Stihl MS251 Chainsaw Review
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- Опубліковано 1 жов 2018
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A chainsaw is one of the most useful... and DANGEROUS tools that you can use. Don't try some of the stuff that I do in this video... they are bad habits picked up in a misspent youth!!! Watch my chainsaw safety videos here • Chainsaw Tips for Rebels and here • How To Be A Chainsaw Hero
Having said that, the Stihl MS251 is a GREAT little saw at a fair price!
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Thank you, be safe, and be grateful.
Stihl may be good stuff but I bet their User Manual doesn't have good advice like an old Husqvarna saw I used to have. It said "do not attempt to stop chain with hands or genitals." Now that's some good advice.
You are not joking? About genitals part?
I never would have considered that second part. I would like to hear the story that precipitated that warning.
One could argue they should not warn people about the genitals part as to improve the gene pool.
They should included a supplemental safety manual called: How To Apply A Tourniquet
That's the lawyers talking. "Did you follow the instructions to the letter, Mr. - er, Mrs. Smith?" "No." "Case dismissed.
I needed to buy my first chainsaw to clean out some fallen trees in my mother's backyard. Walked into the local hardware store and didn't find anything that seemed quality. Hopped onto the UA-cam and found this video. Then a quick jump over to Google to find out where the local Stihl dealer is. Less than 5 minutes from my house was a little local mom & pop mower & saw shop with a nice selection of Stihl chainsaws. And even better than that, I was able to have an intelligent conversation with both the owner and his wife about the product I was purchasing. He took it all apart and put it back together for me just so I could see how everything worked, and how to maintain the tool. He then took it outside and showed me how to fire it up so he could make sure everything was working properly. It was genuinely the best customer service experience I've encountered in 34 years on Earth. They'll have my business as long as they're around. And I can't wait to head over to mom's tomorrow and get to working with my new saw. Thanks for the review.
I was running this saw for about 2 hours at about a 30-50% duty cycle ua-cam.com/users/postUgkxfQm1wmg0ItKDLavxj1nXtQY9HP7EF504 and it did a great job. I used the lever for the built in sharpener to clear chip buildup out more than to actually sharpen the chain. It managed to cut some hardwood stumps much larger than it's size without bothering the neighbors with hours of 2 stroke noise.
This man is a legend and a true boss. Wish i was related to this man
*Coming up on having had this saw for a year....am a casual user and bought it to cut up sections for bowl blanks. Easy to start, **Bestfor.Garden** also recommend even after storage for a couple of months. Simple chain tension adjustment. Just cut up some 20" Osage Orange, including ripping bolts in half (at an angle). Like butter!*
Recently took my Stihl in for a tuneup. Mechanic said “Wow you got an old one!” Yep, over thirty years. Still starts on first pull, still a joy to use.
Been using ms230 for 13 years. Firewood cutting. Forest cleaning. Random homestead tasks. Changed some stuff that simply wears down with time and it's still going strong. Great tools.
This is my saw! Bought for firewood cutting in New England. I agree with all your points. It’s starts and runs like clockwork. Nice video.
On vacation, just caught your review. I have a Stihl and it has never failed me. Great product! And as always you have done a super job of reviewing it. Thanks
I jumped out of my skin a 4:35... looked like you were about to grab the bar!
me too
same! Looked really dangerous
Me too!
Nucken futs, dude.
Really stupid thing to do, I don't care how experienced you are.
Have owned a 251 for almost 5 years, have used it for everything, timber, brush, fence work, etc.
Never an issue. The choke/on/off lever has never been a problem, have been snagged in vines before
and not broke. Starts ever time on second or third pull. My Favorite Tool!
I use my MS251 every day and love it. It has happily taken on every job I've thrown at it and still politely asks for more.
I just scored a MS 251 saw that has been in a garage unused for 3 years with ABSOLUTELY no wear on it, it has the plastic case, operator manual and 2 new chains in unopened boxes for $100.00. What a deal, I dumped the old fuel out, put a little premixed can fuel in and sloshed it around for a while. I then dumped it out and filled with some fresh 50:1 and it lit right up immediately and runs super smooth!!
