I have this chainsaw. Yes, it definitely eats through the battery quickly, but I suspect it’s not really meant for a full day’s work as its gasoline-powered counterparts are. What this saw has, that other electric saws do not, is power that is on par with gas-powered saw (of the same size). So in situations where you have a few large cuts to make or want to whip through many smaller cuts quickly in an area where engine noise is undesirable, this saw is perfect.
@@mas3ymd For just that purpose is to much investment. I have the MSA 300 but is like having a Mustang GT with gas tank in the reserve and batteries are priced like gold.
As a farmer, and living in a high timber density area a chainsaw is one of our most vital tools. 2 strokes from 62cc - 97cc and Stihl and Milwaukee battery saws. The electrics are awesome and sit in our vehicles. Very capable. Triming trees off fences, cutting fallen branches and small trees off the road when heading into town. I even grab it to get firewood. My dog cannot be around piecing soundss they trigger colapses. My left ear hearing isnt great muffs or plugs ncrease the ringing. Helping out in community care for the elderly, battery saws are awesoms for their low noise in town. I still use my 2 strokes, but the electrics well and truly have their place. When time comes I will upgrade and the new Pro models will be it....
Really good review considering your cutting through high density timber, especially here in Australia.. The timber is VERY hard on any saw. Good to see you put it through its paces. Better than most reviews out there cutting near next to pine.
I have used this saw now for about 3 or 4 ute loads of grey box. My first use was learning the saw, had it on high the whole time, just like yourself …big mistake!! I only run the saw now on the second speed or 2 bars. Runs very well and doesn’t over heat, nor does it over heat the batteries, that’s one thing you never mentioned. I have an inverter in my ute, so I can charge batteries while using another. My first time using it, I noticed it took the charger (AL500) at least 45-50 minutes to cool down the battery before it would even start to charge it. Now running the machine on 2 bars, it only takes the chargers around 3-4 minutes to cool down the battery until it starts charging. I honestly can say it’s now my go to saw, my 4 year old 500i can rest. I will soon buy another battery to make it four batteries in total and that will be plenty for me. I’ve used 2 stroke and 4 stroke for decades, I used to love the fumes, now I can’t stand them, especially on still days
Thank you for your comment Andrew, I really appreciate it, I’ll be doing what you’ve suggested here with mine as I purchased it so I want it to work well, cheers 👍
Cutting that thing straight up would of knocked and rounded the corner off the chain especially given I'm pretty sure Stihl sell it with a loop of RS fitted. Mates saw with a chain filed to to the very end of its life for sure.
Cheers for the review. I swing a saw almost every day and its hard to beat the Makita 36v saws up to 150mm diameter. Beyond that, my Stihl 261c screams through everything else its bar can fit.
I would add another vote for the Makita double battery saw. 5 years in and it's still the perfect wood poaching saw. 4 batteries will fill a 6x4 trailer with logs a meter high and quieter than this one too!
I can't tell you exactly what Makita models my brother have I forgot, but he have two compared with mine Stihl 220C and 161T, about 2 years ago we tested both brands one against the other bout of us with prefer the Stihl, in his case he went and is better with Makita because he his a construction contractor and use the same batteries in other tools, but for this reason only.
would have been good to see the other power modes in action and what the battery life was like using them, and if there were any over heating issues using the lower power modes
Good review, my husband wants an electric chainsaw for the stealth factor of cutting fire wood without alerting every neighbour around. Was interesting to see that the batteries didn’t last too long, but that was tough wood you were going through.
awesome review. I have the msa220 -c and absolutely love it. Far superior to my Husky 445 II in 9 out of 10 of my use cases. I wanted the msa300 but your review put me on other thoughts and saved me a lot of money :D
You're not alone with your battery issues. I'm in Wisconsin, and I have the two largest EGO 20" saws. The biggest one overheats the battery fairly quickly in full bar cuts. Switching out batteries doesn't help much; because the saw itself overheats pretty soon. The 'smaller' one; (19lbs with the battery installed); I can get more work out of because the motor in the CS2005 is less demanding than the one in the CSX5007. I am mainly a hobbyist; and I think these big saws are great fun to use; if not very practical for heavy work. I don't know yet how they'll perform in cooler weather. I expect they will be less prone to overheating in those conditions. Maybe I'm judging them too harshly; because I haven't used them for smaller work like you were using with the Stihl. I have a couple of EGO CS1800s for bucking. They are much lighter.
My 90cc Ms660 weighs like 14lb. My MS261 around 11lb. Its great inroads are being made in the battery area, I think they make more sense for small saws but just don't compete power to weight wise to larger pro saws.
