Stihl 500i

[stig]

So, I've been using the 500i since spring.
I'm still in love.
The simplicity of it is just great.
Never have to wonder if it is time for putting on the choke, just pull the handle and off we go.
I've had it sitting for up to 3 hours and it still starts on second pull.

In fact, I don't think I've ever had to pull more than 2 times.

I still have to say, it is the best saw I've ever run, bar none.

Can't wait to see what other sizes Stihl will make injection saws in.

 

[MasterBlaster]

Good report!

 

[flushcut]

Thank you for the update!

 

[Frankie]

Cool comparison between 500i;572xp;462c and a dolly 7900 ... ... I was surprised the 462c was actually a fuzz quicker than the 500i ..... seemed like that dolly was a 🍋 fair test imho ; same b/c and wood ...

 

[NickfromWI]

Is it available in the USA? My local dealer said you have to have a friend ship it from overseas but that there’s no support for parts here when you DO need something. Please tell me he’s not right!!!

 

[Frankie]

To the best of my knowledge 500i is not available in the USA as of now ... having said that the 462c IS ! Imho the 462c at 13lbs (+ or - oz) is the Saw for a tree service ; firewood processor- STOCK with a 20-25” bar it’s a game changer ... ON Steroids it’s a light-saber ! On PAPER the 500i has 7cc and .8hp more than the 462c but also weighs a bit more ... In the timber Stock for stock 25” bar or less I can’t see much difference ; longer 28-32” bars maybe the 500i pulls away but I’m splitting hairs here ... I’ve got an older 064 (85cc) that’ll put either one of em to shame and it ain’t much heavier ... I checked STIHL Canada for the 500i and nada ... last year the 462c became available in Canada a few months before they hit the states

 

[Frankie]

Here’s a gent from Ireland giving a review on the 500i after slaying a few weeks worth of trees

 

[stig]

That Irish gent should have sharpened his saw before making a video.
Also, learning to match your cuts when doing face cuts, saves you from the embarassment of having to bang the wedge out with an axe.

Frankie, unlike you I'm not so hung up on power.
Of course I enjoy the fact that the 500i is an agressive beast,
but is the user friendliness that I love it for

Pump it in the morning and the rest of the day, just pull the string and off it goes.
Works great for climbing jobs, too.
When it has been hanging for a while between cuts. One never has to think about whether to use the choke or not.
Just pull and go.
We had a bit of frost this week, that was my first try at starting it frozen.
Pump, 2 pulls and we're of logging.

When I first got the saw, I thought having to pump it to set pressure before starting would be irritating, but so far I've never had to do it but once a day, when starting work in the morning.

 

[Frankie]

Stig , not tryin to rain on your parade at all ! ... just showing some other reviews / live action ... I’m definitely interested in performance though ... hypothetically consider 1000hrs of saw work with a stock Saw in a year (a lot but bear with) ... now if you’re runnin same Saw that’s 25% quicker that’s 750 hrs or a savings of 250 hrs with the same work getting done !

 

[stig]

1000 hours of saw time in a year.
That is ½ a year for me and the crew, each.
Last year we put 10,000 cubic meters of hardwoods on the ground.

Honestly, I hope never to have to do that again.

I get what you are saying, but 40+ years of running saws have ruined my ears badly,
I think running ported saws would have made me totally deaf.

 

[Nutball]

I tried running one after someone else, and it took like 20 pulls until I hit the primer a few times. I didn't think it needed priming after having run, but it can help.

 

[treebogan]

I like the concept but for me and many others it just does not fit in to our jobs.
Weaker than a 660 and bigger than a 462 is a solution looking for a problem.
The local saw dealer can't keep 462's on the shelf,while the 500's just sit there.Plus the 500 costs the same as a 660 for us.

 

[Frankie]

Earplugs and muffs do the trick .... cant speak for the 500i; the 462c is loud as heck stock ! It IS louder ported but to me what’s +20 dB when you have the xtra balls ? Plus they are a blast to run and tinker with ... a righteous ported 462c (72.2cc hp unknown 13lb + or - ounces) will beat a stock 660 (91.6 cc 7.0 hp standard carb) and a stock 661 (91.6 cc 7.1 mtronic carb both about 3lbs heavier ) with a 20” bar ... That’s another reason we run em Stig; lighter Saw same balls ... of course if the 660 and 661 are also ported than the “Little Saw” that could ... wouldn’t

 

[Nutball]

He's gotta hear the trees talking to him, which could be a matter of life and death with widow makers and such. I plan on experimenting with quiet porting to find the difficult way of more power & less noise.

