Author Topic: 357xp/2156 or 359/2159 (Read 2035 times)

thumper · « **on:** November 28, 2009, 12:54:44 am »

hello everyone, great site youve got here! please dont be irritated by my common question. ive read countless threads about the difrrences in these saws. for the most part im sure id like either of these saws. i have a 2165 for firewood, larger felling and bucking. a 2150 for everthing else. i really like both saws , i find the 2165 to have power to do anything, but tends to get heavy in the limbing and just walking around area. the 2150 is a great machine for limbing but of course it dont have the power youd want for medium felling and limbing hardwood. i cut alot of poplar and it seems to suck up the power. the job i do the least is spruce/fir hemlock so small limbing isnt so frequent . but not unheard of. there is alot of price diffrence in these 2 saws and i dont want to by saw not suited for me .would i benefit the most from the torque of the 59s or the all out rpm power of the 2156/357xp? ???javascript:void(0);

Cut4fun · « **Reply #1 on:** November 28, 2009, 06:03:02 pm »

I have a 357xp and a 365 special. There could be only a pound to 1.5lbs difference in them PHO. Something in 12.?? (cant remember) and 13.6lbs.

If you want a limbing saw and smaller bucking saw. Look at the new 50cc 346xp 11.??lbs with the grey side cover. If you want to save even more weight and more toward limbing old 46cc 346xp 10.??lbs with orange cover.

thumper · « **Reply #2 on:** November 29, 2009, 01:01:48 pm »

i got rid of my rough old 346 to get my 2150. the 2150 has more torque and i like that. i do like the 346 for small limbing though. id like to get 1 powerhead that will do it all, no more hauling 2 diff saws around!

sawguy21 · « **Reply #3 on:** November 29, 2009, 01:15:08 pm »

Are you a weekend warrior or cutting for a living? The 2156/357XP are high performance saws designed for the professional user. Here they are popular with pulp cutters and spacing crews. The 359 is a nice all around saw good for the farmer/rancher/fire wood cutter. It would be a good choice unless speed is important.

thumper · « **Reply #4 on:** November 29, 2009, 01:29:45 pm »

i usually work by myself or with one guy and use a john deere 440a cable skidder. we do small/medium woodlots cutting just about everything from mostly poplar to firewood. i do like speed but that isnt as important as doing the job right every time! i wonder if the 59s will hold up like the full professional 57s.

sawguy21 · « **Reply #5 on:** November 29, 2009, 02:11:24 pm »

The 359 is built with the same quality as the 357 which is the hot rod version.

Rocky_J · « **Reply #6 on:** November 29, 2009, 02:27:18 pm »

I think the crank is different on the 359, as well as the porting.

chucker · « **Reply #7 on:** November 29, 2009, 03:10:24 pm »

i use the 2054 for limbing if theres a lot of trees to be done . for all around limbing and bucking i find the 2159 not that bad . weight to power ratio of these two saws are about nill. if i am limbing jack pine at 8" common and doing say 2 cords or more a day then i stick with the 2054.... bigger just the 2159... all said between the 2 saws you have to make extra trips back and forth to retreive another saw thats not at hand. kinda like having a golf bag full of saws!! ?

Cut4fun · « **Reply #8 on:** November 29, 2009, 05:49:14 pm »

Here is my woods ported 357xp by Dave Neiger and then a friend did a little more making a domed piston for it. Saw has seen very little use because of it's bastard size of 57cc IMHO. I usually grab my 49cc saws for smaller stuff or 65cc and up cc saws if I need a saw for bigger stuff.
If you are near Ohio your welcome to come take a test drive. Everything I own has a price if it's right

. A 359 can be made the same way with it's 59cc non-mahle topend. Just choose your builder wisely, they are not created equal at finding gains in a work saw.
357 has bells on the crank. So if you remove the topends and bells off the crank they are identical after that.

John Mc · « **Reply #9 on:** November 30, 2009, 02:59:56 pm »

Nice! what kind of wood were you cutting there?

Cut4fun · « **Reply #10 on:** November 30, 2009, 03:12:08 pm »

Just dried out poplar in 10x10 top and 8x8 bottom cants. I use that for all my testing for gains in timed cuts so the wood is uniform.

Its not all about WOT rpm like some will let you believe. It's about rpm held in the cut

. If you noticed I had the saw running below stock rpm's 13.8k and on the rich side.

SawTroll · « **Reply #11 on:** December 12, 2009, 11:33:17 am »

Quote from: Rocky_J on November 29, 2009, 02:27:18 pm

I think the crank is different on the 359, as well as the porting.

Yes, the 357xp has "fillers" on the crank - and the cylinder is different both in design (porting) and quality.

SawTroll · « **Reply #12 on:** December 12, 2009, 11:50:18 am »

Quote from: Cut4fun on November 28, 2009, 06:03:02 pm

I have a 357xp and a 365 special. There could be only a pound to 1.5lbs difference in them PHO. Something in 12.?? (cant remember) and 13.6lbs. ......

It is less difference than that for the empty powerhead - but the bulk difference, larger tanks of the 365 etc makes it feel like more difference in practical use.

nmurph · « **Reply #13 on:** December 13, 2009, 12:32:01 am »

i have a 359, a 357 and a 262. they are all within an ounce or two of 13lbs and cut very similarly in wood under 12". above that, the power of the 262 takes over as the wood increases in size.

thumper · « **Reply #14 on:** December 13, 2009, 12:41:18 am »

Quote from: nmurph on December 13, 2009, 12:32:01 am

i have a 359, a 357 and a 262. they are all within an ounce or two of 13lbs and cut very similarly in wood under 12". above that, the power of the 262 takes over as the wood increases in size.

Do you think the 359 does any better than your 357 in wood 12" plus? thanks

nmurph · « **Reply #15 on:** December 13, 2009, 12:47:32 am »

the 359 is the slowest in any size wood, but only by a small margin in wood less than about 10". as the wood gets larger, the 357 and 262 start to show their power advantage, with the 262 having an edge, and that edge getting larger as the wood gets larger.

thumper · « **Reply #16 on:** December 13, 2009, 12:57:16 am »

wow, i thought if there was anywere the 359 were better, it would be in the bigger stuff. do you find the 359 better in any area?

thumper · « **Reply #17 on:** December 13, 2009, 01:00:00 am »

i wish they still made the 262. i think its crazy to have so many saws that are so close to each other. back in the 80s and 90s i think my dealer carried three saws the 254, the 266 and 268. and he could special order a 281.

nmurph · « **Reply #18 on:** December 13, 2009, 05:21:20 am »

359-3.9hp
357-4.4hp
262-4.8hp

i've got a 281 also. it is heavy, but it is in a different league altogether. i think it is rated at 5.7hp. it is not as fast as my 7900's, but i enjoy running it for a change.

nikocker · « **Reply #19 on:** December 13, 2009, 07:10:19 am »

Quote from: Cut4fun on November 28, 2009, 06:03:02 pm

I have a 357xp and a 365 special. There could be only a pound to 1.5lbs difference in them PHO. Something in 12.?? (cant remember) and 13.6lbs.

If you want a limbing saw and smaller bucking saw. Look at the new 50cc 346xp 11.??lbs with the grey side cover. If you want to save even more weight and more toward limbing old 46cc 346xp 10.??lbs with orange cover.

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Author Topic: 357xp/2156 or 359/2159 (Read 2035 times)