M-Tronic - Avoid? Or Acquire?

[chipper1]

Ask about non-moronic at the corporate level.

Inquire to the members who have been exporting brand-new old models. Check out the trading post. “Chainsaws”. You’ll have to dig around a bit..

Why would he want that old junk .
The stihls all went real fast. Dan may be able to find some, but there would be no warranty. He did have some of the non-mtronic 462's for sale.

 

[holeycow]

Being stuck on Stihl...or Husky ...or only Stihl and Husky...is a mistake. Ymmv.

 

[chipper1]

Being stuck on Stihl...or Husky ...or only Stihl and Husky...is a mistake. Ymmv.

I agree, but depending on the market and someone's skill set they may go with one of them for dealer support.
I like the jreds, dolmars/makitas, as well as the echos(not that I've much experience with them, but I have one here right now and would have others).
I thought the huskys and stihls are all ran was exporting.

 

[Deleted member 117362]

Until they don`t, then its a trip to a dealer with the right equipment to see what needs replacing, or just replace the whole saw when the bill runs up.

Using the wrong dealer.

 

[chipper1]

Using the wrong dealer.

Like I said before, you have a great deal up there, not everyone has it as good as you.

 

[pioneerguy600]

Using the wrong dealer.

Doesn`t matter, a dealer is a dealer, to be avoided at all cost.

 

[Maintenance supervisor]

I used multiple makes of saws at work that have been purchased by the state and restore old American saws in my spare time.
Most of the time I used a saw was after a hurricane, tornado, or fire . Honestly a saw HAS TO WORK in an emergency for me. The contract for us right now is husqvarna my boss bought 2 xp550s and they're a great light saw but more then once the auto-tune has acted up, well if you hike 8 miles up a mountain to cut a dangerous tree from a popular public trail you'll be really suprised at how worthless the weight or computer is.
Ms361 and ms200t were always along just incase.

 

[Deleted member 117362]

Like I said before, you have a great deal up there, not everyone has it as good as you.

So why isn't everyone still using one or two man cross cut saws, less moving parts, not worrying about oil and fuel quality, mixing, straight gassing, few break down. Technology, get on board or miss out. You guys sound like my grandfather did.

 

[Nathan Graff]

So why isn't everyone still using one or two man cross cut saws, less moving parts, not worrying about oil and fuel quality, mixing, straight gassing, few break down. Technology, get on board or miss out. You guys sound like my grandfather did.

The 2 men on the crosscut still have to mix properly, or it's more worthless than a chainsaw that doesn't work... haha

 

[pioneerguy600]

There is no missing out, saws will always be around, not like one could not buy a Mtronic in the future, I will wait for true injection same as I did for trucks.

 

[newforest]

I go to that excellent dealer in northern MI, too, looking forward to a visit on Monday on the way to a job. And to buy another AutoTune. I recently gave an older saw in the same 50cc class to a friend of mine who has a small fleet of the exact same model still, and refuses to touch an AutoTune. I think he is making a mistake because he runs 3 or 4 of them with a small crew, just dropping trees all day long on pre-commercial thinning type jobs. No stopping for loading or anything else, just keep dropping stems. I say a mistake because once I ran my 50cc AutoTune and it's normally carb'd predecessor on a similar job - same job on the same day - I saw clearly the major advantage in fuel efficiency - which is not just in fuel costs, but in time, which is of course, money. This also means I don't have to carry as much fuel on a sweet little lumbar supported lower back pack I use. But as has been said, for cutting just a couple-three tanks a couple-three days a month, that matters little.

I had a rough go with a Stihl "solenoid" -

( noun

1. a cylindrical coil of wire acting as a magnet when carrying electric current.)

- how a black box that controls fuel fed into a carb got that name I will never understand. I feel it still runs too rich - using a spark arrestor screen with it is not really an option, unless you want to clean that screen nearly daily if you run the saw all day. (Which my no comprende dealer of the German stuff thinks would be a perfectly fine thing to do.) But overall my first M-Tronic has been great, a total Beast, ever since it's mysterious teething issue was cleared up. I was left with the impression the dealer didn't know what was happening either - and the customer isn't allowed to peak behind the cable very much, most places.

It makes me think what these systems could use for even greater improvement would be what is called an O2 sensor on a vehicle, as a bit of a check on how the system is operating. But I suppose that would still add too much expense and complication to these systems, which in general seem to be working fine without additional sensors. My first AutoTune is over 800 hours now (I do like how the chip keeps track) and should be over 1000 by some point this Fall.




I get asked about buying saws sometimes, and I just tell people two things: buy the "pro" model, and buy it from the place where the loggers buy theirs, even if that place is a little farther away.

 

[Deleted member 117362]

Big storm just went through, dropped power and internet service. Thought I had gotten banned. Checked site on my phone and nope still here, little disappointed. Actually like them all, just worked on an 045, replaced coil and flywheel from an 056. Gentleman wanted to get his fathers saw working again and set it on his shelf. Nice, had no interest in cutting with it, just wanted to have it in running order.

 

[InfiniteJest]

I think the bad rap on the new stuff gets a little overblown. I've got stihl and husky in the work truck. No real preference. The two dealers I do business with know I'm good for a few saw purchases a year and treat me accordingly.

I don't run a saw much over 3 months. That's a lifetime for most firewood guys.

Find a good dealer, be a loyal customer and don't worry about this new technology. It's worked great for me, and it's my livelihood.

