Noob here....basic questions on ECHO CS-400 Chainsaw

[Lew Dog]

Hi folks,Newbie on here, Looking for Stihl ms 460r or just 460, please mail me prices, people from uk only for delivery reasons or husky 371xp or 72 thanks

 

[khorton]

OK, I know this thread is old, but I FINALLY had a reason to get this saw out of the box, and use it. Saw seemed to run really well, and cut really well. I am still concerned that this thing will eventually seize, because I am STILL reading reviews and that they are all saying the same thing. That ECHO will not honor their warranty. Anyway, to make a long story short, I went ahead and pulled the cover on the saw. If I look down inside, I can see the screws that you all have been talking about. (See photo, best one I could get). I know that these two screws are where the plastic "stops" are, but what needs to be done? Do I need to back those screws out, is that where the plastic tabs are that need to be removed? If so, and I get those off, what is the proper adjustment if/when they are removed? Sorry, not much of a chainsaw guy up to this point, but guess I better get that way, because I sure as hell don't want to burn this saw up. Thanks in advance people. - kph

 

[AKDoug]

If you use fresh fuel, with the proper mix, and keep your chain sharp, this saw is not going to just magically seize up. Stop worrying.

 

[mountainlake]

You or the dealer needs to pull the caps and tune for sure, plus a muff modd makes a saw that everyone likes. They will seize up as they come from the factory . Steve

 

[greendohn]

My cs400 is a 2010 model, bone stock, I've run the heck out of this saw,,dozens of tanks of fuel mix thru it,,I might worry about tuning it a lil' rich one of these daze, but not any time soon. I ran my last one, a ?306? for 8 years, bone stock,,,narry a worry. I replaced it because the carb finally gave up, it didn't owe me a dime,,I bought another just like it back in '07 and it still runs great with a mm and tuned a lil' rich. I bought the 400 'cause I just wanted a bigger limb saw.
As mentioned good fresh fuel mix, keep your air filter clean and use ethanol shield,,
Popping the limiters off the carb and tuning a little rich may not hurt,,it's your choice,,read up on the subject and find someone to help you tune it proper who knows,,

 

[Cycledude]

yeah I had pulled the carb out myself and used peace of metal which I then dremeled really thin to sorta hook out those limiters on my 400 and 8000. I think My 400 is a weird saw now that I opened up the muff and tuned it with wood to cut. Sounds nasty when revving without load but when its warmed up and cutting with the chain sharpened right its really doing its job! A couple things about that saw I'd say is put lock tight on all exterior screws that holds the plastic together , and don't bother cutting brush with it unless you want to practice putting the chain back on alot. I have one friend that has been running the piss out of the little four hundred and it still runs like new. Run the damn saw and pull the plug sometime to see what color you get maybe.

NEVER use lock tight on plastic ! Lock tight will ruin plastic

 

[bikemike]

Damn good wife you got there

 

[bikemike]

Setting L and H without limiters

I greatly appreciate the advice in this thread.
I have an almost-new CS-400 and lost the factory L and H settings when modifying the limiter caps.
Please advise how to set L (and maybe H) from scratch.

One reply said that both need to be about 3 to 4 turns out to be set properly.
Other replies give good advice for setting H.

The manual instructs setting L to obtain smooth transition from low to high speed without hesitation, but please suggest where to start with L after losing the factory setting.

I will set the idle speed screw using a tach, but that is independent from the L screw.
WOT is give as 12,650 in the manual, but I will use the recommended two-stroking/four-stroking technique for setting H.

Thanks in advance.

That is not wise it is a limited coil tune it for best results in cut and idle acceleration

 

[2lumbarleft]

You have already received lots of good advice. There are plenty of threads on this website that can help you through the muffler mod and carb limiter removal. I have many, many, echo chainsaws, and have a special place in my heart for the CS-400. I never break them in prior to modifying. Why? they run cooler once modified, and heat is what kills chainsaws. Use a 3" #6 wall or deck screw, blunt the tip slightly on a grinder and screw it into the plastic limiters. Clamp on a vice grip and use upward pressure and a little agitation to get them out. A good preliminary starting place is 1.5 turns out on the low and 3.125 turns out on the high. Turn you throttle screw up a little right off the bat. From this point, your saw will start and you can start fine tuning in wood. If you are going to muffler modify, which I highly recommend, you might want to do a little less than others have suggested on this website. In some CS-400s, where I have removed the entire cat, and drilled straight through to the exhaust, I found that they were just a little slow to come up to full power, because you have to wait for the engine to warm up for about 45 seconds. I suggest removing some but not all of the cat. Drill a small hole in the middle as a pilot. Then use a 1/2" bit and follow enlarging the pilot hole. You can always go back and take out some more. The saw will be a little more quiet, and come up to full power quicker. Remember to enlarge the exhaust port with a cut of saw and a dremel, or power drill. Break in with 40 to 1 blended oil. Then switch to 40:1 full synthetic. After about five tank fills, pull a plug and check the top of your piston for coking. After they break in, you can lean a little. They are officially listed to weigh 10.1 pounds, but all weigh 10.4 with the cutting spikes. That is just .1 pound less than a MS0-250, but I prefer echo by far. They have better oilers, and aluminum handles. They last longer, and run great when modified. I believe they put out around 2.7-2.9 horsepower once modified. The MS-250 is rated at 3.0 hp, but I don't believe that for one minute. The Echo has far better pre-separation filtration of particulate matter on intake. I love the air filters, and they are cheap to buy.

 

[CoreyB]

I have family from Laurence KS. I have not seen them for years.