STIHL 028 Wood Boss AV EQ.....sitting for years, what do I do first???

[thefarmboy21]

The other day I saw my neighbor at church and long story, short....he dropped off a STIHL 028 Wood Boss AV with the "electronic quickstop" He claimed that his dad had it for years and then passed it on to him, he ran the guts out of it until it started "loosing power once it got hot." He also gave me a Homelite Super XL auto that seems to have compression and I know no details of, because I didn't know he was leaving it lol. Anyway after initial inspection of the 028, it seemed to have good compression and the P&C look perfect. The only thing Ive noticed is that the whole flywheel side, especially under the starter cover, it's excessively caked with grease. Not sure if it was just from bar oil being spilled down the side time after time, or if there's a leak (common or not) there's somewhere. It was so bad that the flywheel had a path worn through it and you could barely see the side of the coil hahaha. Wondering if it was enough to cause firing issues with the coil it was so nasty. The contact points on the flywheel and the coil were totally covered and had to be thoroughly cleaned. I took all the covers off and cleaned everything and took the coil and carb off as well. So now I need to know how I should proceed. Should I take it down further and replace the intake boot and fuel lines for good measure (but they seem fine) or should I re-install the coil and carb and see what it will do? Mine also has the 3-piece muffler....what's the best way to make it flow good? I really don't like how it dumps the exhaust directly down into the case, but not sure what to do about it other than weld it shut and make new exhaust ports??? Also do they benefit dramatically from a gasket delete and/or porting, or should I leave well enough alone, so long as it has good compression? The saw looks really nice, aside from the staining from gas/oil. It's been stored in the hard case all these years and I got it too

 

[grack]

After a comp test I would clean the fuel system thoroughly check fuel and impulse lines to see if they need replaced new plug at least clean the carb id put a kit in 11.00 at my dealer fresh mix and try it but it's pointless unless it has enough compression i check every saw first.

 

[thefarmboy21]

What kinda compression should it have ideally? It takes some effort to pull the chord....a lot more that the homie. Seems fairly equal to my low hour 290 Farm Boss.

 

[grack]

That's good 120 and up will run ok my 028 has 180 id get all that old fuel out of the tank too.

 

[happysaws]

FWIW;
A good number to see in a "modern" saw is around 130psi to run decent, the more compression the better. Much lower than that and they will lose power.

Almost all saws will gain from a gasket delete and muffler mod. I havent tried anything on an 028, but I don't see why you wouldn't gain from these, as long as you still have enough 'squish'.

 

[grack]

Mine runs great good firewood saws.

 

[grack]

Mine set for 20 years i did everything i mentioned and it runs perfect tell us if you have trouble.

 

[Sleepy]

Dang! I would be putting him way up there on my short list of friends. That old case alone, would bring a good bit.
With all the accumulation around the flywheel you mentioned, wonder if that crank seal could be leaking some?

 

[thefarmboy21]

Yea he's a good fella. Well I wouldn't think that mix gas leaking through the crank seal would cause it. It's definitely bar oil and sawdust. Just wasn't sure if there was a common place it leaked there or if they had just dumped oil down the side several times and never cleaned it out.

 

[grack]

I pressure washed mine lol it was filthy so i could see all the lines.

 

[thefarmboy21]

I pressure washed mine lol it was filthy so i could see all the lines.

That's how I did the last couple antique saws I did, but I didn't have the time or weather to do it this time. I took it apart and cleaned it on my breaks at work yesterday.

 

[thefarmboy21]

Anyone have any pics of muffler mods for the 3 piece design? There's no way that exhaust blowing directly onto the case is good for it. That may have been what was causing it to get hot and loose power all along.

 

[grack]

Internet pic there is many ways to do it just pic what you like.

 

[thefarmboy21]

Internet pic there is many ways to do it just pic what you like.View attachment 553598

I've seen these, but my muffler is different. That's the newer design. Mine is the older 3 piece design and I can't find a detailed pic.

 

[grack]

Mines like this maybe one of the guys here has some pics.

 

[thefarmboy21]

This is the one I have. It dumps the exhaust right on the case. The paint is all burnt on the whole front of my saw from it.

 

[Wood Doctor]

I only have three of these 028 Super saws left. They all run fine. Each has about 140 psi compression. That's all that they need to perform well. Each will beat the pants off my MS290. Lately I have been fooling around with an 025 that shut down and suddenly won't start. I must be nuts. What an incredible waste of time struggling with an old 025.

 

[thefarmboy21]

Sooooo.......how many times am I supposed to crank it to get the compression psi reading??? Because if I crank on it quick (like I would to start it) until the psi stops raising, I get about 200 psi?!?! As far as I know the saw is all stock.

 

[thefarmboy21]

 

[Wood Doctor]

Rather incredible if the meter is reading right. Highest I have ever seen for a stock 028 Super. Lacking a decomp, I'm surprised your shoulder is still intact.