(Dis)Advantages to using battery powered chainsaws

[gtaus]

Anyone have experience buying these off brand batteries and are they worth giving it a try?

Following up on my own question: I got a response from the Amazon seller and these off brand replacement batteries carry 1 year warranty. Since I can buy 3 of these batteries for the price of one original Ryobi battery, I decided to order one of these off brand batteries and give it a try.

FWIW, I have been watching YouTube videos comparing run times between these off brand batteries and the original Ryobi batteries. The original Ryobi batteries used to be a lot better in performance versus the off brand batteries that were reviewed 3 years ago. The most recent comparison videos, within this year, indicate hardly any performance difference at all. Well, I'll give it a try as I want an extra battery now when I plan on using it early in the spring rather than wait until mid-summer, or later, hoping that they go on sale at Home Depot.

 

[gtaus]

Well, since my one 40v 2.6 Ah battery died, my tree cutting project has been extended due to the fact I now only have 1 battery to work with on the chainsaw.

I decided to take out my gas Stihl 16 inch chainsaw and finish off the project. Unfortunately, after an hour working on the gas Stihl chainsaw, I still could not get it running.

As I previously stated, I don't use my chainsaws very much, and gas chainsaws don't like to sit in a shed unused. This is why I bought into a battery powered chainsaw system. At least, with a fresh battery, I know my chainsaw will run. That's the great advantage to battery powered chainsaws for the way I seldom use them.

 

[Hayden Goseek]

I really like practical gifts. I have no use for, say, diamond earrings, or an expensive vacation. This year, we got a new riding mower for our anniversary. I'll never use it, but DH will not have to fret about mowing, and that alone is worth it for me.

Sounds like the old story about the couple where she would buy him jewerly for Christmas and he would buy her a hunting rifle. (That way you got what 'you' really wanted.)
My father told me years ago that no one could pick the right rifle for a man any more than he could pick the right wife.

 

[Justso]

Yesterday, I mentioned that my 5 year old 40v 2.6 Ah battery died. Well, maybe. It appears that the battery shut itself down into some kind of safety mode - probably due to overheating when used in the chainsaw. I spent an hour or so on YouTube seeing how to "fix" this situation. I did the reset repair, and guess what? No joy. Battery still will not charge.

I started looking for a replacement for the battery that died and came upon this off brand Ryobi 40v 6.0 Ah battery from Amazon. It only costs $72.00 compared to an original Ryobi 40v 6 Ah battery which costs $219.00. I don't expect the off brand will be as good as an original Ryobi battery, but I am thinking I could buy 3 of these off brand batteries for the price of one original Ryobi. Anyone have experience buying these off brand batteries and are they worth giving it a try?

View attachment 3097052

I bought off brand. And yes there's always a risk but in my personal case it's always been worth it.

 

[gtaus]

I bought off brand. And yes there's always a risk but in my personal case it's always been worth it.

Thanks. This is the first time I have bought an off brand Ryobi battery. But I see the most current reviews and comparisons on YouTube indicate the off brands have closed the performance gap. I hope so.

 

[gtaus]

Just to let you know what I am doing with all that dead wood. I just finished building 2 new 4X4 corrugated steel panel raised garden beds today. I am using the cut up tree branches and yard cleanup from the winter to start filling the raised beds. I put about 8-10 inches of wood stuff and organics in the bottom of the raised bed and will top it off with 6-8 inches of a 1:1 topsoil and chicken run compost mix for the planting.

 

[gtaus]

Just adding a quick update to my previous posts.

My new off brand Ryobi 6 Ah battery is just not working out very well. It runs fine for about 10 minutes, but when it drops down to 2 bars (out of 4 bars full), the battery stops working and needs to be recharged. I contacted the seller via Amazon and have not heard back from them this weekend. In any case, I told them I will not be paying for a half battery. Don't know if they will attempt a replacement, or not. In any case, this first battery I got from them has not been any good. My preference would be to have a properly working 6 Ah battery, but I am thinking the quality of this off brand battery is not up to the challenge.

I stopped into our Ace Hardware this morning. They sell and service Stihl chainsaws. They said that a typical tune-up costs close to $100, but if it needs more work, they would just tell me that it's not worth fixing. I expressed my frustration with the cost of maintaining a gas chainsaw and told them I mainly use my battery chainsaws because they just always work. He agreed. But they also sell all the EGO battery outdoor tools so I don't suppose he could disagree with me.

Well, lots of negative updates. On the positive side, I am mostly done with all my cutting on the trees and probably won't need the chainsaw much anymore this summer - unless we get some big storm.

 

[raingarden]

probably won't need the chainsaw much anymore this summer - unless we get some big storm.

That's the rub for us. Trees and large branches are known to drop on the driveway and leave us completely locked in. If the chainsaw doesn't run we can't get out

 

[gtaus]

That's the rub for us. Trees and large branches are known to drop on the driveway and leave us completely locked in. If the chainsaw doesn't run we can't get out

Yeah, I really don't know if it is worth my money to get my gas chainsaw up and running only to let it sit for who knows how long? By the time I might really need it, it might have the carb all fouled up again. Almost all my chainsaw jobs can be done with my smaller battery powered chainsaw, but run time with batteries on my 40v chainsaw is very limited, especially now since I am down to only one 40v 4.0 Ah battery. (Assuming the off brand Ryobi 40v 6.0 Ah battery will be sent back to Amazon).

I also have a Ryobi 18v 12 inch chainsaw, and enough 18v batteries to run that for hours and hours. But, a 12 inch chainsaw is not very good if you have a large tree fall down. Excellent for limbing the branches, but no so good on a tree trunk which exceeds the bar length.

I know if I used my gas Stihl chainsaw more often, it would be better for it. But I just don't use any of my chainsaws very much so the battery option is better for me if it can get the job done.

 

[saysfaa]

You might consider starting the gas engined tools periodically and running them enough to stir the fluids. Like people antique cars do.