Yea the Stihl engineers probably just picked a random # and said that looks good.
New Stihl MS 170 stopped running, now hard to start & won't stay running
- Thread starter wzd218
- Start date
Help Support Arborist Forum:
Probably. But I would guess that they gave it a rating that would accommodate variances in the worldwide fuel supply. 89 is a safe bet.
I only mentioned any of this because your plug looked pretty filthy for only 30 minutes of run time. Plus it won’t start.
husqORbust
ArboristSite Operative
Then I'd say... well I like the sound of a idling 2-stroke and if the saw ran well enough I could have just burried the bar into some wood to clean it out!
Actually probably did... Put it right in the middle of most readily obtainable fuels. I would take a higher octane ethanol free fuel before a lower octane ethanol blended fuel. I don't care how much performance I'm leaving on the table. If I was worried about it, I'd just break out the file and advance the timing a smidgen.
94 Ethanol free > 89 w/ Ethanol. Or insert any numbers of octane. Ethanol free > Ethanol blend
Considering 2 stroke equipment has potential to sit unused for periods of time, I'd rather the equipment be sitting there without ethanol in it. Also, ethanol free lasts longer. And doesn't absorb water. And, if you let 94 sit long enough, I'm sure it just turns into 93...92...91... who knows. Main point for me is the ethanol. And... I'm not running ethanol fuel. lol
Not my plug but I'll agree it doesn't good. Possibly from over idling. Don't remember hav8ng a plug look like that with 89 octane
husqORbust
ArboristSite Operative
That plug is actually clean(just have to imagine it)... it just hasn't gotten hot under load to properly clean it off. Keep running it long enough unloaded and it'll form irreversible dirty-ness and performance issues.
husqORbust
ArboristSite Operative
The plug in my saw looked black like that after tons of pig rich idling time and diag time trying to figure out why my saw ran like crap. Slapped a new carb on it, solved all my issues. Ran mint with the filthy black plug. First half tank session of bucking wood started cleaning the plug back to a nice golden brown. on 94.
Ever been behind a car that sends smoke and stinks like crap out the tail pipe when he hammers down on the highway? Ya... that engine hasn't been run hard in a long time then all the sudden he found the floor pan.
Ever been behind a car that sends smoke and stinks like crap out the tail pipe when he hammers down on the highway? Ya... that engine hasn't been run hard in a long time then all the sudden he found the floor pan.
Clean the plug and check for spark. Then try the starting routine again.
husqORbust
ArboristSite Operative
He already did.
His plug looks pretty dirty for a new saw that I assume still has the limiters in place. But what the hell do I know? lol. I’m just throwing ideas out there. I’d be frustrated as hell if I had a non running new saw.
Then I'd say... well I like the sound of a idling 2-stroke and if the saw ran well enough I could have just burried the bar into some wood to clean it out!
I would take a higher octane ethanol free fuel before a lower octane ethanol blended fuel. I don't care how much performance I'm leaving on the table. If I was worried about it, I'd just break out the file and advance the timing a smidgen.
94 Ethanol free > 89 w/ Ethanol. Or insert any numbers of octane. Ethanol free > Ethanol blend
Considering 2 stroke equipment has potential to sit unused for periods of time, I'd rather the equipment be sitting there without ethanol in it. Also, ethanol free lasts longer. And doesn't absorb water. And, if you let 94 sit long enough, I'm sure it just turns into 93...92...91... who knows. Main point for me is the ethanol. And... I'm not running ethanol fuel. lol
Absolutely. I have the luxury of access to 87 octane non ethanol fuel. I would use higher octane over ethanol if I had to but it’s certainly not ideal.
Then try filling the spark plug with fuel and pour it into the cylinder as you put the plug back in. Try again. If you can force it to start you can probably keep it running and clean it out.
Looking at my Stihl manual they say lower octane will cause the engine to run hotter possibly causing seizure of the engine. Guess they just pulled that out of their a$$.
I still want to hear what the dealer has to say......
OP must be to busy or to nervous 'bout presenting the saw to the dealer....
I would think a half hour or an hour of off and on idling wouldn't and shouldn't be a disaster for a saw.
Friend of mine was a Jonsered dealer for years he switched brands of saws when a rep was giving him a sales speel and started a saw (I will have to confirm with him but I believe it was a 111S) then said lets's go to lunch ;; It was idling the same when they got back. My friend was sold right then and there and sold Jonsered until ?Tilton? went goofy. He still runs Jonsered in the timber .
