Stihl's "Quick Chain Adjustment" System

How reliable is Stihl's fairly new "Quick Chain Adjustment" that is an option on a few saws? Is this a flimsy device?

I was wondering about that too. It makes me think that they don't know themselves, so they are only offering it on a few models.

i dont know much about it ,except what i hear.. but the old side tensioner or behind the bar screw work fine ,and are dependable.. thats the key to me.

runninghot said:

It makes me think that they don't know themselves, so they are only offering it on a few models.

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1. Stihl always releases new features on just a few saws.

2. It's a consumer feature, not intended for experienced chainsaw users.

I have it on my carving ms180 it is not that bad, just I would rather not have it. Any time you cut down on tighting chains you add back up by cleaning it so it will work or taking it all apart to change bars. In my opinion it is a worthless piece of, well you know what im thinking.

I dont see any broken ones come in. alot of the local carvers use them and love them.

I have one on my ms180, and I love it. Don't know how it would hold up on a bigger saw though.

I agree that it's a consumer, homeowner feature. There's a reason why you don't see it, the QS brake or Easy 2 Start on any of the pro saws. (Except for the QS on the 361C.)

Jeff

Thanks, gentlemen, for the discussion on this.

It works great! on larger saws it is not available. It makes oregon's intenz
look like crap. I know the oregon dude will be mad, but it simply does not
work.
Everyone sucked up to him just because he was an engineer in the saw
industry, but the intenz does not work.
But back to Stihl's quick adjuster, it works very well.

adjuster

I have yet to have to repair one. Slick setup for a homeowner saw.

fishhuntcutwood said:

I agree that it's a consumer, homeowner feature. There's a reason why you don't see it, the QS brake or Easy 2 Start on any of the pro saws. (Except for the QS on the 361C.)Jeff

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Agreed!
The QCA discurages bar maintenance, and swapping the bar.
I think it collects some extra crap inside the cluch cover, too
- but, it does what it is meant to do.

Our MS210 has that feature and although i didnt like the idea of it when we bought it it works very well. Unless you are superman it is impossible to over tighten the chain and my sons have not been able to break it (yet) in 1 1/2 years of pretty steady use. The new style fuel and oil caps are another story, this old goat can seem to get the hang of putting them on right in a hurry and I'm getting tired of recieving an oil soaked leg out of the deal, lol.

Yes, I know a lot of folks don't like those new oil and fuel caps. Although I've not had any spillage problems with the caps, I don't like the part of the design that allows dirt and trash to fall so easily into the tanks.

I was looking at a MS250 with the Quick Chain Adjustment but decided that I just don't think I'd care for anything that makes chain/bar maintenance and cleaning more difficult. The old basic two-bolt/two-nut system will have to do for me.

Stihl caps

Vernon Tull said:

Yes, I know a lot of folks don't like those new oil and fuel caps...............

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Here is more on the caps, and more:
http://www.arboristsite.com/showthread.php?t=7856&page=7&pp=15&highlight=caps+stihl
Personally I don't think it is a big deal, but I don't have extensive experience with them, just the 361 and a couple of 250C's that belongs to friends of mine.

I thought this had a similar feature as the intense, but placed outside the bar instead of inside, please clarify.

The intenz is tightened by putting a flat tip screwdriver in a slot in the bar, then you
have to try to keep this tension while trying to tighten the bar nuts, the Stihl has
a ratcheting gear turned by a thumbwheel on the cover, and the bar is tightened
by a plastic flipup handle on the cover, making it easy and tool-less. The chain also
stays tight, as opposed to the intenz. It works well, the intenz doesn't, I do not
know the physics or engineering behind it, but the eyewitness account of seeing the
saws after a lot of use.
The intenz bar's saw usually has the bar studs pulling through the plastic crankcase
on the Poulans they were put on.

Intenz

Fish , my Intenz bar does not slip if I use 91VJ chain on my Poulan Pro 220 . If I use non safety chain (Carlton N1) with the Intenz bar it will slip . The poulan manual says that the torque value on the bar nuts is 10 - 15 ft/lbs. I have not torqued the bar nuts but just snug them with the scrench . I do adjust the Intenz bar to take the slack out of the chain and then tighten the front bar nut first to lock the bar in place then the back nut . I don't lift the bar while adjusting the tension or the bar nuts .

You don't lift the bar tip? You have been the first I have found that had any luck with it.

Technique

Fish , if you lift the bar tip the Intenz wedge lock does not seem to work as well .