[j427x]

well you all know i am leaning very heavy towards the husqvarna.

my dads logging operation ran stihls, husky's, jonesereds, homelites,alpinas and a few other makes. the sthils, huskys and jonesereds were the best, homelites were underpowered, hard to start hot and didn't last very long, the alpinas were powerful and easy to start but the warrenty was no good and parts were difficult to find. the huskys and jreds ran forever and had tons of power--they were made by AB Sweeden so many parts interchanged --the jreds were known as red plastic huskys. the sthils were powerful & durable but expensive at that time.

the husky 455 rancher is looking better all the time as it is 55.5cc and i can get it at a very good price. i found a brand new makita 510 for an equally good price yesterday, from what i hear there good saws yet not as powerful as husky/jred of the same size.

the dolmar 5100 is the same size and weight as the makita 510 but has a newer motor that makes 4.0hp. the 455 husky 3.5hp and the makita 510 3.2hp. the husky being the biggest of the three although there all pretty close in size and weight the 5100 is the litest of the three.

i found a really nice bang for buck saw on the net a makita 6401 64cc for $500 but is $100 out of my price range. a little big to just be cutting firewood as well.

getting a good saw in my price range is hard to do as i am trying to stay under $400--