Someone level with me..... Please!

[Nipper]

A while back I wrote about my Dolmar 5100s blowing up. It was out of warranty but the dealer covered it. Good dealer, cant complain. They INSISTED it was caused by ethanol in the gas.

Up to then I have never had a engine blow. I am meticulous with engine care, cars, trucks, boat motors, diesel tractor, motorcycles/ATV, lawn equipment, never had one blow or fail. I mix my gas and oil like a scientist. My last chainsaw (Craftsman) lasted over 20 years. Everyone seems to ridicule them here but it lasted through a lot of hard use with no problems.

My Dolmar died again. My Shindaiwa started emitting puffs of white smoke. Back to the dealer.
Dolmar piston and jug is toast (again with only a few hours since rebuild), the Shindiawa has a scored cylinder but still runs good, they told me to run it until it dies. They checked the mixture, it was OK. Air filter clean. Dealer says its ethanol again.

I followed all the rules, correct oil, never leave gas in it, use fresh gas each time. I use my saws once a week.

I need a new saw. If ethanol is the problem, who makes one that can burn it? Surely the manufacturers have to know its out there and we cant do anything about it.

So can anyone level with me?

Was Dolmar a bad choice?

Would a higher ratio of oil helped lubricate/protect the cylinder? I have been using Echo oil at the dealers recommendation. They say the ethanol "washes" the oil off. Would more help?

I am honestly wondering what the point is in purchasing a new expensive saw if the gas will destroy it? Why not plan on buying several cheap ones and toss them when they die?

I need a saw that works, winter and summer. All the gas around here has ethanol.
Any suggestions/comments would be appreciated.

 

[Chris J.]

A while back I wrote about my Dolmar 5100s blowing up. It was out of warranty but the dealer covered it. Good dealer, cant complain. They INSISTED it was caused by ethanol in the gas.

Up to then I have never had a engine blow. I am meticulous with engine care, cars, trucks, boat motors, diesel tractor, motorcycles/ATV, lawn equipment, never had one blow or fail. I mix my gas and oil like a scientist. My last chainsaw (Craftsman) lasted over 20 years. Everyone seems to ridicule them here but it lasted through a lot of hard use with no problems.

My Dolmar died again. My Shindaiwa started emitting puffs of white smoke. Back to the dealer.
Dolmar piston and jug is toast (again with only a few hours since rebuild), the Shindiawa has a scored cylinder but still runs good, they told me to run it until it dies. They checked the mixture, it was OK. Air filter clean. Dealer says its ethanol again.

I followed all the rules, correct oil, never leave gas in it, use fresh gas each time. I use my saws once a week.

I need a new saw. If ethanol is the problem, who makes one that can burn it? Surely the manufacturers have to know its out there and we cant do anything about it.

So can anyone level with me?

Was Dolmar a bad choice?

Would a higher ratio of oil helped lubricate/protect the cylinder? I have been using Echo oil at the dealers recommendation. They say the ethanol "washes" the oil off. Would more help?

I am honestly wondering what the point is in purchasing a new expensive saw if the gas will destroy it? Why not plan on buying several cheap ones and toss them when they die?

I need a saw that works, winter and summer. All the gas around here has ethanol.
Any suggestions/comments would be appreciated.

If your Dolmar has smoked a piston twice, & the Shindaiwa has now smoked one, I have wonder if your dealer knows how to properly tune a chainsaw. The "run it until it dies" advice doesn't inspire confidence, most mechtechs would want to diagnose the problem, not automatically blame it on ethnol gas.

 

[Andyshine77]

Well if your fuel is OK, it could be any number of things, like the saws are tuned too lean, or they both have air leaks, pushing too hard with a dull chain and so on. With that said ethanol is not likely the cause of your problems and your dealer is likely incompetent.

 

[sunfish]

I've run gallons of ethanol gas through my Husqvarnas with absolutely no problems.

But now run 91 non-eth, just because I found a source close by...

 

[igpoe]

As much as I hate ethanol, I doubt if that's your problem. It's not impossible to get a mixture that is beyond 10% though. I suspect the tuners of good intentions, just not good results. I don't see how any amount of ethanol would fry a piston and cylinder that was well lubricated without at least the help of a lean condition.
Igpoe

 

[Nipper]

My dealer is well established (one of the oldest) and quite respected in this area.

They have re-tuned each saw after break in.
I always use a sharp pro chain.
They have even explained to me how to test the gas for ethanol content.
A lot of the local Pro's go to them.

The saws always started great and seemed to run well. I have had plenty of 2 cycle engines in my life and never suspected there was a problem, then POOF.