If one has always protected their hearing like I have, you can get sensitive hearing from using hearing protection, which allows you to still hear very well while the ear plugs filter out the louder noise.

 

[Frankie]

I’m not a pro faller by any means but have dropped SOME trees (mostly straight up dead ash trees and have made my miscalculations ; BB chair on an dead ash and took out one section of a fence - more of a chainsaw aficionado and firewood/firewood processor type so I DO know that angle ) ...I cannot speak for another ; having said that the felling instruction I received stressed to always 1) Look up at the tree ...2) Wear Hardhat 3) Do NOT try and save the Saw - if it gets yanked out of your hands let it go , it is replaceable you are not ... never met any talking trees but I did spend 3days lost on a clover leaf !

 

[Burnham]

To the best of my knowledge 500i is not available in the USA as of now ... having said that the 462c IS ! Imho the 462c at 13lbs (+ or - oz) is the Saw for a tree service ; firewood processor- STOCK with a 20-25” bar it’s a game changer ... ON Steroids it’s a light-saber ! On PAPER the 500i has 7cc and .8hp more than the 462c but also weighs a bit more ... In the timber Stock for stock 25” bar or less I can’t see much difference ; longer 28-32” bars maybe the 500i pulls away but I’m splitting hairs here ... I’ve got an older 064 (85cc) that’ll put either one of em to shame and it ain’t much heavier ... I checked STIHL Canada for the 500i and nada ... last year the 462c became available in Canada a few months before they hit the states

Been telling this tale for more than a decade now, re the 064. Beast and a half. Today's saws are hard pressed to match. Though under advisement from my good friend Stig, I'd not turn a 500 down, nossir!

 

[Frankie]

I plan on experimenting with quiet porting to find the difficult way of more power & less noise.

I could see that being done ... however the SIZE of the muffler needed to accomplish that might prove itself to be quite large ... how about a solar panel and an electric-chainsaw ?

 

[Frankie]

Been telling this tale for more than a decade now, re the 064. Beast and a half. Today's saws are hard pressed to match. Though under advisement from my good friend Stig, I'd not turn a 500 down, nossir!

I scooped an 064 up for a song and a dance ,put meager $$$ into it (chain , rim sprocket and the metal guard that goes over the studs and oil outlet ) modded it and cc for cc it’s the strongest one in the stable with carb set dead-nuts ... Non - smog saw is what I figure , straightforward without any of this “strato-charged , raw air injection into the very hot cylinder, epa friendly” nonsense ... I have an old Johnson/Evinrude 6hp 2-stroke outboard that (unless straight-gassed) will likely STIHL be running long after my demise ! The av is inferior to the new 500i but not unbearably so ... my 064is at least 20yrs old and runs well - will the “new offerings” from both STIHL and Husqvarna be running 20yrs from now ? Possible ... imho no

 

[Burnham]

My stock 064, besides just a little opening up of the muffler, pulls 32 inches of full skip chisel in 40+ inches of old growth Doug fir like no tomorrow. It only asks for more. Hell of a saw, old as it is.

Of course, I give it the great advantage of razor sharp chain. Any saw can impress the hoi polio when sporting a properly sharpened chain, as we all know .

 

[Frankie]

No show-pony and a little rough around the edges but mechanically sound

 

[eucalyptus]

Anyone know when it will be available in the USA?

 

[Burnham]

No show-pony and a little rough around the edges but mechanically sound

Looks fine to me, sir. That's a saw.

 

[Frankie]

The 064 can be made into a 98cc beast also ... though I’m not one for aftermarket cylinders/pistons etc ... penny-wise and dollar foolish imho - go oem or go home

 

[Mick!]

20yrs old and runs well - will the “new offerings” from both STIHL and Husqvarna be running 20yrs from now ? Possible ... imho noView attachment 97455
[/QUOTE]
Some of them will be, most will be long since chucked away like the vast majority of 064s

 

[Frankie]

Of course, I give it the great advantage of razor sharp chain. Any saw can impress the hoi polio when sporting a properly sharpened chain, as we all know .

Yeppers ... that’s where the proverbial rubber meets the road , razor sharp chain with rakers set to the wood makes for enjoyable cutting ...