Stihl 028AVEQ fuel tank compatability

[jlangton]

I'm looking at the 028AVEQ Super I recently acquired, and in the future at some point it'll need a fuel tank/handle assembly simply due to age and dry cracking. It's of course the plastic version of the tank/handle. I'm seeing some metal tank/handle assemblies for sale that I'll assume are from earlier builds of the 028, and was thinking as little as I use the saws, the small weight penalty won't bother me....would the metal tank/handle assembly be a direct swap for the plastic unit? I've also seen the metal flywheel/starter covers and I'm pretty sure they would be a direct swap just by looking at them. Anything weird that I would run into swapping those 2 items out to their metal counterparts?
JL

 

[SpaayDawg]

Tanks and starter covers will swap between model years. Mufflers however, are case specific, and therefore you need to have mating case halves. From what I've read and seen first hand, metal tanks don't hold up as well as plastic tanks especially if you live in a cold climate. The plastic tanks seem to have more "give" whereas the metal just breaks.

 

[jlangton]

Tanks and starter covers will swap between model years. Mufflers however, are case specific, and therefore you need to have mating case halves. From what I've read and seen first hand, metal tanks don't hold up as well as plastic tanks especially if you live in a cold climate. The plastic tanks seem to have more "give" whereas the metal just breaks.

I'm not too worried about cold...it rarely gets below freezing here for more than about a week at a time. These will mostly see firewood cutting before winter, hurricane cleanup(hopefully not any more after the last 2), and some brush/land clearing, so no worries about cold and brittle cases.
JL

 

[sawjo]

Older 028WB's have a 3 screw starter re-wind cover (metal) and the Supers have a 4 screw cover - they won't interchange as far as I know - so be carefull with the older magnesium stuff.

 

[jlangton]

Older 028WB's have a 3 screw starter re-wind cover (metal) and the Supers have a 4 screw cover - they won't interchange as far as I know - so be carefull with the older magnesium stuff.

I noticed that when looking over the available replacement starter covers. I'll do some more digging to compare.
JL

 

[grön ek]

I'm looking at the 028AVEQ Super I recently acquired, and in the future at some point it'll need a fuel tank/handle assembly simply due to age and dry cracking. It's of course the plastic version of the tank/handle. I'm seeing some metal tank/handle assemblies for sale that I'll assume are from earlier builds of the 028, and was thinking as little as I use the saws, the small weight penalty won't bother me....would the metal tank/handle assembly be a direct swap for the plastic unit? I've also seen the metal flywheel/starter covers and I'm pretty sure they would be a direct swap just by looking at them. Anything weird that I would run into swapping those 2 items out to their metal counterparts?
JL

Yes, it will fit,,, However, there is a difference in width between the old models with the 3 hole starter cover, and the thinner newer models with the 4 hole starter cover. The top rubber-baby-buggy-bumper that attaches the engine half to the handle, is longer on the old saws, So I would recommend a spacer, or get the longer (wider) AV mount. Also, the tank capacity is smaller on the metal handle version, and when I did a swap (Just what you are doing), the extra fuel capacity really made a big difference. The Top covers on the old model are also wider, and have a slightly different configuration at the area where the screw goes into the cylinder head. The top covers are NOT interchangeable. Since the engine body is wider on the old old 028s, I'll guess that the cranks aren't interchangeable either, but I can't say for sure, As I've not gotten that deep into my 028s. I have two made from W. Germany, and one from W. Virginia, (I am not fond of her at alll,,,, I named her Christine, an swear she's possessed). Best of luck.