Are Stihl .325" Rapid Duro 3 carbide-tipped chainsaw chains worth it?

Hi all,
Just a question are Stihl .325" Rapid Duro 3 carbide-tipped chainsaw chains worth the cost for cutting up pine and other trees for firewood cause here in NZ they're $130 a chain and the Stihl NZ site says they last 4X longer than regular chains and that's tempting me despite the cost.

I think you may have to grind that chain to sharpen it. I like Oregon chains myself. They run about 20 bucks here and they sharpen pretty easy. I'd rather have four chains, once in a while you break a chain or hit a nail in a tree. A carbide doesn't do much better with nails or rocks. I cut down a big old dead birch three years ago and it was full of sand in the middle. I ruined a brand new chain and my bar. I have no clue as to how the sand got into that old tree., it was totally enclosed. It appears that the bottom of the tree was actually roots and possibly the ground settled that much in a hundred twenty five years. A couple of other old trees in that area have the root showing a couple of feet.

I would say that such a blade would be a good investment for a logger, or someone who uses their saw professionally or regularly.
Consider that were you to purchase such a chain, you would need to have it sharpened periodically by a professional, which compounds the cost to you.
Pine is a soft wood; even with a regular chain, a decent saw should cut it like butter.
I would recommend to anyone using a chainsaw, to learn how to sharpen your own chain, along of course with the usual engine maintenance. It is not difficult, saves money, and could get you out of a jam if you suddenly find that your only blade is dull. All you need is a file, perhaps an angle guide.
Thusly, a good standard chain ($25 USD) might serve the casual firewood cutter nicely for years.

The last poster's idea is good, too! One cane buy five chains for the cost, and use them in rotation. Then, when they dull, take the batch in to have them all sharpened by a pro.

reply to post by ecapsretuo

Good idea buying a set of 5 regular chains but in NZ they're around $50 a chain so it would cost NZD$350 for five chains.Plus i do cut up a bit of wattle which is considered an overgrown weed and that's a bugger to cut and split when dry plus the native manuka and kanuka trees are a hardwood tree but it make great firewood but mostly i cut up logs of pine from trees that have been cut down because they have too many branches to be milled into timber for construction and i get those from Woodhill Forest owned by Hancock Forest Management after they purchased the license from Carter Holt Harvey.
Honestly i've got bigger things to worry about like how much it will cost to get Treescape in to remove this bloody big pine on my section because the needles clog the house rainwater gutters up.

reply to post by Conspiracyskeptic


You are just cutting pine, a soft wood? How much?

Where I am at in the states, a regular stihl chain costs about $5 dollars to resharpen. I have two of them, one on the saw and the other as a back up when I am out cutting. I cut only oak and one sharpening easily lasts me 2-3 cords. I would see no need for a $135 chain which will still need sharpening, albeit not quite as often.

From the business side, I see it as making wood just that much more expensive to harvest. But it's your call, you may need it.