Older Stihl getting hard to start

[WinterDeere]

I’ll jump on the “spark plug” bandwagon. Start with the cheap stuff.

Agreed. But in this case he had already replaced the plug before first post.

 

[5030]

Sounds to me like 'hardening of the fuel delivery arteries'.... Like I said, Sawzilla will have all the parts to rebuild it for a very reasonable cost. Not that I have issues starting my venerable 028 I bought new way back in the early 60's but it was time for a new part upgrade and Sawzilla had everything I needed.

The 028 I own came factory with a heated handgrip. Stihl only made the saw for I believe 3 years. it's a screamer and I'm very fond of it.

 

[Hay Dude]

Agreed. But in this case he had already replaced the plug before first post.

I have changed new plugs in the past and found that once in a while, you get a defective plug. But by age and description, I agree it does sound like a fuel/air issue.

 

[5030]

Spark plugs today aren't not all created equal either. The venerable Champion plugs have turned to junk. I'd buy an Stihl plug or an Japan made NGK (got to be careful with NGK as some are made in China.

 

[Chanceywd]

I have 180 for limbing but don't think it is an easy start model. I found that when running poorly, the spark arrester screen behind the muffler gets really plugged up. You can take it out and burn the crap off with a propane torch and that makes a big difference in how it runs. Last time I just "forgot" to put it back in as I cut my firewood in the late winter so not much of a spark hazard then, CARB/EPA.
My main saw is an old 034 Super AV and that is still a great saw. Not sure when they were made but I bought it used in a stihl dealer shop about 25 years ago.

Bill

 

[5030]

My neighbor had a 20 year old Stihl chainsaw that was getting harder and harder to start. If the saw had been running for 10 minutes or so and then shut off to refuel, it was impossible to start until it had cooled off. We rebuilt his carb, installed a new plug, and he always burned fresh gas. Still no luck! I looked at the coil and noticed the gap between the contacts and flywheel looked excessive. The coil was not testing well, so I put a new coil in and gapped it correctly. The saw now starts like new and restarts with one pull once warmed up.

I always space my mag gap with a business card.

 

[5030]

I have 180 for limbing but don't think it is an easy start model. I found that when running poorly, the spark arrester screen behind the muffler gets really plugged up. You can take it out and burn the crap off with a propane torch and that makes a big difference in how it runs. Last time I just "forgot" to put it back in as I cut my firewood in the late winter so not much of a spark hazard then, CARB/EPA.
My main saw is an old 034 Super AV and that is still a great saw. Not sure when they were made but I bought it used in a stihl dealer shop about 25 years ago.

Bill

If you use canned gas instead of the pre mix bottles and pump gas, the carbon issue on the spark arrestor screen will vanish. I never clean mine, ever. Of course you still have to have the correct a/f ratio.

 

[Farmerjonathan]

I haven't read each answer/reply to this thread, but I know 13 years ago I could pull harder and faster on my chainsaw pull rope. That is to be considered also.

 

[etpm]

I have 180 for limbing but don't think it is an easy start model. I found that when running poorly, the spark arrester screen behind the muffler gets really plugged up. You can take it out and burn the crap off with a propane torch and that makes a big difference in how it runs. Last time I just "forgot" to put it back in as I cut my firewood in the late winter so not much of a spark hazard then, CARB/EPA.
My main saw is an old 034 Super AV and that is still a great saw. Not sure when they were made but I bought it used in a stihl dealer shop about 25 years ago.

Bill

I'll have to try cleaning my spark arrestor. I don't think it is clogged enough to cause hard starting but if it is partially clogged it could certainly affect the power and rpm from the saw. FYI, the easy start model has a wind up feature for starting. So to start you pull slowly on the starter handle and when the spring inside has wound up enough it lets go and turns the engine over. I would rather not use this type of starter but with my wrists it is a true pain saver.
Eric

 

[Boeing]

I have the same saw that's about the same age. It too got harder to start. I finally tried Seafoam in the tank. I had little hope but it fixed the hard starting problem. After a couple weeks it started to get hard to start again and I used more Seafoam and the second use seems to have fixed the problem for good. It has been easy starting for the last year or so. BTW, I bought the saw because I have bone on bone joints in both wrists and the easy start feature makes life much easier, way less pain when pulling the starter cord.
Eric

Thank you so much, I'll try it.

