wisecobandit

I would imagine that the echo would respond well to a muffler mod-the echos usually tend to. Believe bar mounts are ao41 for the 3/8 lo pro chain and ko41 for the .325 On the upside I also think that all the Ryobi/b and q/gardenline cheap saws all use the ko41 mount so when they pack up prematurely all the bars tend to be Oregon albeit most seem to be 16" so maybe a cheap supply line for you.

My moneys on the tank breather issue on that one. If you start pulling and it doesn't start when you would expect it pull the airfilter out and give it a pull and see if it starts ok. Obviously don't run it as such tho. If the strimmer has a weepy tank breather anything other than the strimmer laying flat on the ground can bleed fuel past/thru the breather and into the airfilter causing starting issues by restricting flow thru the airfilter.

Ive already had 2 separate fs56's (2-mix) which the check valves in the carbs inoperative. Not replaceable and £80 for a new carb and both only a few years old. That's over half the price of buying a complete fs38 which uses the same engine. Tried a new "standard 2 stroke" fs55 carb and due to the wafer section in the 56 carb they loose bottom end torque. Check out my on the bench post. Engines are completely different internally than the fs55. If the small end goes they are built in to the con rod so you will have to replace the entire crank. Even the coil and ignition timing is different and coils not swappable and different length con rod. So far ive got a dislike of the 2-mix rather than the 4-mix up until now.

You will like this clip then [ame=http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lx6BPxORR20]4 Mix Engines Sound Cool! - YouTube[/ame] I agree the fs400 and 250 are excellent machines, solid and dependable. And to show my age I had a Suzuki sp370 lol

Spud I know stihl sell the decoke solution which they recommend doing before setting the valves as more often than not they need tightening and it will take carbon up into the seat/guide area by tightening them (which was specifically made for the 4-mix.) I didn't use it either tho as it had run on stihl hp all its life and was pretty clean internally as best as I could see. Matty the 1 thing I do know is the fuel tank breather causes a lot of fueling issues. Frankly they are sh+t and weep fuel up into the airfilter which actually starts to stifle the filters abilitys and the 2 stroke oil actually starts to block it aswell as the excess fuel going into the carb. I have swapped this over with a new oe chainsaw breather off an ms260 I had which is a direct fit and just blocked the bleed pipe on the back of the filter housing. As for gearboxes im sure they are the same as on the 400 etc being classed as a "brushcutter" rather than a "strimmer" from what ive can gather but cant verify it .

To be fair I don't do much in the way of strimmer work, ive just got a 55r an 80 and a 250 but recently bought a non running 310 which isn't far different than the 130 to be fair. The horror storys of the 4-mix you hear actually made me want to get one for a challenge if im honest. Well I have to say 25 mins giving the carb a good clean and resetting valve clearances had it running like a dream. Whilst I admit the current trend of over engineering a 2 stroke is a p.i.t.a it seems a reliable bit of kit. I cant say ive used it for days on end etc but im failing to see where this massive hate comes from? Starts first pull when warm and not skipped a beat. Is it just a few storys scare mongering and exagerated or do people really hate them? I will be keeping my eye out for a few cheap fixer uppers now if they turn up at the right price (peanuts lol)

Possibly a little less heat to help prevent pre detonation but a smidgen more chance of carbon build up tho.

:thumbup1: If not maintained as NFG mentions the clutch sprocket bearing fails. Normally because they are ill maintained and go dry increasing friction and allowing the plastic!!! caged bearing to melt. Keep them lubed and change them once a year or so and they should be fine.

Ive been quiet as been a bit hectic. Lots of strimmers tho and literally everyone a carb issue. An ms250 with bad impulse line Started to build up a new ms660 all from new spare parts. Almost done! Interestingly Ive had 2 engines to rebuild side by side. One a 2006 and one a 2011 fs55 engine. The later being the 2-mix. (the same as used in the fs/km 56) Now I expected the difference in pot and piston on the strato 2-mix engine but nothings the same. The conrods on the crank are different lengths, the bore diameters are the same but obviously ported much differently, 2-mix uses 1 piston ring (thinner) earlier uses 2 thicker rings. The flywheels use the same part number yet coils are different also and altho fitment is the same the timing isnt.

Only 2 faults ive heard with the x-torque 372 and that's the a sort of clutch drag due to clearance issues and somehow some main bearings not sitting straight into the crankcase due to a bad casting issues. Im sure both have been sorted now.

It will make a big difference and it would be to rich even maybe to start and run once the filter is fitted. Theres a strong chance the engine could well have flooded after the first few pulls especially with choke on which is why it wouldn't start?

