spudulike

Drill and use an easy out or possibly recut the thread if you can get it Bob on central to the broken screw. It is damn difficult to get central do the easy out is possibly the best option. If you run it, the extra heat being dissipated from the leak may seize the engine...it has been known!!

At the prices you mention, you really need to be doing a chain every 10-15 mins, the issue is checking the raker/depth gauges as well as this takes time rather than just giving the cutters a quick tidy up. I guess that most outfits don't do this service as well when sharpening chains. You then have to send back each chain so a minimum order (as Rob suggested) would be good but then that cuts out the domestic market weekend warriors and it takes time to invoice, pack and sort out address labels etc. I very rarely do chain sharpening and then only on request or if the customer is more of a domestic user as they have less of a clue on the angles. I use a cheap grinder but have fitted a speed controller and just pulse the sharpener so little heat builds up so no hardening of the cutter. I personally hate chain sharpening unless it is a "Tickle up" on a well maintained chain. The only way I would make this a business is doing it as a weekend beer funding venture.

These gearboxes are not 100% sealed, the system is a total loss lubrication system and over time, most of the grease will be lost so you need to replace the lost grease. Sure, much of the grease comes out around the drive bearings (ooop the shaft) or out by the blades but, it isn't sealed unlike a car gearbox that should be sealed. Because of this leakage, the gearbox that isn't greased, the grease goes a bit silvery and hard destroying the bearings, gears and rods. Forcing in new grease will force some of the older grease out replacing it with something that will lubricate. I remember talking to a printer service engineer called in to a company I used to work for saying a previous customer he had visited had turned the oiler off on a £1/2m printer as it kept dripping oil all over the floor. The whole Cylinder screen printer had destroyed every bearing in it through loss of lubrication as it had "Total loss lubrication"....it pisses out the bottom and you wipe it up then top up the oil reservoir.....this was one of the best screen printing equipment manufacturers around at the time and was....Swedish!! .........Svecia if you are interested.

Because, those that don't, end up wiping out expensive gears, rods and bearings. I very rarely see a well greased gearbox have issues. The ones that do have very little grease or the grease has gone hard. Of course there is a happy medium but you can't tell how full the box is so generally, once the grease starts seeping out, it is full and will then do the 25hrs until it is next greased. I guess the smartest operators will give the head 2-3 pumps each time the unit is used but that is a rarity from what I have seen. Many miss one of the greasing points on the gearbox and have no idea they should be regularly greasing it.

Can we take it that you aren't that keen on the KM130 then?

It gives different issues on different saws but generally a bad pump gives an idle that just rises in revs or fluctuates and dies without touching anything. Generally it makes the saw impossible to tune in the normal way and a solid idle is never achievable. On some saws and 4T kit, the symptom can be a poor pickup from idle with the engine stumbling if the throttle is cranked open suddenly.

North Herts....currently possible but busy with other projects.

Sorry no, just local customers only. Those bark boxes and the like are stupidly loud, only suitable for forestry and not for domestic and commercial work in my opinion.

Grease is the lifeblood of bearings and gears - look at it like water and food to humans. No grease.....the bearings die a nasty drawn out death getting worse and worse until.....DEATH and a BIG repair bill

I used DHL for a long time and knew the driver - Marius but called him Marion!! He stopped and pickups became hit and miss so use ParcelForce now and they are pretty good. I usually go through Parcel Monkey as it was much cheaper but it may be they now charge the rates the brokers get and go direct now. They were always £3 more expensive but are pretty much the same as others now - it had to be done to keep the business.

Funny that, my best days in servicing are the hour long jobs you hit one after the other rather than a whole day replacing a crank, bearings etc on a full rebuild and port!

Just skimmed through this thread. The KM four strokes should be pretty easy to turn over as they have an automatic decomp valve that partially opens the valves on starting. When they feel difficult to pull over, it means the tappets need adjustment - this method is not really how you should do it, regular maintenance is far better but I have noticed this on machines that I get in that are "neglected"!!! I adjust the tappets by feel...yup, that's it, it is far easier, quicker and once you have done a few............. A machine that is slow to pick up if the throttle is grabbed open fully - most likely worn accelerator pump. I got a KM130 in a while ago, it had been to around 4 dealers, it turned out one of the illustrious dealers had set the valve timing up incorrectly, fortunately not clumping the valves with the piston. The carb had also been changed....for a Chinese AM one but had used the Stihl top and bottom cover so they could charge the customer £130 for an OEM one. This machine was sorted and had a decent amount of power once done. The greasing on trimmer heads is every 25 hrs of running and you just keep pumping until it comes out and it depleats over the 25 hrs and is then filled again. Failure to do this kills the bearings, rods and gears....they aren't cheap. Seen a few 94s now, probably a better option if you don't want 4T, strange choke arrangement but seem pokey to a non user!