I got the msa 260c for my SES unit and with a tungsten chain (not my money) we are having no problems with it at all. For the intermittent use it usually gets the noise and maintenance benefits make a lot of sense for us. The older members won't touch it though, they seem to mistrust anything that doesn't use internal combustion! ;)
It looks like you're doing most of your cutting with a dull chain! I noticed what looked like a lot of powder coming out the back end of your saw. Also; I noticed how fast the saw went through the log when you first started; it quickly slowed down.
I got the MSA 160 for my wife a couple of yrs ago and it's still going strong, gone through about 8 chains and one sprocket so far but it's so much safer for her to use that a 2 stroke...
I have the 161T over 3 years I have forgot how many chains I have went through, have used and abused this little saw for sure way over manufacturers recommendations so far it never fail.
I have just watched your video again and see in yours the temperature light comes on, in mine it never happened so far even cutting much heavier and going through 4 or five batteries continuously. In my case the temperature light have come on in the battery using the MSA220C cutting long ways taking boards like a milling saw.
Have you tried the saw with the AP 300 batteries? I currently have 3 of them with two chargers since I run a mower, edger, trimmer, hedge trimmer, and a small BGA 86 blower. I live on .72 acres of land and the electric lineup I use has been perfect for me. We get alot of leaves so I also have a BR800c backpack blower for the yard but use the electric blower for around our pool deck and driveway area with the 300 batteries. I've been thinking about getting this saw but wasn't sure if I would need to get the AP500 battery to go with it since I already have three of the other ones. Great review by the way! I had to watch it in parts so if you mentioned anything about the saw being able to use the AP300 batteries I must have missed it.
I have the MSA300 about 2 years and yes is a nice, joy powerful machine but at same time is like to have a Mustang GT with gas tank in the reserve. The AP500 S battery and I have 4 of those but it isn't up to the machine for professional use. Cutting oak about 45cm diameter and using the 45cm Light 04 Bar 11 or 12 cuts and the AP500 S battery is out of power. For a day work out in the forest I with need a truck load of batteries, also the batteries are priced like gold and when you cutting continuous they got hot and then takes sometimes about 15 minutes for the charger AL500 just to cool off the battery so it can start charging back again.
I have the Stihl MSA300, 220C, GTA26, 161T, Trimmer 135 and the Blower BG86. The best one is the 161T because even with a smaller battery like an AP200 I have twice if not more cutting time comparing with MSA300 and using the AP500 S battery.
I have a few ego 56v saws. They have very good battery life especially with the 7.5 ah battery. However I do not like the auto chain tensioner, which often breaks chains when the cam kicks in. The saw cuts very well when working, but I’d prefer a manual chain tensioner as often it doesn’t work well and the chain runs loose.
Stihl does not have a battery platform that includes impact drills, hammer drills, skill saw, chainsaw, and walk behind lawn mower, and sawsall all with the same battery, however Dewalt, Makita, and Milwaukee do! Your charging station is very spacious if you have more than 1 or 2 battery platforms! After pricing Stihl you will be pleasantly surprised to see Dewalt of Makits prices! (Milwaukee might have decent pricing as well! I said MIGHT)
Wrong saw for the job imo, respectfully. Perfect for firewood, or intermittant throttle use. I use a greenworks 60v 20" for 90% of my work. Only fire up the big Husky and Dolmer for uses like you're doing. Thinking about going to Stihl or Husky battery for a better quality than the Greenworks.
Yeah nah. We have some of the hardest wood in the world in this country - electric saws might be OK in the back yard or for small camping firewood but IMO that's it.
Nah, they’re actually really good. Stihl makes the best of them. Keep the chain sharp, way you go! Personally I use the commercial 2 bangers and will continue to do so.
I’m never going to get involved with a Stihl propriety battery system. The power tool companies have a whole sweet of tools that take their batteries, whereas Stihl has a very limited range of tools. It might be great but it’s just never going to happen for me.
I like the new silveradoes that are oil injected, dont need oil changes with china made filters and can start and run either direction! thats why i like chevy's
Chain is dull, its cutting terribly - That first cut on that nasty awful stump impregnated with dirt and grit pretty much took the edge off the chain, especially so if they sold it to you with a full chisel rapid super chain, its throwing saw dust and not chips after that. Every saw ever made is a dog with a dull chain.
