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Stihl at Lowes?

Started by lucky_cutter, March 11, 2005, 01:16:58 AM

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lucky_cutter

I was just at the Stihl's web site and I saw where Stihl was taking a pole. " Do you think Stihl is sold at Lowes or home depot"  Are the boys at Stihl up to something?

Lucky

Trick question.  My guess is neither one.

KiwiCharlie

I agree - I think Stihl has a large enough worldwide market share not to need to sell at any "mass market" outlets.  But then, Im not US based!
Maybe they are changing their tack to "get the most units sold that we can".
Surely the Lowes and Home Depot market is the extremely occasional chainsaw user?  To me, thats the Poulans etc of this world.
Cheers
Charlie.
Walk tall and carry a big Stihl.

Jim Spencer

I have used Stihl Chainsaws for 30 years and have weed whacker, leaf blower. At present I have a Farm Boss 04? and an 066.
Everytime something goes wrong and I need a replacement part they want an arm and a leg. 
They are really gouging people on replacement parts.
I am a retired Manufacturing engineer so I have a good feel for the cost of manufacturing replacement parts.

My farm boss is built very cheap.

OneWithWood

Jim,
It may be built cheap but it is still working for you, right?

I think Stihl is possibly using a clever ploy to capture some of the marketing strategy from Husky.  Or maybe they just want to know if people can actually tell the difference between the two brands.
One With Wood
LT40HDG25, Woodmizer DH4000 Kiln

jjmk98k

One thing I noticed at Lowes,  when I am there checking ou the saws while the Mrs. is looking at Curtains  ::)

Most folks look at Huskys price tag and "gulp" then settle for something else or I have heard them say " Home depot has saws cheaper" ( homelites)

Maybe if Stihl enters at Home Depot, The prices will come down at big box all arond... more competition..

but then.... only one person suffers... the little guy who the consumer will take his broken saw to and expect it to be fixed there.

I'll admit , I bought my saw at lowes, it was on clearance for a song...

My Brushcutter, I ordered it from the dealer.... he's the one who'll put it together and make sure it runs properly BEFORE i leave the store, not Lowes.   

I bought a Husqvarna 326 RJX,
lowes price $329.99, local small shop, $329.99
guess where I get the better service.......  :P



Jim

Warminster PA, not quite hell, but it is a local phone call. SUPPORT THE TROOPS!

StihlCarver046

I replyed to that poll and said no of course. I think they are trying to see if people think they sell them there. Jim Spencer It is a 041 farmboss. And yes they gouge me for parts all the time. I just bought a screw for the airfilter cover of my 046 for 7.00. It  is kind of rediculus. but it will last a long time and you CAN get parts. That is a big deal

oldsaw

Of course the people on the site are going to say "no" more often than not, since they can't get the service they want at a big box.  They may be running a trial balloon to see what the reaction is, but, I think it is more of an attempt to catch a few of the people on the fence between a Stihl and a Husky.

So many trees, so little money, even less time.

Stihl 066, Husky 262, Husky 350 (warmed over), Homelite Super XL, Homelite 150A

bassfisher

Interesting.  HD rents and sells echos.  The techs at the rental end have acknowledged that echos need much more maint on carbs and oilers than even a low end stihl would ever need.  Maybe HD's starting to see the light and leaning towards stihl for rental?
Noticed the rental sites are putting the echos out for sale as 'used units'?
As for the new 'homelites', they are mexican assembled low end saws with very high returns for defects.

Its all about price and profit.  Volume is the key to profit and HD is volume.
"Waste not time, for time is the stuff that life is made up of." B.Franklin
Stihl 045AV 034AV--Stihl 026 Husky 65-- XL-76-- Echo 3450  Case 580SE JDeere 440 ICD
Bancroft-the mineral capital of canada & one of the last places that legally allows men to stretch (trapped) beavers without spousal permit

Quartlow

Quote from: bassfisher on March 15, 2005, 08:31:29 PM
Interesting.  HD rents and sells echos.  The techs at the rental end have acknowledged that echos need much more maint on carbs and oilers than even a low end stihl would ever need.  Maybe HD's starting to see the light and leaning towards stihl for rental?


