John Rainford

I've had the fuel filter off and checked the fuel line. All looks good. Makes no difference to running issue with a full tank or half a tank. I started it up today and ran it for a few minutes to take an inch of the christmas tree trunk and remove a few lower branches and no problem. Trouble is i'll start it next time and it will probably stall at idle.

No purge bulb on my saw. Thanks for the heads up on the check valve, I will rake a look.

Thanks for the replies. Piston, rings and cylinder all look good on inspection. Compression is fine. Air filter is fairly new and clean. Fresh fuel mix . Tried a new carb kit, diaphragms, gaskets, metering leaver and spring - set at correct height. I'll check the butterfly positions and movement as well as the choke. Not sure where to locate the check valve. I'll do some research and find out.

Looking for an after market carb to fit my trusty old saw and there lies the problem. It's a Zama c1q s119B. From my research it would seem that there was not an after market carb produced for this one. I don't want to pay £100 for an oem carb for an old saw. someone recommended Rowena motors, but they were unable to help. I'm thinking that there must be another after market carb which will fit my saw. There seem to be some that look exactly the same as mine. I'm no expert so don't want to take a punt on one. I've had lots of help on here in the past from spudulike and others which have helped me to keep my saw running well so i'm hoping someone might have an idea how to solve this problem. A little information which suggests to me it might be a carb issue. It will start and idle one day, but the next day it might start but then stall at idle after a few seconds or perhaps a minute. I can keep it running with some throttle, but then it will cut out if I take my finger off the throttle. Adjusting the L screw in or out does not cure the problem, neither does turning the idle screw in to increase the idling revs. If I turn the idle screw all the way in the chain does not run on the bar as I would have expected it to. It's also producing a fair amount of white smoke on starting up and it's burning through fuel very quickly. On a day when it does start and run, there is no issue with bogging on acceleration. Any help would be gratefully received.

Thanks once again for the information Spudulike. My mind is now at rest and my saw cutting logs again.

I just fixed a running issue with my Stihl ms/211, adjusting the metering lever down a little which sorted out a rich fuel situation. The saw then bogged on start up when taken off the choke and when pulling the trigger to increase the revs. I figured there was now not quite enough fuel being delivered so after some fine fettling ended up with the L screw turned out an extra half turn from it's factory setting position and the H screw out an extra quarter turn. This has solved the bogging issue on start up and on acceleration. Could someone please confirm my thoughts that this will not cause any problem for the cylinder, piston, piston rings, or put me right on this. Thanks.

Thanks for the replies. The information will be very useful when I need a replacement carb.

I have a MS 211/C from 2010 which had a running issue which was resolved with a new carb kit and a deep clean. I was looking for a replacement carb at one point, but couldn't find one anywhere. Mine is a Zama S119b. There seem to be plenty of other Zamas available for MS 211s which look the same as mine from the outside. I'm guessing that the internals may be different and therefore would not work on my saw. Can anyone confirm this, or might a carb with a different number still work on my machine ?

Thanks for the replies. I'll take a look at the suggested one and check the update rate specs.

I would like to get a tachometer for my Stihl MS 211 which I use for cutting logs for my wood stove. I have just had the carb in bits to fix an issue which is now sorted with a carb kit and a thorough clean. I would like to set the H, L and idle screws accurately in the hope of prolonging the life of the saw. It's 15 years old now and has developed sentimental value. My research so far suggests cheap is nasty, but it would be just for use with my saw and my brothers MS 211 so I don't want to spend to much. Anyone have any suggestions ?

Just thought I would post an update on my Stihl ms 211 issue. Used the clues to my issue from Spudulike with some more research. I don't have testing equipment so I was guessing. I pulled the carb and gave it a thorough clean with carb cleaner. Took the limiter screws out and the needle, lever, spring and diaphragms and noticed thar the metering lever was set aout 1mm to high. I reset it to the correct height using a new carb kit and did see some debris in the pool of carb cleaner in the container after cleaning. Limiter screws were set to factory settings. I'm guessing that the fuel residue coming from the exhaust and the excessive white smoke were signs that it was running to rich due to the wrong metering lever height. I started it up and ran it for 10 minutes yesterday and today and so far the non idling issue seems to have gone and there is far less fuel residue from the exhaust and far less white smoke. Next thing is to see how it performs in the cut. Fingers crossed.

