Did my Stihl dealer stick it to me?

[1augapfel]

I've used a combination of sources to get parts for a damaged MS250C. After a lot of aggravation I got everything I needed, sat down, and put the thing back together. I then filled the fuel and oil tanks and went out back to fire it up.

Well being the "C" model it has the fuel primer bulb and, wouldn't you know it, after several squeezes that bulb cracked and squirted fuel up my sleeve. Darn!

Back inside to reach the dealer before he closed and I was surprised when he tried to sell me an echo part that he said would fit in the Stihl hole. I wasn't interested. He said it was a $6 part vs. a $15 part. I wasn't interested. He had to order the part (4130 350 6200) and said it would arrive in a few days. Stihl was closed on Good Friday so it didn't arrive. It didn't arrive the middle of the week after that. Finally it shows up this past Monday (April 8th).

I go to pick it up and he reaches under the counter, tears it out of its little plastic bag, hands it to me, and throws the bag into the trash under the counter. This is kind of weird because he has always given me my parts in the little bags that Stihl ships them in.

What! $18.00 for the part. EIGHTEEN DOLLARS for this little plastic bulb. , Okay, fine, I now have the part and I'm done with this project.

Get in the car and head home. Stop at a traffic light and grab my $18 bit of plastic off the seat to see what makes it so remarkable. I'm more than a little dismayed when I see "CHINA" on the back of the part.

I haven't tried to install it yet. Thought I'd ask the experts. Does Stihl sell parts made in China? Do you think this guy pulled a fast one on me. If so I'm going back to let him know that he'll never see me again. I bought a couple of saws there and my BG86 blower, vacuum kit, and gutter cleaning kit. I've been looking at an Ariens 28" Pro model snow blower, too. If he ripped me off I'll be sure to let him know that he lost that sale.

 

[a. palmer jr.]

It's hard to know for sure, but I think everybody is jumping on the China wagon. I would have probably got the Echo bulb because they're probably the same thing just different numbers. Everybody wants that cheap labor anymore.

 

[opinion]

First, you agreed to $15 when you could have gotten the cheaper part that would still function the same. Second, it's a carb. part, they're all made in China, mostly. Third, that price is pretty much correct.

 

[a. palmer jr.]

First, you agreed to $15 when you could have gotten the cheaper part that would still function the same. Second, it's a carb. part, they're all made in China, mostly. Third, that price is pretty much correct.

For that price I would have probably looked at some of my parts saws for one.

 

[Fish]

Stihl buys their carb parts from the carb manufacturers. They made it easier on themselves a few years ago when they bought Zama, which are pretty much all China made anymore.

The bulb which you need is a Walbro 188-512, it may have been in it's Walbro bag, or it may be aftermarket. Your dealer probably hates
giving Stihl the extra $10 for the part......

 

[1augapfel]

But he doesn't mind taking the extra $10 from me.

I would have gladly gone for the Echo part if I thought it was exactly the same. In my original phone call he made it sound like I could make it work on the Stihl, not that it was exactly the same part in a different bag.

 

[watsonr]

Stihl buys their carb parts from the carb manufacturers. They made it easier on themselves a few years ago when they bought Zama, which are pretty much all China made anymore.

The bulb which you need is a Walbro 188-512, it may have been in it's Walbro bag, or it may be aftermarket. Your dealer probably hates
giving Stihl the extra $10 for the part......

My dealer is buying aftermarket and passing the saving to the customers.

 

[watsonr]

But he doesn't mind taking the extra $10 from me.

I would have gladly gone for the Echo part if I thought it was exactly the same. In my original phone call he made it sound like I could make it work on the Stihl, not that it was exactly the same part in a different bag.

You either got a $6 part and $12 shipping charge or a $15 part and $3 shipping. My guy tried to charge me $38 for an OEM carb kit because he would have to order and ship by itself adding the extra shipping to the cost.

Maybe you should ask?

The savings on parts is because of his buying power, not yours... and his discretion to pass it along.

 

[Yukon Stihl]

But he doesn't mind taking the extra $10 from me.

I would have gladly gone for the Echo part if I thought it was exactly the same. In my original phone call he made it sound like I could make it work on the Stihl, not that it was exactly the same part in a different bag.

Hi
Are there any numbers on the part?
If you really want to see if he's pulled a fast one...order the part from another Stihl dealer and compare.Tell them you need the part in an unopened Stihl bag.Then you will be able to see if you got ripped.Costs some money but you will have piece of mind one way or other.
Thomas

 

[deye223]

opcorn:

 

[1augapfel]

The only markings on the old bulb are a patent date visible on the *outside* surface of the black ring. The new one doesn't have that. Instead it has "CHINA" molded on the back between the nipples.

The guts seem to be quite different with the original using a pinkish orange diaphragm and the replacement using two tiny metal inserts with checkballs.

Ports are much smaller on the new part and they're not near centered in the nipple. AFAIC there's a significant difference in part quality, typical of Chinese vs. US or German-made stuff.
View attachment 289682View attachment 289683View attachment 289684

 

[thomas1]

5 years later and you're still having an issue with Stihl parts? Maybe you should try another brand.

I thought I'd stop by and give everyone the wrapup on this MS250C fix. Or not fix...

Boy did I get an education in Stihl parts.

