I'm with
@Cliff R. I don't use my saws daily or even weekly, and several weeks might go between uses. In the winter, it is more likely several months. After every use, I empty most of the bar oil (because it leaks out over time), and with a warm engine, dump the fuel. Then I start it up and let it idle till it sounds like it wants to quit, and then I try to rev it up to burn out the last of the gas (it usually dies before the rpms increase). Then the saws go to my shop where I clean out sawdust and file the chains. I store them in a heated garage. I'm tallking about a Stihl MS250 and MS311.
I used to put them away with gas in the tank, and after an extended (to me) storage of a few months, I always had hard starting. Now, after filling the tanks, priming the saws they start right up (say three or four pulls). If I were storing the saws for a year or more, I'd do the same, maybe put a squirt of oil in the spark plug hole, pull the recoil then replace the plug.
Interestingly, some Honda Snowblowers have a drain screw on the carb that empties the bowl for long term storage. They also advise the oz or so of oil in the cylinders. Honda was and is first and foremost Honda Motor Company.
If you really are worried about drying out rubber diaphragms in the carbs, why not find out who makes those parts and call the manufacturers. I've had gasket material in my tool box for years with no obvious deterioration. We all know gasoline attacts various synthetic rubber components, I find it hard to believe leaving gas in the carb will prevent rubber parts from 'drying out'. It never ceases to amaze me that the answers to our questions are usually easily found from knowledgeable sources but we (I'm including myself here, too) tend to go to places where opinions are found and not necessarily the facts.