WHST A SCORE!!😍 THE MS 251 IS AN AWESOME SAW!!
I've used a Stihl Farm Boss for years, and the only times I've had problems were when I tried running it on stale fuel. Love that saw. I've lately been looking at smaller alternatives, so this was a timely review for me. Thanks!
Bought a Stihl earlier this year and love it. My first and second chainsaws were Poulans and I think the longest I was able to keep either of them running at a stretch was around fifteen minutes. Not once did I run either of them out of gas. My Stihl runs and runs and I never have to worry about getting it started.
Great meeting you this weekend, thank you for your time and the tour.
LOVE my Stihl 044 and my Farm Boss. Both saws are purpose built and have NEVER failed me. I have used Husqys and Oregons, have always come back to Stihls!
I've got the same one with the "easy start" , love it, also has the easy blade tightener that you can tighten with your thumb, its great.
I have had a 261for several years and just love it.
Once while cutting firewood in the early 90s, a friend got his Stihl stuck in a 20" diameter tree trunk. When I pulled the tree with a chain and tractor, it spun kicking the saw out and then landing vertically on top of the engine...... Much to my disbelief, we took the cracked filter cover off, "fluffed" the crushed filter, and fired it back up. Used it to finish out the day!
Even Stihl doesn't make em like that anymore.
The Stihl Wood Boss is the most well-built tool I've ever owned. Bought one probably 6 or 7 years ago and used the heck out of it until I moved in with my gf into a smaller place and stored it at my sister's house. Left it untouched for a couple years and when I picked it back up, the barn I kept it in had sprung a leak and soaked the open plastic case, filling the saw case completely with water, rusting the saw muffler and bar as a result.
It took a lot of cleaning, a new spark plug, air filter, and a carb cleaning, but I got her running again and she is top notch. I went ahead and replaced the bar with a new wood boss bar and 18" chain. She runs like new and starts on the first pull every time.
thank you. i just bought this saw yesterday. looking forward to using it soon.
I've got a Stihl 041AV that dates back to about 1977. Hundreds and Hundreds - perhaps thousands of hours on it --- and it still runs Great!
The AV saws were great. Had an 031 that I LOVED, but had to sell. Broke my heart!
Some nice features that I did not have in the Stihl I bough in 1988, but my is still running. Great product!
Thanks man. You just convinced me. The MS 251 it is!
Gave up on my Steihl 250 after years of fixes and went with a husky, happy so far.
I have the older version "025" from nearly 20 years ago and still starts up on the 3rd or 4th pull after a long summer on the shelf. Good, reliable, affordable saws!
Great saw, bought mine 3 years ago (made in Germany).
Before that i had Ms250 almost 10 years and sold it.
Stihl's are very reliable saw's and i have no reason to change the brand.
My favorite is the ms362c-m works awesome. I use my little ms180 for stump work yesterday. 362 for the tree.
I have both MS 251 and MS 271 and I like both a lot. It's probably just me but I have trouble aligning the gas and oil caps but I do like that I don't need a tool to get it loose. I use the MS-271 probably twice a year and it starts up right away every time. Great products!
Couldn’t agree more. I’ve run an MS251 for years for jobs around the yard. I think that’s where it serves it’s best purpose. I haven’t had an issue with my vibration dampening similar to what you showed though. My saw seems significantly tighter than that.
Jolly to have one of my favourite channels review my saw - love my MS251.
My dad was just looking at this saw.!! Perfect timing, ill tell my father Scott that Scott said to go for it! Haha thanks Scott!
Big fan of stihl. Great video! Cheers from blue ridge mountains of Virginia
An old stihl with an Oregon bar and chain is hard to beat. Keep up the good work
I own the same saw and loved it is never ever fail me
Great honest review. Thank you.
025 and 291 owner... I have an old McCulloch saw that was my papaw's. Love my saws..
