023L or Stealth Saw from Andre

[Rookie1]

Ok guys Im going out on a limb here. I just got a saw from Andre the Giant and Im going to post pics of the repair and then do side by side decibel comparo with my 021. A little backround, I seen Andres thread about 023L and how we all made fun of it for being quiet. About that time I got permission to cut skids at a company near work. I want to be discreet about it. I PMed Andre about saw and after some discussing he sold it to me at a fairer than fair price. andrethegiant70 gets a big thanks from me and is a great guy. Anyway here are pics of saw as I got it in the mail the other day.

 

[Rookie1]

I started this thread this morning,I just got back from Moms and Im stuffed. Here are some more pics and a few more facts. The pics are of the air filter housing and muffler. Andre already posted some from his thread also.
The saw is in great shape and I wonder why it got taken apart. It is missing the flywheel,recoil,winter/summer baffle,air filter,clutch cover and nuts. Andre is sending me the flywheel and recoil in another box,hope it gets here Friday or Saturday. Oil cap leaks also,looks like someone was heavy handed with scrench. I went to dealer Wednesday to pick up 031 parts and also picked up used clutch cover and oil cap for free. I bought baffle and bar nuts an he ordered air filter. I have a bar here from my 011 that I blew up a long time ago so Im doing fairly well so far parts wise.

 

[andrethegiant70]

Hi, Ross! Thanks for the "honorable metion. It sounds like a worthy project! The question of "how quiet can a chainsaw be?" might be a good one for the urban dwellers. I'm hoping the flywheel and the rewind are to you by Saturday, but it's hard to say what happens at the PO during holidays.

The saw appearis to be decent, mechanically (at least visually) and I think it has a chance of cranking pretty quick. If it doesn't, may I suggest a carb kit and a good loook at fuel and impulse lines. Lots of fellers think these are pretty hard to work on, but I think it's a matter of what you're used to. With a little practice, you can strip one of them down in about 20 minutes. Admittedly, the jug is good and buried unlike the pro models.

Sounds like you're considering a "side by side" demonstration? I video would great, if you can swing it! Hopefully, the saw allows you to get your wood without drawing too much attention. Maybe you should dress in camo and facepaint!

Keep us posted!


PS That is one bizarre looking intake.

 

[Rookie1]

I took carb apart and it came apart easy and was clean. Pulled muffler off and piston and cylinder wall look good. While I was inspecting and cleaning Andre sent recoil and flywheel from his secret stash. I went to dealer and he gave me the clutch cover and oil cap and I bought bar nuts. I goofed and bought winter/summer deflector and didnt need it,Oops. Here are some more pics. I know this isnt as sexy as an 026 or 36 or even 044 but Im enjoying doing something different. More pics to follow.

 

[bump_r]

Please don't interpret my lack of responses as disinterest. I'm very curious as to the stealthability of a small saw. A worthy study, I say. Keep 'em coming!

 

[Rookie1]

Put a cheap handle on recoil from Andre,thanks again buddy,put flywheel on and tightened down nut. Magnet side was hitting coil so I adjusted.Put starter on with 2 screws I had laying around and put spark tester on it. Boom its got spark.I cant see why they took off flywheel,Oh well im excited so I go outside fill gastank squirt some premix in carb and she runs. But now it wont pick up the fuel. I try about 7 times and give up. Need to go to dealer again anyway. I order fuel line/filter and impulse line.

More later

 

[Rookie1]

Went to dealer and got fuel line,filter,and impulse line. Also got ElastoStart rope/handle for starter Andre gave me. Took saw back apart installed impulse and checked pasage to make sure its clear. Dropped in new fuel line and filter. Snuck everything back together. I put bar and freshly sharpened chain on and went outside. Primed and pulled a few times and got it running on its own.Took it next door the neighbors,he had a big oak come down and hasnt had time to cut it up so I have been using it for testbed.Saw ran decent and cut well,its odd with the quietness, you can kinda hear the "machinery working in it. Im very happy its running and cant figure out why it was taken apart,but im still not happy with the starting. I may rebuild carb,been talking to Andre about cold starting issues on 1123 series saws. Last pic is sideby side with my 021 to show difference in airfilter housings. Later

 

[epicklein22]

Nice thread. An interesting and rare saw. How does it perform compared to your 021?

 

[Rookie1]

About the same. I am working the bugs out right now. I need to put a new chain on the 021 and compare them. That will be coming up soon. Plus Im going to try and get hold of a ?decibelmeter? to see if its that quiet.