 

[Boeing]

Store your equipment with ethanol shield, not stabil.

I'll look for it, thanks

 

[Boeing]

Better yet, just store all your equipment with synthetic gas in them. I use Echo Red Armor, 50-1 in everything including my over wintering gas powered equipment other than chainsaws. I drain the e-gas out and put it in the vehicles and replace it with Red Armor and in the spring they start right up no issue. No gunked up carbs or flabby fuel lines either and if you need chainsaw parts, I recommend 'Sawzilla'. They specialize in parts for older chainsaws.

Thank you so much, I appreciate it.

 

[Boeing]

I'll have to try cleaning my spark arrestor. I don't think it is clogged enough to cause hard starting but if it is partially clogged it could certainly affect the power and rpm from the saw. FYI, the easy start model has a wind up feature for starting. So to start you pull slowly on the starter handle and when the spring inside has wound up enough it lets go and turns the engine over. I would rather not use this type of starter but with my wrists it is a true pain saver.
Eric

Thanks, I agree, I have a bad shoulder and pulling a rope won't work.

 

[etpm]

Thank you so much, I'll try it.

Please be sure to let us all know if it works.
Eric

 

[5030]

The issue around here is, non e-gas is really not available, I'd have to drive 30+ miles to get it and even then it's prices at least a buck higher per gallon than premium. Around here it's called 'Rec Gas' Guess I could buy Aviation fuel which is e free but the closest airport is still 25 miles away. Easier for me to just buy canned gas and there is an Echo dealer up town so I buy gallons from him.

If I used my saws everyday, I'd just buy e10 and mix in premix bottles but I don't so the canned gas makes good sense for me.

 

[Farmerjonathan]

Sea Foam and can't recall the name of the other one, but they are good fuel stabilizers for less than a year storage.

 

[Chanceywd]

A lot of old arthritic hands here! This 71 yo has them too.
I had a knuckle replacement in my rt index last year and that really is a good fix.
This year I had arthroplasty on my left thumb in jan and that is healed quite well too. That took out some little bone I think it is called the trapezium and replaced it with some tendon.

With that knuckle replacement I was able to use my saws with the right finger on the trigger again instead of trying to use the middle finger when doing wood this year.

Bill

 

[Barnowl]

I have similar aged Stihl, think it is the 160 with easy start. Starting was getting to be tougher and it started lacking the power when cutting. This saw does not get used regularly. Stihl no longer stocked the carburetor, but did stock most of the gaskets and fuel filter. Disassembled cleaned and replaced what I could. Didn’t find any smoking guns, but it starts and runs great now. Dealer did say there was one tube attached to carb ( forget which) that shrinks back due to ethanol fuel, though mine was ok. Took a little time, but it was worth the effort as the rest of the saw was in good shape, even though it’s a homeowner style saw.

 

[DigDoug]

How much cutting do you do? Does you Stihl have 100s of hours on it? If it still in good shape, it likely routine maintenance like mentioned above. Don’t forget to remove the exhaust (and spark arrestor screen) for soaking / cleaning. When the spark arrester is clogged it will never start. And the non-ethanol fuel work great.

The Milwaukee battery saw is fantastic, for smaller jobs. Cuts just as fast and strong as my Stihl, but doesn’t run as long.

 

[newbury]

The Milwaukee battery saw is fantastic, for smaller jobs. Cuts just as fast and strong as my Stihl, but doesn’t run as long.

I'll second a vote for a battery saw of similar size. I own two 180's. Nice easy start saws but not very powerful.
I also own two 660's. They have seemed to put on a lot of weight in the last 5 years.