A little rant

[mic687]

I have used stihl saws for 12 yrs now but I am starting to see an alarming trend. I purchased a 201 this last summer and after porting the muffler it runs pretty strong, before porting it was a dog, my problem comes from a bar nut that has come loose 3 times and it spit the chain and dropped the bar right out of the saw and now the throttle is hanging and not returning to idle.I have never experienced this with any other model just that captive nut pos. Second issue new 362 runs like crap and takes over 2 minutes to warm up so you can cut with it.The oil cap is malfunctioning and I don't even want to start on the 2 stage air filter. My 650 has been great and I have a 270 and 2 192's that are great. Is the new stuff just junk I am seriously considering a switch to husky as it can't be any worse. I have been very loyal to stihl but for professional saw they are not getting the job done.

 

[RDAA]

I have to mess with my oil and fuel caps for a few minutes or put the damn thing into the truck to get the damn things on when it's cold out. I also feel your pain with the 201 not idling down too. Stupid flippy caps!!

 

[imagineero]

Those two are probably my two least favorite stihl pro saws. Any saw you go with you're going to have to deal with whatever problems they have (and they all have problems!) so run what you like and live with the issues. I run both stihl and husky. These are tools, and they have a limited life and occasionally require repairs. I get a year or two out of most small~medium saws, maybe 3 years out of a big one. Yeah they all have issues. Things break or get worn out or sometimes just plain don't work. If you're in the warranty period, take it back. None of my saws come with warranty, so I just deal with it. New carbs solve a lot of problems, and to me it's not a big expense. Saws and saw maintenance are one of the lowest costs of the business for me, far far below wages, fuel, vehicle upkeep and insurance. I like my saws to work perfectly, so I don't mind replacing them as needed and spending money on them as needed for repairs. I don't have time to fiddle with them, so I try to keep at least 2 of each.

Husky's are no different, just different problems. Less carb problems overall, but they always seem to crack in the mufflers, fastener problems, melting the chain brake, harder to start, and the choke levers are chintzy.

 

[mic687]

Those two are probably my two least favorite stihl pro saws. Any saw you go with you're going to have to deal with whatever problems they have (and they all have problems!) so run what you like and live with the issues. I run both stihl and husky. These are tools, and they have a limited life and occasionally require repairs. I get a year or two out of most small~medium saws, maybe 3 years out of a big one. Yeah they all have issues. Things break or get worn out or sometimes just plain don't work. If you're in the warranty period, take it back. None of my saws come with warranty, so I just deal with it. New carbs solve a lot of problems, and to me it's not a big expense. Saws and saw maintenance are one of the lowest costs of the business for me, far far below wages, fuel, vehicle upkeep and insurance. I like my saws to work perfectly, so I don't mind replacing them as needed and spending money on them as needed for repairs. I don't have time to fiddle with them, so I try to keep at least 2 of each.

Husky's are no different, just different problems. Less carb problems overall, but they always seem to crack in the mufflers, fastener problems, melting the chain brake, harder to start, and the choke levers are chintzy.

I here you on the maintenance thing tools have issues when used. It seems to me that the new stuff need way more than my older stuff did just a lot more fiddling with stuff.

 

[mic687]

I have to mess with my oil and fuel caps for a few minutes or put the damn thing into the truck to get the damn things on when it's cold out. I also feel your pain with the 201 not idling down too. Stupid flippy caps!!

my 201 problem is a torn carb boot.

 

[Sunrise Guy]

I left Stihl behind two years ago when I was getting nothing but grief from newly purchased saws. I am an Echo man, now, and couldn't be happier. Echos actually start right up in cold weather and they run great, too. I know this is mostly a Stihl forum, so spare me your put-downs. I have worked on Stihls and I know them pretty well. I think Stihl quality has gone down over the recent past and I am happy with my Echos. To each his/her own. FWIW, when I first started out I thought Echos were garbage, and maybe they were, back then. I loved my Stihls. Things change, and I've moved on.

 

[mckeetree]

I left Stihl behind two years ago when I was getting nothing but grief from newly purchased saws. I am an Echo man, now, and couldn't be happier. Echos actually start right up in cold weather and they run great, too. I know this is mostly a Stihl forum, so spare me your put-downs. I have worked on Stihls and I know them pretty well. I think Stihl quality has gone down over the recent past and I am happy with my Echos. To each his/her own. FWIW, when I first started out I thought Echos were garbage, and maybe they were, back then. I loved my Stihls. Things change, and I've moved on.

We have had more problems with Stihl in the past two years than in the ten before that so I don't know what is up with them. Echo, huh? Mmmmm.

Not to change the subject but I have been doing quite a bit of business with the folks at Tree Clinic. You know those guys? I don't think they are that far from you.

 

[Sunrise Guy]

We have had more problems with Stihl in the past two years than in the ten before that so I don't know what is up with them. Echo, huh? Mmmmm.

Not to change the subject but I have been doing quite a bit of business with the folks at Tree Clinic. You know those guys? I don't think they are that far from you.

Hi, how are things up Dallas way? What kind of business are you doing with Tree Clinic? Yeah, they're fairly close by. Are you working in Austin, now? If so, pm me and we'll go grab a couple of beers.

 

[mckeetree]

Hi, how are things up Dallas way? What kind of business are you doing with Tree Clinic? Yeah, they're fairly close by. Are you working in Austin, now? If so, pm me and we'll go grab a couple of beers.

It's a little slow here for me right now. Some guys claim they are busy but their employees call every other day looking for work so go figure.

I've been buying PHC products and sending some lab work to Tree Clinic.

I rarely get to Austin but I did do a consultation at a ranch in Belton a few weeks ago. That's a ways down there for us.

 

[mic687]

Dang the Stihl bashing degenerated into drinking invitations awful fast. Almost all manufacturing has gone to hell in a hand basket. Take off the flippys and put 'em in some degreaser more frequently than you been doing for starters. I love the captive bar nuts. Torn carb boot? Why?

My fault on the boot the saw took a fall breaking the rear handle mount and must have torn the boot. I have really liked my Stihl saws, but the last couple have not been as worry free, and I guess I will just have to check the bar nut more often as it seems to loosen up on its own never had one do that before. The 362 is just needing some fine tuning to have it run right. My older saws ran great right off the shelf but the new ones need some work to preform at their best, I'm guessing because of the new emission standards.

 

[blades]

We are lucky we can still get 2 stroke saws, Dang near everything else that used to be 2 stroke has been changed to 4 stroke due to EPA emissions rules.

 

[mic687]

We are lucky we can still get 2 stroke saws, Dang near everything else that used to be 2 stroke has been changed to 4 stroke due to EPA emissions rules.

I believe that is why our new saws are so doggy the epa has them so detuned they run like crap, but with a little tweaking they can be woken up.

 

[blades]

Leaned way out to make emissions. then of course you get to play with the !@#$% limit or sealing caps + unobtainum tool at exorbitant ( only available to dealers now) price to tweak them proper. Where there's a will there'is a way though. Some of the old IF transformer tools work if you can find those any more.