MS 170

[Husky77]

Farmer friend has one, I fixed it so many times. It's ok for cutting small firewood and fence posts but no adjustment on carb only tick over so most of the time it runs rich, clogs up and always sluggish. You cant compare it to a pro saw, but horses for courses

 

[a. palmer jr.]

I sold my 170 and kept a Craftsman 2.1 saw. Much easier to use with it's new 3/8 LP chain and it cost me a lot less than the 170 did. Very good for cutting junk wood around the yard..

 

[NSEric]

You shouldnt need skip or semi skip chain at all, my 25cc top handle pulls regular 3/8lp just fine.
If your saw is bogging with the normal 3/8lp or picco chain the depth gauges are too low.

 

[OFFSHORE64]

The MS 170 is a great saw. For what it is. Look, you want a faller, get a 60cc or bigger Dolmar or Husky or Stihl. A good, reliable saw with an aggressive, full chisel chain. A bucking saw needs to fit the job as well. Maybe 40cc or bigger. A limber needs to be LIGHT and low kickback, with semi chisel low profile chain. Because you're surrounded by limbs with a running saw in ankle twisting terrain. With a good smooth break you engage every time you take another step. Something you can control when off balance and wishing you weren't holding a running saw. To me, that's a good quality pro-sumer homeowner saw by a reputable saw maker. There are no better saws for this than the MS 170 size saws

 

[GrizG]

The MS 170 is a great saw. For what it is. Look, you want a faller, get a 60cc or bigger Dolmar or Husky or Stihl. A good, reliable saw with an aggressive, full chisel chain. A bucking saw needs to fit the job as well. Maybe 40cc or bigger. A limber needs to be LIGHT and low kickback, with semi chisel low profile chain. Because you're surrounded by limbs with a running saw in ankle twisting terrain. With a good smooth break you engage every time you take another step. Something you can control when off balance and wishing you weren't holding a running saw. To me, that's a good quality pro-sumer homeowner saw by a reputable saw maker. There are no better saws for this than the MS 170 size saws

I've been running an MS461 and MS261 (earlier an MS271) and picked up an MS170 really cheap... mostly because it was really cheap! It turned out to be a great saw for the cases you presented and for cutting saplings and vines. I keep low kickback chains on the saw as they don't grab the small diameter stuff the way the Rapid Super chains on my other saws grab.

 

[OFFSHORE64]

It turned out to be a great saw for the cases you presented and for cutting saplings and vines

7 ruptured discs, 2 knee surgeries and 1 really bad attitude, trying to delete 7 acres of THICK Oklahoma crosstimbers from invasive Mountian Cedar dictated I purchase a Stihl 10" bicycle brush cutter. An absolutely beautiful thing. Like having a magic wand. I just cannot kneel to saw anymore.

 

[GrizG]

7 ruptured discs, 2 knee surgeries and 1 really bad attitude, trying to delete 7 acres of THICK Oklahoma crosstimbers from invasive Mountian Cedar dictated I purchase a Stihl 10" bicycle brush cutter. An absolutely beautiful thing. Like having a magic wand. I just cannot kneel to saw anymore.

I've got a Stihl FS130 that I change up with tri-blades, various saw blades, and a string trimmer head for when I have a lot to cut... Definitely easier than using the chainsaw when it's at ground level! For anything above the ground, like vines in brush and trees, the MS170 rules!

 

[Abbeville TSI]

I have a Stihl 017 bought years ago. Last year it got boggy so I laid it on the shelf and bought an Echo 3510. Too many projects behind right now, but I intend to fix it. It is a nice little saw that I used for limbing when I felled and bucked with an Stihl 026.

 

[GrizG]

I have a Stihl 017 bought years ago. Last year it got boggy so I laid it on the shelf and bought an Echo 3510. Too many projects behind right now, but I intend to fix it. It is a nice little saw that I used for limbing when I felled and bucked with an Stihl 026.

I'd check the spark arrester screen in the muffler... The saw shop where my son works sees a lot of fouled spark arresters on 2-stroke equipment...

 

[HarleyT]

I've got a Stihl FS130 that I change up with tri-blades, various saw blades, and a string trimmer head for when I have a lot to cut... Definitely easier than using the chainsaw when it's at ground level! For anything above the ground, like vines in brush and trees, the MS170 rules!