 

[andrethegiant70]

Jeeze, Ross, I had no idea that the saw would end up looking so nice! It's great to see the progress. How much quieter is it to the ear? Quieter? A lot quieter? Spooky quiet? The DB meter test will be cool... I think it'll fall into the area of good chainsaw science.

Oh, great pics.

 

[Rookie1]

Its not spooky quiet, I guess its noticably quieter than my 021. You can hear the chain whizzin around. Ill say this,at the neighbors he raises chickens and they are spooked really easy. Last week when I was testing out 031 they were going crazy,fluttering about. Today with the StealthSaw they seemed much more at ease and not all were fluttering like normal. So if you go by the chickens its n quieter. And Im not making a joke out of that either.

 

[Jacob J.]

I've always wanted a really, really quiet saw so's I could sneak over onto the state park here at night and harvest some of the downed myrtlewood they have. I'd use an electric saw but the generator would be too much. :biggrinbounce2:

 

[Rookie1]

I've always wanted a really, really quiet saw so's I could sneak over onto the state park here at night and harvest some of the downed myrtlewood they have. I'd use an electric saw but the generator would be too much. :biggrinbounce2:

Thats kinda the idea I have but it doesnt involve the state or a park. Its not so quiet that you could do that but in the proper location I think it would be quiet enough for people to not bother you or think twice about what your doin.:greenchainsaw:

 

[volks-man]

I've always wanted a really, really quiet saw so's I could sneak over onto the state park here at night and harvest some of the downed myrtlewood they have. I'd use an electric saw but the generator would be too much. :biggrinbounce2:

jacob:
i would try one of those race saw style monster mufflers. only i would grab a stock one off a moped. graft that on to a smaller saw and i'd bet you could get away with a lot!

o/p:
reading with interest. never heard of that particular stihl before!

 

[RED-85-Z51]

The 023Lesbian...cause of all that extra plumbing in the muffler box.

 

[treeflyer]

STIHL 023L worst saw i have ever bought

I bought the 023L when it first hit the dealers here in the uk in the mid to late 90s, when i first got the saw i started it up and yes all you could here was the chain over the engine sound, now the problems started when i went to use it for the first time on site i could not get it to start so i removed the plug and the cylinder was full of oil even dripping of the plug so i cleaned the plug pulled the engine over to get most of the oil out and she still would not start i then took the saw back to the dealer and 2 weeks later he told me the oil seals had blown i said what 10 mins use, anyway i got the saw back and after this it spent more time in the shop for major engine repairs due to high compression from burnt oil not getting out the exhaust so i gave the saw away, now at the time it cost me the same price as a stihl 026 and the funny thing is the saw was no longer sold and i have never seen one since not even on ebay so i know they did not sell well i would say the price domestic saw at pro saw price range, now looking at the one on here the exhaust out let looks big my one had a tiny round hole maybe this was a latter design change but still they went as quick as they hit the shelfs

 

[Rookie1]

I was waiting for someone to have negative comments but that confuses me. The engine is modular or stand alone in the cradle and there is no way oil could get sucked into the engine on my saw. I wonder if the UK used something different. My dealer did tell me they were strangled on power because of the muffler. One owner had him remove the muffler and airfilter and convert it to a regular 023. I am very curious about yours and what series saw it was built on.

 

[treeflyer]

023l

Hi Rookie1
i am so glade to see you have one of these i say rare saws now, when i bought my one it was one of the very first of its type well here in the uk anyway it was around 1994-8, before i bought the saw i had a five page sales sheet just on this saw it was dark blue and had the 023L on the front cover with a pair of ear muffs over it, all these years later being a saw collector i wish i had kept it but like you do at the time you just dont think, anyway the problem was with mine it just built up the spent black oil that should blow out the exhaust with the down stroke and what never helped being a new saw it was also set rich to run-in, once compression was so high i snaped the plastic pawls off pulling it over, i feel that it was such a shame at the time as i wanted the saw so bad and paid what i would pay for a ms200t today it just went so quick and i have never seen one since, i have a technical sheet in pdf for this saw if you dont have one, i hope you get on well with your one you never know yours may be a later one that had design changes like i said before your exhaust out-let does look bigger mine was a tiny little hole about 4mm

 

[treeflyer]

023l

Here is a little in the technical pdf i have

1995 / ser-1123

Twelve 023L saws running next to one another at the same time produce the same amount of noise as one standard 023 saw

023L 1.1kW / 1.47 bhp / 4.7 kg
023 1.9kW / 2.55 bhp / 4.6 kg

 

[Lakeside53]

That would make the "L" sawtroll's favorite:greenchainsaw: