Stihl MS200T Aftermarket Piston and Cylinder Review

[procarbine2k1]

Big thanks to Randy (WatsonR) and Henry, not only for sending out this kit for review- but for making such an effort to provide quality aftermarket products that they will stand behind. As I've said before, I really feel that aftermarket parts are going to play a vital role in keeping many of these saws running, as OEM prices increase and/ or become obsolete.
Please bare with me, I am not the greatest with pictures and video, and uploading. Some of this simple tech stuff is a learning experience for me. However, I did grab a smart phone a few months ago, and this video upload was a much easier task than I was expecting.

I am posting up my findings of the Hyway kit, but will use another AM kit for reference in the photos.

Here is the Hyway kit, next to a Forrester kit. I would bet my bottom dollar that both kits come from the same manufacturer- both actually look very good. The biggest difference I found between the two is that the Hyway cylinder appears to have a coating (Nikasil) on the outside of the cylinder, the combustion chamber looks nicer as well (finer consistency in the casting).
The plating on this cylinder looks very good- better than any other AM kit I have had experience with. Consistent, I did not notice any areas that were thin or any other discrepancy with the plating. The combustion chamber appears to have been machined after the cylinder was plated on the Hyway, again fit and finish looked very good, the castings were tight and clean. This kit appears to be later in development per se, in comparison to most aftermarket kits I have seen in the past, which surprised me a bit as I haven't seen an abundance of AM 200T cylinders on the market.

 

[procarbine2k1]

Hyway Cylinder

Forrester Cylinder

Nice looking piston, nice looking solid rings. The AM clips were used that were supplied.

View attachment 313222View attachment 313223View attachment 313224View attachment 313225

 

[procarbine2k1]

Again, I only referenced the Forrester kit against the Hyway- as that is the only mainstream AM cylinder kit that I know of for the 200T, and is a kit I had available at the time.

In the videos below... One saw has a Hyway AM piston and cylinder kit, the other saw has an original Mahle OEM MS200T. The Hyway kit is within break in, the OEM kit has had quite a bit of time on it. This needs to be remembered, as the Hyway kit should continue to build compression as it is broken in.
The same bar and chain was used on both saws- to keep things as even as possible. The only variation in this test was the consistency in the wood (decent), and the time (or lack thereof) on the aftermarket cylinder.
As it sits right now, the Hyway kit does not have the compression of the OEM piston and cylinder. I am kicking my own tail over this, but I left my compression gauge at home, and did not get readings on either saw. By feel, I would say the Hyway kit is in the 130ish range. Yes, it feels low, but I do expect it to gain some as it is broken in.
The squish on the Hyway kit was .035 at the outside of the cylinder, and .0385-.0390 at the edge of the combustion chamber. I did not notice a difference by looking at it, and was surprised to find any variation-- but I still consider the difference (about the thickness of 1.5 or 2 pieces of note book paper) minimal.

 

[procarbine2k1]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oxpvxvJdK1s

200T aftermarket kit. I noticed inconsistency in the wood on the second cut, so there are three cuts here. I did not time either video, yet. Anyone feel free to post times on the three passes, and the two passes on the OEM video if you have a stopwatch handy.

 

[procarbine2k1]

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oz7VzAtfVl0

OEM piston and cylinder.

 

[procarbine2k1]

I apologize for the "sideways" view of the videos. This pic/ video thing is a learning thing for me, including how to hold the camera haha.

All in all, the Hyway kit that was tested is a very viable option vs. OEM. The fit and finish is absolutely excellent. The compression is lower than I expected, which may be partially due to the lack of break in. At the piston clearance I observed, running this kit without a base gasket would most likely be an option, and help the compression significantly.
The aftermarket kit ran well, but power delivery (mostly on low end, on spool up) was not as responsive against the broken in OEM cylinder and piston.
I did my best to minimize the variables between the two saws, and a brand spanking OEM kit was not an option.

This kit was actually sent to a friend of mine, whose advice I trust more than anyone I have met in the OPE industry. A Stihl Gold Tech, that is now an independent repair shop, and a man with many hours behind a saw, from cutting timber to tree removal- he is the guy I call when I need an answer from someone who has been there and done that. I felt like he could benefit from a solid parts source outside of OEM, and I also felt that Henry and Randy could benefit from his parts needs.
I guess to be clear, that I am not part of his business, or part of Henry and Randy's business ventures. Neither one of these saws are mine.
Again, I think the fit and finish of this kit is excellent- and appears to be an excellent option vs. OEM price thus far along. Compression is my main issue, but I believe this kit needs to be used through break in to consider it a problem. I felt that Randy and Henry have waited long enough on my write-up and wanted to get the ball rolling on my end of the bargain.

 

[watsonr]

I have three tree crews running these kits, ZERO issues. One crew can't keep a saw running much past a month because of abuse they subject the saws to. I think they use them for pounding in posts and chopping wood. That saw is now going on about 4 months.

