Defective Stihl MS362 Kickback Mechanism? Is it Dangerous?

[tomcatbubba]

Hi all. I was running my 6 month old Stihl MS362 the other day and I had a little kickback issue. I've never had the saw kickback before as I have been cutting for the last 25 years and know enough to try and avoid those situations. This time I was about halfway through a 12 inch diameter piece of hickory and the saw bucked a little. I always stand off to the left side of the cut and never directly in line with the cut. When the saw bucked (no the rakers are not set too low), I felt my left hand pop the kickback bar but the chain kept running. I made it through the cut and went to set the kickback mechanism before I set the saw down (habit pattern) and low and behold, the plastic down near the screw was cracked all the way through and the handle was hanging only by the right side of the mechanism (I know it happened just then because I use the mechanism religiously and it was not broken before the cut). It seemed the plastic wanted to break before the mechanism kicked in which kind of scares me. The rep at my dealer has it in for warranty now and she stated she needed to call Stihl to let them know, and that they would check the kickback mechanism before they returned it to me. After thinking long and hard, I'm not so sure I want the saw back considering their check will be to engage and disengage the handle without putting it through a true kickback. Am I off base on this? Something doesn't quite seem right, which (after my days as a fighter pilot) usually means things aren't right. Thanks.

 

[NPKenny]

Usually when it comes to safety or regulatory type issues, the consumer has a pretty strong influence on the manufacturer's decision on repairing or replacing the item. Safety defects pose a huge liability on any manufacturer, especially if a known incident is identified and recorded as yours is by taking the saw immediately back to the dealer.

 

[rob066]

The worst kickback I encoutered came from a Husqvarna 362. I was starting a bore cut in a tree and the saw kicked back. It triggered the brake. The saw came nowhere near hitting me but could of. In your case that can be quite dangerous if the saw kicked back and the handle broke and had no brake. Imagine the saw coming back at you full throttle. I know an individual that was hit in the throat and face with an 066. Luckily it didnt get his jugular vein. He made a full recovery.

 

[STIHL880]

Yeah. that sounds hella bad, That don't sound right at all. I'd take it to my dealer (if this was my saw of coarse) and tell them exactly what you wrote here, and tell them to fix it, Under warrenty. Be sure to tell them the part "considering their check will be to engage and disengage the handle without putting it through a true kickback"

 

[tomcatbubba]

Yes, that is why I am concerned. At first I thought it was defective plastic but now I'm not sure. I now think the brake mechanism stuck and caused the plastic to break without triggering the mechanism. My first guess is the dealer will try and patch it and send it back out the door. How much should I be prepared to fight them on this? Anyone else have any luck with issues like this?

 

[rb142]

The dealer will have to replace anything that is broken and test the result. It either works or it doesn't. Rev the saw up and throw on the brake. The chain had better stop immediately. If it passes that test, I don't see much else to be concerned about.

When you had the kickback and the chain didn't stop, you may not have fully tripped the brake because the plastic was broken.

 

[THALL10326]

Hi all. I was running my 6 month old Stihl MS362 the other day and I had a little kickback issue. I've never had the saw kickback before as I have been cutting for the last 25 years and know enough to try and avoid those situations. This time I was about halfway through a 12 inch diameter piece of hickory and the saw bucked a little. I always stand off to the left side of the cut and never directly in line with the cut. When the saw bucked (no the rakers are not set too low), I felt my left hand pop the kickback bar but the chain kept running. I made it through the cut and went to set the kickback mechanism before I set the saw down (habit pattern) and low and behold, the plastic down near the screw was cracked all the way through and the handle was hanging only by the right side of the mechanism (I know it happened just then because I use the mechanism religiously and it was not broken before the cut). It seemed the plastic wanted to break before the mechanism kicked in which kind of scares me. The rep at my dealer has it in for warranty now and she stated she needed to call Stihl to let them know, and that they would check the kickback mechanism before they returned it to me. After thinking long and hard, I'm not so sure I want the saw back considering their check will be to engage and disengage the handle without putting it through a true kickback. Am I off base on this? Something doesn't quite seem right, which (after my days as a fighter pilot) usually means things aren't right. Thanks.

I think what you are saying is that the brake handle has broke away from the starter side of the saw, not the chain side, correct?

 

[tomcatbubba]

Yes starter side is broken through at the thinest point about an inch above the screw hole.

 

[THALL10326]

Yes starter side is broken through at the thinest point about an inch above the screw hole.

Ok, that explains why the brake didn't set off, the handle twisted away from the saw on the starter side instead of going striaght forward which sets the brake. You'll be getting a new handle installed on Stihl's dime and thats about it. Tant no biggie..

 

[Turkeyslayer]

You can also check the action of the inertia brake by holding the saw (not running of course) by the rear handle and dropping the bar on a piece of wood from waist height. This should engage the chain brake.

 

[MCW]

It also pays to remember that most chainbrakes take a lot more to engage than people think, especially when new. I was using my new 660 on the weekend and was quite surprised how easy it was to set that particular saw's chainbrake off.
In my experience with 90% of saws getting a chainbrake to engage from a kickback is quite a violent and chain stretching undertaking
I've only ever had one real kickback that was unexpected and that didn't even set my 390XP's brake off. Pulled up way short though as I had a good grip on the old girl...

 

[J.W Younger]

I've broke a brake handle before.Most times when i do something stupid i just look around a little too see if anyone was lookin.

 

[CentaurG2]

Something odd must have happen to your brake handle. They are usually very robust and can take quite a beating. When you get the saw back, try out the mechanism with both the handle and the inertia brake. If it works (and I am sure it will) run the saw.

 

[Roanoker494]

You can also check the action of the inertia brake by holding the saw (not running of course) by the rear handle and dropping the bar on a piece of wood from waist height. This should engage the chain brake.

:agree2:

I was going to mention the same thing. That is the method that is listed in my Husqvarna 372 shop manual. I would almost want to think that the brake handle must have taken some kind of hit that has started a small crack that finally let go.