Help: starting Stihl MS290

[livemusic]

I found a thread on here where a guy was having trouble starting his new Stihl ms290 and I followed many of the suggestions on techniques for cold starting, but nothing worked. I cannot get this saw to hit at all. I have used it several times over the past year. After it shipped to me, I did get it started right away, so, that was a relief. I bought it used a year ago. I did have one time over the past year when I could not start it at all and I can't remember what I did, but I got it going and it ran fine a time or two after that. Now, I need to cut a tree down and it won't do anything.

I added new fuel. (I didn't drain the old.) I don't recall last time I used it. Probably a few months ago. So, the fuel I have in my can is a few months old. Reckon that matters?

I have tried multiple times and it won't hit. I let it sit awhile between attempts. I took the air filter out and it looks kinda dirty. I cleaned it best I could but have not washed it yet. If I do that, how long do I need to let it dry? The last attempt, I put a little bit of gas in the carb and put the adjustment lever on full run and it might have barely hit (if that, not totally sure) but did not run.

I forget exactly what the local dealer charges for tuneup but I think it was about $70 plus parts. So, I don't want to do that. I am no small engine expert but can probably handle it fine, I was raised on a farm and I've tinkered with mowers and motorcycles and such.

I downloaded the manual for the ms290.

What all should I do? One thing specifically I want to ask... the carbuerator adjustment screws... I can barely see a screw deep down in there. It's a funnel shaped opening that you would stick some kind of tool down into.

EDIT: I see that I can buy...
- $9 - kit of air filter, oil filter, spark plug
- $16 - aftermarket carburetor
I don't know that I need any of this, just wondering if I should replace all of the above, since I bought it used, and I have had trouble twice now.

 

[kr5258]

Pull your spark plug and put a little mix right into the cylinder.

Might want to swap out the plug too.

 

[Stihlbillie]

Kind of a stupid question but, did you put the saws master control lever in the choke position?

 

[livemusic]

Kind of a stupid question but, did you put the saws master control lever in the choke position?

Yes, I did.

 

[1Alpha1]

Ah yes.......problem starting chainsaw issues.

Almost as popular as fuel / oil ratios.

 

[KenJax Tree]

Familiar topic huh Dano?

 

[1Alpha1]

Familiar topic huh Dano?

It was at one time.

Stihl waiting for HONDA to come out with a chainsaw.

Can you imagine a saw that starts each and every time on the 1st or 2nd pull, a saw that doesn't leak bar oil, a saw that has a fantastic air filter system on all of their models, and a saw with fuel and oil caps that actually seal and are easy on / off.

Nirvana you say? Naw.....it's not a place to be, it's just a brand to have.

 

[DonnerParty]

Start with FRESH gas/oil mix. Dump the old gas out of the saw tank and get rid of your several-month-old premix. Reset your carb settings to "factory" if you messed with them. Make sure your air filter is CLEAN (replace if you can't get all of the crud out with light compressed air blowout). Set to full choke and pull until it pops; keep pulling. Once it pops, move to half choke and pull several more times. If it doesn't start by then, move to "run" and keep pulling. When it starts, immediately grab the throttle and give it some light throttle until it starts to warm up.

 

[Chainsaw Jim]

I think the best advise for you would be to take it to one of the members here if one lives in your area, or take it in to a shop.
If your cylinder isn't already roached, it sounds like a carb rebuild and if you don't know how to tune a saw afterwards then you will likely lean it out and ruin it.
The ms290 is one of the most common saws to end up with lean or overheat scoring if not tuned right.

 

[livemusic]

Good news is I got it cranked after getting new gas. It ran real good and I cut down the 24" tree, then made 4 crosscuts to haul away and then it started bogging down. This saw has had that trouble since I got it... bogging down... it will run but it will rev up but not have much cutting power... it slowly goes down until I take the bite out of the blade and rev it higher and try to cut again. Or, in months past, sometimes, it just would not rev very high. Sounds like a fuel mix problem? What should I do?

EDIT: I saw a youtube about "bogging down" and the guy found a screen... he said it's for compression, essentially... I think it was part of the muffler? A commenter said it's a spark arrestor in the exhaust stream. It had thick gunk all over it, you could not tell it was a screen until he cleaned it. He said the former owner might have put too much oil in it, or too heavy oil. He cleaned it and got it going.

 

[kr5258]

Stop running it like that. Pull the muffler to see if you killed it. If not, time to go thru the carb and put a fresh kit into it.

 

[livemusic]

Stop running it like that. Pull the muffler to see if you killed it. If not, time to go thru the carb and put a fresh kit into it.