Thanks for the reply. I will mix some new fuel/2 stroke at 50:1 and make sure it's spot on and check all the linkages on the carb. It does seem to be just an idling problem. If I rev it, it seems to pick up the revs okay. I did check the piston through the muffler port and it was a little oily, black oil, but no scoring.

Appologies for not responding to the replies to my posting. My 92 year old mum contracted the dreaded virus and ended up in hospital, which put a spanner in the works. Thanks for the replies. I put a new service kit in because it was due anyway. This didn't make any difference. I'm starting the saw with the bar and chain on. I did get it going and idling for a few minutes a couple of times and then the next time it was back to cutting out at idle almost immediately. It happens while holding the saw and if I put it on the work bench.While I did have it idling I rotated the saw on both sides to see if it made any difference to the revs, but no change on either side, or tipping the saw down. I did what spudulike suggested and while idling, turned the L screw (limitor cap fitted) all the way in, but there was no change in revs as would be expected, so I now have the L screw not functioning as well as the Idle screw. Air leak ?. I will take a look at the clutch springs today. I have put the carb screws back to factory settings for now........... #just looked at the clutch springs, they seem fine. Some additional info - Blowing a lot of white smoke and black oily deposits being omitted from the exhaust. It seems to be burning through fuel very quickly.

Appologies for not responding to the replies to my posting. My 92 year old mum contracted the dreaded virus and ended up in hospital, which put a spanner in the works. Thanks for the replies. I put a new service kit in because it was due anyway. This didn't make any difference. I'm starting the saw with the bar and chain on. I did get it going and idling for a few minutes a couple of times and then the next time it was back to cutting out at idle almost immediately. It happens while holding the saw and if I put it on the work bench.While I did have it idling I rotated the saw on both sides to see if it made any difference to the revs, but no change on either side, or tipping the saw down. I did what spudulike suggested and while idling, turned the L screw (limitor cap fitted) all the way in, but there was no change in revs as would be expected, so I now have the L screw not functioning as well as the Idle screw. Air leak ?. I will take a look at the clutch springs today. I have put the carb screws back to factory settings for now........... #just looked at the clutch springs, they seem fine. Some additional info - Blowing a lot of white smoke and black oily deposits being omitted from the exhaust. It seems to be burning through fuel very quickly.

Appologies for not responding to the replies to my posting. My 92 year old mum contracted the dreaded virus and ended up in hospital, which put a spanner in the works. Thanks for the replies. I put a new service kit in because it was due anyway. This didn't make any difference. I'm starting the saw with the bar and chain on. I did get it going and idling for a few minutes a couple of times and then the next time it was back to cutting out at idle almost immediately. It happens while holding the saw and if I put it on the work bench.While I did have it idling I rotated the saw on both sides to see if it made any difference to the revs, but no change on either side, or tipping the saw down. I did what spudulike suggested and while idling, turned the L screw (limitor cap fitted) all the way in, but there was no change in revs as would be expected, so I now have the L screw not functioning as well as the Idle screw. Air leak ?. I will take a look at the clutch springs today. I have put the carb screws back to factory settings for now.

Thanks for the reply. L screw still has the plastic limitor cap. I will try turning it in to see if it revs and then dies and post again.

I've learnt a bit about my saw from spudulike and others who have helped me solve a couple of issues over the years. I have succesfully stripped the saw right down to a minimum , replaced the crank seals and put it back together, as well as other easier things. I have a new issue at the moment which I need to solve and am having problems with it. The saw starts fine, idles for a minute or two and then cuts out. I did a bit of research on "Steves small engine saloon" on you tube and tried a few things, but no success yet. Cleaned the plug and the air filter Checked the h and l screws were correctly positioned Pulled the carb and used carb cleaner to blow through the internals, as well as inspecting the Diaphragm While it was idling, I turned the idle screw in, expecting the revs to increase and at some point the chain to start moving. However, I turned the idle screw all the way in and the revs failed to increase and the chain did not start moving. I am thinking of buying a new service kit and trying fresh fuel. It's time for a service anyway. Any help with diagnosis would be appreciated.

