonna be a problem, B?

 

[Burnham]

So I guess you can teach an old dog a new trick

Aw hell, Stig...same ol' tricks we need to fell 40 inch wood with a 28 inch bar, or 50 inch with a 36 inch bar...I know how to do it, I just feel so much more manly with that big, long bar sticking out there in front of me...you understand, doncha?

Do you think the filter's gonna be a problem, B?

No, I don't. I've got the on and off, cleaning procedure down now...it's easy enough so long as you have a small screwdriver at hand. Run-of-the-mill groundies might be another matter, but for a competant sawyer who understands how to take care of his tools, no problem.

 

[MasterBlaster]

I'm gonna buy one soon.

 

[squisher]

Thanks for the updated review Burnham.

 

[SkwerI]

I dislike removing air filters on the jobsite anyways. There will ALWAYS be some crap that falls in the carb or sticks to the intake under the filter. I don't want a groundie touching the air filter out on the job, that's a firing offense!

I prefer to service the air filters back at the shop where I have an air compressor to blow everything clean before reassembly. I clean off ALL the specks of crud from the back of the filter and around the air filter seating area before putting it back together. You can't do that in the field so you end up putting all that crud into your motor.

 

[Al Smith]

Run-of-the-mill groundies might be another matter, but for a competant sawyer who understands how to care of his tools, no problem.

You would be totally amazed at the amount of saws I wrench on each year that have nothing more than a clogged up filter .

I imagine in about a month or so they will be stopping in with non runners .Spring trim up the apple tree stuff ya know .Saw won't run .

 

[Burnham]

I guess no matter how the air filter is configured, there's always gonna be that problem, Al.

 

[sotc]

i wonder if the added leverage of the rear handle makes it feel like more power?

 

[MasterBlaster]

Not more powerful, but more ergonomic.

 

[Burnham]

Well, we all know that two "identical' saws, same model, same everything, don't necessarily perform equally. Just like autos off the assembly line, some just come out a little better than some others.

Might be nothing more complicated than that.

Whatever, it's a hot runnin' little mother.

 

[SkwerI]

My last 200T that I bought last summer was noticably stronger than my other two as well. Maybe they tweaked the porting or improved the carb or something in the last year. Regardless, I'm glad to hear that the 200 is working out so well. I may consider one as a bucket saw.

 

[Nails]

Well, I'm tellin' ya, I really like this 200 rear handle. I cut quite a bit with it this last week in the rigging workshop, and it's just the cat's meow. I think it runs stronger than my 200T, and it's pulling a 16" bar, too. No clear reason it should be stronger, as the powerhead is the same, but the air filter/carb arrangement is somewhat different, so maybe there is something there.

I even used it to fell a few 20-24 inch dbh Oregon ash trees and a similar sized western white pine...Stig would have been proud of me!

I love the light weight...awesome little machine.

Burnham, does it run noticeably hotter than say a 260? Felling 20-24" trees, you should have a good handle on that machine by now.

 

[Burnham]

I didn't note excess heat, but I didn't fall or buck 20-24" wood tree after tree, so I don't really know...and the weather was coolish, in the upper 40's-low 50's.

I wouldn't specifically acquire the 200 if the bulk of my cutting was in wood of this size...it handled it better than I would have guessed, admirably really, but I think one would be better off with more cubic inches if your daily work was in 2 foot wood.

 

[woodworkingboy]

My impression is that the MS200 is more an in the tree saw, than a ground saw....being that more power would translate to more useful, where the lighter weight isn't such a bonus, as when climbing. I don't own one, but have only briefly handled one, so I don't really know what I'm talking about. :roll:

 

[Burnham]

Jay, I think the 200 may well be an ideal bucket saw, and for those few who prefer a rear handle climbing saw it's probably the only way to go.

And for dicing up tops and limbs to make getting them to the chipper or onto a burn pile easier, it's a great choice. Anything up to 12 or 14 inch wood it blasts through, though I've not run it in true hardwoods like oak or hickory...but it sure ate that Oregon ash up.

I'd be interested to see how it would stand up to pre-commercial thinning, too...what Squisher calls spacing. I've beat myself half to death many a day running either an 036 or 044 all day taking 1200 stems per acre down to 300.

You can't believe how light it seems, compared even to the 260. Big, young and strong Carlito might not consider that a strong selling point, but for this old man at this point in my life, it sure is.

 

[woodworkingboy]

Burnham,
Interesting that you like the 200 as a ground saw as well, I assume that is what you mean by dicing up tops and limbs. I defer to your expertise.

 

[OTGBOSTON]

some of us, not-so-young not-so-old guys like the lightweight aspect too

 

[MasterBlaster]

Interesting that you like the 200 as a ground saw as well,

I predict the rear handled model will replace all the (what's their CC's?) 026 style models forthwith. Mark my words.

 

[arborworks1]

I think you are on to something Butch. Where do get your intel.

 

[Paul B]

dunno, when I ran it side by side with my 260, the 260 (brand new chain) was prolly twice as fast, or damn near anyways. the 200 had some wear but I didnt inspect the chain to be able to quantify it. It was light though, so the bit of time to wait for it to cut might be justified.

We should send one to Rotax, mebbe he can hop it up.

 

[MasterBlaster]

I think you are on to something Butch. Where do get your intel.

I think saws in that range are useless. If I'm gonna limb/buck a tree, I'm gonna grab a 044.

 

[arborworks1]

I agree, more weight, but it offsets by being quick cuts.

 

[woodworkingboy]

I'm pretty much the same amount of tired at the end of the day, whether using a smaller or larger saw. With larger, I get more work done, as a rule, or get the same amount of work done quicker.

 

[MasterBlaster]

I agree, more weight, but it offsets by being quick cuts.

Not just that - the longer bar makes it more ergonomical.

 

[Mr. Sir]

Remember kids... you need big guns to handle the big guns.