I just built one last week for milling, it’s crazy how easy it starts. I agree 100%, building one of these is a gateway. Thanks for posting and happy milling.
A guy in my area builds the farmer tech and sells them for 450 and they are great. He does some extra work on them and turns them into a really amazing saw especially for the price
Well, mine will be five years old in October. I built it in Sep-October 2018. Have not had a lick of problems with it. It sports a 20-36” bar, as needed. I burns 50:1 Stihl Ultra with stabilizer, as do all of my saws.
I'm assuming it's still running? Good stuff. I also had to change bar studs on a bunch in addition the the stuff we both mentioned. Be fun to tear it down and take a look inside. I think I will on "bling saw" 660
Hello Walt, Watching your development on the FT 660 4 to 5 years ago convinced me to order this saw (and several others in the following years). Your insights and methodical approach are appreciated. I plan to have a look at the top end after 5 years. I look forward to your videos. Thanks again!
I've got just shy of 3 gallons through my G660. I've had it for about 2 months and I've been working on a 60" oak that I dropped last Feb. I run a 28" and a 42" bar on it and it does fine. Out of the box, the e-clip was junk. Poor quality metal that had no spring to it. Most likely the heat treat was bad. Wish I had replaced it right away as it cost me a drive bearing, clutch, and an oil pump when it let go, but I've heard of that happening with a new Stihl as well. Kicking myself for not replacing it to begin with. All 3 nuts for the bucking spikes were junk too. Not sure if they were really junk, but they were just standard nuts where as Stihl nuts are flattened lock nuts. $5 at my Stihl dealership replaced the clip and all 3 nuts. Even before loosing the e-clip, I couldn't get the saw to oil worth a darn. Replacement Farmertec pump had the same results. Spent $35 for a high output Hyway pump and now it oils great. No problems with the 42" bar. Out of the box, I think mine was tuned to run about 10K at wide open throttle. I left it that way for the first few tanks even though it was a little sluggish. After about 5 tanks to break it in, I put a Hyway dual port muffler cover on and retuned the H jet to run at 13K. The saw is a wood thrashing machine now. Love it. Significantly heavier than an MS660 and my (seized) 064, but for the price, and the infrequency that I need something bigger than one of my 036s, it was a GREAT purchase.
I work for a small company that often clears land for farmers and run saw alot but mostly smaller stuff like a ms170 to a husky 460 , but been thinking of getting one of these to run a 36" bar for the occasional bigger tree .
I picked up a G660 for around $320 (US stock) late this spring. I had seized my 064 and needed something to finish cleaning up a 60" oak that I had dropped. The e-clip is crap. Cheap steal that bends instead of flexing. REPLACE IT IMMEDIATELY. If you don't it will cost you a new drive bearing, clutch, and oil pump.... The e-clip is dirt cheap at your local dealership. I had problems getting mine to oil (both before I lost the e-clip, and after I replaced the damaged oil pump with one from Farmertec). Since I run a 28" and 42" bar, I went ahead and got a high volume oil pump from Hyway for around $35 and it works great. Almost ordered the pump when I ordered the saw, but I cheeped out. No problem oiling my 42" bar now. Had to also replace the nuts (all 3) that hold the bucking spikes as they wouldn't stay tight. I just picked up the nuts from my local Stihl dealer. Originally, the saw was tuned a little rich. I think it was running around 10K if I remember correctly. That made it a little slow, but I left it that way for the first few tanks of fuel just to let it break in. After about 5 tanks of fuel, I put a Hyway dual port muffler cover and re-tuned the H jet to 13K at wide open throttle. Runs fantastic now. Much heavier than my 064, but it fits my needs just fine. Like you, most of my work is done with a 50 and 60cc saw. I'll be picking up a P&C kit from Hyway to rebuild the 064. In the mean time, the G660 is running strong with just shy of 3 gal of fuel run through it. I wouldn't hesitate to pick up a G444, G466, or a G660 for your needs. Just make sure to replace that e clip and the nuts before you fuel it up. $5 well spent.... Keep in mind that the clones are quite a bit heavier than their Stihl counter parts. Even the 70cc G444 weighs more than a 92cc MS660. At less than 1/4 the price, I'm willing to make that compromise. I'd also recommend getting a 28" bar for cutting stuff that's between 24" and 36". The 28" bar balances well and will handle most of the stuff that's a little big for your 460. No need to lug a 36" bar around any more than you really need to. A tired sawyer is an injured sawyer.
