Stihl 024's

[94 wrangler]

I recently acquired two vintage Stihl 024's for a winter project. Both look to have been made in 1984 but there are some differences in them. I am very familiar with the the 026 and the 026 Pro saws. I have two of them and have totally rebuilt the top ends and replaced their seals etc. and they run and perform great!
Question. Did Stihl cheapen the 024 by eliminating parts normally found on the 026 saws or have they been raped and molested by previous owners or shop mechanics? One of my 024's is a "one nutter" on the bar and chain cover. I figure I can replace the slotted stud with a regular bar stud....right? Of more concern is this. One has no inner side plate and one does but the one that does, has no screw hole or screw to attach it to the crankcase.
On one, there is no cover washer (marked TOP) that goes between the oil pump and the clutch. One has this "washer" as does my 026's. That said, both of these 024's needed new crankshaft seals. They were a bear to remove and all looked to be factory original. I have various tools and methods of removing crankshaft seals including the after market Stihl type seal removing tool set but these seals had me "talking" to myself! Are the 024's known for seal problems?

 

[nedsim]

So I've gone the other way, from an 024 that I bought new around 1987 to an 026 I just picked up. The 024 came with the single bar nut, and while I never understood the reasoning behind it, it's never been the slightest problem. On the other hand, the 026 has two nuts, but instead of oversize hex nuts it has flanged nuts with a small hex. Seems like a large hex is a good idea for use with a sheet-metal scrench.

No side plate on my 024, never had one. There is one the 026. The 024 has nylon blocks, like those on the side cover, instead of the plate.

For what it's worth, my 024 was built in W Germany, the 026 in VA. From what I gathered from the seller, the 026 is several years younger than the 024.

 

[HumBurner]

I recently acquired two vintage Stihl 024's for a winter project. Both look to have been made in 1984 but there are some differences in them. I am very familiar with the the 026 and the 026 Pro saws. I have two of them and have totally rebuilt the top ends and replaced their seals etc. and they run and perform great!
Question. Did Stihl cheapen the 024 by eliminating parts normally found on the 026 saws or have they been raped and molested by previous owners or shop mechanics? One of my 024's is a "one nutter" on the bar and chain cover. I figure I can replace the slotted stud with a regular bar stud....right? Of more concern is this. One has no inner side plate and one does but the one that does, has no screw hole or screw to attach it to the crankcase.
On one, there is no cover washer (marked TOP) that goes between the oil pump and the clutch. One has this "washer" as does my 026's. That said, both of these 024's needed new crankshaft seals. They were a bear to remove and all looked to be factory original. I have various tools and methods of removing crankshaft seals including the after market Stihl type seal removing tool set but these seals had me "talking" to myself! Are the 024's known for seal problems?

026 was born out of the 024avs. Might help explain some of what you're seeing.

 

[wildwes]

026 was born out of the 024avs. Might help explain some of what you're seeing.

And you can basically turn a 024AVS into a 026 by putting a 026 top end on it.

 

[94 wrangler]

I sure appreciate all the comments and suggestions. I have both of these 024's running well. I don't expect them to cut as fast as my 026 Pro because they are what they are! I was just a bit confused with one 024 having a few extra parts than the other. The one without the inner side plate, I installed four bumper strips. Two to the crankcase and two on the sprocket / chain cover. I read in the shop manual, it says "IF" your 024 has the washer that is marked "top" between the oil pump and the clutch to remove it before installing the clutch. I'll do that if and when the time comes. Again thanks to all!

 

[94 wrangler]

And you can basically turn a 024AVS into a 026 by putting a 026 top end on it.

Good to know but what I am seeing is this. Please correct me if I am wrong. The 026 has two high cooling fins on top of the cylinder. The 024 is a basically a flat top. I would imagine that the top engine shroud and the air filter cover would need to be changed after installing a new 026 top end. Then if using a MS 260 or a 026 Pro carb that has the compensator on top of the metering diaphragm cover, the air filter along along with the higher 024 fuel tank vent. I think for the gain in power from 42mm to 44.7mm would not be worth the added expense. Just my opinion since one top end has 154 psi compression and the other has 148 psi.