I bought the frame/housing part on ebay and was surprised to see a "new" part with threaded screw holes and factory grease blobs on pivot pins. Hmmm thought I, now why would someone take apart a new saw to sell this part. Stolen? Damaged? I concocted scenarios where flood-damaged new inventory from, say, Louisiana couldn't be sold but had lots of good parts.

After doing some talking to ebay sellers I was stunned to learn that guys (maybe you guys too) buy new saws 3, 4 or 5 at a time only to go home, take them apart, and sell the parts on ebay. Crazy world. One guy told me that Stihl contacted a dealer and threatened to pull his franchise if he kept selling new saws to be parted out. The dealer told Stihl to go pound sand, they will sell saws to anyone who shows up with money. No further problems.

As it was explained to me (and as I found out for myself at the local Stihl dealer), Stihl sells only individual saw parts and they are expensive. No engine assemblies -- you buy the cylinder/piston/rings as one part, the crankshaft/rod as another part, the crankcase bottom as a third, the seals as fourth, etc. It gets very expensive fast. In my case the handle assembly I needed wasn't just the orange plastic part. It was that plus the trigger, spring, rod, etc. and all had to be purchased separately.

So there are a bunch of guys out there buying new saws and selling the sub assemblies on ebay and making money at it. I'm no expert but it seems like Stihl needs to rework their business model when new product is chopped up to service equipment in service. Imagine if junkyards (oops, sorry, auto recycling businesses) went to dealerships and bought new cars to take home and dismantle for parts.

Oh well, it's a free country.

In my case the "used" parts supply was thin due to the "C" part of MS250C. While the 210, 230, and 250 share a lot of parts the 250C has the fuel priming bulb which makes the handle casting different. Nobody is buying MS250Cs to dismantle and part out. Maybe this is a business opportunity for me?

After buying my housing on ebay (it came from a 210) and carefully comparing it to my original part I saw some very minor casting differences around the ignition coil mounting area. I had no trouble transferring the engine to the "new" housing and the coil seemed to mount just fine.

When I began the handle assembly search I ran into the used parts supply problem. They're just not offered. After bidding up both of the rarely seen 250C complete parts saws that showed up in November I gave up. Bidding upwards of $200 for a used, broken saw and then spending $20 or more to have it shipped to me didn't make sense.

I called my brother and explained the situation. He went to his usual source and bought a brand new MS250C-BE for $359.

 

[a. palmer jr.]

Actually, especially on a cheaper saw, I generally "wire around" the bulb if it's bad. Chainsaws worked for many years without them and they still will...

 

[echoshawn]

For something normal wear like a primer, I'd go with cheapest available that will work IMO.
For hard parts, yeah, I'd pony up the extra $$ to go with something quality AM, or OEM.
It's just a primer bulb, after all, not a P&C.

 

[Whiskers]

Sounds like you stuck it to yourself by not taking the dealers original advice.

 

[nmurph]

Why not go back to the dealer and tell him the dog at it. Then tell him you will take the Echo part...see his reaction.

Nothing new about Chinese parts. Stihl actually manufactures some of the OPE there.

As Fish said, Stihl owns Zama, and those carbs are built in China.

You want Stihl quality, you have to pay Stihl prices.

I thought I got it bad when I paid $4 for just the bulb part for a Dolmar hedge trimmer recently. I walked into my favorite, local Husky dealer and said I need a 15mm dia bulb. She walked to a table, grab a box full of bulbs, and handed me what I needed. I fussed about the price and she marked it down from $5 to $4.

 

[Giles]

Just this morning, I replaced a stihl primer bulb with a nearly new on that was an Echo. The two primers were exactly the same . I never gave it a second thought. Some people thank there is something special about a Name Brand Part. Go into Lowes and price a Briggs& Stratton lawn mower fuel filter. You can buy the identical filter from a parts store for 1/3 Lowes Price but it's not got the name B&S

 

[thomas1]

Just this morning, I replaced a stihl primer bulb with a nearly new on that was an Echo. The two primers were exactly the same . I never gave it a second thought. Some people thank there is something special about a Name Brand Part. Go into Lowes and price a Briggs& Stratton lawn mower fuel filter. You can buy the identical filter from a parts store for 1/3 Lowes Price but it's not got the name B&S

I cannot believe you would have the audacity to put a part, that came in an Echo package, on a Stihl. You, sir, must have more brains than money.

 

[opinion]

Why not go back to the dealer and tell him the dog at it. Then tell him you will take the Echo part...see his reaction.

Nothing new about Chinese parts. Stihl actually manufactures some of the OPE there.

As Fish said, Stihl owns Zama, and those carbs are built in China.

You want Stihl quality, you have to pay Stihl prices.

I thought I got it bad when I paid $4 for just the bulb part for a Dolmar hedge trimmer recently. I walked into my favorite, local Husky dealer and said I need a 15mm dia bulb. She walked to a table, grab a box full of bulbs, and handed me what I needed. I fussed about the price and she marked it down from $5 to $4.

My reaction would be, "Gee, it's too bad your dog won't have any dinner tonight since you're buying another primer. Cheap one, or Stihl one?"

 

[woodchuck357]

ANY saw with a plastic bulb is a POS

I don't care what brand it is. It is a sign the carb can't do its job.