Would you sell a 200t?

[Al Smith]

You can get in some long conversations about what will kill a 200T .Like it or not here's what happens .The main bearings are roller bearings with internal thrust washers contained within the bearing itself .If and when they develop side slop because of the design of seal it wears itself out and leaks a little at first then gets worse .I haven't bought parts for a 200T for a long time but I've done a lot of them .OEM seals and bearing used to be about $60 .An 020T or 200T is by far the most user friendly saw Stihl ever made because of the slip fit mains which are not like most with heat shrink fit .I used be able to do a bearing replacement in about 2 hours .
I've never tried it but it was mentioned on another forum that the seals I think from an 024 will fit which is a much better design .

 

[chris_girard]

Unless it had some highly sentimental value, I'd ditch it in a second. Regardless of how awesome it is, it isn't getting any newer, and parts supply isn't increasing.

I agree.

 

[SeanKroll]

Starting to give this some thought.

What modern, large top-handle would you all go for?

 

[Jonny]

MS201TC

 

[lxskllr]

What do you all think of the echo 355? If a 201 or 200 = 100, how many points does a 355 get?

 

[greengreer]

355 is not bad once opened up a bit. Maybe 80% of the power and revs of a 200t. They start and run so that puts them above the 201 and 540 in my opinion. Also half the price...

 

[flushcut]

A former sub of mine ran the ever loving crap out of a 355 and sold it to a former employee of his. Still running three years later. I find then not to be as durable as the big two but for the money you can't go wrong.

 

[Jomo]

Echo's are great dependable lightweight pruning saw's.

But fall short of a 200 or 201 on removals, IMO.

Jomo

 

[flushcut]

No that 355 probably took apart 4-500 trees. Easily. Mostly ash trees some oaks.

 

[BeerGeek]

My 355 is my 1st backup saw when my 201 goes south. Rate it 85 out of 100.

 

[Raj]

355T price point is great for me. Runs good.

 

[lxskllr]

I've been toying with the idea of getting a larger top handle, but I don't really need it. My 2511 handles most of what I do aloft, and if I need something bigger, my rear handle 400 really isn't that bad. It has good performance in a light package. It's just a little bulky, or long I guess cause of the handle.

 

[Jomo]

The thing about a 200 or a 201's they can handle a 26 inch trunk before needin a bigger heavier n longer removal saw.

I'm not Paul Bunyan,, more of a climbin munchkin!

I'll take an 880 aloft , but only when absolutely positively necessary........



Jomo

 

[flushcut]

For me it's 2511 untill its rear handle time. Usually around 14" wood and above. This is Wisconsin huge trees are not an everyday removal.

 

[Burnham]

14 inch is all it'll handle? Hell, I run a 14 inch bar on my 200T...it'll take me right up to 20 inch wood, easily.

Well, in retrospect, the type of woods in my part of the world. In other words, soft woods...even the ones that are technically hardwood species .

 

[lxskllr]

The 2511's pretty small; a 25cc motor. It's schtick is being light as a feather. 8" range is the sweet spot I think.

 

[Jomo]

As long as the 200's throwin sizeable chip's n cuttin straight?

Walkin round the trunk n cuttin 26 inch wood's totally doable, repeatably n dependably, till yur muffler rattles off...

Jomo

 

[flushcut]

12" bar on the 2511. I've had it buried double that in oak, locust, hickory, and ash. It cuts just fine it's the dance around the wood that annoys me. Soft woods spruce, silver maple, pine, cedar, boxelder like butter.

 

[CurSedVoyce]

Indeed. I prefer to get the shit done. Run out of bar on my 2511, 60cc or something with a 24 bar gets sent up. No fuggin around.

 

[Marc-Antoine]

The 201T can handle big wood, but it takes a while though. If it's one cut, maybe, but not many more. Usually in the tree, I cut until I run it out of gas, but that's rarely near the 20" cut. It's a balance between the time lost in the big cuts and my lazyness to go get the ms462. What a difference !

 

[Jomo]

So I'm at my local Stihl dealership buying mix plugs n drive washers today, and tell the owner my relatively new MS 201T's been actin up and runnin hot.

He informed me that Stihl's released a barrier kit for their 201's to compensate for a design flaw that allows too much dust to accumulate on the flywheel side and overheat the saw.

Kinda like the conical lock washers to keep 200 mufflers from rattlin off under heavy use........

Stihl's got some splainin to do to their pro users.....

Jomo

 

[Ed L]

Have a friend thats a climber...he needed to do a small side job for another friend. His 200 was in for repairs, let him use my 192 and kept my 200 hidden.

The 200 and my factory dual port 046 are the only 2 saws that NOBODY else touches. On the funny side, never had a request to loan out the 084 either....

Ed

 

[Al Smith]

A fix perhaps for those mufflers rattling off could be the use of serrated "belleville " type washers .You have to remember a 200 is an aluminum engine with an aluminum muffler .Lots of thermal expansion going on .Less perhaps if the screen was removed .

 

[ruel]

@lxskllr I think the echo 355 is 100% enough saw for you. The 201 is great, snappier throttle and more torque in the cut. It's just not enough better to justify double the price unless you're a full time removal guy.

My work buddy has been running a 355 for about 6 years as his only top Handle, still going strong. Plastic Bits break off occasionally, JB weld it right back together

 

[lxskllr]

If I got a bigger top handle, there was little question it would be a 355. I was just curious what people thought of it that made their money with saws. If three people said it was the biggest pos they ever ran, I might adjust my thinking, but it would make it the black sheep of the echo family. The echoes I've run have been fantastic. Maybe not necessarily best in category at any price, but when you factor in the cost, they're real winners. I wouldn't feel bad about starting a tree company with 100% echo gear.