Pop on the chainsaw attachment, you will love it!!

 

[GrizG]

Pop on the chainsaw attachment, you will love it!!

I also have a Stihl HT131 pole saw. No grass, weed, brush, or tree is safe from my Stihl outdoor power equipment!

 

[ElevatorGuy]

The 170 rules?! Lol, wait til you run a real saw!

 

[Abbeville TSI]

I'd check the spark arrester screen in the muffler... The saw shop where my son works sees a lot of fouled spark arresters on 2-stroke equipment..

I took the screen out long time gone, @GrizG Thanks though...

 

[GrizG]

I took the screen out long time gone, @GrizG Thanks though...

Maybe a minor muffler mod is in order? I took a stepped bit and enlarged three of the holes in the muffler body so that they just touched. I also bent the louvers in the spark arrester cover a bit to make the openings larger. That alone made a tremendous difference in the way the throttle responded.

 

[djg james]

I've got a MS 170 and I think it's a great consumer grade saw. I mainly use it for limbing and 8" or smaller stuff. I've had problems with the oiler though. Replace the oil pump and hose once. Later the oil pump was working but it started leaking oil. I suspect it leaked around the boot of the hose where it fits into the oil tank. Now the pumped stopped so I'm getting ready to replace both again. Hopefully, the seal will hold this time.

 

[SteveSr]

I've got a MS 170 and I think it's a great consumer grade saw. I mainly use it for limbing and 8" or smaller stuff. I've had problems with the oiler though. Replace the oil pump and hose once. Later the oil pump was working but it started leaking oil. I suspect it leaked around the boot of the hose where it fits into the oil tank. Now the pumped stopped so I'm getting ready to replace both again. Hopefully, the seal will hold this time.

Get BOTH surfaces pristine clean and then use an oil resistant RTV to glue the hose in.

Assuming that the worm is good the pump stops working because it is picking up sawdust/debris from the tank which is getting stuck in the pump. Clean the tank out and use a 1" chip brush to clean the trash off of the tank and cap before removing the cap. Take a look at the screen in the tank and imagine what can get through it! It ain't no fuel filter!

 

[SteveSr]

Maybe a minor muffler mod is in order? I took a stepped bit and enlarged three of the holes in the muffler body so that they just touched. I also bent the louvers in the spark arrester cover a bit to make the openings larger. That alone made a tremendous difference in the way the throttle responded.

A muffler mod on these is illadvised as they are already too lean from the factory in stock form.. Removing the screen or drilling the muffler only make it leaner and more likely to burn up. If you want it to survive a MM you need to replace the carb with a WT-215 fully adjustable carb. There are several threads on here on how to do it.

 

[GrizG]

A muffler mod on these is illadvised as they are already too lean from the factory in stock form.. Removing the screen or drilling the muffler only make it leaner and more likely to burn up. If you want it to survive a MM you need to replace the carb with a WT-215 fully adjustable carb. There are several threads on here on how to do it.

I considered the lean risk... Before I did this mod the throttle response was awful... it was loading up and acted like it was too rich. I've checked the piston and cylinder several times in the past year, including this week when I did routine maintenance on my saws. They still look like new a year or so after I tweaked the saw. I didn't blast huge holes in the muffler and did not remove the spark arrester. I did add a muffler gasket that stopped leakage between the exhaust port and muffler.

The mod seems to have hit a sweet spot as it runs great now. There is also plenty of lubrication happening with the Stihl synthetic mix oil and non-ethanal 93 octane in a 50:1 mix. The spark plug looks terrific. It could be because this saw seldom sees wood over 3-4" with under 2" being the norm. After all, I have my MS261 and MS461 for "serious" cutting so there's no point in beating on the 170. There might be a different story if I was pushing the 170 hard... There might be a different story if I ran dull chains...

It is a cheap saw with a decent reputation for reliability that fit a niche. If it burns up... "Oh well." It did some work and I had some fun.

 

[djg james]

Get BOTH surfaces pristine clean and then use an oil resistant RTV to glue the hose in.

Would Seal-All work or would you get something better?

P.S. I found some Permatex Black locally. Might work better. and I clean the saw with mineral spirits then the residue with acetone.