You can disable the vibration dampening with a piece of rubber hose "lined" in the fault between the holder and the engine mount.
Thanks for this! I love my little Husqvarna 55, but this one has been intriguing me.
I looked over some of the comments NOT ALL , but I saw none on the easy start system that STIHL has came out with ,, I love it as I have a bad shoulder and it allowed me to cut wood again . Great invention as far as I AM concerned.
I have a baby Stihl MS-180. I couldn’t agree more about the master control. I’m able choke/run/stop my saw and never had to look at the control to operate it.
I have this saw and it's the Best saw I've ever had!
Oh, I appreciate your first words that if a saw starts, it is good. Regardless of brand.
A few years ago I got out of the argument about saw brands. Same for pickup trucks too. I am just grateful for what the Lord provides. And there have been some surprises!
Not very long ago Stihl admitted to fixing their starting and flooding problems. They named the models they had finished with, and said they would be going through their whole line of saws. To me this is valuable for honesty and good PR.
For those of us near a Tractor Supply store, they have switched saw brands fron Jonsered to Husqvarna. But both brands are closely related, with many interchangable parts. Does anyone know what happened?
I think husqvarna bought out jonsered
I absolutely love my MS441 ported and with the exhaust opened up. I have probably run about 300 cords of wood with it and don’t see any signs of stopping. A bit big for most my fire wood cutting but the slab pieces I from the port of Tacoma I get stack up very nicely and I can run through how ever many I stack all day long. Stand behind stihl 100%. That and all their manuals are online for free.
Love my Stihl chainsaws. I think the oil/gas caps are great, but sometimes give me a fit getting back on with gloves and tight quarters.
Every time you do a yoyo-start on a chainsaw I feel the switch on my back, handled by the chainsaw instructor when I did a course in chainsaw operating. The switch to get the student to attend (not to flay her/him) was introduced to circumvent the noise of a dozen saws and the double hearing protection. Oh well, you still seem to have two legs. Good video btw.
I own this saw, but since I live in Sweden, my saw was manufactured in Germany. Also the "Wood Boss" and "Farm Boss" brands that is used on Stihl bars and saws in North America, is not used in Europe. The saw is just called the MS251 here. The bars use the brand names "Rollomatic" and "Duromatic". It's a good little saw though, I use for small trees and I've actually found a ripping chain that fits on it. Very handy to split logs that can't go in my wood machine.
Rollomatic and duramatic is not about the brands but star on top of bar. Duramatic dosent have star on top. Rollomatic gives much more power with star while duramatic is robust in case of dirt and mud
Stihl makes a great chainsaw. I have a ms 250 that has been run hard for 8 years doing everything from cutting firewood to chainsaw carving with a dime tip bar. We ran 044's at a sawmill and they were great work horse saws. The power to weight ratio is great on the 250, my only knock is the cheap air filter is tiny and something in the oil lines makes my saw leak bar and chain oil.
I have a 251c. Glad I watched this.
I hated chainsaws until I got a Stihl 261. It’s a sweet little thing. Powerful and very light, excellent for clearing brush, fence line, and felling trees.
After watching several reviews comparing the Ms250 vs 251, your video confirmed I want the 250. I agree about the anti vibration overkill.
I have the same saw. Really love the durability, and power. The fuel cap on it and other newer models is the only thing I don't like. It makes it easier to use but running it for most of the day and having to refill it has given me some vapor lock issues and a couple sprays of fuel in the face.
Sthil and Huskavarna are the only saws I will ever buy and use. They both have a great parts and serviceability
To anyone buying or using a chainsaw. Pick up a pair of chaps. Going through the trouble of wearing them is way better than what could happen. Seen it myself. It's not good at all.
That is excellent advice!! Unfortunately most, by a long way, have no idea what they are, and even fewer what they do. THEY ARE LEG COVERS WHICH STOP THE CHAIN INSTANTLY, BEFORE IT SINKS INTO YOUR LEG.
