NHden
ArboristSite Member
I'm glad to hear that. Hope mine is a good one
M-Tronic - Avoid? Or Acquire?
- Thread starter Levi of the North
- Start date
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Just, once again throw this tid bit out there, I bought a 2012 husqvarna 562xp new. I had zero issues with it till 2022... original el42 carb, no hot start issues, no lean runs, it just started and ran, and ran, and ran. By all logic it should have had tons of issues. It was literally one of the first autotune saws out. 20+cord a year, regular tree removals, fence rows, etc. Until i took my most recent job i would help my loghing friend out on my days off and weekends as well. Inless i needed a bigger saw i used my 562xp. Certainly I won't claim pro usage but it was used a far cry more then the average home owner. The only reason I ditched it was a new carb was on back order, but we couldn't get new saws or parts for anything, and I was in the middle of a job with a very short time frame. So new saw was the easier solution and even that took calling several dealer to get a replacment comparable to the 562xp. The guy I ended up selling the saw to got another carb and is still running it. Happy as could be. It's a non issue at this point. I can tune a saw with the best of them, but truthfully I'm lazy and it's one less thing I need to think about. I certainly don't miss points ignition either, and I still own a few 70's trucks that have points, carbs and don't have power steering or power brakes, or even disk front brakes. That's a novelty for nice weekends these days.
I was at a GM dealership in '80. I can't tell you how many ecm's were replaced because it was "the computer". I went to a GM training center in Buffalo, and the instructors told us the technology was higher on the new GM's that what sent the men to the moon. Most of the problems back then were stuck metering rods, caused by the mixture control solenoid jamming them down. So yes, in a way, it was the new technology causing problems...like anything, they hadn't got the bugs out yet.
Now, like you say, it's old hat. My 500I is way more sophisticated than those '80's cars. And we expect and take it for granted...the new norm
LuDookie
ArboristSite Guru
It would be nice to hear more accounts like this. Saws that work good for a few years, stories are unimpressive. That’s what you usually hear, and why I’m hesitant to get on board.
My own experience with an early auto tune was bad, and I didn’t know what the saw needed. Neither did the dealer.
I know several who have gathered up all of the 266's, 372's (non xtorq), and any other old skool saws they can muster in order to have trouble-free operations in the field. They are old hands who are fed up with the niggling problems of modern saws.
anyway...
newforest
ArboristSite Operative
I had a several months long bad time with an M-Tronic saw also because of a dealer, which was a farm tractor dealer, not a saw shop. Because of my purchase, they had to acquire the software suite needed to figure out what was happening - a full 5 years after the introduction of M-Tronic - “no one ever buy pro saws.”
Their mid-level wholesale supplier backed up their ignorance and doubled down on it. That rep suggested to me that I simply didn’t know what I was looking at. (The saw surged to peak RPMs while holding the trigger steady; it also fouled plugs in less than 60 minutes).
I told the pair of idiots that this was the 13th saw I had purchased in my life, most of them pro models. I was also leaving my hometown soon, crossing several state lines for a winter job about 30 miles from Virginia Beach, VA, (which was true) and if they didn’t fix my saw or refund my money, I would simply walk it in the front door of the Stihl USA offices and ask them for help.
That got results. All the saw needed was a simple push of the electronic reset button, and it has been a valuable tool for me ever since. The lesson learned was not that M-tronic is scary SNAFU bug land, but rather a simpler one: don’t buy a high quality professional saw from a tractor dealer.
Their mid-level wholesale supplier backed up their ignorance and doubled down on it. That rep suggested to me that I simply didn’t know what I was looking at. (The saw surged to peak RPMs while holding the trigger steady; it also fouled plugs in less than 60 minutes).
I told the pair of idiots that this was the 13th saw I had purchased in my life, most of them pro models. I was also leaving my hometown soon, crossing several state lines for a winter job about 30 miles from Virginia Beach, VA, (which was true) and if they didn’t fix my saw or refund my money, I would simply walk it in the front door of the Stihl USA offices and ask them for help.
That got results. All the saw needed was a simple push of the electronic reset button, and it has been a valuable tool for me ever since. The lesson learned was not that M-tronic is scary SNAFU bug land, but rather a simpler one: don’t buy a high quality professional saw from a tractor dealer.
To be fair, a lot of the technologies from that time were indeed ancient/primitve in the 80s. Also, sending men on the moon and designing a work truck are two very different animals.
Most of us are carrying more computing power in our pockets than the astronauts took to the moon.
