anyone herd of "ring stuck" piston

[helimech]

hello
i found a sithl 044 that was as the owner said "ring stuck" from improper fuel mix. any one herd of this and is it a east fix? like new piston and cylinder? whats a good price for a ring stuck 044, might also have two of them he said.
any info would help
:cool2:

 

[atlarge54]

Yep, I've heered of it and seed it with my own eyes. Might get lucky and get it to free up. Probably be able to get by with a new ring if the piston doesn't show much damage, but for a few bucks more a new piston might be your best bet.

 

[CTYank]

hello
i found a sithl 044 that was as the owner said "ring stuck" from improper fuel mix. any one herd of this and is it a east fix? like new piston and cylinder? whats a good price for a ring stuck 044, might also have two of them he said.
any info would help
:cool2:

Straight-gassing can result in melted piston crown, which can really grab a ring on cooling. One kid did that and only recourse was new P&C on XL-12. Our jefe said "Marvel Mystery Oil" would fix it. Honest. :bang:

Modern synthetic oils are formulated to prevent deposits in piston grooves, which otherwise could immobilize ring(s). Then they don't seal so great.

Check through exhaust port to see if owner's diagnosis is BS. If not clean it off and open it up- only then can you see what parts to order. The statement about "ring stuck" really tells no story, except possible catastrophe of straight-gassing. I'd assume the worst. P&C for 044 go for a bit more than a Wood Shark.

 

[galde]

Stuck ring(s) is the most likely cause of low compression if the piston and cylinder surfaces still look good. It is easy to confirm by seeing if the ring is stuck in the groove by pushing on it through the exhaust port with something like a bamboo skewer or pointed plastic piece. A ring needs to be free to move in and out a few thousandths in the groove. I have had good results in freeing up stuck rings by suspending the piston crown down in the USC deep enough to cover the ring(s). A weak Dawn solution seems to work as good as anything else Ihave tried. If one 30-minute run with heat doesn't do the job, I just do another run. This also cleans carbon deposits from the crown.

 

[jus2fat]

Yeah..I've seen it a very few times and it's always been the owner was using very cheap oil mix.

Never seen it on any of the major brands like Stihl/Husky/Poulan...just the cheap discount store stuff.

It's always amazes me that folks will think that the 99¢ mix will lubricate like the major brands..:dunno:

J2F

 

[67L36Driver]

My Remingto Pro 88 had stuck rings. Moisture had coroaded the rings & ring grooves. Pumped only 90 psi at first. Using an ice pick and WD-40, flexed them for a long time untill they came loose. Cleaned the grooves and rings, put him back together and now he pumps 130. Runs great.

 

[RiverRat2]

hello
i found a sithl 044 that was as the owner said "ring stuck" from improper fuel mix. any one herd of this and is it a east fix? like new piston and cylinder? whats a good price for a ring stuck 044, might also have two of them he said.
any info would help
:cool2:

had an MS 390 in the shop the other day that the owner said it just lacked power from how it ran the day before,,, So I cranked it and it and as he said it would not rev up very well,, I pulled the muffler and sure enough the top ring was stuck,,, to my surprise the piston was not scored and looked fine so I used a tuning driver and some kroil oil. let is soak for a bit, and began to press on the ring,, I would not have believed it,,, but it freed up I then put a few drops of Ultra premix on it worked it some more,,... Turns out the saw was way lean on the L And the H adjustment,,, I re-base lined the settings and dumped out the cheap gas mix, (he told me it was regular grade fuel with dollar store premix) filled it with the shops 89 octane ultra mix and he was a Happy and very lucky camper!!! you usually have to pull the cylinder to do that and remove the rings and clean the ring grooves on the piston,,, Good Luck

Edit: he bought a six pack of Ultra premix and swore off the dollar store junk and regular gas, especially after I gave him a price for and OEM P/C w/labor!!!

 

[fearofpavement]

I think you probably are going to be dealing with a scored cylinder and scuffed piston. Sure the ring may be stuck but "improper mix" to me sounds light "straight gas".

If you buy the saw cheap enough, it is worth fixing.

 

[helimech]

so what would be cheap enough? 100$. 150$???

 

[Stihlofadeal64]

so what would be cheap enough? 100$. 150$???

depends on the overall condition of the saw. The cheaper the better if you're going to have to rebuild the topend possibly. Keep us posted.

 

[helimech]

i will
know where i can download the 044 shop manual?:msp_mellow:

 

[Typhke]

i will
know where i can download the 044 shop manual?:msp_mellow:

You've got mail

 

[jus2fat]

(he told me it was regular grade fuel with dollar store premix)

Edit: he bought a six pack of Ultra premix and swore off the dollar store junk and regular gas, especially after I gave him a price for and OEM P/C w/labor!!!

Exactly what I was talking about in my above post..!!

I once bought a re-furbished Poulan hedge trimmer for like $89 at an el cheapo hardware store.

Dude also gave me a bottle of el cheapo oil mix..I thanked him for the offer and explained why he could keep it.

J2F

 

[dswensen]

I apologize for that right there ....

I can't help myself.


So how many stuck ring pistons are in a herd?

:hmm3grin2orange:

 

[Brufab]

My Remingto Pro 88 had stuck rings. Moisture had coroaded the rings & ring grooves. Pumped only 90 psi at first. Using an ice pick and WD-40, flexed them for a long time untill they came loose. Cleaned the grooves and rings, put him back together and now he pumps 130. Runs great.

I am looking at buying a super 990 with stuck rings. Piston and cylinder are clean. I'm a bit nervous to buy it. I have heard trans fluid but your method sounds good too. There is 3 large ports in cylinder I wonder if I could slightly move and free the rings from there

 

[ballisticdoughnut]

hello
i found a sithl 044 that was as the owner said "ring stuck" from improper fuel mix. any one herd of this and is it a east fix? like new piston and cylinder? whats a good price for a ring stuck 044, might also have two of them he said.
any info would help
:cool2:

Sounds like carbon buildup in the ring grooves, or the saw may have ran lean and scored the piston. Before purchasing the saw remove the muffler cover and inspect the piston. If it’s scored I’d be talking the owner down as low as possible. With any luck you can clean the transfer out of the cylinder, replace the piston and have a running saw. Also do carb kit, fuel hose and filter, pulse hose, and crank seals just to remove any doubt.

 

[rupedoggy]

That's good. A ten year old thread. Maybe he got it by now. LOL

 

[Brufab]

Heck I'm looking for info on how to unstick rings from carbon build up I'm down a friggin rabbit hole having to make a decision on a holy grail saw tough night as they need to know I have first dibbs

 

[ballisticdoughnut]

Lmao. Didn’t even bother to look at the date.

 

[Brufab]

Lmao. Didn’t even bother to look at the date.

I find tons of knowledge in threads of years past lol