I agree but that in and of itself could be a hazard by creating a false sense of security for people new to chainsaws.. I know a guy who took a kick back to the face because he got careless and admittedly got careless because he thought he was safe.. He starting rushing his work limbing a tree and the chain bound up.. All in all he had to have over 600 stitches in his face all together!!
My point being... Chainsaws can kill you regardless of what you wear, always be cautious!
@@danfromga3002 I wear an iron suit of armor, a bit hot but I've never been hurt!
The MS251 is more of an "occasional use" saw. 99% of owners would not don on chaps just for a 30 second chainsaw job.
044 is also my favorite saw...great power!!!👍
It's great yours works so well, I have one that I absolutely hate. I've had it in for repair to the authorized Stihl dealer several times. it works a time or two and then nothing. You are definitely right about the choke lever. Mine got to the point that it wouldn't go into cold mode start. When I asked the dealer how he adjusted it he wouldn't tell me. Nothing I hate worse than a saw that won't start. My Stihl pole saw is a dream, weed whacker the same. I just went back to my echo starts first pull every time.
Hold down the gas while adjusting the choke lever, it doesn't go to the "open" position otherwise.
Pull starter once with the choke in "open" (bottom) position, engine will sputter.
Adjust choke lever to middle position. Congratulations, your saw should now start normally!
Great saw, I added a 192t for smaller jobs and really like that too.
I am also a STIHL man & i started running a saw when i was about 8-10 yo & i have ran a ton of different ones over the years from McCulloch to Poulan ,Husqvarna & Stihl & more But Their is/has always ben something about the Stihl & it has ben my favorite sense i was a young lad..I have Cut a crap ton of Fire Wood with The Stihl 026 & Stihl 029 & i even keep the Stihl 029 in my Truck Toolbox Year Round (Ive had to use it a fuw times to cut roadblocks out of the way & Trees Blew down from a Storm to get Up/Down Our drive way..its another one of them things ya should never leave home without as well as a Gun,Knife & a 4x4 truck .It is just another one of them things where its way better to have it & not Need it than to need it & not have for sure Keep up the good work & videos an i will keep watching !
Walking away from a front tensioning Stihl is a bit harsh...
I recently purchased an ms170 for limbing and am in love with the thing!
Of course, I modded it with steel felling dogs as well as a oem side tensioner (both done very cheaply and easily)
The 170 is now the one saw that never leaves my side.
Who would've thought?
Great Info. Thxs
Great information. Like always 👍🏼👍🏼👍🏼
Most are not aware that the filing of a chain has much to do with the cutting properties of the saw. The type of chain is also important, full chisel of semi chisel and each can be sharpened at different angles to provide different cutting properties,, such as "rip cutting". Also sharpened for liming or felling. The "depth gage" (rake) is also key to good cutting and needs to be trimmed as diligently as the teeth for proper performance of the saw. There are many things can cause one saw, or chain to perform differently than others. But I like that you are a Stihl guy!!
I wish they would put the tool less top cover on these too. I like that feature when having to clean the air filter and blowing it out. Husky had a better design air filter on their older saws I wish the older stihls could be updated to an improved design. About the only advantage I can give Husky though after running them side by side.
I have a smaller Stihl and the oil delivery system to the chain leaks when sitting over about two weeks. Sometimes hard to start, but overall a good saw. Thanks for your review.
Finally a exact tool that I have all the way in New Zealand
Bought my first new Chainsaw last year after Hurricane Harvey, went with a STIHL _Farm Boss_ 15min after purchase I proceeded to spend the next 12-14hrs cutting fallen trees - at the end of that day I knew I'd made a good purchase.
I'm liking the long outros after the wrap up btw
I recently became the owner of a Remington 20" Chainsaw. It was given to me because it wouldn't start. I had a hard time starting it. Opened the choke, primed it a few times, pulled the cord, and it would "kinda" chug over a few times, but nothing solid. I decided to give it the ol' wide open throttle trick. Pulled the throttle full open, hit the bubble a couple times, yanked on the cord a few times, and it popped over a few solid turns. Gave it another shot of go juice, yanked the cord a few more times, and it fired off and ran smooth. Even after sitting for 24hrs I was able to start it with ease.
