I am getting too old and lazy to deal with my old chainsaws. I am thinking about buying a rechargeable or electric chainsaw. I was looking at the ones at Lowes and at the local Stihl dealer.

I would rather avoid the cords and the IC engines but both are still considerations.

Any experience with these machines? Advice is still welcome if you don't have firsthand experience.

Does a battery powered chainsaw exist?

Yes, several. I've heard good things, and have been low-key shopping myself, mainly for trail clearing and bike camping, as one unit could be handy, and easier to pack than an axe.

MV

Wow.

I've only had an experience with a cheap electric one - it wasn't good but then I wasn't surprised I think it cost less than 100 euros...

...my brother has one of those fancy cordless (super expensive) circular saws. He's not very impressed with it - he went and bought a (super expensive) corded version and is now happy again.

I think battery technology just isn't (and still isn't) up to it.

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1992 W201 190E 1.8 171,000 km - Daily driver
1981 W123 300D ~ 100,000 miles / 160,000 km - project car stripped to the bone
1965 Land Rover Series 2a Station Wagon CIS recovery therapy!
1961 Volvo PV544 Bare metal rat rod-ish thing

I'm here to chat about cars and to help others - I'm not here "to always be right" like an internet warrior



Don't leave that there - I'll take it to bits!

Well, are we talking about homeowner trimming and pruning, gathering firewood for the winter, or full on lumberjack type work? For my purposes of trail clearing and campfire wood work, one of the little saws can be quite handy, for gather and prepping the several cords of firewood the family goes through in a winter, there's not going to be any doubt that gas is the way to go.

MV

I've used plug in electric saws. For what they are they work fine, be sure to keep the chain sharp. A hand file will touch them up pretty quickly if you don't let them get too dull.

I have used a saws all with a coarse blade and a 500 W hand carry generator with good results.

Now I have a 70's McCulloch promac 700 rescued from the scrap pile and fixed with $ 25 in parts.

For high stuff a weed wacker ( strimmer for you Brits ) with a stick saw attachment works for high stuff. ( another scrap pile rescue )

A battery powered one would tend to eat batteries pretty rapidly ( as in wear them out through many charge / discharge cycles )

I had an old Wen electric chainsaw from the early 90s, picked up at a flea market for 35. that lasted about 12 years for everything I threw at it, then i killed it on a crotch cut.

My second was a remington, lasted 2 years.

Now I have another. I dont use a chainsaw enough to mess with gas.

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1959 Gravely LI, 1963 Gravely L8, 1973 Gravely C12
1982 380SL
1978 450 SEL 6.9 euro restoration at 63% and climbing
1987 300 D
2005 CDI European Delivery
2006 CDI Handed down to daughter
2007 GL CDI. Wifes

Keep in mind that electric saws can be more dangerous than their gasoline counterparts- they don't have a clutch that will slip, can't be "part throttled", and defeat the safety aspect of chaps.

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'83 300D, 126K miles.

I sold my old gas saws. I used them infrequently enough that they always took an inordinate amount of futzing and pulling and cussing to get and keep them running. If I need any serious sawing work done I hire somebody.
I bought a Worx corded electric one for limbing. As electrics go it's kind of a beast. Has a chain brake and a nice automatic chain tensioner that rarely needs adjustment. I don't know the specs offhand, but I recently took out an old Mesquite tree that was growing up over the roof of the house and making a mess up there with pollen, leaves and beans. Easy 4-5" diameter limbs. Mesquite is extremely rough on saws. While it didn't cut like a knife through butter, I took my time and ended up with nearly a half cord of good firewood. The saw is none the worse for wear. Even the chain is still fairly sharp. Downsides: The thing is heavy, and leaks bar oil when stored. I've read that's a common complaint, not a deal breaker. I think I paid a hundred bucks for it.

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You're a daisy if you do.
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84 Euro 240D 4spd. 220.5k sold
04 Honda Element AWD
1985 F150 XLT 4x4, 351W with 270k miles, hay hauler
1997 Suzuki Sidekick 4x4
1993 Toyota 4wd Pickup 226K and counting

Being it's electric you might be able to store it on it's side / angle / upside down to avoid lube dribble. Just find out where the oil exits the tank and keep that elevated ( but not at an angle that lets oil run to the cap vent. )

Shop Kobalt 40-Volt Max Lithium Ion (Li-ion) 12-in Cordless Electric Chain Saw at Lowes.com

This looks like the one at my local lowes but the price online is higher than I remembered.

I guess I want to know if it is durable, maintainable or just disposable.

I looked at the user manual and it says the warranty is for five years.

Stihl has one but the price is much higher.

This is a very good point. I assumed that it would be variable speed and had not considered operations beyond starting and noise.

Rechargeable or electric chainsaw experience? How about 'Electric chainsaw experience, rechargeable and/or corded?

So sorry, my bad.

Being that they have no nasty exhaust fumes or loud combustion engine they are superior for quiet indoor late night down in the basement work cutting up ... well ... you know