Do any of you own an electric chainsaw?

[DalesCarpentry]

I been thinking about getting an electric chainsaw. Like this Remington http://cgi.ebay.com/Remington-16-Electric-Chain-Saw-M30016AS_W0QQitemZ400009747488QQcategoryZ42227QQcmdZViewItem I can pick this up at the local Walmart for $65.00. The reason I want one is for notching beam posts when building decks. There is a guy I work with when things are slow for me. He uses one to notch his beam posts and does a pretty good job of it. It is much faster than a circular saw and Saw Zall. He uses a cheap gas one but I want an electric one because I don't want to have to worry about gas for it and then it not starting when I need it most. Do any of you own an electric chainsaw? If so what brand and are they any good? I dont need a big bar on it because I would only be notching posts. Dale

[Empty Quiver]

The neighbor has one, a Remington I believe. His comment when I asked him about it was "You know it's better than I thought it would be". His wife picked it up at a garage sale, and he really didn't have much faith in it. We had a storm tear up a tree in his yard and he used it then. He isn't the type to abuse things but isn't an office nerd type either. He owns and apreciates good tools. If Milwaukee makes one I would trust it to be exceedingly useful.

[45-70.gov]

I  HAVE  ONE  LIKE  THAT
and 5  other   gsa saws
they  are  a good  saw

it  always  cranks.....cant  say  that for the others

learn  how  to sharpen  it   if you dont  know  how
i  usually sharpen  after  each   hour  of run time
pump  lots  of  oil to the blade

mine  lasted a few  decades
recently  broke  it  tie ing  it to  a 10 foot pole
to  trim  limbs

for lotching  post  i prefer the sawzall
i  have  an  orbital cut  sawzall.............fast

[cwlongshot]

I have had one for many years, its not real powerful, but for lite work it should serve you well. Mine is a McCulloch.

CW

[Graybeard]

There are about a dozen of them up at my barn that Matt brought here for storage. All are BRAND NEW and I think most all have the same broken part needed for them. From that I have to wonder how durable they are. I'm not sure what part it is that's needed but to have so many new and unused ones with that part broken makes me wonder about them.

[DalesCarpentry]

There are about a dozen of them up at my barn that Matt brought here for storage. All are BRAND NEW and I think most all have the same broken part needed for them. From that I have to wonder how durable they are. I'm not sure what part it is that's needed but to have so many new and unused ones with that part broken makes me wonder about them.

Well GB. I would be willing to pay the shipping on a couple of the newer ones if you just want to get rid of them. I might be able to fix one for cheap. Let me know. Thanks Dale

[hillbill]

all the electric ones ive experience with have been pretty light built. however for what your wanting them for id say with good care they would do a excellent job. my fav saw is sthil 180. its light and fairly powerfull and the thin blade cuts like crazy. the down side is that the light chain will tend to break teeth off dureing heavy use.id say yu shud be able to find one used for less than 150$ive seen guys use the cheap wal mart gas saws for along time too with proper care.

[DalesCarpentry]

all the electric ones ive experience with have been pretty light built. however for what your wanting them for id say with good care they would do a excellent job. my fav saw is sthil 180. its light and fairly powerfull and the thin blade cuts like crazy. the down side is that the light chain will tend to break teeth off dureing heavy use.id say yu shud be able to find one used for less than 150$ive seen guys use the cheap wal mart gas saws for along time too with proper care.

I do not want a gas saw. I do not want to worry about getting gas for it and it not starting when I need it. Dale

[mauser98us]

Think a sawzall would be a better choice,and a little more handi too

[DalesCarpentry]

I have notched hunderds of posts with a circular saw and Saw Zall and this other guy I work with can notch 2 to one of mine with the chainsaw. He is good with it am I am sure I could get good with it also. Building decks is all about time. If you can't bang them out you don't make money. The profit margine just is not there for you to be slow about it. I have 22 1/2 hours in this 10'x20' deck with a helper. Dale

[Siskiyou]

Father-in-law has one of those Remington electric saws.  He has had it for about ten years.  He claims it is okay, his use is work related but not everyday.

[zacharoo]

Had a remington. Like the firearms keep them clean well oiled and sharp and for what they were intended(light work) they are great!
Zacharoo

[Drilling Man]

  A friend of mine bought two cheapo electric saws, they are now both dead in the shed.  He said they have plastic parts in them that strip.

  I spent the money for a Husqvarna electric saw many years ago, and it's still working like new.  It has about the same power as a small gas saw, and i've never babied it.

  DM

[Cornbelt]

I have a Rimington, and I like it really well. Had a stihl 041 for years, and it served me well, but it just outgrew me, and besides that, I'm a lot more clumbsy than I used to be. The Remington will run all day if you don't crowd it, but I wouldn't trust it to a healthy lumberjack!

[Graybeard]

A friend of mine bought two cheapo electric saws, they are now both dead in the shed.  He said they have plastic parts in them that strip.

I think that's what happened to all those Matt has up at my barn and they are all still new and unused I think. Dale they don't belong to me you'll need to discuss them with Matt if you want them. I doubt he'll part with them for shipping cost alone tho. His plan is to buy the repair parts needed to fix them then sell them locally or perhaps on flea bay.

[gypsyman]

Wore out a Mac. Ended up with a Wen. Excellent little saw. Buddy of mine has a Remington. Don't think you could go wrong with either one. gypsyman

[Hodr]

Notching logs for decks is more chain saw than I ever wanted.  I live in Az though and am a woodcarver.  Getting downed cottonwood cut up was a hassle though out in the desert heat.  My wife gave me a Ryobi 18 volt lithium ion kit for CHRISTmas awhile back.  Not industrial grade but more than heavy enough for a home owner.  The kicker on the deal was that in addition to the kit you could pick another ryobi tool.  Lo and behold they had a chainsaw available.  I pack the chain saw and a couple of batteries into the jeep when we head to the mountains.  Me and that battery chainsaw take less than 1/2 hour to load the back of the jeep with carving material.  Like I said not real heavy duty but I have brought back more than 50 loads of wood for myself and the local carving club.  It's the only battery chainsaw I've found.  I thought it was a little stupid at first but I learned a long time ago, if it's stupid and it works, it aint stupid

blindhari

[KeepTryin]

Back in the 90's a neighbor gave me a barely-used electric chainsaw made by Village Blacksmith which is orange and seems to be mostly metal... I used it a lot for a few years and currently have it up at my Mom's for occasional use by dutiful son (me) after my Dad passed away. I have no idea where to find one of those, but it seems pretty well made.

The important thing about running any relatively hi-amperage 110v motor like on one of these (or an electric snowblower, etc.) is to use a BIG extension cord, follow their recommendations in the manual. I lug an expensive 10ga. outdoor cord around because I know I am not going to burn up the motor that way. Learned that lesson with a weedwacker years ago...

[Travis Morgan]

The neighbor has one, a Remington I believe. His comment when I asked him about it was "You know it's better than I thought it would be". His wife picked it up at a garage sale, and he really didn't have much faith in it. We had a storm tear up a tree in his yard and he used it then. He isn't the type to abuse things but isn't an office nerd type either. He owns and apreciates good tools. If Milwaukee makes one I would trust it to be exceedingly useful.

They do, and it is. An outfitter I worked for bought one, and we used it to split Elk down the middle when we butchered them; it's surprisingly difficult to get "Elk Tartar" out of one's hair.