The DeWalt is the pick for best overall, and it is not close. It made the
quickest cut in all three cutting tests — 12.49 seconds through the laminated
softwood log, 14.34 seconds with a fixed 5 lb on the bar and 11.51 seconds
through Osage orange — beating the gas Stihl MS 250 in every one of them. It
also ties the Greenworks for the most stall torque at 66 lb and finished first overall
across the performance tests, further ahead of second
place than second is of eighth. The costs are weight and endurance: at 15.2 lb
it is the heaviest saw here, and its 240 Wh pack was flat in about 6 minutes 12
seconds of continuous cutting.
For most buyers the EGO is the better purchase. At $300 with a battery and
charger it was second-fastest in all three cutting tests, ran 10 minutes 20
seconds on a charge, and is a pound and a half lighter than the DeWalt. Its
47 lb stall figure is modest, but it carries chain speed into the cut better
than any saw except the DeWalt, which is what actually moves wood. If runtime is
the priority instead, the Husqvarna is the answer — its 270 Wh pack ran just
over 15 minutes, more than three minutes clear of the ECHO in second, and it
still cut the softwood log in 17.65 seconds. The Milwaukee and Greenworks are
worth a look for anyone already on those battery platforms: both make big torque
(65 and 66 lb) and both reward an operator willing to lean on the saw, but both
need more than 5 lb of bar pressure to cut at their best.
Two cautions. High no-load chain speed is not a buying signal — the Ryobi and
Atlas spin the fastest chains in the group at 12,353 and 11,953 RPM and finished
eighth and seventh, with the Atlas stalling three times in the softwood log and
three more in the Osage orange. And the cheapest entry is cheap for a reason:
the KTYU measured 6,556 RPM against an 11,000 RPM claim, overheated during its
first cut, and needed 58 seconds in softwood and 72 in hardwood against the
DeWalt's 12.49 and 11.51. On the wider question, a good cordless saw now
out-cuts the best gas saw in this size class, so for storm cleanup and occasional
firewood the gas can is genuinely optional. For all-day professional work the
runtime figures still favour gasoline, unless the budget stretches to several
spare packs.