The ones that aren't, still drive carbureted vehicles.
The ones that aren't, still drive carbureted vehicles.
And once the parts dry up for them, then what?
NHden
ArboristSite Member
We visited one of the old mission control rooms around '96. That was a blast from the past as the equipment was already near obsolescence at the time of the launches from there. No matter how high tech our propulsion becomes, plumbing will still reign supreme ... until we get to warp drives, ion propulsion or whatever the next physics brings.
Glad to hear some happy stories about micro controlled saws. The internet will deliver mostly complaints.
I've asked some folks to send me a few dead solenoids for a post mortem. I'd like to settle how they operate. It may be possible to build a simple box that shows where the fuel delivery is at while running, WOT'ing, etc. It might be a surprise to find that saws that will not idle or will not start at all are simply stuck open or closed.
Glad to hear some happy stories about micro controlled saws. The internet will deliver mostly complaints.
I've asked some folks to send me a few dead solenoids for a post mortem. I'd like to settle how they operate. It may be possible to build a simple box that shows where the fuel delivery is at while running, WOT'ing, etc. It might be a surprise to find that saws that will not idle or will not start at all are simply stuck open or closed.
NHden
ArboristSite Member
So do the old hands. The old metal goes to China and comes back as Farmertec.
I had an early 362 that I ran the snot out of and it never missed a beat. As far as I know the guy I sold it to is still running it without issue.
I do think that it's beneficial to run Husky's new stuff with more oil than 50:1.
Most of the problems with Mtronic and Autotune where driven buy poor quality fuel and bad operating and maintenance practices. Skanky gas and dirt are not beneficial to any saw, but impacted Mtronic and Autotune to a larger degree.
To compound that most dealers and techs are completely worthless. So anything new throws them into a tailspin.
To compound that most dealers and techs are completely worthless. So anything new throws them into a tailspin.
I pretty much just settled on 40 to 1. Then again my newest saw is a stihl, but thats had 40 to 1 too. No issues with it so far.
Tomos770
ArboristSite Guru
We already have topic about (Stihl?) selenoids...with pictures and everything else (how to & DIY) ...I am 95% sure that I red it on this site (5% that it was o*p*e forum).
Dont ask me if I could find it......but I red it less then a year ago!
Tomos770
ArboristSite Guru
here is one topic.....but that doesnt go into details (in one that I am reffering to a guy dismantles broken selenoid for educational purposes!) https://www.arboristsite.com/threads/m-tronic-solenoid-valve-saga.325259/#post-6692314
Isn't Sthil selling most of the pro saws without mtronic because they can't get the mtronic wiring harnesses? What's parts availability going to be like in the future if even Stihl can't get the parts they need for mtronic saws today.
I'll take the good old basic carby saws myself at least ya can get parts for them and personally I'm not swinging off the high and low like a mad man so mtronic is no game changer or benefit to me. The only thing mtronic does for me is have me wishing I could tune the bloody saw to my liking. One tune for all meh yeah sure if ya that incompetent lol
I'll take the good old basic carby saws myself at least ya can get parts for them and personally I'm not swinging off the high and low like a mad man so mtronic is no game changer or benefit to me. The only thing mtronic does for me is have me wishing I could tune the bloody saw to my liking. One tune for all meh yeah sure if ya that incompetent lol
So do you remember setting the mix rods with a dwell meter? I went to the electronics school also. It was an hour trip from Warsaw, but it was definitely worth it. Still have the book on the shelf.
NHden
ArboristSite Member
Good point about getting parts. If Stihl can't get them now, how are we going to get them in 5 years? They will never become commodity items but will remain a special (likely custom) Stihl part.
Stihl is a small fish in electronic components. A few years back I was working on a mil imaging system which used the same cameras as a number of cars that model year. The rep I dealt with said he was delivering 2 million per month. My mil requirement for 500 a year was like an order for samples.
Stihl is a small fish in electronic components. A few years back I was working on a mil imaging system which used the same cameras as a number of cars that model year. The rep I dealt with said he was delivering 2 million per month. My mil requirement for 500 a year was like an order for samples.
The harness issue is from the Russia war with Ukraine, from what I understand stihl is starting to get then made elsewhere. From my normal travels I haven't seen any real decline in mtronic saws vs what dealers ever kept on the shelf normally. Which in truth is a lot more then a year ago. 500i has become readily available as well as moat models being back in stock. Fourtantly the solenoids have little to do with where the harnesses are made so thats a non issue at this point.
