Stihl 084 Bar Oil Leak

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Ian Moone

ArboristSite Lurker
Joined
Jan 8, 2017
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Location
Perth Western Australia
Hello one and all - first post. Thank you for allowing me to register.

Background was as a forester & wildlife officer for 8 years - then timber business for another 20 years. Eldest lad also a Forestry worker / faller etc. These days we do some commercial fire wooding together.
We hope to get back to milling a few slabs occasionally when a decent log presents itself.
So I bought a used Stihl 084 with a couple Granburg Alaskan Mill Attachments and a 5 ft bar and chain etc
The saw seems to have good compression and starts runs OK!.
When sitting tho, like many chainsaws, it leaks bar oil and a fair bit of it in a relatively short time!
So today I have been wondering if this is a common problem with 084's & whether theres an easy fix?
I couldn't find anything on the 084 specifically on you tube... however there were many videos on the smaller stihl saws with this same issue.
From what I could see some of the Stihl saws have a rubber bar oil suction line from the tank to the oil pump that are prone to perishing / cracking where they bend, and thus leak bar oil like a sieve... while sitting. Other models seem to have oil channels cast into the saw itself!.
I am just wondering if anyone has worked on the 084AV's to tell my what my likely issue is and how best to go about fixing it?
Is there anything else I need to know about this saw before taking it out to start slabbing with it?
I am reading about them going back on forum threads here about them being prone to liking new crank bearings and seals, also that they prefer a little richer mixture setting while slabbing/milling.
We also have a 660 Magnum and 461 etc, but the 084 is new to each of us being an older saw. Back when I had the timber business I slabbed a little with a double ended 72 inch bar and 2 x husky 3120's - that seemed to cut OK...
But it's been a lot of years since then & I am unfamiliar with the 084 models of stihl chainsaw.
I figured if its something that's a quick fix and not too expensive I'd put it in at the local stihl shop and get them to do it or maybe even have a crack at it myself... or if its areal bear of a job requiring a highly skilled stihl trained technician to get it right, then definitely let the local Stihl shop do it.
Being a used saw there's no owners manual with it etc -is there any way to download save a PDF Manual for the old 084?
I really just wanted the slabbing gear, and it was going cheap with the 084 thrown in - so I thought if it can be maybe tuned up and the OEM beefed up filtration added, and minor stuff liek the bar oil leak sorted, we might just take a few slabs to get started and test out the market & then sell the 084 on and buy a new 881C, so I probably don't want to invest a fortune into a full rebuild / re condition just yet if its not warranted... on such an old saw is all.
I know the 084 is somewhat heavier than the new 088's or indeed 881C's. But does that really matter in a slabbing sense once you have it started in the end of the log its weight is supported....by the mill and the ladder frame on the opening cut and the log itself on subsequent slabs.
I would be interested in knowing if the 084's had a good reputation or is it maybe better to sell it on ASAP and just jump into the 881C from the get go for slabbing?
We usually don't fall anything bigger than the 660 can handle...
Just curious really if its worth spending $$$ on this saw is all due to age and unknown history of it.
I spent $1K buying the 084, 2 x Granburg mills, a 5 ft bar and chain, and the steel ladder frame thing for opening cuts.
I have a guy saw the saw when delivered and wants it badly offered me$1700 on the spot for it.
I know a guy had a break and enter and lost some saws and Insurance bought him a new 881C as a replacement.
Now he wants to sell the 881C new in box for $1800 after starting out trying to sell it at $2600, then $2400, $2200, $2000 & now its down to $1800.
So in essence I can flip the 084 and with $100 extra can be into the 881C brand new tomorrow.
But I don;t know if the 084s had a great reputation and i should keep it forever or if the 881C aren't that good for slabbing and the 084 would be better to keep?.
About all I know about the new 881C is that it needs to be plugged into a computer or something for tuneups so it has to go back to the dealer all the time which could get expensive I guess?.
Sorry for the 101 questions - I have to decide what to do in a bit of a hurry, keep the 084 & spend some $ on it & sell it on as is and grab the new 881C with both hands and run like heck before he changes his mind.
One Powerball & I'd keep both & leave them permanently set up on the 2 Granburg mills, (Larger and smaller) but you know how it is... times are tough and moneys tight at the moment & my money tree out the back seems to have got cut up and sold off as firewood in desperate times.
Sorry for the war & peace length first post..... not my fault, I was accidentally vaccinated at birth with a gramophone needle and haven't shut up much since.:laugh: My work mates once nic named me "Biro" after the old Bic Biro TV Advert slogan - "guaranteed 1000 words in every refill" - they said that's what happened every time they topped up my beer glass!. :givebeer:

TIA for any advice/ suggestions about fixing the bar oil leak & whether to sell the 084 on and buy new 881C or stick with it & spend a few more sheckles on it & try to get it into decent shape for slabbing.

Cheers and cold beers from us, It's summer down here - it's hotter down here than a Carrie Underwood / Danica Packard corn dog eating contest. I'm sweating harder than Charlie Sheen on a pile a hookers! :laugh:
 
Information overload has set in. Nobody knows where to start with your post. Perhaps you should start first by getting a downloaded Service manual and an IPL if you intend to do your own work on this saw. Parts are becoming hard to find because his saw was replaced by the 088 and later the MS880.
 
OK so I did find online and download a spare parts manual for the 084!

Stihl%20084%20Oil%20Pump_zpsl95ietsg.jpg


This page showing the oil pump etc - seems to show part 22 the oil line that I suspect maybe either cracked or split & allowing oil to leak everywhere from the bar oil tank.

I am guessing that being it's a staight piece of pipe, I probably don't even need the specific spare part from Stihl - just as long as I find heat and oil resistant pipe of the same internal and external diameter and cut it to match the exact length of the original most likely.

I am also guessing that its not either the oil cap seal thats leaking AND that the oil tank breather vent isn't blocked with sawdust boogers and the heat of the day now its summer making the oil tank expand and pressurize and push oil past the rubber O ring in the oil pump seal's.

I will check the oil cap seal and oil tank vent before i go down the road of replacing the oil feed line from tank to oil pump.

While I am at it, I will probably take a good look at the internal tank oil pickup line and filter and make sure there's no blockage there, but its unlikely seeing that oil is already leaking out while its just sitting.

Thanks heaps for all the help and advice - don't know where I'd a been without all the assistance & advice guys.
 
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