Echo cs-345 air leak?

[edmxz2002]

Hi all,
I have an echo cs-345 that I suspect has an air leak. It starts and runs good, but when I release the throttle it's slow to return to idle. Sometimes taking 10 seconds or so. I have looked at the cable and carburetor and they return to idle position instantly when the trigger is released.
When the saw is idling, if I tip side to side the Rpm remains steady. Quickly turning the saw so the bar is pointing straight down will make the Rpm increase enough for the chain to start spinning for a few seconds then the idle settles down. If I hold it this way, the saw has an erratic idle.
Am I correct in assuming it's an air leak causing this?
I don't have a pressure/vacuum tester. Any tricks to finding the leak without one?
TIA for any guidance.

Ed

 

[ballisticdoughnut]

Pull the flywheel and clutch so you can visually inspect the seals. You’ll see evidence of a leak if one or both are leaking. Not sure if that particular saw has a intake boot but if it does you’ll need to look it over carefully for cracks.

 

[edmxz2002]

Thanks for the quick reply.
I am going to pull the clutch, flywheel and intake tomorrow morning. I already checked the carburetor gasket. It's in great condition and the carburetor was tight. I will take a good look at the seals and intake to see if there is any evidence of leaks.
I will post my findings here.

Ed

 

[edmxz2002]

I found the problem. It was a combination of the throttle cable being too tight and the handle (rear) being a little loose.
With it sitting on the bench, the throttle fully closed when I released the trigger. Holding the saw by the handle put just enough tension on the cable that it wouldn't fully close the throttle.
I actually found it by accident. I put the saw on the ground while running and it acted like it should. Pick it up and RPMS increased. Took a while to figure it out, but now it's nice and clean because I did remove the flywheel, clutch,oil pump, carb, reed valve.
Running great and looking good.

Ed

 

[ballisticdoughnut]

Glad you got it sorted out.