Husky vs Stihl Tree Saws

  • Thread starter Wagnaw
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Wagnaw

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I imagine this issues been beat to death before, but I honestly haven't really delved into much.

I was looking at tree saws the other day and I noticed the Husky (338xpt, I think) had more displacement than the 200T. Why doesn't that translate to more power? Are the RPMs just set too high? There's also a $100 difference.
 
Stihls Rule! :thumbup:

Huskys drool. :|:

:lol:

But that's just my humble opinion. ;)
 
The 200T has more power and is more reliable than the 338xpt in my experience. It's the superior top handled saw.
 
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  • #4
I'm a Stihl fan myself, but If I didn't know any better and just looked at saw stats, I'd say the Husky's look better.


... I dunno...
 
Do not be fooled by the stats. 9 out of 10 arborists prefer the 200T.

And that stat might be a bit foolish as well...
 
Did you know that 87% of statistics are made up on the spot? :/:
 
About the only way I felt the 338 had an edge on the 200T was it's ergonomics. The handle and balance felt slightly better to me.
 
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  • #8
Where does that extra 3-4 cc of displacement disappear to then?
 
I use a 200T at work and own a 338xpt for my personal saw.

I find I prefer the balance and performance of the 200T hands down. The Stihl also starts easier and more reliably. My Huskys all seem sort of cold blooded comparatively.

The biggest problem I have with the 338 is the placement of the air filter in the front and the v shape of it seems to need cleaned after every tree or two.
 
The Husky climbing saws have a very minuscule following compared to the Stihl 200T. For years they were plagued with performance and reliability issues, as well as a spark plug cover that would fall off resulting in the saw eventually shocking the user. Most would die after about a year of use. The 200T has over 15 years of proof as the premiere climbing saw and it will take something special to take away that title. Supposedly the Husky has fixed most of their problems in the last couple years but who's going to try them and find out?

As far as the price difference, that is a foolish and shortsighted yardstick with which to measure your purchase. If the 200T was $1000, I'd still buy it because it will pay for itself a few hundred times over in it's lifetime.
 
Wagnaw said:
Where does that extra 3-4 cc of displacement disappear to then?
Click to expand...


I don't know, but the Stihl clearly has more power.

Fiddler, I had the same experience with the 338. They could be a total pain to get started sometimes, and would go cold after only a few minutes after the last cut. I like my saw to start on the first or second pull in the tree.
 
If your saw doesn't start on the FIRST pull after its warmed up, then something is wrong.
 
I can't comment on the 338 Huskies but I have 3 older 335's in the shed and they are plagued with oiler problems . According to RB tree the oiling problem has been taken care of on the newer models .

The danged 335's have the carb and thusly the filter right in the front of the saw for it to fill full of saw dust plus the muffler throws exhaust fumes right in your face and attempts to cook your hand and does a fine job of it .

The good thing is they seem at least to me to have a good balance .

Unless the basic design of the 338 differs greatly with the 335 there is not much you can do if you so desire to soup it up .Maybe some muffler work but that's about it .Clam shell cylinder.

If you so desire you can turn a little 200T Stihl into a little Jack Russel terrior as far as power . Of course this gets into the subject of modified saws and that is not for everybody,just a few of us eccentric gearheads . For my money,were I ever to buy one the extra hundred would be better spent on the Stihl but that's just an opinion and means nothing more than that .
 
For any tradesman, spending a few more dollars to buy the best tool for the job is money well invested. All it takes is a single minor breakdown on the jobsite to cost you hundreds of dollars in lost time and operating expenses. If you lose one afternoon while you have to leave a job to go get the saw fixed, the extra $100 for the better saw seems like a wise investment. You still end up spending the same money but it cost you more time and you have a crappier saw.

On the bigger saws, I love my fleet of 346s, 372s and the Big Dawg 395. But my top handle choice is the 200T without question.
 
Displacement is important....but it doesn't tell all. I have a Solo 637-A 40cc climbing saw with very light weight and good balalnce........it performs well but will not match a 200T. It doesn't turn as many rpms in or out of the wood
 
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  • #16
Skwerl said:
Supposedly the Husky has fixed most of their problems in the last couple years but who's going to try them and find out?
Click to expand...

I guess that's what I'm wondering. Has anyone made a leap of experimentation to try them out now? I dunno... :/:



My 200T has been running like an old sick dog lately (better since I figured out how to take off the limiter and riched it up), but I'm looking for another tree saw. I used a buddy of mine's Husky, but I didn't use it enough to develop an opinion.
 
I believe Erik has been trying out a new Jonsered top handled saw, which should be just about the exact same as the Husky.
 
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  • #18
Oh yeah! I wonder how all those little guys are doing.
 
Because of the short commings of the 335s',in this area of the country I doubt seriously if you could give one of the 338s' away,let alone sell one .
 
rumination said:
I believe Erik has been trying out a new Jonsered top handled saw, which should be just about the exact same as the Husky.
Click to expand...

:thumbup: It gets more power the more I break it in, and I prefer the ergonomics... and the economics. So far, so good... I'm happy with it.
 
One guy I work with has the Husky top handle. It's brutal watching him use it from the ground.

As far as other Huskys, I really don't like their chain brake and shut off/ choke setup.

Stihl here.
 
I've heard some good things on the Dolmar climbing saw. Even heard that it will match or beat a 200T.

Myself, I've rolled with Stihl's the whole time but I'm itching to try Dolmar and Husky. I have a friend that has the 338 that I'm going to try one day when we work together.
 
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  • #24
Yeah... I'd love to try a different saw, but I'll probably just buy another Stihl. I thought about getting the Husky just to mix it up a bit and see if I like it. I do remember burning my hand off with that muffler. :lol:
 
The current model is the 338xp 'New Edition', so they may have worked out some of the problems being mentioned.

I've made some serious study :|: of the 333, a saw which you guys wouldn't know about, being an Asian model, and a forerunner to the 339. I've completely disassembled it a number of times to solve problems, including the oiler, as was mentioned. I believe that it is basically the same design as the 338. When it's running good :roll: it's a nice light saw that I like for limbing, but I wouldn't recommend those to anybody who doesn't want to one day be able to write a book about surgery on them. It's a terrible saw to work on.

How I acquired the saw......the crane operator told me he was fed up with it, so, "it's yours".
 
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