For the average homeowner or landscaper, having a chainsaw may not be the most important thing in the world. However, this doesn’t exactly mean that you won’t need one in the near future. Chainsaws don’t just help cut large trees down and prepare them for splitting logs, but they can also help with minor tasks like pruning trees and shaping bushes.
Chainsaws come in a variety of different sizes and motors. Although gas-powered models are by far the most powerful type of chainsaw, homeowners may not need something so beefy. Instead, we’re going to focus on corded-electric chainsaw models in this article since they provide enough power for light- to medium-duty tasks and don’t produce toxic fumes in the process.
The two electric chainsaw models we’re looking at today are the RM1425 from Remington and the WG303.1 from Worx. Both of these manufacturers produce some of the best-performing garden tools, including electric chainsaws. But which of them deserves a spot in your garage workshopLet’s find out together.
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Motor Power
Remington RM1425
One of the first things to take into account when shopping for a corded-electric chainsaw is the power output. The Remington RM1425 feature an 8.0-amp motor which is best suited for light-duty work like trimming bushes, and heavier-duty jobs like cutting tree trunks.
Worx WG303.1
The Worx comes with a 14.5-amp motor which is sufficient for chopping through medium-sized tree limbs. Needless to say, it provides enough power to keep your yard’s bushes nice and even.
Conclusion: Looking at their motors alone, we feel that the Worx’s 14.5-amp motor is much more efficient and effective at handling a wider range of tasks. Anything that the Remington can do, the Worx’s motor should be able to handle with ease.
Bar Length
Remington RM1425
The length of the bar lets you know how far the chainsaw can cut into thick objects like tree trunks. The Remington comes with a 14-inch bar, meaning that you’ll need to enter tree trunks of 15 inches or wider from both sides to ensure proper felling.
Worx WG303.1
To make use of the larger motor, Worx has included a larger bar in this model. The WG303.1 comes with a large 16-inch bar which can cut cleanly through objects of up to 16 inches or so. In addition, a longer bar means you can reach higher spots in trees without having to stand on the tips of your toes.
Conclusion: In general, a longer bar is more sought after than shorter bars, but it really depends on what you’re doing and how high you need to reach. Furthermore, a longer bar could also throw you off your balance, but with only a 2-inch difference between these tools, this is hardly a risk.
Speed
Remington RM1425 and Worx WG303.1
The speed at which the chain spins is also an important factor to consider when looking at corded-electric chainsaws. You won’t get the same amount of speed as you would with gas-powered models, but you can get enough speed to handle work like cutting logs, felling small trees, and shaping bushes. Both the Remington and Worx’s motors can move their respective chains at speeds of up to 12 m/s. There aren’t many electric chainsaw models that reach speeds higher than that.
Weight
Remington RM1425
Apart from the length of the bar, the weight of the unit also plays an important role in balance. We want something that’s lightweight and compact but doesn’t feel cheap and won’t break within the first year of use. The Remington only weights 6-1/4 pounds. This is among the most lightweight electric chainsaws available on the market.
Worx WG303.1
The Worx’s weight is almost twice that of the Remington. Fully assembled, the entire WG303.1 will weigh around 11 pounds. It can also be categorized as lightweight, but it may weigh your arms down after an hour or two of use. Hit the gym and keep your arm muscles in shape to avoid fatigue.
Conclusion: From a technical standpoint, the Remington has a better weight-to-power ratio than the Worx. However, we feel that only the user can decide whether they need a more powerful chainsaw or not. Like any power tool, chainsaws with larger motors naturally weigh more. However, 11 pounds isn’t anything to fear, even when navigating the bar horizontally over bushes.
Front Guard
Remington RM1425
When it comes to quick spinning sharp objects, safety should also be your first priority. In addition, chainsaws can accidentally send twigs or other debris flying your way. It’s important to wear goggles and earplugs when operating a chainsaw. To help increase safety, the Remington comes with a wraparound hand guard to protect your hands from free-flying debris.
Worx WG303.1
The Worx also comes with a forward-facing guard, but it’s not a complete wraparound like in the Remington. Although it doesn’t wrap around your hand, it still does a decent job at keeping your hand and arm adequately covered so pieces of flying debris don’t scrap your skin.
Conclusion: Whenever you operate a chainsaw, we highly recommend wearing gloves and long-sleeve shirts or jackets to protect as much of your skin as possible from flying wood chips and twigs. Looking at both of these tools’ front guards, we like the aesthetics of the Remington’s more than the Worx’s. Functionally, though, they’re identical.
Remington vs Worx : Verdict
Now comes the hard part: determining which of these corded-electric chainsaws is the better model. Looking at their specs, we feel that the Worx is the overall better tool but only by a small margin. It comes with a beefier motor and a longer bar, but their speeds are the same, and it’s almost twice as heavy as the Remington.
The most important thing to decide is whether you need a 16-inch or a 14-inch bar. If you’re only planning on cutting twigs, small branches, and chopping away unruly leaves from bushes, then either of these tools would be great. In fact, you may not even need the extra 2 inches to prune your trees and shape bushes. However, if you’re going to fell trees, you need to consider the width of the trunk and purchase a chainsaw based on that. In conclusion, we recommend the Worx WG303.1 over the Remington RM1425, but with a HUGE asterisk.
Electric Chainsaw | Recommended
Last update on 2024-04-22 / Affiliate links / Images from Amazon Product Advertising API
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