Stihl Chain Saw

[jbrumberg]

I just purchased a brand new Stihl MS 290 "Farm Boss" chain saw. I was cutting some logs and by the time I refilled the fuel mix and bar oil it appears that the oil pump is "blown" and the chain is "burned"
and . The dealership will hear about my "conerns" tomorrow. Has anyone else had this experience? Jay

 

[AKwelder]

wow, that surprises me, stihl are usually good saws. Did you get it from a dealer or a store selling saws? Let us know if they stand behind their product.

 

[Willl]

Ya that is weird, did it ever "throw off oil" to begin with ?

 

[JDGREEN4ME]

I have not had that problem with my MS 250...in fact I haven't had any problems with it.

 

[amigauser]

I purchased the same model, Stihl MS290 "Farm Boss" two years ago and I have not had any problems with mine. I don't use it every day but I have taken down probably a dozen trees with it and I cut up a large pine tree that fell next to my house this past spring. Stihl makes good stuff. The MS 290 is what they consider a midrange saw, not their pro line, but it obviously should last more than a day. I think the Stihl gaurantee is for at least a year so your dealer should take care of you.

 

[IXLR8]

I have the Stihl MS280, it blows through all the chain oil in about 1/2 tank of fuel. If I leave it sitting idling for a minute or two... there is a puddle of oil on the ground ~2 inch in dia. Dealer says nothing is wrong so there is nothing they can do to fix it. I have a Homelite ZIP saw from ~1961 that my grandfather gave me... it cuts better than the Stihl. I wish I had bought a Husqvarna instead.

 

[RedRocker]

All of my Stihl equipment has worked without a hitch.

 

[montanaman]

The MS290 is a mid range saw and has been Stihls best selling saw for years. This saw has an adjustable oiler, so you may just be able to turn it up to max to get the results that you want. I see no oiling problems with the new saws, but I do start and run every saw that I sell with the bar off so that I can see oil coming out of the oiler hole.

Also, EPA has a lot to do with the newer saws not throwing as much bar oil as the old ones used to. The bar oil output is regulated by engine size now.

I would check that the pump is adjusted to max and carefully run the saw at WOT with the bar an inch away from a cardboard scrap and see if it is slinging an oil line.

Ken

 

[montanaman]

I have the Stihl MS280, it blows through all the chain oil in about 1/2 tank of fuel. If I leave it sitting idling for a minute or two... there is a puddle of oil on the ground ~2 inch in dia. Dealer says nothing is wrong so there is nothing they can do to fix it. I have a Homelite ZIP saw from ~1961 that my grandfather gave me... it cuts better than the Stihl. I wish I had bought a Husqvarna instead.

I would have another dealer have a look at it. The oiler on that saw is clutch driven so it should not be putting out any oil what the chain isn't moving. If you are running out of bar oil before you run out of fuel, something isn't right as most of the time you will have a half a tank of bar oil left when the saw runs out of fuel.

Yes, I sell Stihl and I may be a little biased, but if you don't like the MS280 I don't think you would like a Husqvarna either. All of their "box store" saws are a single piston ring design with outboard mounted clutch and chain brake and I don't care for them much at all.

Ken

 

[IXLR8]

I would have another dealer have a look at it. The oiler on that saw is clutch driven so it should not be putting out any oil what the chain isn't moving. If you are running out of bar oil before you run out of fuel, something isn't right as most of the time you will have a half a tank of bar oil left when the saw runs out of fuel.

Yes, I sell Stihl and I may be a little biased, but if you don't like the MS280 I don't think you would like a Husqvarna either. All of their "box store" saws are a single piston ring design with outboard mounted clutch and chain brake and I don't care for them much at all.

Ken

Thanks for the heads up on the Stihl, I will find a different dealer. Like I said.. at idle, chain not moving... it has oil running out. If I was to go Husky... it would not be from a "box store". I have always heard excellent reports on the Stihl saws... but all the loggers/cord wood cutters I know have gone to the Husky's.

 

[jbrumberg]

I want to thank everyone for their input ! I was "tripled teamed" at the dealer today, but they did check out the saw and chain. As suggested I did adjust the oiler pump to maximum, and apparently the new EPA regulations do require less "oiling". The brand new anti-kickback chain was pretty worn, but I got a free chain sharpening and a new "Oregon" chain. I tested out the new chain late this afternoon and I am happy to report that I was able to cut 14" - 16" poplar, ash, and elm logs without difficulty. I was tanked before the chain saw was . Jay

 

[Willl]

I don't understand, what was wrong with it ?

 

[jbrumberg]

Willl:

The best I can figure is I was probably running the chain slightly too tight, and that I had not increased the amount of bar oil flow initially. It appears that the original chain's cutters dulled really quickly and I just kept on cutting. I was used to the copious amounts of oil my very old Stihl 011AV chain saw (~27 years) used to kick out when cutting. Apparently the new chain saw models pump far less oil to the bar. Now that I have used the chain saw with a newer/better chain I am very pleased with my chain saw's performance. Jay

 

[montanaman]

Willl:

The best I can figure is I was probably running the chain slightly too tight, and that I had not increased the amount of bar oil flow initially. It appears that the original chain's cutters dulled really quickly and I just kept on cutting. I was used to the copious amounts of oil my very old Stihl 011AV chain saw (~27 years) used to kick out when cutting. Apparently the new chain saw models pump far less oil to the bar. Now that I have used the chain saw with a newer/better chain I am very pleased with my chain saw's performance. Jay

Any chain that is used with care should serve you well. That said, take a look at how the Stihl chain is made compared to the Oregon. There are grooves on the sides of the drive links on the Stihl chain that help to get the oil out to the rivets where it is needed and with the EPA calling the shots on how much oil can be used, it really seems to help. Stihl chain is also the only chain that I am aware of that has all of the holes reamed, rather than just stamped. It seems to stretch less than and brand of chain on the market. I've had customers complain that is is hard to file, but that's a good thing! If it's hard to file, it will hold an edge better when it is sharp!

Glad to hear all is well with the saw.

Ken

 

[jbrumberg]

Ken:

Thank you for your input ! I had noticed the difference between Stihl and Oregon chains with my old 011AV. I really liked that old chain saw. No one was more surprised than I was when this new Stihl did not meet my expectations initially . Yesterday's operation justified my choice of saws. When I get the Stihl chain back its performance against the Oregon will be compared. I just need to keep my chains sharpened . Again thank you for your input. Jay