WelshMan

I'd use the thinner chainsaw HT cable which is usually 5mm.

My parents have about half a mile of riverbank covered in it . Over the last 35 years I've slowly eradicated it from most of their land by doing a small amount of treatment annually. In the summer I stem inject the shoots using diluted high strength glyphosate. I'm not sure of the mix proportion as my dad does that. I use a fairly cheap stem injection kit bought from ebay for about £70 that injects a measured dose. The injector needle does have a habit of getting blocked so I use a bradawl to make the first puncture. In January/February, when the roots are weakened, I carefully dig up the surface rhizomes and burn with the old shoots and leaves. In April I dig up any new growth. Repeat as necessary in the summer.

If it's for use in your garden, have you thought about an electric saw? In January I bought a Titan electric saw from Screwfix. I bought it for the offer price of £34.99 but it's now back on at £49.99. I've been really impressed with it. Comes with a 2 year guarantee. Titan TTB355CHN 40.5cm 2000W Electric Chainsaw 230V | Chainsaws | Screwfix.com

If it's not the timing (as in the above post), you could try changing the carburettor gasket & diaphragm. It's quite an easy job. I think they're B & S part number 495770 or 795083, but check.

Section 164(1) Highways Act 1980 - "Where on land adjoining a highway there is a fence made with barbed wire, or having barbed wire in or on it, and the wire is a nuisance to the highway, a competent authority may by notice served on the occupier of the land require him to abate the nuisance within such time, not being less than one month nor more than 6 months from the date of service of the notice, as may be specified in it."

I think that the standard collar screw is part no. 1123 664 2400. It might be worth trying the oversize D9/M8 collar screw for the MS231etc. That's part no. 1123 664 2405. Collar Screw/Stud D9/M8 for Stihl MS231, MS231C - 1123 664 2405 | Other Stihl Spares

I don't know whether Stihl make an oversize D9/M8 collar screw for that model but I did find this for the MS231 & MS251: Collar Screw/Stud D9/M8 for Stihl MS231, MS231C - 1123 664 2405 | Other Stihl Spares

Thanks very much for the advice, Spud. I did all that and eventually it spluttered into life. It was really smokey at first but I gave it a good work out on some logs to get it nice and hot. It seems fine now. Thanks again.

Thanks guys. I'll go and do it now.

This is my "river saw" which I use for cutting fallen trees or floating logs caught up in my parents' river. Unfortunately it got pinched up in a large log and I couldn't free it. I couldn't remove the saw from the bar because the sprocket is inboard of the clutch. So I tied it to the tree whilst I worked on the other end of the tree with another saw. When the trunk dropped from the bank to the river bed, the saw took a dip in the water. Luckily it wasn't running at the time and it wasn't completely submerged. I've changed the fuel, air filter and plug, and tried to dry everything out. Normally it's got very good compression, but after I cleaned it all up it felt slightly easier to pull over than normal. It wouldn't start though and I thought that I may have flooded it (with either petrol or water). So I changed the plug again and put some engine oil down the spark plug hole. I think that I put too much down because it's really difficult to turn over. I've done what I can to drain and soak up the excess oil, and pulled it over many times with the plug out but it's still really difficult to turn over with the plug back in. I'm thinking hydraulic lock. Any ideas?

Reg Prescott knows his stuff as well: [ame] [/ame]

Another recommendation here for L & S Engineers. I put a largish order in for various parts for 4 Stihl chainsaws, including an old 045 and an old 056. Half the stuff was on 2 or 3 days back order. I put the order in on Sunday night. Everything was sent out on Tuesday and with me at 7.30 on Wednesday morning. My previous order was with me the next day.

Try L & S Engineers. Stihl Chainsaw Spares | Chainsaw Spares | Garden & Forestry Spares | L&S Engineers

0000 350 3500

Yes, which means that it's a difficult job if you need to work on the cylinder or piston. If you do a search of this site you'll find mixed opinions about the MS390. I have an MS390 and like it. It's not a pro-saw but then I'm an amateur. It's a large home-owners or farmers saw. Hence the name "FarmBoss." According to the owners manual it'll go up to a 30" bar, although I think that's stretching it. I've used a 25" bar but normally use 16"or 18".

That isn't the chassis number. That's a part number. A lot of the parts for the 070 and 090G saws start with "1106" which is the series number for these saws. For example, "1106 120 1610" is an air filter for a Stihl 070 saw. More information on series numbers on this website: Casey Wise | projects and web archive/sandbox

I agree with the others. It's one of the extremely rare Turner & Co. Kent pattern axes made in the later part of 1853. Very collectable, especially by very wealthy Russian collectors. One very similar to yours, but in original used condition, made £473,000 at Sothebys last year. Unfortunately because you've put the sander over yours, it's only worth a fiver. Never mind, I'm sure that you'll get a lot of enjoyment using it in the wood shed.

I reckon you want the D9/M8 collar stud 1123 664 2405.

According to my service manual the oversize collar stud for an MS390 is part number 1127 664 2410. I don't know whether that would fit an MS230. The service manual for an MS230 is silent on the point. The MS390 manual says: "If the thread in the engine housing is badly damaged or stripped, it will not be possible to secure the standard collar stud properly. This situation can be remedied by using the DG 9 collar stud 1127 664 2410 . Do not drill out the mounting bore in the engine housing. Coat thread of the DG 9 collar stud with Loctite 648. Install the collar stud squarely."

Thanks Barrie. That's really helpful.

We are having problems with loss of drive on an MTD E/165 lawn tractor and I think it's the varidrive pulley. I've taken off the transmission plate and loosened the drive belts. The large middle pulley slides up and down the vertical shaft as it should, and spins freely. The top and bottom circular plates on the pulley mechanism don't rotate at all on the shaft. Can someone confirm that this should be the case? Or should the whole of the pulley mechanism (number 49 in the diagram) rotate freely on the shaft (number 38).

Try strong vinegar or acetic acid. You could also use Roundup with detergent and/or wallpaper paste, to make the weedkiller stick to the waxy surface of the liverwort.

Thanks Mike. The good news is that I found the spring hanging down hidden away under the seat, so I've connected the loose brake/clutch rod to the spring. The belts still aren't turning though.

I've got a problem with my mum's MTD E/165 ride on mower. ( Model 13C0768N678. Year 1998/2000 ). 40" cut. Twin blade. B&S 16.5hp engine. I was using the mower and lost drive. There was a burning smell and smoke from the front of the mower, so I thought that the front drive belt had gone. I've had a good look and all the belts are intact. The engine will start and run OK but the drive belts won't turn. At first the deck belt wouldn't go either, but I raised the mower, lowered the deck and loosened the belt. The blades now spin with the engine going. I was going to replace both the front and rear drive belts. I've already got the front belt and have ordered the rear belt. A couple of questions: 1. How easy is it to replace the belts? I assume that the rear (top) belt has to come off first. 2. When I took the transmission plate off, I noticed a loose rod. I think that's the brake rod numbered 44 on the attached parts diagram. It's also shown with some orange wire round it on one of the photos. I just can't see where it should be connected. Is it likely that other parts (eg. a spring) are also missing? 3. Could this disconnected rod be the cause of the loss of drive, or is it unrelated? Any help would be gratefully received.

Still trading as Blindstickinsect.