Dolmar advice needed.

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I have a Makita E6100 so I think I have the easy start feature. It also has a plastic gas tank that is integral with the saw's bottom. For that reason I don't like to put it on the ground and put my foot through the handle to start it which makes the saw much easier to start when cold. The result is that I get the full feeling of the saws compression ratio as I either hold it against my hip's side or between my legs. Pulling on it twice to prime it isn't an "easy start" as the compression really resists the rope. After herky jerking it through two prime pulls it tends to start on the next pull with just fast idle. When it's warm, the rope force is almost non existent and is the easiest most consistent saw I've ever started of that size. I love the saw with a 28" bar and full skip chain on it for big oak but as far as it being an "Easy Start" when cold I'd call it a "Pretty Easy Start."
Oh, and the gas tank is so big it holds a ton of fuel that will run beyond the length of time I want to cut on things before I get a drink of water. It's often over 100 degrees here during cutting time. I can't wait for the break running out of fuel gives so have to just go get some water. Great saw.
 
Perfect! I buy a Makita saw, the first new anything substantial in 30 years, just in time for the manufacturer to stop making them. If they were autos, they'd have to continue to make parts for the saws they've sold for a period of time but I don't know about saws. Getting parts for some models has always been tough but now it's going to get worse I guess. I just can't imagine them coming up with an electric saw very soon that will be light enough to carry, have a battery capacity large enough to last a useful time period and have enough power to cut big trees. Forget about the lumber industry, what are agencies going to use fighting fires in the future?
 
Perfect! I buy a Makita saw, the first new anything substantial in 30 years, just in time for the manufacturer to stop making them. If they were autos, they'd have to continue to make parts for the saws they've sold for a period of time but I don't know about saws. Getting parts for some models has always been tough but now it's going to get worse I guess. I just can't imagine them coming up with an electric saw very soon that will be light enough to carry, have a battery capacity large enough to last a useful time period and have enough power to cut big trees. Forget about the lumber industry, what are agencies going to use fighting fires in the future?
I assume they just weren't selling substantial numbers of petrol products and decided to pull the pin.
I'm confident Makita will look to sell Dolmar who can continue in some way or another.
 
I assume they just weren't selling substantial numbers of petrol products and decided to pull the pin.
I'm confident Makita will look to sell Dolmar who can continue in some way or another.
I hope that is the case but I haven't heard any evidence of this.

Sent from my moto g(7) power using Tapatalk
 
I assume they just weren't selling substantial numbers of petrol products and decided to pull the pin.
I'm confident Makita will look to sell Dolmar who can continue in some way or another.
As long as original quality parts are still available I'd be OK even if Poulan bought Dolmar. Maybe Dormer would be a good buyer since they sell auto replacement parts for no longer available OEM stuff. I'd enjoy the conversations that would result too. "Do you have Dormer parts for a Dolmar saw?" "You want a what for a what?"
 
I have a Makita E6100 so I think I have the easy start feature. It also has a plastic gas tank that is integral with the saw's bottom. For that reason I don't like to put it on the ground and put my foot through the handle to start it which makes the saw much easier to start when cold. The result is that I get the full feeling of the saws compression ratio as I either hold it against my hip's side or between my legs. Pulling on it twice to prime it isn't an "easy start" as the compression really resists the rope. After herky jerking it through two prime pulls it tends to start on the next pull with just fast idle. When it's warm, the rope force is almost non existent and is the easiest most consistent saw I've ever started of that size. I love the saw with a 28" bar and full skip chain on it for big oak but as far as it being an "Easy Start" when cold I'd call it a "Pretty Easy Start."
Oh, and the gas tank is so big it holds a ton of fuel that will run beyond the length of time I want to cut on things before I get a drink of water. It's often over 100 degrees here during cutting time. I can't wait for the break running out of fuel gives so have to just go get some water. Great saw.
Calamari, does your E6100 have a primer bulb?
My next question is: Did all years of the Dolmar 6100 saws have primer bulbs?

.
 
Calamari, does your E6100 have a primer bulb?
My next question is: Did all years of the Dolmar 6100 saws have primer bulbs?

.
I actually bought my E6100 by mistake while trying to buy a 6400 so I could put a larger piston and cylinder on it easily. You can't or at least couldn't do that with the 6100. Mine has a primer bulb and I think is one of the earlier models although that's just a guess based on there still being 6400 Makitas being sold new at the time. I haven't had to replace the bulb yet but I've already bought a half dozen replacement bulbs for when I do. I drain the fuel and run as much out as I can but there is still a little gas left in the bulb even when I do. The clear plastic bulb is now yellowed but hasn't split yet. I'm very happy with the saw...other than Makita now making them obsolete.
I don't know about bulbs on other models but I think it certainly helps with the "Easy Start" function.
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Nice saw calamari.
From what I've read and seen, the easy start works different on the 6100 than normal easy starts on other brands.