Thats funny because we have both stihl and echo here and at my brothers place.

I have a 750 and a 500 echo. I haven't done a thing to either one in I don't know how long
I also have an .075 sthil. For all the more it gets used you better keep a rope in your pocket since it likes to break them , other than that it hasn't had a thing done to in a coons age.


Brother has
1 cs 341 echo, 2 cs346 echos a 610 evl a husky thats a 55 I do believe The echos give him no trouble at all, and he is hard on stuff, VERY hard on stuff. When we where over there saterday I found all the saw sitting on the wagon right where he used them last, every one started.

Cousin here at the farm has a farm boss and on old homelite, the home lite is still ticking, the farm boss quit running last week, tore it down and found that the bearing on the rod was junk, crank was cracked and the weights had become miss aligned.

Ever notice that it used to be Stihl built one line of saw, what is now the 'PRO" saws and thing like the farm boss for homeowner use. Alse ever notice echo doesn't make that distinction?
Breezewood 24 inch mill
Have a wooderful day!!

Quartlow

Oh yeah as for the rental techs claiming to work on echo all the time. Well in my experiance working in the rental industrie, it has nothing to do with what you rent. We had stihl saws and we where forever working on them, not because they where stihl because it was the rental industriy,

Think about it most people that rent that stuff have no clue as to how to use it and some people think they can make it run better than the techs can. I'm willing to bet they end up working on stihls as much as the echos if andwhen they get them.
Breezewood 24 inch mill
Have a wooderful day!!

Old_Town

Here in the Dallas,TX area, Home Depot Rental departments use mainly Echo but some use Makita (Dolmar) saws. I personally know one tech that maintains saws and he says the Echo saws are excellent. He does not like Stihl saws for the rental industry due price of parts.  I also get mad every time I have to buy Stihl parts. They are very much over priced. Here at my local Home Depot I can buy an Echo tune up kit for $9.95. This kit includes a spark plug, fuel filter and air filter. Try buying these items seperately for a Stihl!!! My local Stihl dealer charges $8.00 for a fuel filter and $4.00 for a spark plug!! This is what I don't like about Stihl.


Lewis Brander

Well, I'm slightly peeved at Stihl. I contacted Stihl USA and requested an owner's manuel and parts book for an 08S my father had. They were recerved with in a week. Great. I then contacted Stihl USA asking about parts availability for the 08S. Gave them the part numbers I was looking for and inquired it they were still avilable. They replied back, gave me the newer part numbers I needed and said that the parts I requested were still available, to contact my local dealer and order them. I did. A week later I called and no parts were available to them. I again contacted Stihl USA and inquired to what was going on. Gave them my dealer's name, address, etc. and told them that the distributer for the easter USA didn't have them. Stihl USA replied and said that the parts were available through a western distributeer,  to have my dealer contact there distributer and have them order from the western distributer and have the parts shipped to the local dealer. I again called my dealer, who contacted their distributer and the distributer said that they didn't deal with the western distributor ( a territorial/jurisdictional thing). So Stihl USA says the parts are available, sitting on a shelf out west, but apparently not available to me. Go figure. All I wanted were 3 clutch shoes, clutch springs and an 8 tooth, 3/8" pitch drive sprocket. After waiting for the parts for a month, I cancelled the order and got after market parts from another source. This parts thing stird up quiet a debate on another site ( you mean you expect to get parts for a 40 year old saw, that Stihl should have them in sstock). I have a 55 year old saw, that needed parts. Once I found a supplier I got the parts and the saw is now repaired. If the parts are listed in inventory, apparently available, then why can't they be ordered and gotten is my question. This opens up a whole new question for me about how good Stihl's service and parts availability really is. The 40 year old 08S runs just fine. What am I to do, throw it away and buy new. I guess in today's throw away society that's what I should have done. I always felt Stihl made High quality equipment and still do. You sure pay enough for there stuff. But I feel the service and quality has fallen off for the money being paid. You read about more plastic being used, plastic covers, now plastic crankcases and what have you. I feel that Stihl is still at the top of the heap, but teatering a bit. They better wise up. I'm sure hoping that Makita/Domar, Husky or some other good company can step in and fill the void. With what my experiances have been with Stihl lately, I don't know if I'll consider buying a new Stihl saw. All one of the local dealer seems to have are the lower end saws for homeowners anyway, so I might just as well go to the big box stores and take my chances, for the prices involved. Not trying to start anything here. Bottom line, buyer beware. Things are happening in the chainsaw bussiness and untill things sort themselves out, be sure of what your gettng. Like history has showen, everything goes in cycles. The big boys fall and someone else climbs to takes there place. Just be sure of what you want, when you make a purchace and what your getting into for service and parts reliability. BUYER BEWARE.  JMO.  Lewis.
My hobby is restoring old saw. Just because it's old, doesn't mean she can't run and look good again. Take care. Lewis Brander.