 

[stihl86]

I go to that excellent dealer in northern MI, too, looking forward to a visit on Monday on the way to a job. And to buy another AutoTune. I recently gave an older saw in the same 50cc class to a friend of mine who has a small fleet of the exact same model still, and refuses to touch an AutoTune. I think he is making a mistake because he runs 3 or 4 of them with a small crew, just dropping trees all day long on pre-commercial thinning type jobs. No stopping for loading or anything else, just keep dropping stems. I say a mistake because once I ran my 50cc AutoTune and it's normally carb'd predecessor on a similar job - same job on the same day - I saw clearly the major advantage in fuel efficiency - which is not just in fuel costs, but in time, which is of course, money. This also means I don't have to carry as much fuel on a sweet little lumbar supported lower back pack I use. But as has been said, for cutting just a couple-three tanks a couple-three days a month, that matters little.

I had a rough go with a Stihl "solenoid" -

( noun

1. a cylindrical coil of wire acting as a magnet when carrying electric current.)

- how a black box that controls fuel fed into a carb got that name I will never understand. I feel it still runs too rich - using a spark arrestor screen with it is not really an option, unless you want to clean that screen nearly daily if you run the saw all day. (Which my no comprende dealer of the German stuff thinks would be a perfectly fine thing to do.) But overall my first M-Tronic has been great, a total Beast, ever since it's mysterious teething issue was cleared up. I was left with the impression the dealer didn't know what was happening either - and the customer isn't allowed to peak behind the cable very much, most places.

It makes me think what these systems could use for even greater improvement would be what is called an O2 sensor on a vehicle, as a bit of a check on how the system is operating. But I suppose that would still add too much expense and complication to these systems, which in general seem to be working fine without additional sensors. My first AutoTune is over 800 hours now (I do like how the chip keeps track) and should be over 1000 by some point this Fall.




I get asked about buying saws sometimes, and I just tell people two things: buy the "pro" model, and buy it from the place where the loggers buy theirs, even if that place is a little farther away.

Have you seen the fuel solenoid? It is shaped like a cylinder. And it uses current to open and close.
It does not feed fuel to the carb. They have a very conventional carb, with a integrated fuel pump and metering
diaphragm. It works with the carb.

 

[stihl86]

There are quite a few stihl places that only have salesmen, rather than tech/mechs nearby. Tech/Mech is being downgraded to a "burger flipper" status. Soon they will be like a supermarket, where you click what is wrong and they sell you a part, or a new saw.

Glad you got 40 years in as the future is bleak.

My GMs were made in USA , as were my Willys/Jeeps, Ford tractors. I can fix them all with my tool box. I have a stash of service parts, from when USA made, not Mexico or Chinesium.

My saws? I have gasket sets, carb kits, some NOS P/C assys, rubber stuff. I'll be dead before I don't have a little/big saw I can't fix by me.

P.S. is your son looking into being a saw mech? McDs might be better

No need to drag family members into this, is there? I could take that as an insult to my son.

 

[ChoppyChoppy]

Currently fighting with a near new 362. Has 9.7hrs on it right now.

Been fine until this past week. Fire it up and it'll idle fine but as soon as I touch the throttle it shuts off or bogs. Today I had to screw with it a good 5+ mins before I could cut anything. Ended up getting it going with feathering the throttle.

Not sure what the deal is, before this it was a 1-2 pull saw and ran great.

Have 3 of them with about the same hours on them, bought at about the same time. Another one bogs some when first started then is fine. The other works fine, no issues.

 

[Huskybill]

I like this new poster already money isn’t a factor, well said when shopping for a new saw.

I don’t like any company who releases there new high tech unproven product before it’s time. New designs should be life tested in-house. Not life tested by your customers. This fix it in the field is bs I don’t care who the company is.

I love the old saws. A little heavy but they run.

My company released a new product that was a failure. By the time they fixed it, it was perfect. Customers were pizzed off, but some customers wanted more.

 

[newforest]

Have you seen the fuel solenoid? It is shaped like a cylinder. And it uses current to open and close.
It does not feed fuel to the carb. They have a very conventional carb, with a integrated fuel pump and metering
diaphragm. It works with the carb.

No, haven't explored the innards of my saw that much, all that is hidden away a bit more in a clearing saw. I know the carb is the same, but have never understood why the word 'Solenoid' is used with these saws as if the solenoid is where the microprocessor/chip is. When I would ask if the chip could have problems with its connection points or however a basic heat sink for it would work, I would be told "don't worry, the solenoid never fails."

Although my understanding of computer controlled fuel inputs is based on the earliest designs of such systems in vehicle engines, where I have done basics like cleaning injectors and diagnosing problems created by the various sensors as they wear out (but don't have much experience deeper in engines than that), I was left with the distinct impression that I knew more about the basic concepts than the shop where I bought my first M-Tronic saw. And where for some reason, the word "solenoid" is now used as a catch-all a wee bit much. Perhaps that is just something at this odd tractor dealer which is my closest local connection to Stihl, though I am already starting to drive the 50 miles to the next closest one, instead of the 10 to the tractor guys.

So you inspired me to watch a video illustrating just where the chip sits, at least in the Stihl chainsaws. I remain impressed with what the chips accomplish in that operating environment. I doubt I will be taking the case of the clearing saw apart (any further than changing the plug and filters and the winter/summer air intake), for my own closer look for many years to come.

 

[InfiniteJest]

I like this new poster already money isn’t a factor, well said when shopping for a new saw.

I don’t like any company who releases there new high tech unproven product before it’s time. New designs should be life tested in-house. Not life tested by your customers. This fix it in the field is bs I don’t care who the company is.

I love the old saws. A little heavy but they run.

My company released a new product that was a failure. By the time they fixed it, it was perfect. Customers were pizzed off, but some customers wanted more.

If a man puts enough wood on the ground a day, money is not a factor. It's a tax write off. I have no time to **** with old saws after I've put in my day in.
I take my work very seriously.

 

[Huskybill]

In the past I had no break downs. Time is money. I couldn’t afford down time.