Stihl Replacement Parts - Made in China

[EtzCutter]

Haven't been on the site in the last year or two. As I have browsed for replacement parts for saws that I have, I have noticed on Ebay that there is large presence of aftermarket Chinese made parts.

What is the consensus of using these parts as replacement parts? I'm not talking about carburetors, cylinders, pistons, seals, crank shafts or crank housings. I'm mostly looking at air filters, mufflers, oiler mechanisms, etc. Are people having success with these parts?

My thought process would be to call my local Stihl dealer and have him quote me a price for any replacements parts I am interested in before buying used parts. Also my preference would be keeping the saw OEM.

 

[scallywag]

Well, you get what you pay for with Chinese parts!.... though, if the part is NLA from Stihl or you can't find used parts, then theres not much choice!

 

[pops21]

Stay AWAY from the air filters and piston and cylinders. Someone who got some plastic said you could tell it was chinese parts but they fit good and worked. I just got a handle bar for a 266/272xp for a friend and it worked good and was well worth the $15 shipped I payed for it. I have also got a carb for a stihl 260 that worked great. There have been a few that got crank shaft bearing and seals that say they worked great.

 

[Mad Professor]

I ended up with a 038 recoil assy off ebay which I think is Chi-Com.

The casting had a lot of the vent holes partially covered over due to poor casting/finish and no Stihl logo .

But it did work after I filed open all the vent holes, and the dirt was cheap.

 

[1Alpha1]

Before deciding to buy China made parts for your Stihl equipment, check with a dealer first. You might be surprised that OEM Stihl parts aren't that much more expensive than China made parts.

I've been pleasantly surprised 3 or 4 times now.