What's up with my saw

[Larry Johnson]

Just 45 days ago I managaed to get a used Poulan Wildthing chainsaw running. Here's the thread http://www.arboristsite.com/communi...t-poulan-2375-wild-thing.309053/#post-6237164 . It sat since then. Went to start it the other day and couldn't get it to fire. It has new plug, clean carb, new fuel lines, and new air filter. I'm going to give it another try tomorrow. Assuming there's spark on a removed plug, what should I look for?

 

[HarleyT]

How old is the fuel?
Dump it out and start over with fresh. First.

 

[BrokenSVT]

Did you rebuild the carb?

ETA: I wouldn't rebuild it, they're cheap(~$8) to simply replace.

 

[merc_man]

Spray some mix down carb and see if it fires.
I ran crap ethanol gas onece in a pinch and left the fuel in it for about a week and saw would not start due to the fuel all gummed up in the carb.

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[Larry Johnson]

Spray some mix down carb and see if it fires.
I ran crap ethanol gas onece in a pinch and left the fuel in it for about a week and saw would not start due to the fuel all gummed up in the carb.

Sent from my SM-J320W8 using Tapatalk

Thanks for the replies. The fuel is recent, but it did sit in there for a month. I spray some cleaner down there. Thanks.

 

[Rockjock]

Thanks for the replies. The fuel is recent, but it did sit in there for a month. I spray some cleaner down there. Thanks.

30 days is what we expect from the cheap gas here in Ontario. That is what I pretty much see all the time as of late YMMV.

For occasional use most people will buy the Motomix or Aspen premixed fuel

 

[Larry Johnson]

Managed to get it started after spraying with carb cleaner. Thanks.
The bad news is while checking for spark I overtightened the bottom two screws of the starter cover. The threads are just plastic. It still works, but I wonder how much longer before the starter won't stay attached. Is there any way to fix these threads.

 

[Rockjock]

Larry I have used small zip ties slipped into the stripped holes with great success. I have even glued them in and they have held up quite well. There is also a liquid plastic that you cure with a ultraviolet light being sold in Canadian tire ( big box store here in Canada ) that looks like it too could work.

 

[Old2stroke]

Three small strip cut from the lid of a margarine container or some other thin plastic, pushed down into the hole with epoxy on the backs of them seems to work for me. Just turn the screw back in and let it cure. Be sure to use a good release agent on the screw, such as silicone grease or you won't be able to get the screw back out. The curable liquid plastic might work, but you would have to just fill in the threads and then shine the light down into hole and hope that all the plastic would be cured. If you filled the hole right in, probably only the surface would be cured, not sure the light would penetrate to the bottom.

 

[Westboastfaller]

There is kits you can get that you can set inserts or what I do with my handle bars for my 372's is use an oversize bolt the the ones that come with the 357/359. and that's a for sure fix. I've used zap straps (zip ties) in a pinch and wire works really good. The speaker wire that comes with two wires together works best. With handle bars I will 5 min apoxy the wire of zap strap in then clip them off. You could try the 24 hour JB weld. Just wax the bolts and clean the plastic good. I have used stihl bolts that are coarser. They work for a while. You will figure it out

 

[merc_man]

Managed to get it started after spraying with carb cleaner. Thanks.
The bad news is while checking for spark I overtightened the bottom two screws of the starter cover. The threads are just plastic. It still works, but I wonder how much longer before the starter won't stay attached. Is there any way to fix these threads.

I would not use carb cleaner or any other starting fluid to start the saw as thers no lube. Spray a little gas oil mix down carb

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[Larry Johnson]

Larry I have used small zip ties slipped into the stripped holes with great success. I have even glued them in and they have held up quite well. There is also a liquid plastic that you cure with a ultraviolet light being sold in Canadian tire ( big box store here in Canada ) that looks like it too could work.

Three small strip cut from the lid of a margarine container or some other thin plastic, pushed down into the hole with epoxy on the backs of them seems to work for me. Just turn the screw back in and let it cure. Be sure to use a good release agent on the screw, such as silicone grease or you won't be able to get the screw back out. The curable liquid plastic might work, but you would have to just fill in the threads and then shine the light down into hole and hope that all the plastic would be cured. If you filled the hole right in, probably only the surface would be cured, not sure the light would penetrate to the bottom.

There is kits you can get that you can set inserts or what I do with my handle bars for my 372's is use an oversize bolt the the ones that come with the 357/359. and that's a for sure fix. I've used zap straps (zip ties) in a pinch and wire works really good. The speaker wire that comes with two wires together works best. With handle bars I will 5 min apoxy the wire of zap strap in then clip them off. You could try the 24 hour JB weld. Just wax the bolts and clean the plastic good. I have used stihl bolts that are coarser. They work for a while. You will figure it out

Thanks for the tips. The holes don't go all the way through, so unless I misunderstand something, zip ties won't work for me. I'll give the epoxy a try.

