went ahead and picked up a sthil 261 after AK Timber Tramp and others recommendations for a small saw for the boys to use easier than my primary that is a 361 sthil. Didn't get into any larg or hard wood with it yet only took doe some 16 to 18" pines and I didn't get to run it much the boys each took a tree down and did the cutting. I got to make maybe 4 cuts to check it out Both the boys were surprised how much 2 lbs lighter on the powered head makes. Also the smaller thiner bar cuts some weight. They both really liked it.

My first impression is it was like a toy but cut well enough for it's size. But I am used to more power and am interested to see how it does in hard wood buried. It did need to be revealed up more on contact with the wood than what I'm used to being able to be in solid contact then hit the gas. I'm thinking it will get ported, and muffler mod, mor aggressive chain.

I'm demoted to loading wood and dragging brush now it seems. They really like how easythis saw handed and that is mission accomplished. A big thanks to the T man crew for the recommendation on this saw. Powered to weight it's the best in class and really fills what I was looking for. Heck I like it a lot myself so far.

Nice I think they’ll be happy with that. Tell them to keep it sharp, that’s the key to performance and longevity. And pro tip of the day: no saw really likes to start turning the chain under a load (in the wood), it’s hard on the clutch, and even my 090 likes if I back it out a little bit and build some chain speed before I hog into it. Think of it like stopping your truck at the bottom of a big hill, but all you have is 3rd gear…you’d be better off with a bit of a run at it, it’s the same story for saw chains

I’m a Husky guy but that’s a great little saw. Good power to weight ratio.
I’m in the game of modifying saws cuz it can be fun. There’s saw shops that’ll sell you a brand new modded saw too. In the end, if you really need more power just get a bigger saw and you won’t be sorry.

Love mine, and wait until you get several tanks of gas through it...itll come alive and youll know it aint no toy.

When I was still working we phased out all our 36 series saws and replaced them with 261s they were safer due to less operator fatigue and actual cutting performance was basically a draw between the two saws. For bigger stuff we used 461s, the 261/461 pairing seemed about ideal.

I was at an auction last year and bought another 261. I have ran one now for about 8 years and 0 complaints. Lots of folks looking at me at the auction when I pushed the bid up to 300 for my second one. But, I knew it was worth it and it was still around less than half price.

I will say - I prefer the lightest saw to do my jobs and very often I go to my MS250 with a lil 16" bar - that lil saw is well worth the money as well in my book.

I've had an MS 261 Pro for about eleven years now, since soon after Stihl came out with them. I've dropped lots of trees and cut many dozens of cords of firewood. It's a great saw that does everything I need it to do. I don't need to be lugging around anything bigger. I have an 18"bar on mine.

Work smarter, not harder.

Ya I have been telling the boys they like to be wound out. Youngest was working on his notch and just learning and in sure of himself going slow with stops to check where he was at. and again on the logs when rolled over and finishing cuting them off they both were wanting to stick the bar in the cut for hitting the gas.

Nothing wrong with stopping to take a look when you’re learning, you can always cut more, you can never put the wood back. I didn’t mean you have to leave the kerf entirely to wind up the saw, just back out an inch or so, that way the chain isn’t trying to cut while you’re getting it to speed. Doing it that way also blows all the chips out of your kerfs so you don’t plug up with sawdust and you can see daylight through your cuts so you can see what’s going on without moving around to look