This story makes me skeptical that idling killed this saw but there is 40 years of technology to be factored in and maybe a few revelations to be presented ... So as I said I am waiting for the dealers comments.
OP must be to busy or to nervous 'bout presenting the saw to the dealer....
I agree with blowing the cobbs out.
I would think a half hour or an hour of off and on idling wouldn't and shouldn't be a disaster for a saw.
Friend of mine was a Jonsered dealer for years he switched brands of saws when a rep was giving him a sales speel and started a saw (I will have to confirm with him but I believe it was a 111S) then said lets's go to lunch ;; It was idling the same when they got back. My friend was sold right then and there and sold Jonsered until ?Tilton? went goofy. He still runs Jonsered in the timber .
This story makes me skeptical that idling killed this saw but there is 40 years of technology to be factored in and maybe a few revelations to be presented ... So as I said I am waiting for the dealers comments.
The manual is right. Too little octane and it would cause preignition but the fuel available at your gas station has plenty of octane regardless of the grade.
Colt Marlington
ArboristSite Guru
I know this isn't a gas/oil thread, but I buy the Shell V-Power NITRO+ for my 2-stroke mix(echo red). It's high octane(93 I think) and the only one close by that doesn't have ethanol.
I look for a pump where the previous customer bought the same gas so I know the hose is already primed with it.
My weedeater is the only thing that ever gets gunked up around the exhaust because I run it half speed or less more often.
I look for a pump where the previous customer bought the same gas so I know the hose is already primed with it.
My weedeater is the only thing that ever gets gunked up around the exhaust because I run it half speed or less more often.
- Joined
- Dec 6, 2014
- Messages
- 21,219
- Reaction score
- 25,108
It is now dammit!!!!
My thought exactly as soon as I read the first line Harley .
But it got you posting again
I was wondering where you went. Not that you were missed..
We've been out of town but stopped by another Stihl dealer nearby (didn't have the chainsaw with us) to see about getting a new spark plug just to rule that out before taking it in to our local dealer on Monday. Described the symptoms and showed him a picture of the plug and he told us to just make sure the plug is clean and implied the problem was likely the gap size in the spark plug, and that the saw was running rich. Sold us a gap tool to check it but I really doubt when I end up measuring it's going to be out of spec.
I do have serious doubts some of the things he was saying though, he also told us
1. It's unsafe to dump old 50:1 gas+oil mix into the car to get rid of it because it could cause damage, as not only did our local dealer specifically recommend that to get rid of it, but I've read at least a dozen threads/articles saying it's perfectly fine to get rid of it this way since cars burn oil all the time and if it's mixed in with a full tank it would probably be like an 800:1 ratio
and
2. He also said we shouldn't have used REC-90 ethanol free fuel and should have used "premium fuel" (i.e. 91/93 octane from the pump) instead as that's what Stihl uses and that Premium fuel contains no ethanol. I know for a fact this isn't true and any regular gas you get at the pump regardless of octane will contain ethanol likely in the 10% range. He also used this opportunity to recommend buying the $30 Stihl Motomix which I declined. And his reasoning as to why it didn't get through the original tank of gas was that the local dealer put bad gas in it (so both of our mixes must have been bad).
I do have serious doubts some of the things he was saying though, he also told us
1. It's unsafe to dump old 50:1 gas+oil mix into the car to get rid of it because it could cause damage, as not only did our local dealer specifically recommend that to get rid of it, but I've read at least a dozen threads/articles saying it's perfectly fine to get rid of it this way since cars burn oil all the time and if it's mixed in with a full tank it would probably be like an 800:1 ratio
and
2. He also said we shouldn't have used REC-90 ethanol free fuel and should have used "premium fuel" (i.e. 91/93 octane from the pump) instead as that's what Stihl uses and that Premium fuel contains no ethanol. I know for a fact this isn't true and any regular gas you get at the pump regardless of octane will contain ethanol likely in the 10% range. He also used this opportunity to recommend buying the $30 Stihl Motomix which I declined. And his reasoning as to why it didn't get through the original tank of gas was that the local dealer put bad gas in it (so both of our mixes must have been bad).
husqORbust
ArboristSite Operative
Plug gaps probably not your issue.
1. If its not good enough for a chainsaw, why run it through your car? Dispose of it another way.
2. Sales pitch/dude doesnt know what hes talking about. Wouldnt of taken half a liter of fuel to all the sudden act up.
1. If its not good enough for a chainsaw, why run it through your car? Dispose of it another way.
2. Sales pitch/dude doesnt know what hes talking about. Wouldnt of taken half a liter of fuel to all the sudden act up.