Also, fwiw, I've come to the conclusion that for individual spare parts, if I'm not getting Stihl OEM parts, I go with Hyway. I've had a few parts that I've ordered from Farmertec and the Hyway parts seem to be noticeably better quality.
If I had a pro saw that is still viable after a year I would question if I was still upto the job. The 660 class is a good felling size saw and limbing saw for hardwood of 2 foot diameter so you can use it all day. It's not a 881 that you only use a couple of times a day and swap out for limbing. Having said that most of the stihl saws do seem to go on for years and then you run a new one and realise how bad the old one had actually become.
Perfect video. I was looking for a saw to mill for a hog shelter. If it breaks down, it’s not a big deal. I’ve put a few huskies together and fixed a few friends saw with import junk parts
With the china doll saws, just replace broken parts with oem parts as time goes on. And after a decade, youll have a name brand saw. As long as you give it a decent warm up every start, and a thorough break-in when new, it should last a long time.
So basically you buy something and it’s shit and you have to rebuild it or replace a lot with Oem parts so do what I did buy once cry once buy original stihl saws but buyer beware they can get addicting. And you wind up with 4 like me and plan to buy more.
Agree. I can barely hear him, and he isn't the only one at times. they try capture the entire world in the frame, which puts the cam so far back, and they don't talk loud enough, its hard to hear. I know my speakers aren't the best, but even ear buds didn't help with this guy
Nice review. Just got one of these. We have a firewood biz. We use a lot of stihl saws. 46 & 66. Just started to use these. So far. So good💯💯💪💪
I just built one last week for milling, it’s crazy how easy it starts. I agree 100%, building one of these is a gateway. Thanks for posting and happy milling.
Great video by the way and we appreciate you for doing this
A guy in my area builds the farmer tech and sells them for 450 and they are great. He does some extra work on them and turns them into a really amazing saw especially for the price
Well, mine will be five years old in October. I built it in Sep-October 2018. Have not had a lick of problems with it. It sports a 20-36” bar, as needed. I burns 50:1 Stihl Ultra with stabilizer, as do all of my saws.
Any idea on how many tanks you've done?
I just bought one of the new upgraded Holzfforma 660 Pro's and it's honestly been a Cadillac so far.
I'm assuming it's still running? Good stuff. I also had to change bar studs on a bunch in addition the the stuff we both mentioned. Be fun to tear it down and take a look inside. I think I will on "bling saw" 660
Hello Walt, Watching your development on the FT 660 4 to 5 years ago convinced me to order this saw (and several others in the following years). Your insights and methodical approach are appreciated. I plan to have a look at the top end after 5 years. I look forward to your videos. Thanks again!
I've got just shy of 3 gallons through my G660. I've had it for about 2 months and I've been working on a 60" oak that I dropped last Feb. I run a 28" and a 42" bar on it and it does fine. Out of the box, the e-clip was junk. Poor quality metal that had no spring to it. Most likely the heat treat was bad. Wish I had replaced it right away as it cost me a drive bearing, clutch, and an oil pump when it let go, but I've heard of that happening with a new Stihl as well. Kicking myself for not replacing it to begin with. All 3 nuts for the bucking spikes were junk too. Not sure if they were really junk, but they were just standard nuts where as Stihl nuts are flattened lock nuts. $5 at my Stihl dealership replaced the clip and all 3 nuts. Even before loosing the e-clip, I couldn't get the saw to oil worth a darn. Replacement Farmertec pump had the same results. Spent $35 for a high output Hyway pump and now it oils great. No problems with the 42" bar. Out of the box, I think mine was tuned to run about 10K at wide open throttle. I left it that way for the first few tanks even though it was a little sluggish. After about 5 tanks to break it in, I put a Hyway dual port muffler cover on and retuned the H jet to run at 13K. The saw is a wood thrashing machine now. Love it. Significantly heavier than an MS660 and my (seized) 064, but for the price, and the infrequency that I need something bigger than one of my 036s, it was a GREAT purchase.
Well you got me wanting to purchase one now. Been wanting to start milling my own lumber since prices have skyrocketed on wood
Time for a 4.5 year review Joe
Your absolutely right Jim! I'm holding out for the big 5 year mark. So far so good though.👍
5 yr review?
@CustomWeldingandFab he's got a video.
