Stihl Pro 036 bad piston. fix or replace

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grass disaster

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My dad's Stihl Pro 036 blew up for the 2nd time. within 5 years.
its 19 years old. with low/moderate use.

Dealer said piston and crank were bad. at a total cost of $450 to repair.

how hard are they to fix? At what point is it worthy to buy new? he mentioned dealer wants $780 for a ms36.

I Already mentioned he should be mixing 50:1. Not sure, he may be mixing too lean.
 
Have any pics? What kind of failure?

Without first understanding why it failed, I wouldn't recommend replacing parts.

Is that the only saw to consider or only dealer to look at? If he only needs a saw for low to moderate use there may be other choices unless he insists on a pro saw. Guessing you meant MS362. How about a MS311, also 60cc. I'm not a stihl model expert but that should take a few hundred off the cost.
 
Piston ... replace it .... crank and piston ... sadly replace the saw ... I run it's lil'r cousin the 034 ... ported and tweaked for over 20 years ...

It also depend if you trust the saw shop on the crank damage, you probably have a crank seal issue more than anything else first.
 
Hate to say it, but you are likely doing something wrong.

That’s a pro saw and with correct tune and mix, should last a lifetime. 50:1 is EPA stuff, 32 or 40 to 1 is much better for a saw.

FWIW though, 20 years of duty is pretty admirable. It’s kinda of done it’s job. If the crank is bad, so are the main bearings.

An oem piston is now close to $90. A used jug will run you 80. Bearings and a gasket set are $50 oem.

Sell it here on the TP for $100 and pick up a used one. There is a good ported one on the forbidden site right now for $500.

Selling as a parts saw and picking up a good used one from a reliable member/builder is probably your best bet.
 
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