I have no experience with this Makita, but thought I'd throw this out there.
After having used my father-in-law's electric chainsaw a few times, I liked it and decided to buy one myself (I don't have a gas-powered one). I bought a Remington electric saw from Home Depot or Lowes. I didn't do any research, which was very unusual for me (VERY!). It worked GREAT (well, good enough, considering what it is...) for about 3 years. Was able to EASILY take down 16-20" pine trees with it. It suddenly died after a particular job of about 30 mins of continuous use. I'm guessing I had no more than a total of about 90 mins of combined run time on it. (!!!) I checked it out online and found a HUGE number of complaints about it dying after an hour of use, etc. I took it apart and found the lead on one of the brushes had become unwelded. (Obvious design flaw when it overheats). I found a similar set of brushes from McMaster for about $5 that required a little modification with my Dremel, and I was up and running again! :eusa_danc
Now... for the more important part of the post (I really just wanted to brag that I fixed something electric and didn't just throw it out
)....
While I was out of commission on the electric saw, I needed to finish the job I had started. I went over to Walmart to see if they had a small, cheap gas saw. I stumbled upon a Black & Decker 18V cordless saw (
http://www.amazon.com/Black-Decker-CCS818-Cordless-Electric/dp/B000GIKXXU).
I was VERY reluctant to buy another B&D ANYTHING (yes... I've been down that road before), but it was on sale for something like $65. I decided to try it. I was NOT disappointed. I REALLY like it. Even though it has a short bar, I was able to take down a 12" tree. It has surprisingly good torque. The ONLY complaint (so far) is that it has really short run life on a single charge... maybe about 15 mins of usable power. For small jobs, it's been great (e.g., a single tree or a bunch of branches). I immediately questioned whether to invest in another battery ($40) for my
ONLY B&D 18V tool.... or to start investing in other B&D tools that come with the batteries (way more cost effective, but not the brand I'd prefer). Oh...one more complaint (annoyance). It has a gravity fed oil reservoir that may or may not leak oil. I fill it with the minimum amount of oil I'll need for a job, then store it in a plastic storage bin. A little oil may leak, but it's contained.
BTW, as far as prepping for turning--- I also use both of my electric saws for this purpose. I ripped this green mulberry with the corded saw (no bandsaw):
EDIT--- Oh! I forgot one of the main reasons I wanted (rationalized getting) the cordless one: I frequently do spindle turnings from small limbs (4-6"). I can't count the number of times I've driven by houses in the neighborhood after a major storm, where they have a small tree down. I occasionally throw it in the SUV after storms or during pruning season (for curbside pickings). Very convenient! (and, yes, don't forget to get permission... etc etc etc... legal disclaimer... blah blah blah...)
