Since we purchased the MSA220c in December it has been used for a number of tasks including clearing a 10” windblown ash tree, cutting knots from timber so we can put it through our firewood unit, and now birch cutting.
For a small saw it is amazingly pokey; it cuts just as well as a larger saw with a lot less drama. For cross cutting it is ideal, although you can’t rush it, whereas a petrol saw would just keep going until the clutch start to slip, the 220 doesn’t have as clutch so if it gets stuck the saw just stops. That said, it will go through a 10” log in no time, as long as it is sharp and the battery is fully charged.
Cutting smaller timber is where the 220 comes into its own. We have just started cutting Birch on a local National Trust site, which is on a steep slope with public around. Most of the birch is around 1”-4” and there is also a lot of stop start between cutting to allow us to move the stems. The great thing about the electric saw is it isn’t sat there idling between cuts and this means you can get a good bit of work out of a battery; we managed about 2 hours from the first battery which had already done some work. Unlike a petrol saw, the electric only needs to be topped up with chain oil so a refuel is as simple as popping in the new battery and checking the chain oil.
Compared to the MS241, which is around 6kg, the 220 is only about 4.5kg so a lot less weight to carry around, which on the 40-45°slopes we have been working on is a massive bonus.
The noise level of the electric saw is also a bonus, most petrol chainsaws are pushing out 110db; the 220 is producing 84db most of which is the chain running round.
The one thing that takes a little getting used to is the position of the dead man’s switch; unlike a standard saw it is on the side of the back handle, rather than the top. We suspect this is because the saw will run any time without warning unless you put the chain brake on (which of course you should have done).