I live in north central Wisconsin. I've been using chainsaws for almost 50 years. I've used most brands ranging from 30cc to 111cc, but I've never used a ported saw.
For the last 11 years I've been using a stock MS261 as a backup saw. My old go to 60cc, I used for most things, died some time ago so I've been using the 261 as my primary (not for the big stuff). To be honest I've never really been enthralled with the power of the stock 261. With an 18" bar it's about maxed out and you really can't dog it or it will stall.
I've been looking for something with more power/torque, however ideally without adding weight.
I finally ordered the ported 261 from Mike and received it a week ago. There is no question it has a very substantial increase in torque compared to the stock 261. You put it in the wood and it eats. The great bonus now is I have what feels like a 60+ CC saw with the weight of a 50cc. The lighter weight makes it extremely nimble to use. In addition, the throttle response is nearly instantaneous.
I've changed the sprocket, bar and chain to 20" 3/8 (my old 261 was 18" 325). The new saw handles the new setup without issue. This is now my new go to saw for most of the tree cutting I do.
One reason I went with 309 is the delivery time was a fraction of what other porters were quoting. In addition, something that was very important to me as I have some experience with milling machines -- Mike uses a CNC for the vast majority of modifications which eliminates the potential variability of hand porting (watch his video on YouTube).
I also have a 500i (great saw) for the big stuff -- over 20". I believe these two saws compliment each other extremely well giving me the range to complete felling, limbing, bucking of any tree I have on my heavily forested property (mixed soft and hard woods -- saplings to 40ish inches).
