This machine left me with much to be desired. I received this as a gift at my request because I live in a heavily wooded area. It is not unusual in my area for a wind or thunderstorm to knock down a dozen trees on my ten mile stretch of road to work. I thought I needed a good chain saw to keep in the back of my car for when these types of occasions arise. This chainsaw isn't heavy duty at all. The blade that came on the saw seems sharp enough but the saw just doesn't have any power. The recommendation is to not run this saw for more than 30-45 seconds at the fullest speed but sometimes a girl needs power to get through large trees and logs. Additionally, this thing just doesn't want to go through large trees at all. I tried cutting up a tree that had about a 14-18 inch diameter and the saw just wouldn't go it. It sounds as if it were going to blow up on me. Luckily for me, someone else with a larger saw came to my aid. I use this thing now just for small branches and yard trimming around my house. This saw has became nothing more than a small hedge clipper. I look fairly ridiculous trimming quarter inch to one inch thick branches and hedges with this thing. It was a complete let down for what I was hoping for. If you have small trees under a 6-8 inches in diameter then this may be for.

clinen11

USA

I purchased the Craftsman 18 inch chain saw #358351820 and read the instructions carefully before I used it. It started after the 3rd pull, and after reading about problems with this saw I was not expecting the excellent results I got. The saw started quickly, I cut a 32 inch log with no problem and did not even have to use full throttle. The saw was quieter and had less vibration than my previous Poulan saw, cut straight using less power than my previous saw and the carb was adjusted perfectly right out of the box.  I am happy with this saw after 2 hours of use it was working perfectly. One thing I might add is that fuel with alcohol in it will cause problems starting and running on any gas engine with a carb. Other problems I have read about seem to point to the fuel not being completely mixed with oil just before using the saw.

aeromike49

East Brookfield, MA

After we experienced the ice storm here in upstate NY in December, our back yard looked like a tornado had hit it....trees and limbs down everywhere! With the help of our Craftsman 18" Chain Saw, our backyard should look as good as new by the spring. I only hope our neighbors go out and buy their own, we're getting a little tired of being the "good Samaritans" and the tree service guys who are trying to make a living aren't too pleased with us either. Well, we couldn't find a generator during the storm, but having the craftsman 18" chain saw for clean-up afterwards has made it a little less painful.

lucky7559

Troy, NY

Okay...to be quite honest, this is not a review of the Craftsman 18" inch chainsaw...yet. I've just purchased one and this review is to pay homage to my Craftsmen 20" inch chainsaw, which finally gave up after 15 years of hard labor. If the 18" inch holds up half as well, it will be one great tool. I purchased the 20" Craftsman chainsaw fifteen years ago with the primary goal of cutting up logs. I would have truck loads of logs delivered to my home and I would then cut them into rounds, split, then stack them, for use in my woodburning fireplace, the sole source of heat for my home at the time. I would always ask the truckers to bring me thin logs, preferably something whose diameter was less than that of my chainsaw's 20" inch blade length, but instead I often ended up with logs that were almost fourty inches across, twice the saws blade length. I can't tell you how many cords of wood I forced that saw through, but I can tell you I cut fir, cottonwood, alder and maple with that saw and it never failed me. It always started easily and ran solidly until it ran out of fuel. Fifteen years later, my chainsaw gave up the ghost. I will probably have it repaired at some point, but I needed....okay...I wanted a new saw. Due to the reliability of my old Craftsman, I've purchased a new one. I'll be using it this weekend to finish the job that my old saw couldn't. The new chainsaw boasts of some new features such as simplified chain adjustment. I'm looking forward to that.  I'll have a review of the 18" inch saw shortly after I finish this job. Don't worry, I'll try to keep the noise, and the dust, down to a minimum.

ConsumingDesire

Lake Stevens, WA

This 18" Craftsman chain saw is a piece of junk.  They should replace the craftsman with crapsman!  We have owned it for a short amount of time and have only used twice. It lacks power to cut, you are limited to small logs or branches.  The first time we used it, it did okay, but wouldn't cut very well and was very slow.  The second time we used it, we could not get it to start for anything! My husband cleaned the carb, and did everything to get it to run and it would not.  He is Mr. Fix-it to a T, and if he couldn't fix it, nobody can!  We ended up buying a Stihl chainsaw from a different store and there is a HUGE difference!  I wouldn't recommend Craftsman Chainsaws to anyone, unless you want a reason to cuss and swear and throw tools (and the chain saw too)!

charbear

Spanish Fork, UT

I purchased this 18 inch Craftsman chain saw in Sept of 07. I got tired of paying someone to cut up medium trees that were being toppled after storms. I had previously used a 14 inch electric but it was just not powerful enough for all but the lightest jobs. The Craftsman 18 inch starts easily if you follow the instructions. If you already think you know how to start a saw and fail to follow the instructions you will have a hard time starting it. Saw cuts well as long as you keep the chain sharp. The fastest way to dull a chain in to touch the ground with the rotating chain while using it. I would guess that this saw would be at it's best in light duty around home use. The tool-less chain tension adjuster works well and is easy to use but after every use it would be a good idea to remove the bar and adjuster assembly and clean out all loose debris. The adjustment works much better the next time you go to use it. Remember this is not an industrial chain saw and neither is the price expensive either. Just be sure to be cautious with the use of this saw any any other power tool.

egoldeng

Richmond, VA

Bought this chainsaw after Hurricane Ike felled the old Oak tree in our backyard.  It had been some time since I logged a tree - in fact it was 30yrs ago when I was in the Boy Scouts doing my Back-Woods-badge that I last logged a complete tree! Anyway, this 18"Craftsman chainsaw was a dream to use and made a dificult job relatively easy.  The safety brake bar for the chain was great allowing the saw to left running on the ground while moving logs out of cutting area BUT importantly not allowing the chain to run.  The easy start feature proved very easy to use and the slot on teh bar for simple chain tension adjustment proved excellent - simply used a flat heazd screwdriver to achieve best tensioning.  If there was one negative it was that the chain supplied with the saw dulled quickly on my Oak tree - but a new chain proved to be better quality and remained sharp for 2 more trees (remainder of this Oak plus two 120ft Pine trees).  All in all - a good buy.  Faster, cleaner, more convenient and very satisfyling than waiting for the tree surgeons to arrive. 

rockdoc99

The Woodlands, TX

**Craftsman 18 inch chain saw** - the saw worked well- for about 10 minutes! Then it would not stay running if you increased the engine speed (how can you cut anything when it's idling?). It finally quit and would not start at all. Returned it and ordered a Husqvarna.  I know they are reliable.

J222

Walcott, IA

I've bought Sears/Craftsman/Kenmore for years.  Ok, so may be I'm working the machine too hard, since I'm cutting down 150 foot tree's and Ok, the book says to not run the engine at high throttle for longer than 30 seconds.  But come on, this year I burnt out 6 of these 40 cc engines andlast year about the same.  One things I do love Sears' warranty.  I get a new one every time. I will recommend though, that if you're cutting something big and want your saw to last, get the Stihl or Husquavarna (Husky is now sold at Sears).  If I burn out one more, I'm upgrading to the Huskiy.

Pearilous

Sharon, MA