With a Stihl MS 180 for instance, you simply pull the cord as slow as you want. When it gets near the end, it releases all at once by itself.

With the Dolmar 6100, you can give it a strong tug right from the beginning, and it helps with the pull, the entire length of the pull... kind of like a spring assisted tailgate ramp on a utility trailer.


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"With the Dolmar 6100, you can give it a strong tug right from the beginning, and it helps with the pull, the entire length of the pull... kind of like a spring assisted tailgate ramp on a utility trailer."

If my 6100 is supposed to have that feature it sure doesn't feel like it. I assumed that because it really does start easily all they did was put a smaller diameter pulley on the rope starter. It's got a lot of compression that you have to overcome starting it when cold that doesn't seem to exist when it's hot. It is a very easy to start saw with a consistent 2 pulls to prime and one to start it. A single 1/4 pull when hot.
I like the sound of that spring loaded Stihl except for more parts to maintain and carry around.
 
"With the Dolmar 6100, you can give it a strong tug right from the beginning, and it helps with the pull, the entire length of the pull... kind of like a spring assisted tailgate ramp on a utility trailer."

If my 6100 is supposed to have that feature it sure doesn't feel like it. I assumed that because it really does start easily all they did was put a smaller diameter pulley on the rope starter. It's got a lot of compression that you have to overcome starting it when cold that doesn't seem to exist when it's hot. It is a very easy to start saw with a consistent 2 pulls to prime and one to start it. A single 1/4 pull when hot.
I like the sound of that spring loaded Stihl except for more parts to maintain and carry around.
I kind of wonder if there is an issue with the easy start on yours. I will have to mess with mine some more but it seems like it always fires off easily.
 
I kind of wonder if there is an issue with the easy start on yours. I will have to mess with mine some more but it seems like it always fires off easily.
Anything is possible and if it's got a bad outcome that possibility always seems to apply to me. The saw is easy to start and if I pin it to the ground with my foot and only pull it about 10" when cold it's pretty easy to get two rotations per pull. That's a total of four and with the choke off, one short pull starts the saw. Another thing I didn't mention is that I live a 2,000' elevation and I've used it at 1,000' and 3,300' elevations. It starts and idles perfectly at all of them. It's a good saw.
 
Anything is possible and if it's got a bad outcome that possibility always seems to apply to me. The saw is easy to start and if I pin it to the ground with my foot and only pull it about 10" when cold it's pretty easy to get two rotations per pull. That's a total of four and with the choke off, one short pull starts the saw. Another thing I didn't mention is that I live a 2,000' elevation and I've used it at 1,000' and 3,300' elevations. It starts and idles perfectly at all of them. It's a good saw.
Have you tried just pulling it out slowly?
When I try to start mine normally it feels horrible and yanky but when I pull it firmly but slowly it's easier.
Pull it like the cord is connected to a stump you're trying to pull out of the ground.
 
Have you tried just pulling it out slowly?
When I try to start mine normally it feels horrible and yanky but when I pull it firmly but slowly it's easier.
Pull it like the cord is connected to a stump you're trying to pull out of the ground.
Pulling it out slowly is like me reading the operating instructions. It never occurred to me to try it but I will. Seems to defeat the purpose of spinning the engine which is to get a fuel mix into the combustion chamber but since it starts so easily maybe a full charge isn't needed. I'll give it a try and thanks for the suggestion.
 
Pulling it out slowly is like me reading the operating instructions. It never occurred to me to try it but I will. Seems to defeat the purpose of spinning the engine which is to get a fuel mix into the combustion chamber but since it starts so easily maybe a full charge isn't needed. I'll give it a try and thanks for the suggestion.
It seems counter-intuitive but that's the design.
 
Have you tried just pulling it out slowly?
When I try to start mine normally it feels horrible and yanky but when I pull it firmly but slowly it's easier.
Pull it like the cord is connected to a stump you're trying to pull out of the ground.

That's exactly how mine is. When I first got it I tried to drop start it just like I did my old Husqvarna 50 and my little Craftsman. It didn't work so well. I watched a video of a 6 year old girl starting one. I tried pulling it slow and steady and it works well. I now hold it between my thighs with my left hand on the handle bar. Just pull slow and steady and it fires right up. It takes some getting used to but it's great when you do.
 
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