Stihl 028 AV Super repair

[acarpenterdad]

I'm getting ready to repair my old stihl. I've got the manual from the beg for posts and finaly the time and cash. Looking for input as I proceed. I do know I'll be replacing crank bearings and seals also. I've never done one before so i hope this turns out well! I did rebuild the carb and put in new coil about 2 years ago.

 

[pioneerguy600]

I will sub in, have built dozens of these old beasts over the years , the oiler drives are the worst Stihl ever used but reliable until a part breaks.

 

[acarpenterdad]

I will sub in, have built dozens of these old beasts over the years , the oiler drives are the worst Stihl ever used but reliable until a part breaks.

What's an oiler drive?

 

[pioneerguy600]

What's an oiler drive?

There is a set of cogs behind the clutch that drives the oil pump that oils the chain.

 

[Ax-man]

If you can get by without new crank bearings I would skip that part . 028 will require splitting the crankcase . It is not as easy as those clam shell engines . There are ways to split a crankcase without special tools but putting it back together correctly is more of a challenge and you have to be spot on for seating the bearings and getting the crankshaft centered . I am not trying to discourage you but do as much research as you can . If you can do it is worth the effort but if the saw is not going to be used much I would just concentrate on the top end.

 

[Wood Doctor]

If you can get by without new crank bearings I would skip that part . 028 will require splitting the crankcase. It is not as easy as those clam shell engines. There are ways to split a crankcase without special tools but putting it back together correctly is more of a challenge and you have to be spot on for seating the bearings and getting the crankshaft centered. I am not trying to discourage you but do as much research as you can. If you can do it is worth the effort but if the saw is not going to be used much I would just concentrate on the top end.

Agreed. Seldom do crank seals or bearings fail on these. I've rebuilt a half-dozen of them, and about all they needed was a new top end and fuel line. Sometimes the carb has to be rebuilt or replaced. I like these old buzzards. Once rebuilt, they've been known to pull a 20" bar without too much squawking, but 18" is ideal. I usually add on an outer bumper spike. Here's an early model that I call a classic:

 

[acarpenterdad]

Agreed. Seldom do crank seals or bearings fail on these. I've rebuilt a half-dozen of them, and about all they needed was a new top end and fuel line. Sometimes the carb has to be rebuilt or replaced. I like these old buzzards. Once rebuilt, they've been known to pull a 20" bar without too much squawking, but 18" is ideal. I usually add on an outer bumper spike. Here's an early model that I call a classic:
View attachment 744768

Shiny!

 

[acarpenterdad]

If you can get by without new crank bearings I would skip that part . 028 will require splitting the crankcase . It is not as easy as those clam shell engines . There are ways to split a crankcase without special tools but putting it back together correctly is more of a challenge and you have to be spot on for seating the bearings and getting the crankshaft centered . I am not trying to discourage you but do as much research as you can . If you can do it is worth the effort but if the saw is not going to be used much I would just concentrate on the top end.

Any simple way to tell if bearing & seals are ok? I posted here this winter about doing this and a lot of the replies implied that due to age (1982) those would go bad. And yes, it will be a back-up saw mostly.

 

[Wood Doctor]

Shiny!

Thank you. You motivated me to take it out and run it a little. Took about 9 pulls on choke for a pop because it's been sitting quite awhile, but it started right up. Dang thing runs like a dream and oils the bar perfectly. Once warm, it started on the first pull every time. I may take it out tomorrow and see how well it cuts hardwood with a new chain. I imagine this is an early-1980's model. No chain brake sends it back a few years.

If the crank seals were bad, it would have almost no power and may not even run well at either WOT or idle. The compression might check out OK, but she will not run right with bad seals.

 

[HarleyT]

There is a set of cogs behind the clutch that drives the oil pump that oils the chain.

What's a grecian urn?

 

[pioneerguy600]

What's a grecian urn?

Depends on what he does for a living, profession, judge, airline pilot etc, Drachma`s worth any thing?

 

[HarleyT]

Yeah, that old Vaudville joke just popped into my head....

 

[HarleyT]

I am sure the Marx Brothers used it a few times..

 

[acarpenterdad]

Yeah, that old Vaudville joke just popped into my head....

I was kinda slow catching that...

 

[acarpenterdad]

Thank you. You motivated me to take it out and run it a little. Took about 9 pulls on choke for a pop because it's been sitting quite awhile, but it started right up. Dang thing runs like a dream and oils the bar perfectly. Once warm, it started on the first pull every time. I may take it out tomorrow and see how well it cuts hardwood with a new chain. I imagine this is an early-1980's model. No chain brake sends it back a few years.

If the crank seals were bad, it would have almost no power and may not even run well at either WOT or idle. The compression might check out OK, but she will not run right with bad seals.

Mine has the break, and it had plenty of power until my son ran straight gas through it.

 

[Jasonrkba]

Just don't use the farmtech top end. I did on mine and it's gutless. Runs good just not anywhere near as strong as it should be. I will be rebuilding it eventually. I wouldn't split the case unless you suspect a bad bearing. I would do the seals. Rubber gets brittle as it ages. They are cheap and easy.

 

[acarpenterdad]

Just don't use the farmtech top end. I did on mine and it's gutless. Runs good just not anywhere near as strong as it should be. I will be rebuilding it eventually. I wouldn't split the case unless you suspect a bad bearing. I would do the seals. Rubber gets brittle as it ages. They are cheap and easy.

im gona see if i can get the cylinder pulled this weekend. after reading all the reviews about farmtech they would be the last place i want to buy from!

 

[pioneerguy600]

Only AM set I ever found with any quality for the 028 Supers were from Tecomec but have heard they are getting difficult to find. My Stihl dealer could get OEM up to just a few years back but no longer in the system. I see Chainsawr has a good used one in inventory currently, I have used many parts from there to repair older NLA parts wise saws.

 

[BuckthornBonnie]

Any simple way to tell if bearing & seals are ok? I posted here this winter about doing this and a lot of the replies implied that due to age (1982) those would go bad. And yes, it will be a back-up saw mostly.

Bearings- grab both ends of the crankshaft and wiggle. Any play is bad. They could also sound rough when turning over by hand. Try to visually inspect them and look for rust, cage cracks, etc.
Seals- vacuum test, mainly. Could also visually inspect and sometimes see problems. At that point, the bearing or crank itself could have an issue.

These saws are well-built. The oiler isn’t ideal as mentioned above, but yours is probably fine. The muffler variations are also annoying.

 

[acarpenterdad]

Bearings- grab both ends of the crankshaft and wiggle. Any play is bad. They could also sound rough when turning over by hand. Try to visually inspect them and look for rust, cage cracks, etc.
Seals- vacuum test, mainly. Could also visually inspect and sometimes see problems. At that point, the bearing or crank itself could have an issue.

These saws are well-built. The oiler isn’t ideal as mentioned above, but yours is probably fine. The muffler variations are also annoying.

Thank you!