How Long After Startup Before You Can Shut Down Saw?

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Freudianfloyd

Clinically Diagnosed with CAD
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So in my quest to keep all my saws running, and also because I just enjoy playing with my saws, I routinely start them up even if I don't plan on using them for any cutting. Call me weird....

So my questions are this....

Is it bad to shut off a cold saw a few seconds to a minute after starting it up? Will it prematurely wear doing this? Should I wait until they warm up before shutting them off? Does it even matter?
 
It shouldn’t matter as long as you have fresh mix going into them for that minute. Two cycles are constantly coated internally in mix, which is lubricant and fuel. Even long sitting saws will still have oil coating the internals.


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Small engines aren't that fussy.

We get lots of stuff in the shop that is flat out abused and somehow it just keeps chugging along. Stuff like T shirts for air filters, oil thick as tar, cooling fins, flywheel etc plugged right up. Fired up at -30* right to wide open and shut down at wide open, chains, blades, etc beyond dull. Nearly more water than fuel in the tank.

Not saying to treat stuff like that, but you don't need to polish your lawn mower or saw everyday and tuck it in a night in order for it to work the next day. :D
 
That's all good info to know. I just felt like I needed to get them up to operating temperature before shutting them back down, but it sounds like I am just wasting gas at this point.
 
I can see points to both side of the conversation. As Choppy said a lot of people neglect & straight out abuse their saws, yet on countless number of videos you hear a person say something along the lines of 'this saw hasn't been started in weeks, months, years' even. Is that just propaganda to make it MORE amazing that a saw started after a certain amount of time, is it BS or is there some prevalence to it?
With 4 stroke engines, 'they' etc say it's good to have a full heat cycle/heat soak for a car engine. I believe it's true for 2 strokes as well. The beauty being a full heat soak is only a few mins, comparatively .
So I get out & start up the saws once a month or so in the "off season" or slow times. Plus, it's just good to hear & feel a saw running even for a few minutes. Knock off a few low limbs in the yard etc.
I got carried away there haha. We know that when 2 strokes heat up the cylinder heats up slower than the piston skirt, rings etc, so a gentler warm up time is better for the engine than starting & going WOT right away. I can't see any reason that shutting it off after a few seconds or so of running would have any bad consequences, but I've only had 1/2 a coffee and it's early in the morning.
 
I wouldn't worry about it too much. I'd want to run it long enough to completely replace the fuel in the carb with a fresh dose, but other than that...

I never leave fuel mix in a saw longer than a month (if I remember) so I generally always run a saw dry, so in that case, ignore what I said above.
 
I run the saw for a while idling to get fresh gas in the fuel line and carb. Then I rev it up to clear it.
 

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