*Prices include battery and
charger unless otherwise noted.
All weights include battery, bar,
and chain. Bar lengths are mea-
sured from tip to timber spike.MAKITA XCU07
PRICE: $399 WEIGHT: 11.4 lb
VOLTAGE: 36 AMP HOURS: 5
BAR LENGTH: 12 3⁄4 inches
With the Makita, you get a
compact saw that exhibits out-
standing fit and finish—at its
widest point, the saw is only
5 1⁄2 inches wide. Other saws
produced more cookies, but they
are more than 2 inches wider;
bulk and weight add up the lon-
ger you use any power tool. We
also like the Makita’s crisp chain
brake, its sensibly located on/off
switch at the front of the handle,
and the battery gauge that you
can read even in bright sunlight.
If you’re already invested in the
company’s 18-volt power tool
platform, this saw makes a nice
addition to it.
MILWAUKEE TOOL
2727-21HDPRICE: $450 WEIGHT: 14.2 lb
VOLTAGE: 18 AMP HOURS: 12
BAR LENGTH: 14 3⁄4 inchesMilwaukee has a lot of experi-
ence with electric chainsaws,
and that institutional expertise
shows in this powerful tool. It
cuts so viciously that we pushed
it harder than any other model,
even the Echo and the Stihl. This
saw flies through the cut, thanks
to an enormous motor and a bat-
tery that you could mistake for
a concrete block. And the big,
red saw gives you some con-
venient features, like onboard
storage for its scrench (screw-
driver-wrench), so you’ll always
have it when you need to tighten
the chain or remove the bar.SNAPPER SXDCS82PRICE: $310 (saw only)
WEIGHT: 14.6 lb
VOLTAGE: 82 AMP HOURS: 2
BAR LENGTH: 16 1⁄4 inchesThe Snapper is enough saw to
cut fallen branches, do a little
pruning, and stack a few burn
candidates for the firepit. If
you’ve invested in the brand’s
82-volt line of outdoor power
tools, it would make sense for
you to also put this saw in your
shed. Downsides? We discov-
ered a few. We picked up a
fair amount of vibration, and
the harder we leaned into the
saw, the more we got. A deal
breaker? No. The Snapper also
has a timber hook with oddly
rounded ends, preventing you
from digging in to pivot.HUSQVARNA 536 LIXPPRICE: $400 (saw only)
Weight: 10.2 lb
VOLTAGE: 36 AMP HOURS: 5.2
BAR LENGTH: 13 1⁄4 inchesThis easy-handling saw didn’t
produce as many cookies as
others, but it cuts quickly with-
out excess vibration. Like the
Makita, this one is slim, and it
was the lightest saw we tested.
You also get great ergonomics:
the rear handle shape with a
top-mounted safety latch that
will be familiar to chainsaw
users, the position of the front
handle and its relation to the
chain brake, and even a bar-
oil cap that has a lift-up handle.
Finally, it’s equipped with a sharp
timber spike with four points
that hook nicely into the log.BEST CONTRACTOR’S SAW BEST FLYWEIGHTC O O K I E S
37
SQUARE
INCHES CUT
1,506C O O K I E S
41
SQUARE
INCHES CUT
2,061C O O K I E S
27.5
SQUARE
INCHES CUT
1,131 C O O K I E S 25
SQUARE
INCHES CUT
1,300Tools
12PHOTOGRAPHY BY LAKOTA GAMBILL September 2019 79