Piece broke off Stihl 044 handle

[cobb]

I assume people have fixed broken parts on their chainsaws. My question is, what did you use and did it work as you planned? In the attached picture you can see the piece missing on the bottom/base of the handle. And before everyone starts posting this, no I do not want to buy a Chinese knock-off with the flip top caps! I want to try to fix what I have, even if it cost more and labor intensive, to keep original. Did I mention I do not want a Chinese Knock-off replacement, I want to try to fix what I have?

 

[irhunter]

How about 2 more pics?

One a bit further away...showing more of the big picture. And, one of the underside.

Roy

 

[ZeroJunk]

Go on amazon or wherever and get you some 1708 fiberglass and two part epoxy.
Get it CLEAN. Rough it up with some sandpaper. Cut the glass to fit. However many layers suits you. Wet the glass with the epoxy. Mold it to suit you. Will have to keep pressing where you want it to be until it sets enough to stay in place.
Will be there when you are gone.

Acetone is good to clean the surface as well as any epoxy you get on yourself. Wear surgical gloves.

 

[pioneerguy600]

I assume people have fixed broken parts on their chainsaws. My question is, what did you use and did it work as you planned? In the attached picture you can see the piece missing on the bottom/base of the handle. And before everyone starts posting this, no I do not want to buy a Chinese knock-off with the flip top caps! I want to try to fix what I have, even if it cost more and labor intensive, to keep original. Did I mention I do not want a Chinese Knock-off replacement, I want to try to fix what I have?

Yes some of us do fix broken parts but we are a minority, most buy replacements because it is easier. I have fixed several rear handle breaks successfully. No I did not start a thread or take any pics that I can now find.

 

[alexcagle]

That's not broken to me. Lol
Why not put an aluminum skid plate over it?
This is broken.....

 

[Old2stroke]

As mentioned, bonding surface must be absolutely free of any oil residue. West System is a good liquid epoxy to wet out fiberglass with and can be found at any marine repair or plastic material shop. Might help to use an aluminum adhesive foil tape to cover the missing area and build your fiberglass patch against this as a sort of mold. After patch has cured, you could remove the tape and lay a couple of layers over the patch and extend it onto good metal past the patch to improve the "stay-there-forever" strength.

 

[pioneerguy600]

That's not broken to me. Lol
Why not put an aluminum skid plate over it?
This is broken.....
View attachment 1150557

that will buff right out with some elbow grease.

 

[cookies]

I use some expensive stuff made by 3m intended for plastic autobody repair, its a 2 part plastic epoxy that is very strong. I have used it multiple times without failure over years...Its black but it ay come in clear idk, It is a permanent repair that can be sanded or ground to shape once fully hardened. Last purchase price I paid was about 70 bucks for it but it has come down to around 50, the other option is scour fleabay for a good used handle/tank. Be very aware this stuff is fast hardening, 5 minutes and its solid, 1 hour and its fully hard. They sell other versions that harden even faster, it can be mixed without the gun and tips, ,lightly sand the areas around the work area for extra bond grip.

3M TPO Plastic Parts Repair, 08239​

 

[Old2stroke]

Small pacs of fiberglass can be found at your local hardware store or anywhere that sells autobody repair products. The liquid resin they sell would work, as you probably don't need the extra strength of epoxy but it would be a polyester resin and you need some experience working with this as it goes off in less than 10 minutes whereas the epoxy resins can give you up to 20 minutes. Be aware of working times, as soon as you mix up a batch, the curing process begins and it's an exothermic reaction that gives off heat and heats itself up that speeds up the reaction so as soon as you mix it, start spreading it.

 

[ZeroJunk]

Small pacs of fiberglass can be found at your local hardware store or anywhere that sells autobody repair products. The liquid resin they sell would work, as you probably don't need the extra strength of epoxy but it would be a polyester resin and you need some experience working with this as it goes off in less than 10 minutes whereas the epoxy resins can give you up to 20 minutes. Be aware of working times, as soon as you mix up a batch, the curing process begins and it's an exothermic reaction that gives off heat and heats itself up that speeds up the reaction so as soon as you mix it, start spreading it.

Polyester is anerobic and more trouble as a repair. If you buy a polyester repair kit it needs to be covered to set. The glass you get at a hardware store or autobody repair is about like a ladies stockings. 1708 is what they build boats with.

I have repaired maybe a dozen saws, usually broken in the back end of the handle. My way works.

 

[ZeroJunk]

I helped a friend build a 42 foot fishing boat starting with western fir and juniper. The keel was about 15 layers of fir planed down until you could fit it in a jig to get the angle. The stringers are all western fir, laminated the same way.
All, of that is held together with West Systems 105 and 1708. Use Cabosil as a faring compound to make it the consistency you want.
The only nails in it are brass and countersunk through 1X2 juniper to the stringers. The stringers also have a layer of epoxy and cabosil between them.
Long story short, it has a pair of 700+ HP Cummins diesels in it. Nice boat.

So, doesn't have to be West Systems 105 necessarily. But, epoxy and 1708 is the way to go.

 

[pioneerguy600]

The West G/Flex 650 has bonded and held permanently to Stihl rear handle rebuilds/repairs for several I did, an 026,036 and a couple 044`s, scraping or sanding off the outer surface areas where the epoxy is required for bonding is a must ,so is the need to be completely oil/grease free. I did not buy this product just for these repairs but I live on the coast where there are thousands of boats and they all need more repairs than saws do, lots of West product used here along with 1708 and roven woven make very strong repairs for heavy stressed areas.

 

[rtrsam]

Great discussion of using marine type products to make a repair. Just to consider, the rear handle is one of two places you use to hold onto a saw, as in control it. Make it do what you want and prevent it from doing what you don't want. If you're a homeowner scrapping along or just an old school "waste-not, want-not" type, repairing is fine. If you are a commercial operator, or have employees using the saw, the only acceptable route is to either replace the saw or repair it (with new parts) to a factory designated and accepted specification.

 

[ZeroJunk]

I have a couple out there that guys who make a living with them have been using for years.

It is not rocket surgery.

 

[singinwoodwackr]

That's not broken to me. Lol
Why not put an aluminum skid plate over it?
This is broken.....
View attachment 1150557

So, did you fix it?

 

[BeatCJ]

That can be welded with PA-6 Nylon rod. I have done a couple of cracks and chips and they have turned out well. I recently did the handle on my 024, it had been epoxy repaired in the past, and the repair got broken. It was missing a pretty big chunk. I will eventually replace the entire handle, but it works fine and I could use it immediately.

 

[singinwoodwackr]

That can be welded with PA-6 Nylon rod. I have done a couple of cracks and chips and they have turned out well. I recently did the handle on my 024, it had been epoxy repaired in the past, and the repair got broken. It was missing a pretty big chunk. I will eventually replace the entire handle, but it works fine and I could use it immediately.

Do a write up with pics

 

[BeatCJ]

I will have to look at the saws I have. I have fixed the fuel tank and handle on my 044 and the 024. I don't ever think to take photos. I will talk to the local guy that I get to build saws for me, see if he has any basket case parts. On the 044 he bought a nicer looking tank handle and it leaked worse. Mine had a hole in the corner.

 

[Mogman]

I have tried all kinds of epoxies on plastics (for cars and motorcycles) and one of the best I found is J B Weld. Takes much longer to cure (24 hr), but takes the vibration. Hardman Urethane epoxy also works well, but it is more expensive and harder to find.

 

[Aknutter]

This is on my ms440. The repair was done in 2017 and has held up.