 

[Larry Johnson]

I would not use carb cleaner or any other starting fluid to start the saw as thers no lube. Spray a little gas oil mix down carb

Thanks. I won't use carb cleaner any longer for starting.
I'm not understanding why fuel (from the tank) squirted into the carb with the bulb is any different than squirting it in with something else. What am I missing. Are you saying the fuel in the tank is bad and it needs cnewer fuel?

Used the saw on and off for 2 hours today. It did well until the end. It began to bog down a bit when throttle applied and not attempting to cut.
I noticed that a flat screwdriver doesn't fit into two of the carb adjustment holes. Is there a special tool for this.

 

[Westboastfaller]

Thanks for the tips. The holes don't go all the way through, so unless I misunderstand something, zip ties won't work for me. I'll give the epoxy a try.

the concept with the cased wire or zap straps or what not is to feed a length down to the bottom of the hole then start the bollt with the tee handle Allen wrench on an angle to start them then straighten it up. It becomes a forced fit and should do the job as long as you stop when it's snug and snug them Back up when needed. Sometimes it will take a few attempts as it may spin the wire out.
If the cap has to come off often then this may not be the route you want to take as you will have to do it every time.

 

[merc_man]

Thanks. I won't use carb cleaner any longer for starting.
I'm not understanding why fuel (from the tank) squirted into the carb with the bulb is any different than squirting it in with something else. What am I missing. Are you saying the fuel in the tank is bad and it needs cnewer fuel?

Used the saw on and off for 2 hours today. It did well until the end. It began to bog down a bit when throttle applied and not attempting to cut.
I noticed that a flat screwdriver doesn't fit into two of the carb adjustment holes. Is there a special tool for this.

Your carb may be dirty or just need adjustment.
Yes ther is a speciel too for adjusting the carb. I used to use a small peace of fuel line pished over which was a pain so i ordered all the different saw carb tools of ebay for about 60 bucks.
And squirting fuel with primer bulb probly should have made it fire.

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[dswensen]

Thanks. I won't use carb cleaner any longer for starting.
I'm not understanding why fuel (from the tank) squirted into the carb with the bulb is any different than squirting it in with something else. What am I missing?

Nobody answered this for you, but it's important that you (and other readers that might come along) understand the reason.

The carb cleaner you sprayed into the cylinder to get it going did not contain any of the lubricating oil that mixed fuel contains. That oil mixed in with the gas is absolutely critical to running any 2-stroke engine. Without the oil, the engine will seize - it's just a matter of a very short time. All of this is true of starting fluid as well - not good for any 2-stroke engine.

 

[Larry Johnson]

Nobody answered this for you, but it's important that you (and other readers that might come along) understand the reason.

The carb cleaner you sprayed into the cylinder to get it going did not contain any of the lubricating oil that mixed fuel contains. That oil mixed in with the gas is absolutely critical to running any 2-stroke engine. Without the oil, the engine will seize - it's just a matter of a very short time. All of this is true of starting fluid as well - not good for any 2-stroke engine.

Thanks for the reply. I do understand that the carb cleaner doesn't contain lube for the engine. Someone explained that above.

My question was regarding the difference between mixture in the tank vs mixture sprayed down the carb, as someone suggested doing. It seems to me that there's no difference between the two mixtures other than possibly age of the fuel.

I'm interested in understanding what's causing the difficult start after the saw sets for a week or so. Is the carb getting gummed up in that short a period, or is something else going on.

Considering that I wil use the saw very infrequently, before putting it away yesterday, I emtptied the tank and ran it 'til it cut off, which didn't take but a few seconds.

 

[dswensen]

Ahh. If I am reading you correctly now, you are asking what is the difference between squirting fuel down the carb throat, and using the primer bulb. Two-stroke primer bulbs do not squirt fuel into the cylinder - they only purge the air out of the fuel lines and carb. All fuel drawn through the carb by the primer bulb is returned to the fuel tank. - it doesn't go into the cylinder. You can pump a two-stroke primer bulb all day long and you won't flood the engine.

When replacing fuel lines and visualizing how the lines should be connected, it's important to realize that the primer bulb SUCKS fuel through the carb, it doesn't PUMP fuel through the carb.

 

[jerrycmorrow]

Based on your original statement and the link you orovided im not sure that you ever got the saw running CORRECTLY. While you may have i didnt draw that conclusion from the info you provided. If you didnt then you still have the same problem you inherited. Just sayin

 

[Old2stroke]

In the process of sorting out that saw, here is another thing you should check. That saw has a clamshell engine and the crankcase is held together by 4 bolts that go up from the bottom. Make sure these are tight as they have been known to get loose and cause serious air leaks.