I stopped today on the way to Findlay where my wife's from and picked up a little Dolmar 401. I got the saw with a 14" bar and two non-safety chains for $250 + tax. The saw was oily, so I know they had run it. I get to Findlay and head out to cut a few trees for firewood with my BIL. This one's a good guy
. The saw ran so poorly I could hardly use it. With any throttle input at all it just bogged out and wanted to die. Repeatedly pumping the throttle was the only way to get it to rev up. Once revved up, it ran great. I'm rembering others comments about the saw not running well for a few tanks. Well, this thing is virtually unusable. So back to the truck I went, the pocket knife came out and the limiter tabs came off the caps. A couple minutes later I had a saw that ran absolutley perfectly for the rest of the day. I set the carb by ear and put a tach on it after we finished cutting. It was at exactly 12K, the factory spec.
So now it was time for a little muffler mod. The construction of the muffler is such that I thought I could leave the baffling intact inside the muffler, this keeping sound to a minimum, and still recognize much improved flow. I simply enlarged the final exit hole and left the fire screen intact. In my books, this was a very mild muffler mod. The result was 13,200, while still 4-stroking a little. It's hard to believe a simple muffler mod can net an additional 1,200 RPMs. But I'm not the first to experience this with this saw. I'm anxious to run it tomorrow with the new found Rs it has.
After the initial go around with the carb, the saw ran perfectly all day. It was a pleasure to run. It handled nicely and had good power, especially considering it's brand new. It is not prone to bogging despite its small size. And this is with the bar buried in an Apple tree. Not soft wood. It could not keep up with my ported MS180 on a clock, but it did not feel much different in normal use. I think with a few mods it can easily surpass the performance of the 180. The muffler mod alone should make a significant difference.
The choke and kill switch are conveniently located. They are a little on the flimsy side but entirely adequate. It starts easily, idles perfectly, and has great throttle response. Even better than my 180.
How about that oiler that I've read needs a diaper. I didn't find this to be the case at all. The difference is that this saw does use a tank of oil per tank of fuel. We're all too used to our Stihls that are much more conservative. Yes, when tuning, oil is dripping everywhere. It has no where to go. In normal use, it is a non issue. The bar cover and sprocket area are no dirtier or oilier than any saw. I would not waste my money on the adjustable pump.
Is this 401 a better saw than my MS180? I can't give that an honest answer yet. My gut reaction is to say yes, simply based on the pro style construction. The negative is that it doesn't have the RPMs of more modern saws. A lot of that can be corrected with a simple muffler mod. I'm sure the rest of that can be realized with a port job. Yes, I'm a Stihl head. I wish this saw was grey and red, LOL. I've yet to decide if the 180 will go bye bye to be replaced with a 401. For all the hating of the construction of the 180, it's a pleasure to run. It's currently stronger than the 401 but is broken in and has more mods. Give those same mods to the Dolmar and I think it would be a different story.
Bottom line, it's a great little saw if you know how to tune a carb. I'm still trying to figure out why Dolmar wants to do away with this model and replace it with heavier saws that might as well be skipped for a 50cc saw. This is a great little saw that deserves respect.
. The saw ran so poorly I could hardly use it. With any throttle input at all it just bogged out and wanted to die. Repeatedly pumping the throttle was the only way to get it to rev up. Once revved up, it ran great. I'm rembering others comments about the saw not running well for a few tanks. Well, this thing is virtually unusable. So back to the truck I went, the pocket knife came out and the limiter tabs came off the caps. A couple minutes later I had a saw that ran absolutley perfectly for the rest of the day. I set the carb by ear and put a tach on it after we finished cutting. It was at exactly 12K, the factory spec. So now it was time for a little muffler mod. The construction of the muffler is such that I thought I could leave the baffling intact inside the muffler, this keeping sound to a minimum, and still recognize much improved flow. I simply enlarged the final exit hole and left the fire screen intact. In my books, this was a very mild muffler mod. The result was 13,200, while still 4-stroking a little. It's hard to believe a simple muffler mod can net an additional 1,200 RPMs. But I'm not the first to experience this with this saw. I'm anxious to run it tomorrow with the new found Rs it has.
After the initial go around with the carb, the saw ran perfectly all day. It was a pleasure to run. It handled nicely and had good power, especially considering it's brand new. It is not prone to bogging despite its small size. And this is with the bar buried in an Apple tree. Not soft wood. It could not keep up with my ported MS180 on a clock, but it did not feel much different in normal use. I think with a few mods it can easily surpass the performance of the 180. The muffler mod alone should make a significant difference.
The choke and kill switch are conveniently located. They are a little on the flimsy side but entirely adequate. It starts easily, idles perfectly, and has great throttle response. Even better than my 180.
How about that oiler that I've read needs a diaper. I didn't find this to be the case at all. The difference is that this saw does use a tank of oil per tank of fuel. We're all too used to our Stihls that are much more conservative. Yes, when tuning, oil is dripping everywhere. It has no where to go. In normal use, it is a non issue. The bar cover and sprocket area are no dirtier or oilier than any saw. I would not waste my money on the adjustable pump.
Is this 401 a better saw than my MS180? I can't give that an honest answer yet. My gut reaction is to say yes, simply based on the pro style construction. The negative is that it doesn't have the RPMs of more modern saws. A lot of that can be corrected with a simple muffler mod. I'm sure the rest of that can be realized with a port job. Yes, I'm a Stihl head. I wish this saw was grey and red, LOL. I've yet to decide if the 180 will go bye bye to be replaced with a 401. For all the hating of the construction of the 180, it's a pleasure to run. It's currently stronger than the 401 but is broken in and has more mods. Give those same mods to the Dolmar and I think it would be a different story.
Bottom line, it's a great little saw if you know how to tune a carb. I'm still trying to figure out why Dolmar wants to do away with this model and replace it with heavier saws that might as well be skipped for a 50cc saw. This is a great little saw that deserves respect.
