Chainsaw: Battery Vs Electric

[Lance Mirrer]

Hi All,
I am contemplating a chainsaw purchase. Having read the other posts here, am pretty much sold on Stihl.

The questions are comparison of electric (MS250) vs. battery (MSA 220 C-B).

Which is more powerful? Looking at specs, I am not clear what to compare?
While power will be a deal maker, if similar - I'm thinking the electric is easier as to not dealing with batteries (charging and replacement).

Appreciate your thoughts.

 

[Dave Fritz]

I had the MS250 and it worked really well. Actually similar to my smaller Stihl gas saws. I sold it however because I no longer work with large chunks in the shop. I have purchased a Stihl MSA 140 C-B to use outside trimming in the woods. It works ok however it needs to be cleaned frequently as there is no adjustment on the oiler and keeps the chain well oiled resulting a build up of oily saw shavings inside the cover. Also the battery has to be a full charge of it won't run, rather will start but quickly quit. I also have a 60V MAX 16in. Brushless Cordless Battery Powered Chainsaw by DeWalt. It cuts well however I wouldn't expect it to replace a gas saw. I have arthritis in my hands and find the DeWalt harder to use as it has a safety device that has to be held down by the thumb. I can only do that so long and may not sleep at night if I overdo it.

 

[Mark Jundanian]

If the saw is for your yard, I would think corded is the was to go. But if you plan to use the saw at various locations, then cordless.

 

[mike nelson]

Just a thought, if you won't be using your chain saw regularly, consider an electric one. No gas to go bad, etc. I have an Ego that works great and does not mind sitting around in between uses.

 

[Monty Ivy]

I bought a Ryobi (have batteries and chargers that brand) battery operated saw a while back. It was awful. Slow, required a battery change to buck a section and cut one side of the pith. It quit working at all by the fourth blank. It went back to the store.

I'm currently running a gas 18" Echo that works like a champ. I'm thinking of getting a corded electric for use inside the shop down the road.

 

[robo hippy]

Project Farm has a You Tube video on cordless saws. A very good review. I think the newer cordless models are at least as powerful as the corded ones. Nice not to have cords running all over the place in the shop...

robo hippy

 

[Doug Freeman]

IMO where you plan to use it is 1st, then how long/how much at one time.

If remote locale or even out in the back yard, gas.

Inside Shop or just outside in easy cord reach, corded.

I have and use both, just depends where (and the gas one is bigger for larger work).

Battery - never for me, but if you use it for a few cuts I guess it could work. A corded or gas unit is not going to need discontinued batteries replaced, and dont run out of juice (you did get gas before driving to the country to cut some trees, right?).

 

[Luc Grauwels]

Hi all, I have a Stihl MSA 220 with two batteries for 4 years, and it works really well to convert logs into blanks. It is light, very quiet and has a small kerf. The second battery is charged before the first one is empty. The only disadvantage is that is difficult to get rid of the long shavings when cutting with the grain (because of the thin kerf), sawing angled helps. My corded Makita is hardly used anymore.

 

[Steven Forrest]

For what it's worth, we had some tree work done recently, and the arborist showed up with all battery powered saws. (I believe he still has gas for larger work.) Blades were not long - I would guess 14-16 inches - and they had lots of batteries ready to go - but they are subjected to pro level loads and are working well for him. Unless you need something 18 inches or above, the battery saws can do a good job for anything smaller. If you can use a corded electric, there's no reason not to. But if you are away from an outlet, battery can work. Of course, the economics of batteries vs gas/oil will play out differently for different folks.

 

[Dave Hulett]

I've had a 16" gas power Stihl for 20 years and love it. But a few years after I started Woodturning I bought an electric from Oregon CS1500 and love it more! I wanted something I could use inside my shop on days when it's too cold (or too warm) to cut a log outside.

The bar is 18" and is every bit as powerful as my Stihl. And as a side benefit it comes with a self sharpener which really works! I still use my Stihl but only when i'm out of reach of electricity.

 

[David Wrate]

Another vote for the Oregon CS1500. I recently bought one and the thing is amazing. It flew through a rip on a 16" long, 14" diameter Madrone log like it was butter.

 

[Bill Blasic]

As I posted before the MS250 is a beast, it cuts just as hard and fast as my gas Stihl saws and stated uses the same chain. Dependent on what and how much you are going to use it is where you should decide which to buy. There's a heck of a difference price wise between the Stihl and any other electric. At Lowes the Oregon sells for $114 where the Lowes brand sells for $129, the Oregon has a 2 year warranty where the Lowes brand Kobalt has a 5 year warranty and both saws use the same chain. Now I could go out and buy both of those but I know what the test will reveal and that would be the same as the last test where the Stihl will run circles around the others. But like I said dependent on what and how much you are going to cut.

 

[Bill T Tucker]

Consumer Reports did an extensive review of gas, electric and battery models...interesting reading

 

[Bernie Kopfer]

I have both the Makita corded and the Makita 36V cordless. The corded is a little more powerful but the convenience of grabbing a saw w/o the hassle of finding and dragging a cord makes me happy.

 

[Hy Tran]

I had a Stihl gas-powered--but at 9300 ft altitude, it's just cranky to start. Sold it, and now use an Ego battery powered (18" bar model) for use when I'm out of reach of a power cord, and a 120V corded chainsaw for closer to the house.

In Florida, I don't think I'd find the gas-powered chainsaw as objectionable. They are a bit lighter to maneuver than the Ego. If you have a marathon cutting session and only one battery, you'll find yourself taking plenty of breaks recharging your one battery...

First item to purchase, though--a pair of chaps. Next item is eye/face protection, and third item is hearing protection.

For where I am, the primary use for the chainsaw is firewood (mainly aspens and conifers). I've made the occasional bowl blank first prep from lower altitude wood that was given to me, but my bandsaw is my go-to tool for preparing turning blanks.