Stihl MS250 vs MS251 chains, Which one do I need?

I’ve got 3 older Stihl professional model saws and a pole saw. I’ve got bad knees but own a house on a private 50 acre lake and own 120 acres of hardwood beside and around the lake that buffers our lake house and makes it feel more private and remote. I manage the hardwood solely for hunting and enjoying the solitude. Our lake house is completely canopied by big oaks but the private drive had some pine and smaller trees that occasionally fall across the driveway and I want a lighter duty chainsaw just for limbing and cutting them into manageable size pieces to pile up for small game. I had a nice lighter Stihl chainsaw that was about 8 years old that I used for this but it was stolen so I’m going to replace it. From Stihl’s website it looks like the Stihl MS250 or MS251 would be fine for this light duty work. The MS250 is a lot less expensive but I think the MS251 is worth the extra money but it’s been awhile since I kept up with Stihl saws so I thought I’d inquire if anybody is familiar with these two models and how much difference there is between them. Any input or thoughts on these would be appreciated.

Visit a Stihl dealer and have them earn their money.

Here’s a link too.
https://www.woodsmanreport.com/stihl-ms250-vs-ms251/

Today’s Stihl saws are not the same as those 15+ years ago. There’s far more plastic parts and components that will fail earlier. In my opinion, other brands are now in-play for my next purchase if either of my older Stihls bites the dust. Don’t limit your options.

buckybadger wrote:

Today’s Stihl saws are not the same as those 15+ years ago. There’s far more plastic parts and components that will fail earlier. In my opinion, other brands are now in-play for my next purchase if either of my older Stihls bites the dust. Don’t limit your options.

Unfortunately the same can be said for everything these days.
Gas is a major culprit for a lot failures. I run nonoxy of course but still run it dry if not going to be used for a while. General maintenance and cleanup goes a long way too.
I’ve run stihl for years and really never had any issues and burn wood so I cut alot. Eventually, I kill em but only after a a lot hours on em.

I did notice that they’re there’s a lot of plastic but there’s also a lot less weight which is a big factor for me now. My other Stihl saws are professional models but they’re probably 25 to 30 years old and they seem to have gotten heavier with every year.lol I’m looking for more of a weekender and weight’s a big issue as I’m getting older and using chainsaws a lot less. I am looking at Stihl’s chainsaws because all of the ones I’ve had have been outstanding saws but I’m just looking for a reliable weekend warrior model and I’m hoping they’re lighter duty saws are worth the money. The one I had that was stolen was a good one but I’m amazed at how they’ve evolved in just a few years. I hoped the MS251 was worth the $150+ more than the MS250. I appreciate your input.

I did read that and thanks for providing the link. From this and some of the reading on Stihl’s website, I’m still not seeing that much to explain the steeper price of the 251. Thanks for your help.

The gas today really does breakdown quicker and even with a fuel stabilizer, I won’t use it after a month. I use those thick pieces of paper attached by two pieces of wire to write down when I mixed the gas and oil so I know how fresh it is and if’s over a month, I just dump the old fuel & mix up a fresh batch. That’s worked for well for me over five decades and while that fuel might be fine with the stabilizer in it, I’d rather just be certain. I keep the tanks full on the older saws so I don’t have water condensation in the tanks the empty them out put fresh fuel in when I do need them. My small engine repair guy says 80% of the problems he deals with are related to crappy fuel.