Now just gotta replace the chain. The previous owner burned the snot out of it and made it a few more inches longer than what the tensioner can go.
I think $20 on a chain is worth it for almost a $200 chainsaw :)
I've been thru 2 of those gas caps. I really hate them but other wise I'm on my second stihl since 1995 and I agree with you.
After watching this made my mind up and got one
I’ve used em all at one time or another! I have 8 Jonesered saws over 30 years old and each one will start on the second or third pull! Same as a Husky these days!
I agree with just about everything you say concerning Stihl I general and the MS-251 in particular.
Thanks for the video.
Once after a storm, a power company employee who was doin cleanup forgot his stihl saw sitting on the trucks tool box when he pulled out. He went around the curve below our house and the saw went bouncing across 2 lanes of traffic and into the ditch. He stopped and picked it up and giving a look over it started right and threw it back into the truck.
My dad and pap ran stihl saws for as long as I can remember so I bought a husky. Sweet Jesus was that a bad idea. I’m so happy I took it back and got a ms251 night and day difference from my husky 440
The 251 and 291 are fantastic for everyday and small farm use.
The 461 is a wonderful step up if you are in the mountains and regularly fell and buck your own trees ups to 24". It will make quick work of them.
661 is honestly in a category of its own, and unless you are a professional routinely dropping trees over 3' just stick with something smaller. I bought one used, had it refurbished by a local shop(who does fantastic work), threw on a 36" Super E bar, .404" pitch, .063 ga, paired with 46RS-104 chain. You can power throuh a 24" lodgepole in roughly 20 seconds for bucking without bogging down. Mind boggling performance IMHO, but enjoyable when that is how you heat your home in the winter.
Still, I am one to say if you know you have the budget, and there lies the potential to need something more substantial, you will never regret having that capability on demand. Just throw a shorter bar on a larger saw if it is too cumbersome (within reason). The bitterness of poor quality or the wrong tool lasts far longer than the sweetness of that lower price. Nothing is free. It always has a cost, either time, opportunity, or cold hard cash.
Wrap around handles are a nice touch if you fell trees since you are able to work at more angles. Just practice, often, and dont get complacent. You dont want to go home missing a leg... If you even survive.
And to be fair, Husqvarna also makes fantastic saws, I just dont have them anymore. It was easier to stick with one brand so I can swap around bars and chains painlessly.
A man after my own heart. I do not think you said one thing in this video that I don't say and believe in myself. including the fact that Stihl is THE BEST equipment of its type EVER made. A tradesmen is only as good as his tools and know hot in the use of them, so if he has a tool that works, the tradesmen can work too.
That's why, when you see any video or show on TV of some professional cutting down trees, there is a 90-95% chance he is use a STIHL saw. They've earned their reputation and place as the #1 chain saw in the world.
I bought a new Stihl 044 in about 1999 that was damaged in shipping the oil cap protector was broken off , the dealer knocked a $100 off the price I still have it and it runs like new I also have a Stihl ms 250 I bought to haul on the atv out in the woods and still runs great .
I LOVE my MS441C Magnum and 440MS. They cut like nobodies business, and the new ergonomic fuel and oil caps are the cat’s pajamas! Makes fuel and oil refills a breeze.
Thumbs up! I have been looking around ALL DAY for what to buy. I was thinking MS271 but .... maybe the 251 will be sufficient.
Great review.