 

[wildwes]

You're not wrong- if you convert one you either have to change out the top cover, or grind the fins down so the old cover will clear. I would not convert one that was a good saw, but if a person had one with a bad top end, it is a viable option and should pick up a little power to boot. As for the carb, you can change the top plate for one that has the compensated "snorkel" or not.
If your saws have that much compression and run good I wouldn't change anything on the top end.

 

[Del_]

Just throwing this in the mix:

I've got an 024 with the Stihl hedge trimmer attachment. It dates to the late 1980's.

I'm not sure what is changed to accept this attachment. I don't believe the hedge trimmer attachment fits on the 026, but it may.

 

[wildwes]

Just throwing this in the mix:

I've got an 024 with the Stihl hedge trimmer attachment. It dates to the late 1980's.

I'm not sure what is changed to accept this attachment. I don't believe the hedge trimmer attachment fits on the 026, but it may.

I'm not sure about the differences there, but I do know the early 024's had a single bar stud, like the one the OP has, and the stroke was different on the 024AVS as compared to the earlier ones. The 024AVS had the same stroke as a 026, the earlier ones had a shorter stroke.

 

[Del_]

I can't see how many bar nuts and don't have time at the moment to look.

 

[Bob Hedgecutter]

And you can basically turn a 024AVS into a 026 by putting a 026 top end on it.

But do not confuse all the good 024 owners here that think they can upgrade- you CANNOT make an 024 into an 026 because of the 2mm difference in stroke- you CAN however as you stated above, do so with an 024S when the S is for SUPER, they share the same stroke as the 026.
Many people see the 024 part and skip read the AVS part or are not aware there was an 024 and an 024S.

 

[stihltech]

There are a couple versions of an 024 (not 024S). Different cylinders. If I remember, one was finger ported. Stihl's attempt at keeping the price down on the 024 before it went all 026.

 

[94 wrangler]

Thanks. Good to know. The two 024's I have now have some differences in their parts. That's what threw me off and knowing they are from the mid 80's, there could have been various owners and various tech's or shade tree mechanics having worked on them.

 

[HumBurner]

There are a couple versions of an 024 (not 024S). Different cylinders. If I remember, one was finger ported. Stihl's attempt at keeping the price down on the 024 before it went all 026.

Were those variations concurrent with the changing designations of 024, 024av, and 024av wood-boss?


This series seems like the 42/42S/242/246 scenario where it had a long run and all kinds of variation in specs of parts

 

[82F100SWB]

There's a few versions of the Super as well, I have at least 3 different cylinders in the shop, one of them is open port.

 

[94 wrangler]

Amazing to say the least!

 

[irhunter]

FWIW, this IPL shows five versions of 024 and 024S.

 

[dmb2613]

The very early 024s had a very lite connecting rod and weird bearings in the rod . I have only seen 2 of them

 

[94 wrangler]

The very early 024s had a very lite connecting rod and weird bearings in the rod . I have only seen 2 of them

A man can never have too many saws....especially Stihls!

 

[Paul Fithian]

The very early 024s had a very lite connecting rod and weird bearings in the rod . I have only seen 2 of them

Very interesting, any more details?

I have an 024 AVS built 10/1985 (West Germany) that I purchased new in early 1986. It came with one nut and one short unthreaded stud to hold the bar and cover on. I recently added a second threaded stud and nut to secure the bar a bit better.

I recently upgraded this 024 AVS to a 44.7mm Mahle P/C. Details of this conversion are in a thread I posted on another chainsaw forum. Way stronger than it was as an 024 AVS and runs perfect, carb is original and has never been touched. I did a cut comparison with my SIL's stock MS 251, see

I recently acquired an 024 AV built 05/1986 (West Germany) and am now upgrading it to a 44mm Mahle cylinder/Meteor piston. Base has been shaved 0.016" to get 0.020" squish without a base gasket.

I measured timing before the cylinder was shaved:


Plan is to mount the cylinder after base shaving and document timing, then adjust transfer ports to ~ 120 Deg. I have also detailed this conversion, currently in process, in a thread I posted on another chainsaw forum.

The 024 AVS had 4 nylon bumpers from the factory. The 024 AV had 2 nylon bumpers in the cover and a side plate with small retaining screw. Both have the large washer between the metal oil pump and clutch.

Both have front adjusters, but they are different.