Think about it. That’s 45 mins cutting time. Translates to a few hours work gathering wood. Expensive for that top of the line one, smaller ones are way cheaper.
i think you should try cutting concrete? 😂That beauty is a masterpiece, after all, get a stihl 881 and you're sure to cut anything you want. The demonstration experiment was not valid
I have few Stihl models and yes I am happy with, have watching some videos on the Husky and I may wrong but have the feeling the Husky batteries last longer.
i think Electric Chainsaws would be good for fencing where you make the odd cut here and there building a set of yards maybe clearing tracks if your off roading
Check out our review of the Stihl MSA 220 electric chainsaw: ua-cam.com/video/pXASnXEfEhI/v-deo.htmlfeature=shared
Those prices are crazy for how little work it will do. I'm definitely sticking to my 2 stroke petrol engine.
I have this chainsaw. Yes, it definitely eats through the battery quickly, but I suspect it’s not really meant for a full day’s work as its gasoline-powered counterparts are. What this saw has, that other electric saws do not, is power that is on par with gas-powered saw (of the same size). So in situations where you have a few large cuts to make or want to whip through many smaller cuts quickly in an area where engine noise is undesirable, this saw is perfect.
The price of the batteries and charger is what gets me! $649 aud for a single battery! Overpriced af.
@@notorious_turtleim nearing a heart attack ,that price brought it on😢!
Well done review, and u definitely gave me something to think about!
@@mas3ymd For just that purpose is to much investment. I have the MSA 300 but is like having a Mustang GT with gas tank in the reserve and batteries are priced like gold.
As a farmer, and living in a high timber density area a chainsaw is one of our most vital tools. 2 strokes from 62cc - 97cc and Stihl and Milwaukee battery saws. The electrics are awesome and sit in our vehicles. Very capable. Triming trees off fences, cutting fallen branches and small trees off the road when heading into town. I even grab it to get firewood. My dog cannot be around piecing soundss they trigger colapses. My left ear hearing isnt great muffs or plugs ncrease the ringing. Helping out in community care for the elderly, battery saws are awesoms for their low noise in town. I still use my 2 strokes, but the electrics well and truly have their place. When time comes I will upgrade and the new Pro models will be it....
Never thought about not having to use ear protection.....
Really good review considering your cutting through high density timber, especially here in Australia.. The timber is VERY hard on any saw. Good to see you put it through its paces. Better than most reviews out there cutting near next to pine.
Thanks for the review. And honesty on the product.
No sponsorship on my channel so I simply show you exactly how a product performs for me at the time 👍
I have used this saw now for about 3 or 4 ute loads of grey box. My first use was learning the saw, had it on high the whole time, just like yourself …big mistake!!
I only run the saw now on the second speed or 2 bars. Runs very well and doesn’t over heat, nor does it over heat the batteries, that’s one thing you never mentioned.
I have an inverter in my ute, so I can charge batteries while using another. My first time using it, I noticed it took the charger (AL500) at least 45-50 minutes to cool down the battery before it would even start to charge it.
Now running the machine on 2 bars, it only takes the chargers around 3-4 minutes to cool down the battery until it starts charging.
I honestly can say it’s now my go to saw, my 4 year old 500i can rest.
I will soon buy another battery to make it four batteries in total and that will be plenty for me. I’ve used 2 stroke and 4 stroke for decades, I used to love the fumes, now I can’t stand them, especially on still days
Thank you for your comment Andrew, I really appreciate it, I’ll be doing what you’ve suggested here with mine as I purchased it so I want it to work well, cheers 👍
Old root balls are full of dirt , stones and sand. Only use your mates chainsaw to cut them.
Cutting that thing straight up would of knocked and rounded the corner off the chain especially given I'm pretty sure Stihl sell it with a loop of RS fitted. Mates saw with a chain filed to to the very end of its life for sure.
Cheers for the review. I swing a saw almost every day and its hard to beat the Makita 36v saws up to 150mm diameter. Beyond that, my Stihl 261c screams through everything else its bar can fit.
I would add another vote for the Makita double battery saw. 5 years in and it's still the perfect wood poaching saw. 4 batteries will fill a 6x4 trailer with logs a meter high and quieter than this one too!
I can't tell you exactly what Makita models my brother have I forgot, but he have two compared with mine Stihl 220C and 161T, about 2 years ago we tested both brands one against the other bout of us with prefer the Stihl, in his case he went and is better with Makita because he his a construction contractor and use the same batteries in other tools, but for this reason only.
would have been good to see the other power modes in action and what the battery life was like using them, and if there were any over heating issues using the lower power modes
Good review, my husband wants an electric chainsaw for the stealth factor of cutting fire wood without alerting every neighbour around. Was interesting to see that the batteries didn’t last too long, but that was tough wood you were going through.
awesome review. I have the msa220 -c and absolutely love it. Far superior to my Husky 445 II in 9 out of 10 of my use cases. I wanted the msa300 but your review put me on other thoughts and saved me a lot of money :D
You're not alone with your battery issues. I'm in Wisconsin, and I have the two largest EGO 20" saws. The biggest one overheats the battery fairly quickly in full bar cuts. Switching out batteries doesn't help much; because the saw itself overheats pretty soon.
