6 Month Honest Review | Milwaukee Top Handle Chainsaw

[@EliotTruelove]

Came from your Reddit post about the Makita version of this top handle saw, this was a good review!

[@MattShinavar]

Awesome, thank you!

[@M-13_Fab]

I got this saw. It’s a great saw. So glad I bought it. My wife and I are old school 2 stroke saw users. Both of us were very impressed with the performance of it.

[@aronp713]

Compared to GAS what’s your take on it ?

[@M-13_Fab]

@@aronp713 it depends on how big and how long you’re going to be cutting. Now if you’re cutting all day long gas saw will probably be better

[@Gyppor]

This was a very helpful review, thank you very much.

[@tylercousins7779]

This is a really good review. Thank you. Although I will note one thing, I have a gas powered Stihl chainsaw and I’ve had it for over a decade. I use it 3 to 4 times a year and I’ve never had a problem starting it and I’ve never done any maintenance to it… at all.

[@fartface5172]

Exact same experience here but with a husq

[@Gillteixeira]

Have you tried a full chisel chain on the top handle or a diferente chain ?

[@paulamoore1221]

helpful review from a knowledgeable chainsaw user

[@michaelbecker2814]

Thank you. Nice review.

[@dylankollar1521]

interesting, id love one!

[@k1_w3]

Thanks for this honest and knowledgeable review. 👍

[@MattShinavar]

My pleasure!

[@k1_w3]

@@MattShinavar I picked one up for $222 last week, and used it a lot over the weekend. It's a great tool, especially at that price.

[@jdubs19]

Have you thought about upgrading to a larger bar on this 14” saw?

[@MattShinavar]

I haven’t really. I have two of these saws so it would be pretty easy to justify running a 16”, but I can’t remember the last time 14” was too short - maybe trimming back grind sheathes on a palm and hacking off a lot of old growth? It’s been a while

[@Martin-zu1mk]

Great review. 2 saws? One for each hand?

[@MattShinavar]

Pretty much right? The saw has worked awesome for me, but not having a backup feels weird. I might do something wild and crazy with the backup, run a non-standard bar on it or something

[@boomupengineering]

I started with the 36V Makita. Kind of heavy so I bought an Echo 2511t which is awesome for climbing. Makita is 10.5# with 5.0AH batteries. Echo is 7#. I just bought the Husky T540i because the sale was so good. $545 with two BLi300 batteries and two chargers. On sale I guess because the T542i is out. With the big battery the Husky is 11.5# and so I ordered a BLi200x battery and will sell one of the Bli300's. The Bli200 is supposed to be 1.28# lighter. I hate the sensitive startup protection of the Makita - the Husky is much better! For cutting stuff up around the house, I'd probably get the Milwaukee because it is so cheap. $350 with an 8AH battery right now.

[@PowerThroughMusic]

Where’d you get that deal?

[@boomupengineering]

You can still get the Husky at the north40 site.

[@edwardrook8146]

As far as I know this chainsaw does not have an inertia brake. Also the skinny handle does make it harder to maneuver the saw particularly with one hand.

[@dusty1498]

Excellent Review👍

[@MattShinavar]

Thanks! Always a good time using chainsaws

[@dusty1498]

@@MattShinavar Love to get one for camping so i can Cut deadfall incognito Lol but they are six hundred canadian funds

[@Brian..........]

How about the battery overheating ? I've used my standard Milwaukee chainsaw and it seems too much torque, too long of a cut in bigger wood, and it does the 4 light flashing thing, and it's too hot. Therefore work is stalled. New battery sure, but up in a tree...tricky

[@MattShinavar]

I haven’t had an issue overheating an HO or Forge battery. XC, definitely

[@Brian..........]

@@MattShinavaroh good to know, thank you, forge better than H.O.?

[@benharwin2493]

Solid tool!

[@lawrencelewis1036]

1/4 pitch setup would change it's personality for the better. Very good saw!

[@MattShinavar]

Definitely. Need to decide if I want to change he the chain or sprocket

[@87TurboT]

Got a free hard case with mine. Score

[@bryang9158]

Put a different sprocket to gain chain speed

[@MattShinavar]

Looking into this. Thanks

[@RandallWilliams-ns1zr]

I don't get any power. Even sent it in to support.

[@MattShinavar]

That’s weird, sounds like a defect. Mine have tons of power

[@PowerThroughMusic]

Stuck between this and a Husqvarna 542i

[@MattShinavar]

I really like my Milwaukee and the batteries fit a ton of my other tools. Other people seem to like their Huskies, but the battery is pretty limited in other tool applocations

[@PowerThroughMusic]

Do the dogs just bolt on? I ordered a Milwaukee finally and 8.0 forge battery My echo 355t finally broke where it would take a while to fix.

[@MattShinavar]

@@PowerThroughMusic yep, you have to pull the bar off, then there's a couple of screws. It's a 5 minute install if you take your time

[@PowerThroughMusic]

@@MattShinavarI’m hoping 2 8.0 forges last me a day. I do a lot of removals

[@PowerThroughMusic]

@@MattShinavarso I got the saw and put the dogs on. Haven’t had a chance to use yet. What bar oil do you run in the saw? I know some said it doesn’t oil too well so I wanted to try and fix that by maybe running thinner oil? I noticed the Milwaukee bar doesn’t have the little holes for the oil to go through, all my other bars have the little holes near where the chain rides. Maybe if the bar had that it would help with oiling? Are there any other mods I should consider or that are possible?

[@zaccheus]

That saw is not intended for one handed use as you stated. The manual is clear about that.

[@MattShinavar]

Yes, the lawyers are particularly good at making sure you protect yourself from yourself. For fun, checked out the MS201 manual, which also strongly strongly discourages the use of 1 handed operation. Ultimately, one hand operation is the reason for a top handle design over a rear handle

[@zaccheus]

@MattShinavar It's more than lawyers. All saws sold in the US have 2 handed use recommended in the manual. In Europe, they do not. Top handle saws may have been developed for one handed use originally, but when used properly under modern standards, they still offer greater maneuverability than rear handled saws. That's why nobody likes the 201C-EM. The only real reason people one hand chainsaws is because they don't have better work positioning skills.

[@fartface5172]

​@zaccheus does anyone really "use"the saw one handed? I guess ur referring to someone over reaching but most the one handed is feathering the Throttle to finish cut while other hand is directing. But ur a smart fella so I'm sure you'll enlighten my simpleton brain

[@organicvids]

Just bought this for limbing on ground. Needed quiet one handed saw, limb n pull.

[@WhistleLad]

Shut up.

[@flea4061]

Broke on the third time I used it.

[@MattShinavar]

Oh yea? What happened..?

[@fartface5172]

Bruh.y even post something like that and not say how

[@aronp713]

What happened? Milwaukee is good at replacing

[@bobdobbs7828]

Don't drop it out of the tree onto concrete maybe?