Last summer i bought a 281/288 hybrid saw for $500. I thought that was a bit steep but it came from a good shop and was supposed to run good. It Was supposed to be totally rebuilt and ported. It runs weeker than my dads ol stock never been rebuilt 1989 288xp. While i was doing a base gasket delete i checked the cylinder, mainly exhaust port, no porting that i could see. I even drug out a 281 piston to make sure it had a 288 p/c. Its 288 but doesnt run well. The base gasket delete definetly helped but doesnt run much better than dads ol 288xp.
Dont always trust what someone says
- Thread starter Daserlon
- Start date
Help Support Arborist Forum:
Sagetown
Farmer and a STIHL
Not askin for help just spouting off. I know the guy who built it so i'm havin a hard time bringing up the conversation. I still deal with him for parts and advice. I love this site! Great advice and people with knowledge here. Thats why i joined. Their advice/knowledge helped me build the saw i'm most proud of.
take the jug off and ask him to show you how he got his timing numbers....you want to learn how to port saws and are curious....
play stupid and learn from a real pro how to do it...
"ported" means different things to different "porters" heck some think if you drank some "port" while you were cleaning up a muffler....its "ported"
Some people will call a saw with a MM ported.
Chainsaw Jim
CJ Saws, LLC
Can a 281 be considered a hybrid when it is converted to a 288? That's about the only difference between the two saws to begin with. It isn't like your putting a jug on there that wasn't meant to be there.
If the piston and cylinder are in good shape then it's likely a carb problem. That thing should be impressive in stock form.
If the piston and cylinder are in good shape then it's likely a carb problem. That thing should be impressive in stock form.
compression #?
Is it an oem 288 cylinder, if it ran better without the base gasket, and terrible with it, maybe it has an excessive amount of squish. Get some solder and check the squish. And compression if you can. And if it has a decomp valve, try and see if it's leaking. I have a 181, and in stock form they should have a lot of power.
As far as i know its oem p/c. I'll check compression and squish on all 3 of my 288 saws shortly. It had a carb kit done before i purchased it so it should be good. I tuned it according to madsens instructions.
Honest John
ArboristSite Operative
Inevitably, these threads always deteriorate down to somebody asking "who did it?" And then the Internet lynch mob comes out...
... Not saying this guy doesn't deserve it, but before you air your public grievance you might consider just bringing it up casually to him to see what he says. I agree with some who posted above. Bring him the jug and just ask for clarification, tell him your disappointed in the performance and ask him for advice on how to get your saw dialed in.
... Not saying this guy doesn't deserve it, but before you air your public grievance you might consider just bringing it up casually to him to see what he says. I agree with some who posted above. Bring him the jug and just ask for clarification, tell him your disappointed in the performance and ask him for advice on how to get your saw dialed in.
Either do what Honest John suggested,.... or ask a bunch of total strangers on the internet what you should do. I suggest the former too many people want to see bad stuff happen .
I think that is a good idea.
Great advice.
so, next question... did you buy the saw without doing a compression check, or you just don't remember what it was when you bought it? did the seller tell you what the compression was?
I have an old saw that was given to me that looks like someone tried to port the ignition module! Looks like they drilled a hole in the middle of it, can't figure why but I did find out why it won't run...
You can port the coil? Damn, now I gotta go back out and tear into all 15 of my saws and modify the coils. This cad stuff is eating I to my fishing.
Looking for reduced weight and better cooling/air circulation....
