Do you have the dealer clean your chainsaw?

[Gary Fowler]

"doesn't cost a whole lot for a shop to do it"
Really ????
Small engine shop rate was $95 last time I checked, and that was 2 years ago.

Same here. It cost more to repair a cheap weed eater with carb problem than to buy a new one. Chain sharpening: I just bought the elcheapo HF sharpener and it works fine for my uses and only takes 10 minutes to do. It is 20 miles to the nearest repair place and it would likely take 2 trips (wouldn't know for sure since I never take in a chain to sharpen). I would only take in a small engine or piece of equipment for repair after exhausting all my knowledge to fix it myself OR if the job required some heavy lifting which my back wont take anymore.

 

[tradosaurus]

I noticed one poster said he topped off the fuel and oil after each use before putting the saw away.

I try to wipe down the saw or blow it off with compressed air, same as I blow off the mowers but I never fuel up AFTER I use them. I do that before each use. Always try to run dry and leave an empty tank but it doesn稚 always work out that way.

.

The reason I top off fuel and oil is just in case my wife or one of my sons use it. I have the peace of mind knowing it won't run dry of oil within a short period of time.

Also I use my chainsaw frequently with 40 acres of woods so I would rather sharpen, clean and fill up chain saw after I'm done using it and while I'm dirty then have to worry about it before I use again.

 

[ultrarunner]

I've seen too many times 2 stroke ruined because someone put straight gas in the tank...

Thinking that would be harder to do when the tank is already full...

Happened just last week where I manage property... a man was out with his new string trimmer... he was going to town and then nothing... as I was getting ready to leave he motioned me over... there was a language barrier but I saw the bottle of 2-stroke oil un opened... he just put straight gas in...

I bet he will be taking it back to Home Depot saying it doesn't work...

 

[Jstpssng]

I've seen too many times 2 stroke ruined because someone put straight gas in the tank...

Thinking that would be harder to do when the tank is already full...

Happened just last week where I manage property... a man was out with his new string trimmer... he was going to town and then nothing... as I was getting ready to leave he motioned me over... there was a language barrier but I saw the bottle of 2-stroke oil un opened... he just put straight gas in...

I bet he will be taking it back to Home Depot saying it doesn't work...

My father ran and maintained equipment all of his life, and was the guy that people called when they were broke down or something wasn't running right. So it was rather frustrating toward the end of his life when he started forgetting things...
He burned up two nice Stihl saws in a row. My mother tried to explain that he needed to use mixed gas but he showed her right on the saw where it said to put the gas, and where to put the oil. By that point he wasn't using them much anyways... thank God.

 

[dragoneggs]

My father ran and maintained equipment all of his life, and was the guy that people called when they were broke down or something wasn't running right. So it was rather frustrating toward the end of his life when he started forgetting things...
He burned up two nice Stihl saws in a row. My mother tried to explain that he needed to use mixed gas but he showed her right on the saw where it said to put the gas, and where to put the oil. By that point he wasn't using them much anyways... thank God.

That is sad... hope I go fast but not soon!

 

[ultrarunner]

One of the hardest things to see sharp people decline through dementia/Alzheimer's...

 

[Oldoak]

I always keep my chainsaw ready to go. Full of gas and and bar oil. And never stored with a dull chain on. Never know if or when I made need it in an emergency. Downed trees blocking our road or neighbors needing help, etc.

 

[Garandman]

We bought some yard furniture and the guy threw in a Poulan chain saw, 釘ecause it didn稚 work. Once we put the chain on in the right direction, it worked fine....

The local saw shop has been telling people to use oven cleaner on the fins of their newer saws... 2 of my coworkers blew up their 550XP's from overheating because fir pitch built up in the fins.

That might not be a good idea. Most oven cleaners use NaCl - lye. It is corrosive to aluminum.

You can buy alloy wheel cleaner that won稚 hurt the aluminum, but a lot of people use Simple Green.

 

[ericm979]

Simple Green can be hard on aluminium as well, though not as bad as oven cleaner with lye. Simple Green makes a special aluminium safe version for aircraft. Regular SG would be fine on the painted parts or on bare aluminium if you rinsed it off afterwards.

I blow my saws off with air. If there's baked on crud like on a used saw I bought last year, I use mechanical means to remove it. I've never brought a saw into a shop- I do my own work. I'd bring a new saw still under warranty in if it had problems but I'd clean it first.

 

[fried1765]

We bought some yard furniture and the guy threw in a Poulan chain saw, 釘ecause it didn稚 work. Once we put the chain on in the right direction, it worked fine....

That might not be a good idea. Most oven cleaners use NaCl - lye. It is corrosive to aluminum.

You can buy alloy wheel cleaner that won稚 hurt the aluminum, but a lot of people use Simple Green.

"NaCl - Lye"?

NaCl is Sodium Chloride to me.
SALT!