The new Spring edition of Living Woods Magazine, contains a very special section for us! Arborist expert and LWM writer, Rich Hare writes a chainsaw review on our very own Feider Chainsaw – Pro 45.
Living Woods Magazine is a quarterly magazine for everyone who loves woodlands, trees and timber. You can subcribe for free and read past issues as well as this Spring’s issue here.
Here is a small extract from this spring’s magazine, reviewing the Feider Pro 45 Chainsaw.
Winter is a busy time in the woods, a time when all your kit gets a good run out and when breakdowns and downtime can be annoying and expensive. Chainsaws particularly take a hammering, so I was pleased to get to try a Feider 45
Pro saw, a brand I must admit I had never heard of before. Coincidentally, I had just changed my Stihl MS260 which had served me well for ten years, for a new MS261, which is a 50cc saw and can be roughly compared with the 46cc Feider.
The Feider came boxed with everything I needed to get going: chain oil, two stroke, small mixing can, spare chain, some rudimentary PPE, a socket for the chain cover/spark plug and a small screwdriver for carb adjustments.
I took the chain cover off – although, as the nuts are not captive, put a couple of spares in your kit.
Smooth operation
The brake band is on the underside of the cover which means the sprocket is between the clutch drum and the saw body. Personally, I find this a bit of a faff for changing bars and chains, but those who are used to Husqvarna saws will be familiar with this design and not find any problems.The bar and chain are good quality supplied by Oregon.
Operating the chain brake is simple: push forward to apply and back to release. It took a bit of getting used to as it seemed to need a firm pull in order to release it.
The air filter and spark plug are easily accessible under a snap-off top cowling. Annoyingly, the spring which connects the plug to its wire came off when I pulled the boot off. It was easily put back on, but could be a nuisance in the woods The oil and fuel filler caps are simple and robust, with a thumb turn. It does have a slot which takes the slotted head screwdriver on the supplied socket should you
need a mechanical advantage to open it. Unfortunately
the diameters of the holes are smaller than the auto-stop nozzles on my filler can, so a free hand approach was called for when topping up the levels.On first use, the machine started easily and picked up revs fairly quickly. It has a primer next to the choke lever but no decompression valve, although the starter cord is easy to pull. I cross-cut some dry chestnut about 8in. in diameter with no difficulties.Then I cleared up a couple of windblown stools.The saw is light and fairly agile, though I may be tempted to put a slightly smaller bar on for this kind of work.
In conclusion, I think this saw offers good value for its features. It’s probably half the price or less than the leading brands, so it would make for a fine entry-level saw. I would probably be more inclined to use it as a back-up or for lighter work such as snedding and smaller coppicing. It might also make a useful addition to anyone who regularly mounts tools like the very handy Mortice Safe on their saws, as it would save a lot swapping and changing bars and chains in the field.
With thanks for Living Woods Magazine and Rich Hare.
The Feider Pro 45 is available from Mow Direct, price £239 (RRP £299)
