Chainsaw Won't Start

[studor]

Ok --be honest -- you slammed it down or threw it when it would not start -- then you came back and it fired up. Something about leaving two strokes when they won't start the first time then coming back later seems to get the desired result
Oh well glad to hear it worked out

 

[loglove]

Random jet adjustments worked wonders for me when my STIHL started stalling.

 

[RonMar]

Although the spark checking method above will work just fine, I'm always a little cautious, because at that point I've likely got out the bottle of starting fluid, dumped in a little gas in the carb, etc. Basically, I've had quite a bit of flammable gas in the open around the engine, and I get paranoid about some of it going off with the spark from the plug. (Never happened, mind you, but still...)

To alleviate my fears, I picked up this little guy on sale for $1.99. I've only used it a couple of times, but it seems to work fine, and it is faster / easier than pulling the plug:
Inline Spark Checker for Recessed Plugs #97577

-Steve

And how exactly does that little jewel help you? Looking at the parts in the pic, it all appears to go in line with the plug wire and plug top terminal. this would be handy to detemine if the ignition system is producing spark energy, but the clear plastic spark indicator would still show a good spark indication with a fouled plug. The fouled plug is still passing the spark current to the cylinder head/ground, just not across the spark gap where it is needed to ignite the air/fuel mix. You need to see the spark gap on the actual plug in question to determine if it is fouled or not.

 

[BigE_]

Checking to see if the plug is fouled would be the next step (after you've eliminated lack of fuel). But, a visual inspection on a plug will show you if its fouled.

You're correct, though, in that if you have a fouled plug, this won't help you and could point you in the wrong direction.