The 'smaller' one; (19lbs with the battery installed); I can get more work out of because the motor in the CS2005 is less demanding than the one in the CSX5007.
I am mainly a hobbyist; and I think these big saws are great fun to use; if not very practical for heavy work.
I don't know yet how they'll perform in cooler weather. I expect they will be less prone to overheating in those conditions.
Maybe I'm judging them too harshly; because I haven't used them for smaller work like you were using with the Stihl.
I have a couple of EGO CS1800s for bucking. They are much lighter.
My 90cc Ms660 weighs like 14lb. My MS261 around 11lb. Its great inroads are being made in the battery area, I think they make more sense for small saws but just don't compete power to weight wise to larger pro saws.
Love your honest review. Cheers.
Thank you mate, no sponsorship on my channel 👍
Great review, was thinking of getting this but wasn’t sure how it went here in Australia, I’ll stick with my 462 👍🏻👍🏻
I got the msa 260c for my SES unit and with a tungsten chain (not my money) we are having no problems with it at all. For the intermittent use it usually gets the noise and maintenance benefits make a lot of sense for us. The older members won't touch it though, they seem to mistrust anything that doesn't use internal combustion! ;)
It looks like you're doing most of your cutting with a dull chain! I noticed what looked like a lot of powder coming out the back end of your saw.
Also; I noticed how fast the saw went through the log when you first started; it quickly slowed down.
Is this category R in WA?
Soon to be banned, looks dangerous.
With only a few modifications, it can be turned into a real firearm..
I got the MSA 160 for my wife a couple of yrs ago and it's still going strong, gone through about 8 chains and one sprocket so far but it's so much safer for her to use that a 2 stroke...
I have the 161T over 3 years I have forgot how many chains I have went through, have used and abused this little saw for sure way over manufacturers recommendations so far it never fail.
A MS462 pulling a 20” chain looks like it’s the same weight, and cheaper (considering extra batteries). The 462s are a beast of a saw
I have just watched your video again and see in yours the temperature light comes on, in mine it never happened so far even cutting much heavier and going through 4 or five batteries continuously.
In my case the temperature light have come on in the battery using the MSA220C cutting long ways taking boards like a milling saw.
Appreciate the honesty 👍
💪 Nothing will successfully replace a good ole 2-stroke engine.
The advantage of the battery saw is it’s quiet. In this day and age that’s a big deal for firewood
Hey mate, can you do a review on the Axor Bushpig??
I agree with the revue, you cant beat a gas powered Stihl.
I have a Makita 40V XGT 14" arborist saw, and I absolutely love it for pruning work, but if I'm cutting firewood, it's the Stihl petrol saw.
Great review, thanks
Really impressive build qualitycompared to other battery saws
Have you tried the saw with the AP 300 batteries? I currently have 3 of them with two chargers since I run a mower, edger, trimmer, hedge trimmer, and a small BGA 86 blower. I live on .72 acres of land and the electric lineup I use has been perfect for me. We get alot of leaves so I also have a BR800c backpack blower for the yard but use the electric blower for around our pool deck and driveway area with the 300 batteries. I've been thinking about getting this saw but wasn't sure if I would need to get the AP500 battery to go with it since I already have three of the other ones. Great review by the way! I had to watch it in parts so if you mentioned anything about the saw being able to use the AP300 batteries I must have missed it.
@@cwisted5308 no I haven’t tried them in this as they only recommended the newer AP500
@@ozziereviews Thanks for the response. I'm sure ill end up getting the 500 battery if i get this saw
I have the MSA300 about 2 years and yes is a nice, joy powerful machine but at same time is like to have a Mustang GT with gas tank in the reserve. The AP500 S battery and I have 4 of those but it isn't up to the machine for professional use. Cutting oak about 45cm diameter and using the 45cm Light 04 Bar 11 or 12 cuts and the AP500 S battery is out of power.
For a day work out in the forest I with need a truck load of batteries, also the batteries are priced like gold and when you cutting continuous they got hot and then takes sometimes about 15 minutes for the charger AL500 just to cool off the battery so it can start charging back again.
it would be interesting to see how it performs on big logs in america.
