Chain saw help!!

[Bob F.]

Chain saw help: history:my little Stihl bit the dust, not many hours on it, thought maybe from the 10% ethanol   Local Stihl dealer slow as heck so took it to the Husky dealer, they said piston & cylinder shot, more to fix than a new one. Gave it to a farm boy buddy, he tore it down & said they tried to "force start" it and threw it permanently out of time. Obviously, I'm no mechanic, esp 2 cycle. Input??

Gotta buy another saw, Stihl & Husky both have good reps, but now not sure if I trust the Husky dealer.



Thanks,
Bob

[roo_ster]

Chain saw help: history:my little Stihl bit the dust, not many hours on it, thought maybe from the 10% ethanol   Local Stihl dealer slow as heck so took it to the Husky dealer, they said piston & cylinder shot, more to fix than a new one. Gave it to a farm boy buddy, he tore it down & said they tried to "force start" it and threw it permanently out of time. Obviously, I'm no mechanic, esp 2 cycle. Input??

Gotta buy another saw, Stihl & Husky both have good reps, but now not sure if I trust the Husky dealer.

Thanks,
Bob

Always used pawn-shop Jonsereds, my own self.

[zxcvbob]

I like Echo saws.  The biggest problem with them is you can't get parts after about 25 years -- consumable parts like air filters and vibration isolation bushings.     The good news is it will last long enough for this to become an issue.

I bought a Husky 235E a year or two ago to have a midsize saw.  (it's their bottom-of-the-line saw and I knew that, but I thought the name still meant something)  It works OK, but it has maybe an hour on it and it's starting to feel worn out.  Don't buy a Husky 235, but a 435 is probably OK because those are still made in Sweden.

Makita should be a good brand too.  They are a rebranded Sachs Dolmar (sp?)

[RoadKingLarry]

Stihl.
Used to think lesser brands were acceptable. I had a McCulloch saw that I'd used a bunch but one day I needed a part, found out they'd gone out of business. Bought a Stihl, I'll never by anything else.

[zahc]

We use chainsaws hard.

The best brand of chainsaw ever was Partner, but they stopped making chainsaws sometime in the 90's. Dad still has a runnable Partner saw, but we can't get a coil for it, so it just sits on the shelf.

Huskies are ok. The plastic parts tend to break. They don't last forever.

Dad just locked up a nice Stihl after only a couple seasons, so our opinion of Stihl has dropped somewhat.

Right now we are favoring Echo and Johnsred. The 80cc Johnsred is our new favorite.

[Tallpine]

Gave it to a farm boy buddy, he tore it down & said they tried to "force start" it and threw it permanently out of time. Obviously, I'm no mechanic, esp 2 cycle. Input??

Makes no sense to me 

There's no valve timing, just ports built into the cylinder.

Spark timing should be just the flywheel/mag keyed into the crank.


It's probably ruined for sure now, but what do you mean "bit the dust" ?

Won't start, or made bad noises and stopped suddenly 


I wouldn't get anything other than Stihl or Husky.

From my logging years, it always seemed Stihl ran better in the summer and Husky ran better in the winter.

You got to keep the cylinder fins clean to keep it running cool.

A Stihl will run itself to death in hot weather, whereas a Husky is more "durable" in that it will just vapor lock and not run until it cools down 

Stihl takes a bit to warm up in cold weather.

[Nick1911]

I use a craptastic homelite from the 90's.  It came with the house.  *shrugs* starts every time.

My dad bought two echos in the 70's; a larger one and a smaller one.  To this day, he still uses them.  And he heats with wood.  

[Jim147]

The only new chainsaw I have is a Poulan. I got it for nothing a few years ago and have cut a bunch of hedge with it.

I have two small Homelites I use when I just need to trim or a roof needs a new hole in it. My Mac is almost 20 years old and I've had to replace the primer bulb on it. If I have something big that I need to cut up, I pull out my ancient Sears. I don't know who made it, but I sure know when I forget to set the compression release before I pull the rope.

jim

[zxcvbob]

The only new chainsaw I have is a Poulan. I got it for nothing a few years ago and have cut a bunch of hedge with it.

I have two small Homelites I use when I just need to trim or a roof needs a new hole in it. My Mac is almost 20 years old and I've had to replace the primer bulb on it. If I have something big that I need to cut up, I pull out my ancient Sears. I don't know who made it, but I sure know when I forget to set the compression release before I pull the rope.

jim

You have a compression release?  That would be so handy on my old Echo 660.  When it's not running right (as in doesn't start almost immediately) it tries to tear my arm off when I start it.  It doesn't have a primer bulb -- I like not having a primer bulb because they crack at the most inopportune times.

[Northwoods]

I've got a Husky 350.  Price was perfect (free).  I've felled and bucked quite a few trees with.  Only problem was when something got into the fan and tore it up along with the magneto  wires..

[French G.]