Wish I'd seen this before I just bought this same saw three days ago. It fit the bill! My old McCullough weighed I think 60ish pounds. Probably not that much, but being all metal, you felt everyone of them. I've had it for 50(?) years and it still works, but not well. Gas in the carburetor chamber, did I mention weight? Any way the Stihl MS251 is what I got and an even newer feature since your 2018 video date, the tensioner set up is now much like the oil and gas caps. An awesome feature. My McCullough had the screw inside the bar....just as you pointed out. Great stuff as usual and I've been watching you for a while and just found this older one of yours that I got by looking up the saw reviews....and there you were. Great house by the way!!!! Anyway, at 65 I figured I deserved a new manly (was that sexist?) toy!:D
thanks again awesome
May be the ones you use are made in the US, but Stihl is a German firm and the ones I got are German made.
Nein, waren sie nicht!!
Higher end pro saws ($$$) are made in Germany. They don't sell enough of those saws for Stihl to set up factories in other countries.
@Joe T Stihl Inc is a subsidiary of the German company.
Stihl Holding AG & Co. KG,
Badstrasse 115 Waiblingen, 71336Germany
BM Boris Malovic j
on some models you can adjust the amount of dampening buy tightening the springs.
I'd imagine that you can get stiffer springs or rubber inserts too, if you're willing to search for them.
For the amount of time he's going to be using this specific chainsaw, I'd say it's not worth messing with.
If it was his personal saw, on the other hand, and I was in his shoes, I'd mod it to my personal preference.
Great video
That vibration isolator system seems great! I've never tried it but using some of the older Stihl Saws my hands hurt for two days after running them
Demoed some roof joists in a garage in my property with a chainsaw, best tool for the job
I’m only a hobbyist, but this is the first time I’ve ever seen someone use a chainsaw to cut milled lumber. It seems to work fine, although I guess it cuts a pretty big kerf.
I worked an MS250 as my main saw for five years and yes it needs a rebuild now but I was dead impressed with it. No it didn't do everything but would do most on the ground jobs.I have to say I don't like the quarter turn caps. Yeah they sound great but unless you keep them clean as a whistle they can fool you that they're shut when they're not, especially the oil one. More than a couple of times did I get up a tree only to find all my 020's chain oil on my leg!
Thanks for the video it was very informative. I’m interested in either the 271 or the 251 do you find any disadvantages of a single nut on the 251 versus a double nut on the 271. Thanks
I appreciate never being sure what video will be next w all the various this' and that's you choose to focus your quality content on. Thanks
Good Job
Thanks sir.
I bought one of these earlier today because I could afford it and it was the one that best suited me in stock at my local Stihl dealer, Ace hardware in Woodruff SC. So far I can't say a single thing bad about it after roughly 2-3 hours of use, but EC's seal of approval just makes me more confident in my purchase.
How is it now?
@@karm00n29 still works great for my needs but I did screw up the factory bar a while back and replaced it with an Oregon bar. Yesterday I had to cut up a pine that had fell across my driveway and I knew the chain on it was trash because I had hit a nail so I went to replace it with the factory chain and that's when I realized that the Oregon chains fit fine on the Stihl bar, but the Stihl chain wouldn't fit on my Oregon bar.
@@bobsmith-ru7xp ahh thats unfortunate lol. Gotta remember to read the bars parameters before putting on the chain xD im also wondering, how much did you pay? Where im from it seems to be overpriced af. 489€ for the saw with 35 cm(14 inch) bar.
@@karm00n29 I paid somewhere between $350-275 USD for mine. I'm not sure what that would equal in Euros.
Just got got one today.... well easy start version, acreage chainsaw 👍
I plan on using the hell out of mine, here for the tips👍🇨🇦
Scott's dog impression is really convincing.
I have an old 250 and decided to buy a 251 because the old one was occasionally laid up with service issues and I need it to work when I need it. The 251 has never worked right. It takes a long time to warm up an keeps stalling out until it does. The dealer kept blaming bad gas. Today I was doing to hard cutting with it on a down ash tree and it literally blew apart in my hands! I finished up with the old 250. I agree about the switch and handle mushiness but thats minor to simply exploding! Of course it was one year past the 2 year warrantee. Really rethinking my loyalty to to the brand now.
Love my MS251. I do agree the switch can feel a bit flimsy