044 History ?'s

[Beer Gut]

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Serial# 140190941

I'm not the best at researching this stuff so I'll ask.
The saw was purchased new in 1997 by me new. It has been painted so no my 15 year old saw did not look this good a few weeks ago. Here is the work I have done to it I replaced the recoil handle, recently the tank vent, added the 660 dogs because I had them laying around, added the magnum sticker but it did not have it originally, dual ported the muffler and it had no baffle, and lowered the squish to .025. The compression is over 160 and it runs awesome.

Here is what I want to know, in 1997 I thought the Stihl book said it was 5.7hp but everything I have read since says the later 044's and 440's are 5.4hp. Were they higher at one time?
I hear people rave about the saw like in a recent thread called (044.....Maybe) I love mine but was wondering what the big deal was?
Also it seems like 044's go for more that 440's even beat up ones. Was there a difference between the old 044's and newer 044's/440's besides the evolution of the carb cover, tank assembly, and decomp valve?
What crank and wrist pin do I have, I understand there are different ones for this saw do I have the old one is one better than the other?

Thanks

 

[tlandrum]

the same saw with more restrictions will have less hp. id say your saw has the dime size hole in the ex and the newer ones is pencil size making a little less hp

 

[mdavlee]

Yours is the 12mm wrist pin which means you can put a bb kit or 046 p/c on it. The older saws seemed to run better than the newer ones. The early 10mm cylinders seem to run the best of all the 044s.

 

[Beer Gut]

the same saw with more restrictions will have less hp. id say your saw has the dime size hole in the ex and the newer ones is pencil size making a little less hp

The stock port was cut when I did the mod it has an egg shaped hole with about the surface area of a nickel and under the husky deflector its about the size of a quarter also egg shaped.

 

[NORMZILLA44]

I love any 044, and all 044 threads:msp_thumbsup: You got no worries man, great saw I have one similar era. What you have done to it modification wise is a great start. And yes the 044 is a very sought after saw, a top seller new or used, even the newer 440's, which to ansewr one question list with a little more H.P But I had always seen the 44's of the mid 90's listed as 5.4 as well. You are in tall cotton.

 

[blsnelling]

Check your serail number. Stihl eService says it's an invalid number.

 

[Beer Gut]

Check your serail number. Stihl eService says it's an invalid number.

Serial # is stamped into crank case above sprocket cover correct? Number looks just like this space included before the last 1.

14019094 1

 

[Alex D]

View attachment 215861
View attachment 215862
View attachment 215863
View attachment 215864
View attachment 215865

Serial# 140190941

I'm not the best at researching this stuff so I'll ask.
The saw was purchased new in 1997 by me new. It has been painted so no my 15 year old saw did not look this good a few weeks ago. Here is the work I have done to it I replaced the recoil handle, recently the tank vent, added the 660 dogs because I had them laying around, added the magnum sticker but it did not have it originally, dual ported the muffler and it had no baffle, and lowered the squish to .025. The compression is over 160 and it runs awesome.

Here is what I want to know, in 1997 I thought the Stihl book said it was 5.7hp but everything I have read since says the later 044's and 440's are 5.4hp. Were they higher at one time?
I hear people rave about the saw like in a recent thread called (044.....Maybe) I love mine but was wondering what the big deal was?
Also it seems like 044's go for more that 440's even beat up ones. Was there a difference between the old 044's and newer 044's/440's besides the evolution of the carb cover, tank assembly, and decomp valve?
What crank and wrist pin do I have, I understand there are different ones for this saw do I have the old one is one better than the other?

Thanks

First of all I must say that saw looks awesome im really amazed how people manage to get old saws looking like new. I cant even imagine my 044 looking like that.

About the hp the only comment i have to say is that i bought an OEM DP muffler and put it on my 044 now im not sure whether there ever was a DP muffler that came stock on the 044 or was that only for the 046 but it fits mine perfectly fine.

From personal experience I also love my 044 and i think the big deal with them is that they really are an exceptional saw being able to do all the jobs required in cutting wood. You can limb with it with relative ease and it also has the grunt to tackle fairly large wood. In my area (southern ontario) the 044 will easily do 90%+ of the work could do 100% i suppose although for the monsters which here is say 4 foot plus diameter its fun to bring out the big guns (088 and 090GS).