I stepped back and bought a consumer grade Husq new, big deal since my normal saw routine involves pawn shops. I have an old pre-squeezy bulb Craftsman that I had running good, but need to put a new fuel pick-up in it now and re-do the carb, again. Crap gas. The Husq is unloved but last week it started first pull after a year of sitting.

[zxcvbob]

Last year my little Echo saw wouldn't start, and when it finally did start it ran like crap and had no power.  Sigh, time to take it to the shop again.  I noticed that the gas cap was leaking; the E10 gas they sell up here had rotted the O-ring. I went to Ace Hardware and found a replacement O-ring that was close enough to the right size (for about 50 cents) and put it on.  I didn't expect that to do anything except stop the leak. The saw started right up.   

I had no idea it had a *pressurized* fuel tank instead of a vented one. 

[Jim147]

That's the only problem I have with the Poulan, the gas cap seals so tight I have to carry a screwdriver to open the gas cap.

I only get 10% fuel on a rare occasion. But I always put CD-2 lead sub and Staybil in all the fuel I buy since I don't know what it will be used in. Maybe that has been saving my carbs.

jim

[stevelyn]

Check out the Shindiawa Pro models. When I bought mine I was looking at Husky. Shindaiwa is a better saw and will cut circles around a Stihl or Husky. Plus they start up and run great in sub-zero cold weather and are the saws Golden Valley Electric in Fairbanks puts on their line trucks. There is only $30 difference in price between Shindiawa and Husky. 

[TechMan]

I have a Dolmar 5100S and love it.

[Bob F.]

Man, thanks gang. Now all I've gotta do is find something besides a Husky or Stihl to check out. Also, "bit the dust" meant started, but couldn't get the revs up, smooth out & no power. Bud did mention the keyway/timing.

[zxcvbob]

Also, "bit the dust" meant started, but couldn't get the revs up, smooth out & no power.

That could be as simple as a clogged fuel filter or spark arrestor screen, a carb adjustment, or a bad gas cap.

[cassandra and sara's daddy]

dirty air cleaner embarrassed me once

[zxcvbob]

dirty air cleaner embarrassed me once

A dirty spark screen in the muffler is one that nobody thinks of.  (don't ask me how I know about it)

[Ex-MA Hole]

Too bad you weren't closer, I've got a Husqvarna you you borrow for the next 50-60 years. 

[geronimotwo]

A dirty spark screen in the muffler is one that nobody thinks of.  (don't ask me how I know about it)

 i was at the local landfill and a guy was getting a newish looking craftsman saw out of the back of his truck.  i asked why he was throwing it out and he replied it had no power.  took it home and cleaned the spark arrester/muffler and it started right up.

i have had a stihl saw since 2006 and i am very happy with it.   it is one of the larger homeowner saws, which works well for me as i only use it about once every other month.  it has a primer bulb, which is a plus for a rarely used saw in that it helps fresh gas get into the carb without yanking the cord as many times.  how much do you use your saw?  purpose?

[Jim147]

I've had to clean mud dauber nests out of the exhaust many times.

jim

[Tallpine]

A couple years back my Stihl started running like crap.  On a hunch I got a new Bosch spark plug for it and then it ran great again. 

The spark plug didn't look like anything was wrong with it.

Dirty air filters cause the most problems with chainsaws - other than the big nut that holds the handle


I've never seen anything but a Stihl or Husky last more than a month of daily use in commercial logging.  Occasionally somebody would show up with something else but either the saw or the user didn't last very long.

I've never really used "homeowner" saws very much - except for a couple of crappy homelites that I started out with before I had the stihl conversion.  My Stihls have all been the 045, 044, and 046.

I've used an 031 a bit, and I think that one of our VFD saws is an 039.  We also have a brand new 460 (or something?) that is the newer version of the 046 that I have.

I have been thinking about getting a little battery powered chainsaw just for going around trimming branches, etc 

[Larry Ashcraft]

I use a Homelite 330 I bought at a pawn shop over 20 years ago.  I cut about three cords a year, plus trim and cleanup.  The old Homelite just won't quit.  I also have a smaller Echo I use as a backup, but it doesn't usually get used unless my son is helping me.

If I were to buy a new saw I would probably get a Stihl, though the Echoes seem to be really nice for their price point.

[Tallpine]

I use a Homelite 330 I bought at a pawn shop over 20 years ago.  I cut about three cords a year, plus trim and cleanup.  The old Homelite just won't quit.  I also have a smaller Echo I use as a backup, but it doesn't usually get used unless my son is helping me.

If I were to buy a new saw I would probably get a Stihl, though the Echoes seem to be really nice for their price point.

I bought a brand new Homelite 350 in the early summer of 1979.  I used it for commercial land clearing in Alaska, and then moved back to Colorado where I started logging posts and poles on the west side of Cottonwood Pass.

It lasted a couple months before I gave up on it :(

(for one thing, the Homelite would barely even run at 10,000' ASL - which was also true of the mid-size Huskies at that time period)


I never did much processed firewood, but "three cords" probably isn't even the equivalent of a day's work for a timber faller