 

[CR888]

Randy do you supply ms200t carbs?:msp_sad:

 

[MCW]

Compression is my main issue, but I believe this kit needs to be used through break in to consider it a problem

One way to increase compression on many of these AM kits is to ditch the supplied rings and fit a set of OEM or Caber rings. I've seen up to a 15psi compression increase with a ring change alone. These are well finished kits though but a Stihl dealer mate of mine believes they may be an earlier 020T copy, not a genuine 200T copy - personally I'm not sure. I have the same kits as the two you showed photos of and they look exactly the same. They aren't branded the same either so that means there are 3 suppliers of the same kits

 

[procarbine2k1]

One way to increase compression on many of these AM kits is to ditch the supplied rings and fit a set of OEM or Caber rings. I've seen up to a 15psi compression increase with a ring change alone.

We felt the same way, and may look into it if the compression doesn't end up where it needs to be after the saw gets some more time on it.

 

[heyduke]

Again, I only referenced the Forrester kit against the Hyway- as that is the only mainstream AM cylinder kit that I know of for the 200T, and is a kit I had available at the time.

In the videos below... One saw has a Hyway AM piston and cylinder kit, the other saw has an original Mahle OEM MS200T. The Hyway kit is within break in, the OEM kit has had quite a bit of time on it. This needs to be remembered, as the Hyway kit should continue to build compression as it is broken in.
The same bar and chain was used on both saws- to keep things as even as possible. The only variation in this test was the consistency in the wood (decent), and the time (or lack thereof) on the aftermarket cylinder.
As it sits right now, the Hyway kit does not have the compression of the OEM piston and cylinder. I am kicking my own tail over this, but I left my compression gauge at home, and did not get readings on either saw. By feel, I would say the Hyway kit is in the 130ish range. Yes, it feels low, but I do expect it to gain some as it is broken in.
The squish on the Hyway kit was .035 at the outside of the cylinder, and .0385-.0390 at the edge of the combustion chamber. I did not notice a difference by looking at it, and was surprised to find any variation-- but I still consider the difference (about the thickness of 1.5 or 2 pieces of note book paper) minimal.

Did you use a base gasket?

 

[procarbine2k1]

Did you use a base gasket?

Yes

 

[lone wolf]

Well what compression reading did you get?opcorn:

 

[procarbine2k1]

Well what compression reading did you get?opcorn:

I did not, and for that I apologize- I left it at the house when I went to do the testing. Both of the test saws, I do not own. I will try and get a reading after the AM kit has some time on it. By feel, it had noticeably less resistance than OEM and was a bit more sluggish on spool up (both saws were in tune).

 

[heyduke]

Did you use a base gasket?

Yes

Without the gasket you would have lost .015" in your squish clearance. That would have put you a .024", and acceptable number. That's assuming your gasket is .015" which seems to be the thickness of most base gaskets. I've done several after market top ends and found all to have excessive squish clearance that required the use of no gasket. It makes me wonder if they were designed to be used that way.

 

[procarbine2k1]

Without the gasket you would have lost .015" in your squish clearance. That would have put you a .024", and acceptable number. That's assuming your gasket is .015" which seems to be the thickness of most base gaskets. I've done several after market top ends and found all to have excessive squish clearance that required the use of no gasket.

That is correct. I don't know what their intentions were, I have seen plenty of OEM cylinders on various saws with excessive clearance as well.

 

[blsnelling]

I did not, and for that I apologize- I left it at the house when I went to do the testing. Both of the test saws, I do not own. I will try and get a reading after the AM kit has some time on it. By feel, it had noticeably less resistance than OEM and was a bit more sluggish on spool up (both saws were in tune).

Sounds very sluggish and way down on power and RPMs, two of the main key features of the 200.

 

[procarbine2k1]

Sounds very sluggish and way down on power and RPMs, two of the main key features of the 200.

I would agree, I wouldn't say its way down on power, but yes it is not on par with the stock one yet. Time will tell, I don't think it will take long to figure out if this p/c is going to make the compression it needs for that snap the OEM saw has.

 

[blsnelling]

I would agree, I wouldn't say its way down on power, but yes it is not on par with the stock one yet. Time will tell, I don't think it will take long to figure out if this p/c is going to make the compression it needs for that snap the OEM saw has.

You shouldn't have to ditch the gasket to get the squish right. But, until you do, you really don't know what the compression will be.

 

[procarbine2k1]

You shouldn't have to ditch the gasket to get the squish right. But, until you do, you really don't know what the compression will be.

You got it . I am hoping this saw will get put through its paces in the next month or so, and will do my best to keep you guys in the loop. I hope I have represented this kit accurately. The quality is there, and the service behind this piston and cylinder is definitely there, the compression just isn't there- yet. If I roached a cylinder in a 200T tomorrow, I would give this kit another go.
BTW, do you know what you typically see for squish on the OEM piston and cylinder for the 200T Brad?