The revs "hanging" and slowly returning to idle is due to it running a lean condition. The reverse if its running rich it would drop quick almost to below tickover and perk back up to tickover speed. Getting seals out is usually easiest drilling 2 small pilot holes in the seals screwing a self tapping screw in each hole and then a couple of pairs of pliers and a quick yank while holding the engine firmly. Sounds more to me more like fine tuning is required on the carb tho not seals. On rare occasions some can be pigs to set up. Why in the initial fitting did you tune it without no air filter?

Im with you on that one Stubby. On my 394/395 collection up to 28" i use 3/8 but over that nothing matches .404 with stihl full chisel chain in big oak and beech etc in my opinion. Cuts quicker, blunts slower and can take a few swipes in the dirt well.

What Stubby and Ray said. The only real thing may be exhaust difference. Possibly even a "Kat" exhaust but its uncommon.

As felix said it should spark with an open circuit. Pull the on/off switch wire off the coil and give it a pull and see if you have a spark then. The wire could possibly be earthing out somewhere if its been smacked around.

This ones not high mileage at 75k Will never know for sure but my suspicion is water in the chamber being compressed quicker than the valve was closing. However given the state of the cylinder head any crack in it that could have shown that possibility is now impossible to tell.

I get that issue with 90's and 110's. They arent built for tall ppl

Ive got a source who i get 300tdi lumps for £150 when hes got them and hes got one :thumbup1: Yeah you can buy single pistons as bought them before. However by the time ive messed around with the top and bottom of the engine etc its far easier just to pull the engine and box out in one and refit. Least if the clutch is worn etc its much easier to swap before refitting. Those 3 bolts on the top of the gearbox bell housing are sods to get to in situ! 4 ft of extensions make it possibly tho with no skinned knuckles if it needs to be done.

Erm ive said nothing about being my own landrover or it being the same landrover. 3 totally different owners and different trucks. Ive fixed a hell of a lot of l/r's and owned my fair share. Also used to do off road competitions with l/r's so have a good knowledge. Tweak a standard l/r turbo on a 2/300 tdi by much and you will suffer issues. Been there done that. Im not even knocking landys. I like them, they are agricultural and can stand some abuse if your prepared to put up with some unreliability issues. I would quite happily hitch up a 3.5 tonne trailer and tow it across the country without thinking about unreliability with my jap 4x4, however give me a landrover i would think twice...

To be fair they arent bad engines if you look after them. This particular one had been using a bit of water so could have been a factor or may not. When it ends up like this its impossible to tell. You cant really turn the turbo up unless you have spent the money having a hybred turbo. Turning the fuel pump up will give them a bit more power but also increases the smoke! You can tell which ones have been adjusted just by following them and the smoke trail lol. They are cheap to fix but the heads are prone to cracking and headgaskets going. Early 300's needed to be updated on the cambelt kit as they couldnt even fit them to run straight in the factory as they rubbed the edge of the pullys. Some suspension components have the strength of a peice of straw, chassis rot, they all leak oil.... But the joy is you can get the parts normally the same day and its cheap. Just dont buy britpart replacements if its engine related...

This mornings work stripping down a 300 tdi to find the cause of loss of power and a rather loud mettalic tapping sound... This is the 3rd 300 tdi engine ive done now with the same issue. Also the reason i prefer chainsaws to vehicles. A bit of chainsaw oil,2 stroke and oily sawdust is so much easier to get off your hands than 10,000 mile old diesel engine oil Anyhow basically the valve head broken off the stem.. If you look closly you can see the cone of the valve stem embedded still in the head. And the piston damage! The valve head was broken in 2 embedded into the top of the piston.

I readily admit to using some of the chinese copy carbs on home owner type saws like the 170 etc. I use the same few suppliers and never had 1 problem with them and only pay about £15 each. I find it hard to justify anyone wanting to buy a new oe carb from the dealer for something like an ms170 which is prob 1/2 or 1/3 the price of a new saw.

Whats up with yours? Pretty much everything is still available.They arent complicated and bloody good saws in my eyes. I love em.

Its all built up and runs but ive used old plastics and chain brake cover so hoping to get some smarter/new ones before final pics as they let it down a bit. Strip and build of these saws isnt complicated by any means. However cost of parts isnt cheap and if you had to pay for labour it would far outweigh the price of the saw. The only "specialised tool" really required is the splitter to seperate the crankcases and ive made 1 of those. You can do it without one but you will certainly utter a few swear words along the way..

I assume you have tried changing the carb settings? Have you checked the plug to ensure its a lean condition? Unfortunatly there could several possibilitys, low compression. bad inpulse and split manifold to name a few but usually the fuel line goes soft and collapses first on them. Give me a shout if oyu do want to get rid of it.