My 044 is from 1994 and its more "box" or square shaped than the newer ones which are more elongated making it an early one. Now the reason that I personally think that the old ones might be better although i cant say from personal experience as ive never run a newer model is that when looking at power equipment or any mechanization really there are three things to consider. Which are as follows: workmanship, technology, and lets also include regs. Applied to the 044/440 in my opinion would go like this the workmanship on a 044/440 would probably be roughly the same I dont think that Stihl has started making parts that are of lesser or greater quality. Technology prior to the advant of the cm tronic there werent really any radical technological modifications or changes made to the 044/440 changes did come about in the 441 although the extent to which they went i dont know as i am not familiar with that saw (441). Now regs are where the real differences lie. Early saws did not have to put up with the EPA crap that modern saws have. The new saws have limited mufflers, carbs, rev, and so forth. All of this leads to a decrease in power and when you have a more or less same saw that means it wont run as well. Its lifetime I suppose would also be decreased as the limited saws probably run at higher temps than non limited ones. Although im not 100% on this. I guess what im trying to get at is that all models of equipment will have their prime or best year models. This happens when the tool in question has been around for long enough to get the quirks sorted out hence why the earliest models are rarely the best and once they build one that has say too long of a lifespan then the manufacturers might purposely try and get the tool to last less they need business after all. If the tool rarely breaks down it takes to long to sell a new one.

Finally its worth mentioning that old saws do have nostalgia to them as most things in life. Things in the past were better kind of thing now sometimes theres some truth to it other times theres not. This nostalgia with say a mid 90s could be caused by that being your first saw, started using them then, or even your personal life was better in that era and therefore saws from that era are amazing etc...

Sorry to go off on a tangent but i guess i got a midnight inspiration LOL

 

[chopperfreak2k1]

amazing lookin saw! i love my 044 too. so what paint and all did you use? pix of the process?

 

[Beer Gut]

amazing lookin saw! i love my 044 too. so what paint and all did you use? pix of the process?

www.arboristsite.com/chainsaw/188941.htm

This was the tread I got info from.. I used Valspar Ford Grey spray paint, just sanded and clean everything, tapped what had to be, and got the parts up to room temp. That paint turned up awesome for me and is holding up great to oil. Plan on 4 days of dry time in the house to get it good and hard. One guy posted in there he used that same paint but bought it in a can and mixed with hardener that was an option for me at the store but I don't have a sprayer so rattle can it was. On the muffler I used 1200 deg stove pipe paint worked great as well. If I do it again and I will after parts are good and dry I am going to find someone to spray them with automotive grade clear coat that would make it tough a nails. I don't let spilled gas sit on it for long but so far gas has not eaten it but the auto clear coat would take any concern away.

Read the whole thread lots of good info in there, like all spray paint proceed with caution sometimes no matter what you do it ends up a mess take your time. Sorry no pics just picture a gas stained dirty 044 and you got it.

Oh I fixed my leaking vent as well important like I said the paint holds up to gas but I don't think it will if its sitting in it. That was long wow, short end I am happy.

 

[Beer Gut]

First of all I must say that saw looks awesome im really amazed how people manage to get old saws looking like new. I cant even imagine my 044 looking like that.


Funny you said it perfect, it was the 1st saw I bought when I was 17, me and a buddy started our 1st firewood business. We got contracted by a local logging company to drop a woods of Red Oak and the logger came out to show us how to bore/punch cut, the logs went for laminate panels so no stringers on the stump or it would show up as a V of missing wood on the panel when the log was rolled out. After we dropped them the trunks were theirs and the tops were ours for firewood we got paid for the work and also a ton of free oak firewood more than we planed on LOL. I was using my dads Homelite at the time and it was to way to small I needed a fast saw so the tree was cut through before it started to fall, so he loaned me the money to go buy a saw and the 044 is what I bought and I payed for it 3X's over from that job alone. My bud did the same but he got the 036 PRO. At that age I was pretty proud of myself I did the felling and he bucked we were professionals LOL, if I still had those saw chaps to post pic, surprised I still have my legs, but I learned a lot. You mentioned nostalgia, I would never sell that saw just because of what it means to me. Been cutting ever since now more than ever and still have this saw and use the heck out of it. Theres my long story you guys will probably laugh thanks for sharing to you all.