Thanks for the replies. I will keep an eye on it to make sure the filter remains seated properly and the fuel tank remains free of sawdust and check the situation after the next lot of logs get cut.

The saw had been running well and when not in use for a period of time I get it running for 5 minutes every couple of weeks. This week it wouldn't start, so I went through some procedures which I learnt from Spudulike and others last year. When I took the air filter off`, the housing seemed a little more dirty than is usual, but nothing dramatic. When I removed the housing to expose the carb, the carb side of the housing and the carb itself were covered in oily sawdust which has to have been there for a long while. So I figured the issue might be sawdust in the carb and/or a fuel line. Cleaned it all up on the outside of the carb and then set to work on the inside with spray carb cleaner. There were some obvious bits of sawdust sitting on the top diaphragm. Sprayed it all through thoroughly and put it back together. Put some fresh fuel in the tank, cranked it up and it turned over first time. So, for a few minutes I was very pleased with myself, but then I got to thinking about how the sawdust had managed to get beyond the air filter housing and cover the carb. The air filter seemed to be seated correctly and the air filter itself wasn't covered in sawdust. Has anyone got any ideas, so that I can stop it happening again.

Did as you suggested. Got rid of the stale fuel, replaced it with fresh fuel, pulled the plug and turned it upside down. Pulled it over hard a dozen times, put the plug back in. First pull was a lot easier than previously. Second pull and the engine caught a little. Third pull and it fired up nicely. I ran it for a few minutes to let the fresh fuel flow through. Thanks a lot Spud, once again you have sorted an issue for me.

Thanks Spud. I'll try what you suggested when I am at my brothers on Thursday and then post the results.

I posted last year when I had a problem with my saw which spud and a couple of other members sorted for me. Now my brothers 2 year old saw has a problem. It has been stored for the last few months in a dry shed. Some of the time it was hanging on a hook with the blade pointing to the floor. He forgot to empty the fuel tank so the fuel has been in it for 4 months. I tried to pull it over, but no chance. The chord pulls a little and then gets stuck. I took the plug out and it pulls fine so I don't think there is an issue with the recoil. Took the muffler off to look at the piston. Looks good, no scoring. There was a lot of black carbon deposits on the muffler, much more than I would see on my saw. Could it be a stale fuel issue ? He did give me a chain to sharpen after he last used it and some of the teeth were very worn. Any ideas will be gratefully received.

Thanks for the reminder about rakers Stubby, Just spent an hour reading up and used an old chain to test. I realised that correct raker height is essential, when I did a test cut. The chain bit hard in to the wood very aggressively, pulling the test log back towards me. I filed the rakers to low. I'll get it right next time. I intend to read up about filing and then do some practice next weekend and see if I can get a sharp chain with the right angles. I hope then that my saw will be performing as it should do. I will post the results. Thanks to everyone who has been helping me, Spud, bmp01, Stubby, sawbit, chris and anyone I haven't mentioned. I have enjoyed my first venture in to the world of small engines. I started out as a complete novice and I am still a novice, but with a lot more knowledge than when I started. Six months ago I wouldn't have gone anywhere near a saw and stripped it down completely. I have done that now and rebuilt it without destroying it.

Just watched the chain sharpening video. It's very informative and looks like I have been filing to high, which could be in part due to using a 4.5 mm file instead of a 4 mm file.

I am using a file guide Stubby. It came in an oregon kit. It's a very basic one. Maybe I need to invest in a better guide and look at my filing technique again. I will look at the video link posted by bmp01 and see how I get on. Thanks for your input. I do have one question. Baring in mind that I have not touched the H screw since it came back from a service a few months ago, how did it end up turned out far to much. Could it have anything to do with the fact that the limiter cap is missing. When it came back from the service it functioned well for a while. I service my road bike which has H and L screws on the rear derailleur, they don't move on there own at all.