Stihl MS 181 C-BE Mini Boss with Easy2Start

Absolute Rubbish, right from new this thing takes so long to start, no matter what you do,unfortunately i have their Wipper Snipper too, same deal, Rubbish, have to take annual leave when you know you have to do a job, because the first few days is just trying to start the thing. You would think after all these years that Stihl have been in production, their machines would start first time every time.

I had virtually the same chainsaw purchased in NZ four years ago, it rarely required multiple attempted starts, even though it sat for 9 months at a time over the four years.......
Now purchased the MS181 easy start from Burnie and nothing but a lemon, every time multiple pulls before it decides to go with another issue being that if the chain comes off inadvertently because of what you cut it snags on the easy adjustment cox and scours the chain runners, then you spend more time having to files the scuffs from the chain.
If you run out of fue...

Bought this with the husband who is very happy. Slices through sugar gum like butter. Great little work horse. Certainly makes cutting an easy job. Light in the hands and easy to manoeuvre. Wish i had bought a Stihl years ago, such a great brand. Was given a free chain when I bought it. Highly recommend.

After returning a small Poulan saw (brand new) that just wouldn't start, I purchased this Stihl MS181, for small clean-up sawing around my property. Yesterday afternoon, with the sun already fading, I cranked up the new saw and it started almost immediately. I tackled several 8" downed hardwood trees downed by recent storms in our area (southern New Hampshire). The saw performed flawlessly, for slicing up 18" lengths for my woodstove. I'm thrilled with the results...

Bought this only recently upon the recommendation of a friend who couldn’t be happier with his, and after having a husqvarna that I had nothing but trouble with trying to start, as I would just about pull my arm out of the socket, I absolutely love it, I have used it for approximately 8 hours so far, and with the easy start, it starts first go everytime and the simple to use chain tensioner making it a breeze, being a light weight chainsaw, you won’t need to put it down to often. Obviously if you need to do some heavy cutting, you may consider a bigger machine, but for the home handyman with a few acres of property to maintain, or someone in need of chopping some firewood, I would thoroughly recommend this machine.

I can't understand the negative comments. I bought mine from the Innisfail store about 2 weeks ago and it has done everything I have asked of it. Compared to my last chain saw it is heaven to start. The only thing that might be confusing to people is that on first start in requires a few starts to get it warm but once that has happened it operates at full power for as long as needed.
The Easy2Start is really cool. You can hold the chainsaw by the handle in your left hand and a half pull of the chord and the engine bursts into life.
I am very happy and would highly recommend it.

I use this saw for my business
I found that the teeth on the chain were too small
So i got a smaller bar to run the bigger tooth chain
Plenty of power for what it is and very easy to start when following proper starting procedure
Full choke ond pull then back to run one pull first start every time
I would not use anything else

Purchased a Stihl MS 181C Mini Boss a couple of years ago. Since then it has been repaired for excessive oil leaks, but also remains hard to start and to turn off. Some arborists came to my property to prune a Tasmanian Blue Gum and Liquidambar and asked to borrow my Stihl MS 181C Mini Boss to cut up fallen branches lying on the ground. The chainsaw was difficult to start and stopped repeatedly when cutting. On one occasion the arborists couldn't even turn the chainsaw off. They described the chainsaw as dangerous and unreliable. Disappointing for a $500 + chainsaw. Look elsewhere when purchasing a new chainsaw.

This saw is just ok and struggles to cut anything but very small timber. It seems underpowered and
is not quick to start. Ergonomically, it is comfortable to hold and us fine with tiny branches but anything more than 6-7cm thick is a total struggle, even with a sharpened chain.

I also had the misfortune to spend far too much on an MS181C. Was back after less than an hour with blocked fuel filter. The dealer tried to charge me but no way. It's the same fuel I've been using on by Stihl blower. This saw is difficult to start and not very powerful for it's size. I won't be buying Stihl again.