What do you mean "killed it?" I pulled the outer part of the muffler and I did find a screen. It was mostly open but there was some dark red material in there. I took the rest of the muffler off to where I could see the piston. I could see that there is dark red gasket goop; I guess that means somebody has been into this engine before. Actually, the seller claimed he made the saw "ready for sale," so, maybe he did it. I could see the piston and what is that where the muffler fits, the manifold? Should there be a gasket between the muffler and the manifold? There is no gasket.

Also, how do I know if the muffler is okay? I saw something about a muffler mod to make a saw run better (after warranty)... I guess I need to look into that? Thanks for help, I'm a guitar player, not a chainsaw expert, lol.

 

[ChoppyChoppy]

Start with FRESH gas/oil mix. Dump the old gas out of the saw tank and get rid of your several-month-old premix. Reset your carb settings to "factory" if you messed with them. Make sure your air filter is CLEAN (replace if you can't get all of the crud out with light compressed air blowout). Set to full choke and pull until it pops; keep pulling. Once it pops, move to half choke and pull several more times. If it doesn't start by then, move to "run" and keep pulling. When it starts, immediately grab the throttle and give it some light throttle until it starts to warm up.

It's not 1/2 choke, but rather high idle.

 

[kr5258]

What do you mean "killed it?"... Should there be a gasket between the muffler and the manifold? There is no gasket.

If the piston has vertical marks (see below) it is scored, you have hurt the motor. Yes, there should be a plate up against the cylinder and a gasket between the plate and muffler.

 

[merc_man]

Did ya check for spark.

Sent from my SGH-I747M using Tapatalk

 

[dall]

could the coil be going bad losing spark once it is warmed up could let it set a bit and let it cool off and see if starts again

 

[fearofpavement]

The Stihl MS290 does not use an exhaust gasket per se, it just has a metal plate with three holes in it for the bolts and the outline of the exhaust port.
The screen on the 1127 series is very large and I have never seen one plugged. (but certainly worth checking)
This model saw usually starts pretty predictably so if you're having problems with it starting, it probably has something wrong with it that needs addressing.

Standard procedure is to put the choke lever all the way down. Pull a few times (2 to 6) until it "pops" and then move the choke lever up one click. (this is the high idle position) Usually the saw will start and run on the next pull. If it has "popped", do not go back to full choke. The lever gets moved to the normal run position when you pull the trigger. DO NOT move it into the run position by moving the lever, it will damage the mechanism.

With the muffler off, look into the exhaust port hole. By pulling the recoil over slowly, the piston will move up and down and you can view it to see if there is any vertical markings on the piston. If there is, it's damaged and will need to be addressed. Report your findings.

 

[superw6]

It was at one time.

Stihl waiting for HONDA to come out with a chainsaw.

Can you imagine a saw that starts each and every time on the 1st or 2nd pull, a saw that doesn't leak bar oil, a saw that has a fantastic air filter system on all of their models, and a saw with fuel and oil caps that actually seal and are easy on / off.

Nirvana you say? Naw.....it's not a place to be, it's just a brand to have.

Do your research and you'll find Yamaha has started the four stroke motocross trend while Honda got its reliable reputation based on low powered air cooled motors and quads with low power , drum brakes and no suspension. I think you'll see a Honda chainsaw as quick as a Honda snowmobile= never. They play it safe to keep that reutation [emoji23]



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[1Alpha1]

Do your research and you'll find Yamaha has started the four stroke motocross trend while Honda got its reliable reputation based on low powered air cooled motors and quads with low power , drum brakes and no suspension. I think you'll see a Honda chainsaw as quick as a Honda snowmobile= never. They play it safe to keep that reutation [emoji23]



Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

I've yet to see a Yamaha powered Formula F-1 car.

 

[livemusic]

Stop running it like that. Pull the muffler to see if you killed it. If not, time to go thru the carb and put a fresh kit into it.

What do you mean "killed it?" I pulled the outer part of the muffler and I did find a screen. It was mostly open but there was some dark red material in there. I took the rest of the muffler off to where I could see the piston. I could see that there is dark red gasket goop; I guess that means somebody has been into this engine before. Actually, the seller claimed he made the saw "ready for sale," so, maybe he did it. I could see the piston and what is that where the muffler fits, the manifold? Should there be a gasket between the muffler and the manifold? There is no gasket.

Also, how do I know if the muffler is okay? I saw something about a muffler mod to make a saw run better (after warranty)... I guess I need to look into that? Thanks for help, I'm a guitar player, not a chainsaw expert, lol

Stop running it like that. Pull the muffler to see if you killed it. If not, time to go thru the carb and put a fresh kit into it.

When you say "fresh kit,"... do I, literally, but a kit of parts to install into the existing carb? What about just buying a whole new carburetor? Here is an aftermarket carb for $16 -- http://www.amazon.com/Chainsaws-Cha..._UL160_SR160,160_&refRID=0CXQK0EGW8W3S74XR2QW