Bummer on that saw, expensive lump, just done a search on my DB of customers saws and it isn't one I have had through my workshop.

Go back to eBay and the police....chances are they will do cock all but you never know. You can't judge the whole company by one rogue employee but I would be bloody enraged over that!!

I have used DHL and ParcelForce. I book through a broker rather than direct as it is a bit cheaper. Depends on if you are dropping the parcel off or getting it picked up. ParcelForce are probably the better of the two but the Pandemic and fuel issues helps no one. Make sure the saw is drained - both tanks. Ensure no smell of fuel - leaving the fuel cap off overnight and then refitting helps. Make sure the saw is bagged to keep any stray fluid and smells at bay. Make sure the dogs/spikes, if fitted are sufficiently protected from piercing the box and if a bar is sent, they tend to eat their way through the outer box so put a cardboard cap on each end and make sure nothing is moving in the box. If packed correctly, the box can be dropped at waist height with no damage to the contents.

Any oil that dries over time shouldn't be used in a chainsaw. Seen it too many times before and after trying all types of cleaner and resorting to craft knives to carve it off, now I just leave it in place and if a customer wants to wreck his saws then that is fine by me!!!

I would say that all modern machines have "automatic oilers".....that is they oil only when the chain is spinning taking the drive from the clutch drum. Oilers that run all the time...like on early Stihl 024s were more common in the 70s and 80s and ones with manual pumps you actuate with a pumping action more common on much earlier saws and the 70-80s biggest saws used for felling/milling to assist the longest bars. It is most likely the saw oils only when the chain is spinning. Some lower cost saws have a fixed oiler and the more semi to full pro saws have adjustable oilers. Check the oiler hole in the bar and ensure it is clear. Check the oiling Chanel is free of chip, put the cover back on and adjust the chain tension......the way to check the oiler is to point the bar bottom tip at a clean surface, piece of wood etc and rev the saw hard. You should see a line of oil form within a few seconds. It will take a little longer if the oil tank has been emptied but no more than 15 seconds.

Strange that but from the shape of the twigs and the bud shape, I thought exactly the same...Magnolia - we have two in the garden......that is from the top three photos. The bark is pretty smooth, bit like young Ash if it is.

Yup, L&S...they purchase direct from the manufacturer so can usually advise if there will be any supply issues. Usually good for most manufacturer types apart from Echo.

You can use a brake bleeder kit to produce a vacuum, a bicycle pump for pressure and use a Gunson low gauge as I did for a bit but the Mityvac does it all for you but obviously at a cost and there is the rub. I have used mine a few hundred times and it has saved me loads of hassle finding issues and ensuring my customers get a saw that is perfect and won't go pop in the next few years. In your position, you are likely to use it once or twice and that is the issue, someone running a business needs this sort of kit and can invest in it amortising the cost over many repairs and unfortunately, you can't unless you enjoy this sort of work and start your own business etc etc...... Maybe a simpler method is the saw should die if you turn the L screw all the way in, if it doesn't, it most likely has an air leak.....it takes a bit of experience but is an indication!

Not done the oil pickup on an 038 before but from what I can see, you push the rubber pickup on to the metal elbow that goes through the oil tank wall. Generally pickups push through from the clutch side oil tank wall but this one looks like two flexible hoses go either side of the solid elbow. try it, forceps are generally a good tool for this sort of thing. If the hose is OK, leave it well alone!

The suspense is climbing...not much to live up to after 12 pages of posts

Piston back on..make sure it is the correct way round - arrow to the exhaust port and make sure the circlips are 100% located - gaps to the top on Stihls. Sometimes the base gasket needs fitting prior to fitting the piston. Fit the manifold to the cylinder and then refit the cylinder and pull the manifold through the air box back plate. A nice smooth pair of long nose pliers work for me NOT a sharp screwdriver....seen the result of that too often.

Yup, they do slap a bit when old and worn, I have had a couple that have slapped so hard, the skirt has shattered - just what they do and guess the piston and bore design just allows it with high use! The pic Wonky put up with the paper in the bore is one of those, so much slap the piston skirt has shattered! Sort of shows my "Wobble Check" for piston wear as well.

I wasn't commenting on your answer or opinions and more on what I do and have found in my experience and was answering the OPs question. We all have our ways ...no offence......but have found a new Meteor or Hyway piston is often not really much more costly than a set of OEM piston rings so go that route. I usually take the rings off, push the piston up the bore, stick my finger over the plug hole and see how easy it is to pump up and down. I then put the piston so its base is close to the open end of the cylinder and see how much clearance there is from the skirts to cylinder by pushing it back and forth across the bore with my thumbs. Very subjective but after you have done a few....it works for me. Comparing new against old is the best way but isn't often able to be done. Ring wear is measurable and if the ring is done...the piston is likely to be the same.