# Ryobi 40V Chainsaw (14" Bar)



## mengtian (Nov 8, 2012)

I have to admit I was leary of purchasing a battery powered chainsaw. I have a great Stihl I use for heavy work. But alot of the times (twice a year) I need to go out and do a lot or trimming and backing off of branches and my Stihl becomes a PITA. Larger and heavier.

Anyhoo, I purchassed the Ryobi from HD (Model # RY40511
14 in. 40-Volt Brushless Cordless Chainsaw). It works great. I was able to go through 5 inch oak branches like butter. Battery life is pretty good considering, about 1 hour. But I have a Ryobi 40V weed eater that has the same battery so I got about 2 hours of work from it.

Power was great.


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## Mort (Jan 4, 2014)

Good to see a review from someone who actually bought one. Seems like all of Y'allTube tool reviews never have any gripes about them. Odd.


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## Chamfer (Sep 6, 2014)

Kobalt and Makita also have batt powered saws but they use either 2 20v or 2 18v from their existing line up. Are you saying the Ryobi takes one 40v batt? Kinda hard to tell from your description. Just curious.

Glad to hear you like it.


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## mengtian (Nov 8, 2012)

Chamfer said:


> Kobalt and Makita also have batt powered saws but they use either 2 20v or 2 18v from their existing line up. Are you saying the Ryobi takes one 40v batt? Kinda hard to tell from your description. Just curious.
> 
> Glad to hear you like it.


Yup..just one 40V battery. The saw comes with the battery and charger. It is the slimline (lower capacity) battery but it still rocks for about an hour. 

Maybe the confusion was becuae I mentioned I have a second battery. That one came with the weedeater and it is interchangeable.

BTW: The weed eater does about an acre of weeding and still was going strong :icon_smile:


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## Chamfer (Sep 6, 2014)

Thanks for the reply. Those are some pretty impressive run times.


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## mengtian (Nov 8, 2012)

Chamfer said:


> Thanks for the reply. Those are some pretty impressive run times.


Yup, and the charger brings it to a full charge in under 45 minutes (box says 1 hour but it is quicker than that)

I am not a big Ryobi fan but the weed eater and chain saw seem to fit the bill for us.


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## bauerbach (Mar 25, 2012)

Chamfer said:


> Kobalt and Makita also have batt powered saws but they use either 2 20v or 2 18v from their existing line up. Are you saying the Ryobi takes one 40v batt? Kinda hard to tell from your description. Just curious.
> 
> Glad to hear you like it.



not sure if thats true...

http://www.lowes.com/ProductDisplay...gId=10051&cmRelshp=req&rel=nofollow&cId=PDIO1

http://www.lowes.com/ProductDisplay...gId=10051&cmRelshp=req&rel=nofollow&cId=PDIO1

I dont see a 2x option from kobalt.

makita has it both ways, but Im not sure if the 2x18v isnt just an adaptor for the 36v chainsaw.

This is the pure 36v one http://www.makitatools.com/en-us/Modules/Tools/ToolDetails.aspx?Name=HCU02C1

There is a push for the 2x battery platform, since many own batteries for hand tools, and reusing them in garden equipment would be cost effective.


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## xxshadowxx (Jul 20, 2015)

mengtian said:


> I have to admit I was leary of purchasing a battery powered chainsaw. I have a great Stihl I use for heavy work. But alot of the times (twice a year) I need to go out and do a lot or trimming and backing off of branches and my Stihl becomes a PITA. Larger and heavier.
> 
> Anyhoo, I purchassed the Ryobi from HD (Model # RY40511
> 14 in. 40-Volt Brushless Cordless Chainsaw). It works great. I was able to go through 5 inch oak branches like butter. Battery life is pretty good considering, about 1 hour. But I have a Ryobi 40V weed eater that has the same battery so I got about 2 hours of work from it.
> ...