I do not adjust the carbs myself and never had to on any other two cycle engine I own (motorcycles, blowers, boat motors etc.). I see in other posts a lot of you do this.

I also follow the dealers advice to empty the tank and run the engine out of fuel before putting it away. This never seemed like a good idea to me because when a 2-cycle runs out of gas it runs out of oil and this seems like it would be a bad thing....

As much as I hate to I will try another dealer based on the responses here.

I will try another "good saw"..... Then I will resort to throwaway's.

My lowly Craftsman was a good saw that survived heavy use in over 270 acres of woods and with the exception of cleaning the air filter, changing a plug and blowing it out with a compressor occasionally, never had any service or adjustments in over 20 years. NONE.

Final question: Is there a saw out there noted for extreme reliability someone could suggest? I am good with anything 50cc and above.

Thanks!

 

[blsnelling]

10% or less ethanol in your fuel is absolutely not your problem, period. For your dealer to say that it si, proves that they have no clue. You need a new dealer, pronto!

 

[o8f150]

i agree with the other guys,,, i personally think they are tuning it way to lean,, i personally like them a bit fat just for that reason,, to this day i have never smoked a p/c

 

[Justsaws]

441.

Where in Ohio are you located? Ballpark, do not need an address just a service area.

 

[Somesawguy]

Either the saws are mixed very lean, or there's not enough oil mixed in. Use a good brand of oil and mix it 40:1 I've been using Ethanol fuel, and haven't killed anything yet.

 

[Nipper]

441.

Where in Ohio are you located? Ballpark, do not need an address just a service area.

Central Ohio.

 

[Mike Williams]

I have to agree with every one else. It can't be the ethanol. I would be looking for another dealer as well.

 

[Muffler Bearing]

.

I also follow the dealers advice to empty the tank and run the engine out of fuel before putting it away. This never seemed like a good idea to me because when a 2-cycle runs out of gas it runs out of oil and this seems like it would be a bad thing....

To Me Thats Just Creating A Lean Situation.

But Here Tell Many People Do-It.

 

[Dan_IN_MN]

OP

Would it be possible for you to take a vid of your saw cutting? When you're cutting during the vid, when holding the throttle wide open, lift the saw off of the cut a little. I bet your saw(s) will sound lean. The H and L screws on the carb probably needs to be opened up some.

Does your dealer tune with a tach or by ear? What RPM does he set your saws to?

You've been around here for a while, but with very few posts! So, Welcome!


******EDIT*******

Reading others post I thought I'd come back and add something to my post while I could. (24 hour edit limit) I believe your saws are running lean. AND this is because of the fuel, AND, it is preventable with tuning.

 

[sunfish]

For a new saw, look at the XP Husqvarnas, or Pro Stihls...

I have 12 years semi commercial work on a 346xp. Tough to beat!

 

[Muffler Bearing]

O.P.

Some Good Reading Here:


Saw Carb Tuning

 

[Grande Dog]

Howdy,
You're right about running your saw out of fuel, it's not good at all. When you're running your saw out of fuel, you're causing a extreme lean fuel to air ratio. This will cause very high engine temperatures, and will cause damage.
It sounds like you're more of a frequent user rather than putting food on the table with your saw. You would be much better served using mixes that have fuel stabilizers, or add a stand alone fuel stabilizer.
Regards
Gregg

 

[Nipper]

You guys are great.... Thank you all.

It seems like some of the members here are dealers/pros and I am good with that. I go out of my way to support independents. I will readily purchase from a independent and even pay a premium to do so but I want a saw that does not require a pit crew. I dont want to be a "regular" at the service shop. I just want a decent saw.

My old one went 20 years, I must have been doing something right. I would be happy with something that could do at least half of that performance. Right now I would settle for 5 years of "trouble free".

 

[opinion]

You may want to get it looked at by another reputable repair shop to know for sure what the root cause is. Then you'll be able to prevent it in the future instead of just taking guesses.

Always use fresh 89 or higher gasoline from a reputable brand station and a high quality synthetic oil, and for good measure use some ethanol shield fuel stabilizer.

 

[sunfish]

Howdy,
You're right about running your saw out of fuel, it's not good at all. When you're running your saw out of fuel, you're causing a extreme lean fuel to air ratio. This will cause very high engine temperatures, and will cause damage.
It sounds like you're more of a frequent user rather than putting food on the table with your saw. You would be much better served using mixes that have fuel stabilizers, or add a stand alone fuel stabilizer.
Regards
Gregg

That's right man! I never run mine dry and leave mix in em year around. No problems.