I work for a small company that often clears land for farmers and run saw alot but mostly smaller stuff like a ms170 to a husky 460 , but been thinking of getting one of these to run a 36" bar for the occasional bigger tree .
Go for it. It will run a 36 no problem. It will be much heavier than a 460 rancher (nice saw) but worth it for the big stuff.
@@joenegrin3667 my old boss had a 881 for milling and we took one tree with it .
It was kinda a scary saw
Torque monster
I picked up a G660 for around $320 (US stock) late this spring. I had seized my 064 and needed something to finish cleaning up a 60" oak that I had dropped. The e-clip is crap. Cheap steal that bends instead of flexing. REPLACE IT IMMEDIATELY. If you don't it will cost you a new drive bearing, clutch, and oil pump.... The e-clip is dirt cheap at your local dealership. I had problems getting mine to oil (both before I lost the e-clip, and after I replaced the damaged oil pump with one from Farmertec). Since I run a 28" and 42" bar, I went ahead and got a high volume oil pump from Hyway for around $35 and it works great. Almost ordered the pump when I ordered the saw, but I cheeped out. No problem oiling my 42" bar now. Had to also replace the nuts (all 3) that hold the bucking spikes as they wouldn't stay tight. I just picked up the nuts from my local Stihl dealer. Originally, the saw was tuned a little rich. I think it was running around 10K if I remember correctly. That made it a little slow, but I left it that way for the first few tanks of fuel just to let it break in. After about 5 tanks of fuel, I put a Hyway dual port muffler cover and re-tuned the H jet to 13K at wide open throttle. Runs fantastic now. Much heavier than my 064, but it fits my needs just fine. Like you, most of my work is done with a 50 and 60cc saw. I'll be picking up a P&C kit from Hyway to rebuild the 064. In the mean time, the G660 is running strong with just shy of 3 gal of fuel run through it. I wouldn't hesitate to pick up a G444, G466, or a G660 for your needs. Just make sure to replace that e clip and the nuts before you fuel it up. $5 well spent.... Keep in mind that the clones are quite a bit heavier than their Stihl counter parts. Even the 70cc G444 weighs more than a 92cc MS660. At less than 1/4 the price, I'm willing to make that compromise. I'd also recommend getting a 28" bar for cutting stuff that's between 24" and 36". The 28" bar balances well and will handle most of the stuff that's a little big for your 460. No need to lug a 36" bar around any more than you really need to. A tired sawyer is an injured sawyer.
Also, fwiw, I've come to the conclusion that for individual spare parts, if I'm not getting Stihl OEM parts, I go with Hyway. I've had a few parts that I've ordered from Farmertec and the Hyway parts seem to be noticeably better quality.
If I had a pro saw that is still viable after a year I would question if I was still upto the job. The 660 class is a good felling size saw and limbing saw for hardwood of 2 foot diameter so you can use it all day. It's not a 881 that you only use a couple of times a day and swap out for limbing. Having said that most of the stihl saws do seem to go on for years and then you run a new one and realise how bad the old one had actually become.
We got the Holzfarma. Red color.
Perfect video. I was looking for a saw to mill for a hog shelter. If it breaks down, it’s not a big deal. I’ve put a few huskies together and fixed a few friends saw with import junk parts
With the china doll saws, just replace broken parts with oem parts as time goes on. And after a decade, youll have a name brand saw. As long as you give it a decent warm up every start, and a thorough break-in when new, it should last a long time.
excellent review!
Thanks 😊
Nice saw
right on man!
The rubber on these before year 2020 were poor quality. Things have improved. Cost has gone up.
What was the price ? And how much would name brand be thanks !!
Can barely hear you on this.
It's loud and clear on my end might be your phone
So basically you buy something and it’s shit and you have to rebuild it or replace a lot with Oem parts so do what I did buy once cry once buy original stihl saws but buyer beware they can get addicting. And you wind up with 4 like me and plan to buy more.
My boss has 173 of them
TURN UP YOUR VOLUME. SEE YOUR LIPS MOVIN BUT NO DIALOGUE COMIN OUT, THANKS G
Agree. I can barely hear him, and he isn't the only one at times. they try capture the entire world in the frame, which puts the cam so far back, and they don't talk loud enough, its hard to hear. I know my speakers aren't the best, but even ear buds didn't help with this guy
Turn up your volume
GET CLOSER TO THE CAMERA, TALK LOUDER OR BY A COLLAR MIC.
Yeh sound is awful.