Hi everyone.
I bought a used Stihl MS660 about a year ago from a local repair shop that seemed to have a good reputation. I have only used it about four times overall and was always running it on Stihl brand premix until this last time when I decided to mix my own because every store was out of everything on the shelves because of hurricane Michael and I needed to cut a tree off my house. I had some Mercury outboard 2 cycle oil laying around that I used in the appropriate ratio. I figured 2 stroke is 2 stroke and it wouldn't be a problem. Now this saw was always hard for me to start already but after I mixed the fuel this time I quickly found that the only way I could get it started was with my finger on the throttle and then after it started it wouldn't stay running. I took it in and they are now telling me that it "blew up". They said it needs a new piston and head and that the damage was caused by the oil I used. Said Stihl saws only like Stihl brand oil and I just shoulda known and that different brands of oil are specifically formulated for only that brand of motor. Now this really doesn't make sense to me because they also sell and recommend using "TruFuel" premix as a cheaper alternative to Stihl and I'm pretty sure that it's not made specifically for Stihl chainsaws and will work in pretty much any 2 stroke just fine. They said the cost to repair the saw will be around 750 bucks. I paid $900 for it. Are they deceiving me?
I think it's possible the saw was already on it's last leg and another thing that makes me suspicious is that a couple years prior to this I brought in a vintage all metal Homelite Blue saw to them that I couldn't get to stay running and they told me it needed rebuilt and said parts are near impossible to source so they offered a trade in credit on a new saw. I purchased an MS250 from them at that time. I later bought the used 660 from them after quickly realizing I needed something bigger.
So I need a second opinion. What is the truth? Also, I have decided I am going to make the repairs myself. What do I need to know in order to get this fixed? Where is the cheapest source of OE Stihl parts and how do I get the service manual?
Thank You All!
I bought a used Stihl MS660 about a year ago from a local repair shop that seemed to have a good reputation. I have only used it about four times overall and was always running it on Stihl brand premix until this last time when I decided to mix my own because every store was out of everything on the shelves because of hurricane Michael and I needed to cut a tree off my house. I had some Mercury outboard 2 cycle oil laying around that I used in the appropriate ratio. I figured 2 stroke is 2 stroke and it wouldn't be a problem. Now this saw was always hard for me to start already but after I mixed the fuel this time I quickly found that the only way I could get it started was with my finger on the throttle and then after it started it wouldn't stay running. I took it in and they are now telling me that it "blew up". They said it needs a new piston and head and that the damage was caused by the oil I used. Said Stihl saws only like Stihl brand oil and I just shoulda known and that different brands of oil are specifically formulated for only that brand of motor. Now this really doesn't make sense to me because they also sell and recommend using "TruFuel" premix as a cheaper alternative to Stihl and I'm pretty sure that it's not made specifically for Stihl chainsaws and will work in pretty much any 2 stroke just fine. They said the cost to repair the saw will be around 750 bucks. I paid $900 for it. Are they deceiving me?
I think it's possible the saw was already on it's last leg and another thing that makes me suspicious is that a couple years prior to this I brought in a vintage all metal Homelite Blue saw to them that I couldn't get to stay running and they told me it needed rebuilt and said parts are near impossible to source so they offered a trade in credit on a new saw. I purchased an MS250 from them at that time. I later bought the used 660 from them after quickly realizing I needed something bigger.
So I need a second opinion. What is the truth? Also, I have decided I am going to make the repairs myself. What do I need to know in order to get this fixed? Where is the cheapest source of OE Stihl parts and how do I get the service manual?
Thank You All!
