Muddy42
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Everything posted by Muddy42
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I regularly swap forks for bucket etc. on the Manitou. The bucket was second hand without Manitou brackets, but I got a set welded on.
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Plenty of good advice here, cut once a year with a topper or similar. Personally I think cutting a field with a ride on or a robot would be hard work or overkill. If you want to create a wild flower meadow, you need to remove the cut grass. If the grass is left it re-fertilizes itself and all you get is strong rank grass. Removing grass manually is hard work and not viable for all but small areas. If you are lucky, you might find a small local farmer willing to cut it for hay, with small equipment, otherwise there are cutters with collectors.
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Where are you? Someone nearby might lend you a mityvac. If you still can't tell where the leak is coming from with the mityvac, no leak can hide from a dunking in a bucket of water. I've often wondered if you could make a basic pressure tester with a bicycle pump.
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https://www.jalos.or.jp/onfile/pdf/2T_EV_LIST.pdf This is the list of JASO (a Japanese oil certification) certified two stroke oils. Lots of common two stroke oils are on the list (including Stihl HP Super getting the highest FD rating) but no sign of Stihl HP Ultra. I am no expert on all this, waiting to hear from people who are!
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I have a 350cc 1980s Honda Big Red. Its had the odd repair, starter motor, new tyres and the rear axle has been welded, but other than that it barely missed a beat. I know the previous owner from new and it was looked after. Watch out for ones that have been overloaded towing trailers of logs etc. Other than that a lot of people rave about old Hondas being better than the new ones or any of the competitors, can am etc. If you are a risk taker, you can pick them up for a few hundred quid. Plus they are much less of a sexy theft target.
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Agree. Safety aside, they simply don't understand the compression/tension dynamic because they made the same mistake two or three times!
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Interesting. I have removed the pistons of a few old saws recently due to piston age and wear (I do not think the damage was caused by fuel issues, but who knows I haven't owned any since new). This is not scientific, but where 50:1 motomix had been burned prior to disassembly, the pistons and crankcases looked much dryer compared to 40:1 pump fuel and stihl red oil. I do find it reassuring to be able to see an oil film.
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Thanks. Have you ever had the cylinders off to look at the piston and rings up close?
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No reason other than its what I have and I have an inbuilt (probably irrational) suspicion for any two stroke oil that is synthetic, biodegradable or designed for boats.
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Yes different fuel, or a different batch of oils, also how they mix fuel with imperial measurements is totally beyond me !!
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Richard Flagg has quite a few other videos about the problems with Ultra, if you are interested. Plenty of other people online seem to have issues. I think I was as surprised as anyone to find out there had been concerns, particularly given Ultra has been sold for at least 10 years. Id be interested if anyone in the UK had had problems?
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I have swept a lot of Victorian flues that take the most extraordinary routes - changes in direction, internal shelving or dog legs round windows. Its always hard work but I have never found one that I couldn't get clean. You just have to keep persevering, start with a small 4 inch brush or even a bare rod, then gradually move up through larger rods. Sometimes it helps to sweep from above.
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I mostly use alkylate premix fuel (Stihl Motomix at the moment) but also mix my own (when using a lot of fuel, summer strimming etc.) When mixing my own, I try to avoid ethanol, I use it up quickly, run till dry and last tank is alkylate etc. etc. I've been reading about problems caused by Stihl HP Ultra, which is also the oil used in Motomix. Should I be concerned? I have been thinking about adding say 25ml of the older red Stihl mineral oil to my motomix cans, to turn the 50:1 into it 40:1 and add some extra lubrication.
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yes sounds fair enough. That's what I do. No Alkalyte is different from ethanol-free. Its purer, meant to be better for your health and the additives are designed to give it a longer shelf life and to work better in small engine carbs. Aspen claim a 5 year shelf life if the can is unopened and 2 years if opened. This is compared to pump fuel which should be used within as little as 30 days. I am no chemist but what I do know is that the exhaust smells better, you don't get headaches, a saw produces more power and starts with fewer pulls. The mechanical effects of carbs gumming up with resin, fuel lines cracking etc are probably manageable if you are prepared to rebuild carbs, practice good maintenance and know how to tune and watch out for problems.
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I struggle with the idea that masonry "pushes heat" further. Unless the heat source is radiating heat (glowing red hot) heat rises by convection from any heat source, whatever its made of. It may retain heat for longer, but that would be a different claim. I have never found that stove heat travels from room to room particularly well, even with doors open. It might work with fans or if a house was particularly open plan. Personally if you have a radiator system already, I'd look at a back boiler or a log central heating system like eco angus. I do have an eco angus - it does eat a lot of wood, but it works to make the house toasty and is more efficient than the stove and there is less multiple handling. You can keep the oil or gas system as backup or for when you run out of logs!
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I don't think the octane level makes any difference. As low ethanol as possible and freshness is what matters. I do similar to you. Alkalyte for odd jobs and rarely used machines but pump fuel if I have masses of work to do. You can even use Aspen for the last tank and 'flush' everything out.
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Talking of charging, maybe one day the heated handles would work in reverse - heat sink, charge the battery and cool down the overheated/overweight chainsaw user wearing lots of PPE whose hands and blood is boiling?
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stihl ts 400 got too much compression any ideas
Muddy42 replied to gary1002's topic in Maintenance help
Sorry if you have tried this but what does it feel like to pull the saw over with the spark plug off compared to plug on? If its the same, there is a different mechanical problem. As above, this will also show if the saw and cylinder is full of fuel. -
No the USB port is to charge the second battery whilst you use the first. That way you can keep swapping them over and cutting forever.
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I agree that a full pressure and vac check would be worth it if you are still struggling. Block of the exhaust and behind the carb and send pressure/vacuum through a modified spark plug. Dunk the saw in water to reveal the most stubborn leaks. You don't even need to take the clutch and flywheel off which can be tricky.
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Interesting. Simplistically I always thought anything involving turning electricity to heat used insane amounts of power compared to light/motion/motor. I would have thought manufacturers would want to skimp on this feature in the competitive race for battery life and cutting power?
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I recon all wood is easier to split when freshly cut. That said the more mechanized you get (in terms of lifting and splitting) this ceases to matter. Certainly splitting helps to open up the bark and outer layers of wood which helps drying. HOWEVER, storage space and numbers of times handling logs is a consideration. If your logs won't dry from a sappy stage by the winter you might not have enough storage to house >2 years worth of logs undercover, therefore its easier to season timber in lengths then split and store next winters worth of burning in May. This is what I do.
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It works! and restarts after 5 mins of cutting! Thanks for the help everyone.
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that’s a great idea that I’ll remember for next time! Im learning the whole time.
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Yes, you may be right, there was a really bad gouged section near the exhaust port that I focussed on. I didn't rub up and down, only round the bore, but I could have caused a similar effect. I was using a fine scotch-brite pad attached to some 30mm dowel in a drill. Let's see.