Are you kidding your self ?
Your wood is like licorice compared to any of our hardwoods
Clearly never seen a knarly Aussie hardwood yank
It's likley to run through them like butter. Australian hardwood is in a class of its own.
😂
Big birch pines ain't no knarly river red gum champ. Can't even split half our logs mate.
I have the Stihl MSA300, 220C, GTA26, 161T, Trimmer 135 and the Blower BG86. The best one is the 161T because even with a smaller battery like an AP200 I have twice if not more cutting time comparing with MSA300 and using the AP500 S battery.
I have a few ego 56v saws. They have very good battery life especially with the 7.5 ah battery. However I do not like the auto chain tensioner, which often breaks chains when the cam kicks in. The saw cuts very well when working, but I’d prefer a manual chain tensioner as often it doesn’t work well and the chain runs loose.
I have a Makita 16’ electric chainsaw because all my tools at Makita. Bought a 16’ Sthil bar and tungsten chain for it. It goes through everything.
You probably mean 16"(or inch) (16' means sixteen feet)
This is built for government agencies and charities who need to be carbon neutral for politics.
I'm having a similar experience with my EGO CSX5000; as far as overheating and really going through the batteries.
Viva STIHL ❤❤❤❤❤
Is it sub moa @ 100m?
A 16 inch bar would be much better suited
Stihl does not have a battery platform that includes impact drills, hammer drills, skill saw, chainsaw, and walk behind lawn mower, and sawsall all with the same battery, however Dewalt, Makita, and Milwaukee do! Your charging station is very spacious if you have more than 1 or 2 battery platforms! After pricing Stihl you will be pleasantly surprised to see Dewalt of Makits prices! (Milwaukee might have decent pricing as well! I said MIGHT)
Wrong saw for the job imo, respectfully. Perfect for firewood, or intermittant throttle use. I use a greenworks 60v 20" for 90% of my work. Only fire up the big Husky and Dolmer for uses like you're doing. Thinking about going to Stihl or Husky battery for a better quality than the Greenworks.
Stihl for petrol. Dewalt for electric. 👍
❤❤❤❤😊
Yeah nah. We have some of the hardest wood in the world in this country - electric saws might be OK in the back yard or for small camping firewood but IMO that's it.
Good for climbing saws, handy for a saw seldom used thrown in the back of a council truck etc be good for poaching firewood as well 😅
Nah, they’re actually really good. Stihl makes the best of them. Keep the chain sharp, way you go!
Personally I use the commercial 2 bangers and will continue to do so.
Until battery tech is 1/2'd in size battery saws are best targeted for specialist applications (climbing saws etc) and not grunt work.
😊🎉
Go with a 16 or 18” bar for less work.
😊
I’m never going to get involved with a Stihl propriety battery system. The power tool companies have a whole sweet of tools that take their batteries, whereas Stihl has a very limited range of tools. It might be great but it’s just never going to happen for me.
Horse's for courses, it ain't no professional tree fellers saw. Good for a camping gadget.
So are you scared of the saw or not know how to use it ?
Good luck when the carburetor gets fussy or it doesn’t feel like starting. Invest in an extra battery. Problem solved.
It just ain’t the same without 2smoke
I like the new silveradoes that are oil injected, dont need oil changes with china made filters and can start and run either direction! thats why i like chevy's
Chain is dull, its cutting terribly - That first cut on that nasty awful stump impregnated with dirt and grit pretty much took the edge off the chain, especially so if they sold it to you with a full chisel rapid super chain, its throwing saw dust and not chips after that. Every saw ever made is a dog with a dull chain.
So what's your suggestion to something better?
A handsaw would be quicker!
No. Find one and try it. You will be mildly surprised.
I’ll never support electric I’m sure there good but it’s the agendas behind the electric push
Having to go through 3 batteries to cut one tree. I won’t be buying one
Think about it. That’s 45 mins cutting time. Translates to a few hours work gathering wood.
Expensive for that top of the line one, smaller ones are way cheaper.
i think you should try cutting concrete? 😂That beauty is a masterpiece, after all, get a stihl 881 and you're sure to cut anything you want. The demonstration experiment was not valid
No offense dude, but there’s. I need for us to see 10 minutes of you cutting wood. We get the idea.
Just review the product.
Side by side the Husky is the better battery gear.
I have few Stihl models and yes I am happy with, have watching some videos on the Husky and I may wrong but have the feeling the Husky batteries last longer.
i think Electric Chainsaws would be good for fencing where you make the odd cut here and there building a set of yards maybe clearing tracks if your off roading