Makita XCU03PT1 18V X2 (36V) LXT Lithium-Ion Brushless Cordless 14" Chain Saw Kit with, 4 Batteries (5.0Ah)

I heat with a woodstove and take dead/downed wood from my land to feed the stove. But I supplement this with wood deliveries so I am not cutting huge amounts of timber every year. So I use a chainsaw a fair bit more than most homeowners probably do, but I am not using this saw professionally or daily.I've had several cheap gas chainsaws over the years, and frankly I hated all of them. They have a lot of fussy maintenance, you need ear protection when you run them, and inevitably you will find yourself swearing at them when they refuse to start and you need to get some work done.This solves a lot of those issues and is perfect for homeowners, landscapers or to keep in your 4WD. It has basically the same cutting power as a small, light duty gas saw. But it starts every time and requires no maintenance beyond adding oil and sharpening the blades occasionally. It is also far quieter than a gas chainsaw, which I certainly appreciate.It is well made like all Makita stuff, with good weight balance, making it easy to control. In fact it feels and works just like a small gas chainsaw.I do not find the battery life with 4 batteries to be a problem in normal use. But I would not buy this with just 2 batteries. I haven't formally tested it but it feels like you can run the saw under load maybe 20-25 minutes of per charge, which is a enough to make a fair number of cuts, but you are not going to cut up anything except the smallest tree with one set of batteries. With 4 batteries you can't run the saw continuously, largely because the batteries get hot and have to cool down before they can be charged again. But I find that working at a normal, deliberate pace, taking breaks occasionally, I am almost never without juice if I drop the dead batteries on the charger and then go back to work with the spare set. Fortunately, the charger runs a fan to cool the batteries and then will automatically start charging them when safe to do so, so that is very easy to manage.This is not a saw you are going to use every day, but few people need a saw that performs to that level. For the kinds of tasks you would normally use a small gas chainsaw for, this is an ideal replacement.

I've owned a couple of my own chainsaws. And used some higher end Stihl models. All of them are insanely maintenance intensive. If you're smart, you take them into a maint shop at the beginning of the summer and sometime around the fall. Most of the fire departments I know own half a dozen Stihls, and a couple are in the shop at any given time. It's just how chainsaws are.This? This is "put charged batteries in chainsaw, make sure the chain is on, fill bar oil tank, you're good". It starts instantly. Always. Doesn't matter of it's cold. No mixing gas and oil. No futzing around with the carb. No worries about leaking gas. You can leave this in your car and not worry.It has enough power to cut through trees at least two feet wide. I'm tend to work slowly and cautiously, so I don't need more than that. Typically a battery will last me 2-4 hours of work. If I was operating flat out cutting continuously, it lasts about an hour. As I own 4 pairs of batteries, it's not a concern for me.People complain about the button thing. It's not a big deal. You get used to it, and it's a safety function. People very used to gas chainsaws complain up a storm, because they're used to idling the chainsaw and the chainsaw being more than loud enough to tell you it's ready to go. Electric chainsaws don't have any noise to tell you it's live. So yes, you have to hit the idiot button to make it live. If you work with gas chainsaws every day for decades, it probably is annoying as it's very different. If not, it's not a big deal. And certainly not "zOMG dangerous" safety feature. For a normal person that used a gas chainsaw regularly but not daily, it'll take you 10 minutes to get used to it.Oregon bars fit perfectly. The Oregon chains work well, but tend to get thrown more often than I'd like. It'll take you a bit to figure out how to tension the bar perfectly. I threw more chains than I'd care to admit working it out. Weirdly, Power Care (cheaper brand) chains seem to working better for me than the more expensive Oregon chains.I've dropped couple dozen trees, limbed them and then sectioned, no issues.If you're going to be using a chainsaw daily, stick to gas Stihl. If you use chainsaws once in a while or just on the weekends, buy this. I only wish I had done so years ago.

I got this saw in 2018 (over 5 years now) and has over 40 hours of use. If I’m going out to cut for a short time and I know it’s mostly small stuff (under 14”) then I’ll leave the Stihls at home and take an extra set or 2 of batteries. Using a postal scale (very accurate) the saw without batteries with around half a tank of bar oil and a bit of sawdust is 8 lbs 13 oz. A pair of 3.0Ah batteries add 2 lbs 13 oz and strangely enough the 5.0Ah were the same (both are Makita batteries that were sold and shipped by Amazon). That makes it about 1-2 lbs heavier than the poplar Stihl MS201T which is a professional top-handle saw.This is a great saw if you need to get into a tree and for trimming or pruning because it’s so light. Instant on at the push of a button with time delay auto-off and battery indicators. Perfect saw for anyone needing occasional use saw that has already bought into the Makita 18v line. No gas to worry about draining/replacing for storage. Perfect to take it camping or clean up of limbs from storm damage.I have some work coming up that going to put me up in the tree before cutting and plan to give this Makita a try before buying one of the top handle gas units.The replacement 14” chain from Oregon is 90PX052G. I’d recommend one of the 2-in-1 sharpeners if you have a bench vice or something like the Oregon stump vice 26368A. The 2-in-1 will also set the proper height on depth gauge (the little bump between the cutters). Make sure it’s the 3/8 LP (low profile version). I’ve been using my bench chain grinder but think the 2-in-1 is better.