fishhuntcutwood

I'd have to agree with those above who state that it's in an effort to illustrate the difference between themselves and Husqvarna.  Alot of folks resent Huskys being sold at Home Depot, and hope that Stihl won't follow suit.   I'm one of them.

Take care all,
Jeff
MS 200T
MS 361
044
440 Mag
460 Mag
056 MII
660 Mag

jjmk98k

Lowes prices on Husqvarna saws and supplies are now more expensive than at my local dealer!

But maybe the average home consumer doesnt take the time to shop around or do research to get the best price / service.

They see it on the shelf, and say to themselves ( Like i USED to do), Lowes / HD always has the best price)


case in point...

I was a Sears Hardware and was going to buy a replacement slegde handle, it was about $6, I said to myself, Lowes must be cheaper.... i drove to Lowes and the sledge handle, which looked of poorer quality, was $8.59!!!!!

Went back to sears and bought two sledge handles and a double bit axe handle. Lowes would have cost me about $8 more for the same stuff of poorer quality.

I am finding Lowes is not to be called the low price place, but they do have everything under one roof! I'll still go there for clearance items , big buy days where I need a bunch-O-items and scratch and dent, but I will shop around at my local stores for the odds and ends.

I know I kinda took this off topic, sorry just needed to rant a little this morning!

Jim

Warminster PA, not quite hell, but it is a local phone call. SUPPORT THE TROOPS!

fishhuntcutwood

jjmk- It's no rant at all, I agree with you.  And it goes beyond that,  it goes to service, which I think is what Stihl is advertising here.  You just can't get better than walking into a good dealership where they know their stuff.  Try taking  a saw into Lowe's and telling them you need the carb richened up a little bit, and you aren't sure how to do it yourself.  You might get someone who knows what they're talking about, or who read the "Lowe's Employee Guide to Everything Chainsaws," but by and large, you're on your own for anything beyond finding a bar that will fit on it.  I'm not knocking Lowe's or Home Depot, they're cool stores, but they're not the place to buy a professional grade chainsaw and then expect respectable service beyond a warrantee return.  And from what I've heard, Lowe's doesn't sell the pro Husky's anyway.  I live in the sticks, and don't have a Lowe's within a hunder miles of me, so I've never been able to see what they carry, but I would't expect to see a lineup filled with 357's, 385's and so on.  You get what you pay for, and when you often pay the extra at a dealer, you get his (or her) expertise when you need it.

Take care all,
Jeff
MS 200T
MS 361
044
440 Mag
460 Mag
056 MII
660 Mag

StihlDoc

The question is to prompt you to an explanation of the benefits of purchasing outdoor power equipment through a servicing retailer vs. a mass merchant. STIHL products are only available through independent retailers that offer repair service, spare parts, accessories and are knowledgeable about the products they sell.

tony_marks

 mabe different other places but here in my pt of nc .. lowes does not sell any husky pro type saws..im not interested in anything but the best saw any maker puts out.. hence i dont even thgink lowes and chainsaw  togather..
they do sell the replacement for the 95 vp chain ,which i really like..

Scuba_Dave

I'm near Boston, MA. Poulan & McCullock are at HD + other models. Husky is at Lowes - $489 for the 455 Rancher - 20"
Sears also has the original 55 Rancher on sale $319

Supply & demand I guess, different marketing depending upon where you are. I had heard of Poulan, McCulloch & Husky. Can't say I had heard of Stihl until I started to look for a better saw & was using one more & more

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