Ok. What am I doing wrong? I'm only getting about 2-3 cuts tops in a 10-12" tree that's been laying in the yard for two years. It's killing my battery. Half the tree is rotten. I'm getting 5 minutes run time or less. 
The saw is brand new. I've already taken one back and made an exchange because I figured I got a bad battery. 

Every review I've seen got good reviews and good run time of at least 30 minutes on the slim battery like I have. I even charged the battery and let the saw cut through by itself with no pressure. That's when I got 3 cuts. I got 1-2 when I put a little pressure. Literally 2-5 minutes and the battery is dead from a full charge. 

I know it's not just made to cut 12" trees but I figured I should get more than a few minutes run time.


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## mengtian (Nov 8, 2012)

I do not have an answer. What kind of tree? Is it oak or pine? Anyho, 12 inch is a lot for that saw.


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## xxshadowxx (Jul 20, 2015)

It's an oak. It's real rotten. Only 6-8" is pretty solid. I wasn't bogging the saw down at all. 

I feel if I was cutting down a 6-8" tree and cutting it up it would be about the same thing.


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## mako1 (Jan 25, 2014)

I am pleased to hear that you are pleased with the new cordless. tool.Glad it is working out for you.
But,I would never ,ever buy any cordless tool that I could only get 1 hrs' use out of before having to start and wait another on it to recharge.Even if I used it 1 hour a year.
Just a differences in preferences.I just dump a bit more gas in mine and keep going all year.Even if I don't use it but a couple times a year,it's ready to go when I need it and I can buy a lifetime of gas for it for what one of your batteries will cost.
I own several thousand dollars worth of cordless tools that get daily use but a chainsaw,weedeater.lawnmower or sawzall will probably never be any of them.


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## xxshadowxx (Jul 20, 2015)

Wanted to let everyone know that I bought the 40v weedeater despite not being happy about the chainsaw. 

The weedeater actually came with a full size batter and charger were as the chainsaw came with the smaller battery and charger. Why? I have no idea. That small battery is worthless. 

After fully charging both batteries and cutting the same tree here is the results. 

Big battery- 12 minutes of solid cut time
Small battery- 2 minutes of solid cut time. 

Big battery- 4 cuts through a 12" pine tree
Small battery- 1 1/4 cuts in the same tree

Small battery actually seemed way stronger and cut twice as fast. It defnitly cut through the tree way faster. It just didn't last long. 

Weedeater
Small battery- 10 minutes fully charged 
Big battery- 20 minutes only half charged straight out the box. 

I'll be testing full big battery tomorrow hopefully


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## mengtian (Nov 8, 2012)

I do a half acre lot with the big battery with the weed eater and it is about half left on the charge,


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## OCCD (Jul 24, 2018)

Something is wrong here. After Hurricane Irma I bought a 10" 18V Ryobi brushed chansaw (the only one available at the local HD,) and I bucked four 10-12" trees, approximately four cords of wood. I used four 4,0 Ah batteries without recharging. And the 18V is only a 10" bar, nowhere near the power or capacity of the 14" 40V saw. Other than adjusting the chain when needed and keeping it oiled, (it is not a self oiler, you have to pause every couple minutes and repeatedly push the little rubber oiler button three or four times whilst letting the saw spin freely to oil the chain,) nothing was done to this saw. I know that I vastly exceeded its design spec and it is slow (4.7 mps chain speed without load,) but it doesn't bog. I would expect the 40V saw to perform much better, especially if you opt for the 5.0 Ah battery. Depending on how a battery is wired (in serial, parallel or both,) and the quality of the cells (which are constantly improving,) improvements in performance as well as run time are seen with increasing battery size, at least up to about 6.0 Ah. I would contact the Ryobi team because they either included a battery that is far too weak for the tool or maybe your saw needs a chain adjustment or came from a bad batch. My little 10" is always in my truck, quick and easy to use in a pinch. The 14" 40V is for more serious work. I really have no use for a gas powered chainsaw anymore. (If I did I would buy a pro grade Stihl withan 18-20" bar.) I love the lack of maintenance.


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