Gilligan Solution: --------------------------- Yeah, I fixed one of these once. Drilled a hole through the remaining plastic, and looped stiff wire through it. Put the choke arm in place and secure the wire around it. Insanely simple and cheap and fast. Saw still works. Sometimes, you need to repair things as if you are on Gilligan's Island. I explained all to the owner, and SHE was thrilled. Best to almost everybody. Mr. Brown.
The main problem I think is a lack of knowing by chainsaw users. There are only two choices plastic for the economy saws and metal for the pro saws kinda ting. Lol. Education is key.
My chainsaw did start but would not stay running. Changed plug, cleaned spark arrestor screen, new gas, adjusted idle. Saw would run and then die when I tried to accelerate. Was about to bring it in for service when I caught this video. It turned out that the choke bar was not completely set in the plastic hook that is shown in this video. After properly seating it, the saw ran correctly immediately and the choke lever worked as per factory specs. I was worried that I had broken that plastic hook. Thank you for this video Dony.
I had this happen. The retainer broke without trying to remove the choke lever. And you're right, it totals the saw. I'm done with Stihl for this reason.
Well if you can’t afford anything from stihl other than this model you should go with an echo. This homeowners saw is for rich people who don’t know Jack squat about equipment but want the product to use for a tree or two. Most people who actually cut invest in a higher quality model like the 462 or 500i if they are going with stihl products. Something that’ll last a lifetime and isn’t designed badly like the 170. If you want a good product you’ll want a saw that at least comes with a metal handle and not a plastic one. That’s usually an indicator. A plastic handle is a red flag
Good afternoon from Cape Cod ⛵ I've got a pair of MS 170 s I've been following you for a couple months now and following your advice and both sides are oiling properly and working remarkably well. Thanks for your great explanations and videos ✌️🇺🇲
been there, done that. the only good thing about it was because they are cheap, we had many "donor" saws to bail me out.the bad thing- it was my bosses saw! I've taken apart many of these, never had an issue, but I knew it was my bosses saw, so I decided to be "really careful " when swapping his carburetor. well, I guess I wasn't careful enough!
This is exactly the thing I broke. I watched your video on carburetors and on the second time working on it, broke that part. Removed all parts that may come in most handy for the replacement and tossed the rest out. Live and learn!
First video I've seen from you. Just subbed. Bought my first Stihl saw a few weeks ago and will give it's first day or work this weekend. MS-250. Lots of learning about the saw itself, read the manual about felling trees and watched many vids about what not to do. I'll only be cutting firewood sized trees but barber chair is something I've read up on lots! I'm sure there will be issues for me to tackle in the coming years.
I just recently noticed how many if not all of the newer saw are made up of even more plastic that didn't used to be like that.😱😲🥴 Seems like planned obselescence and shrinkflation.
Don't say that - my most used saw is a plastic saw from the mid 80s. I have several high end professional saws, but I still use that plastic saw the most.
@@slhines7 There is still metal in a plastic saw, like there being plastic in a metal saw, but you are right, the switch is plastic with a few metal parts in it.
Exactly why they make things "cheap" these days, they wanna sell you 4+ saws (trimmers-blowers-etc) in 30 yrs vs you buying 1 solid dependable machine that can be reasonably repaired. Every time I hear someone bash the engineers about a design flaw that breaks I wonder if it was designed that way on purpose. Some yrs back it was not being able to find replacement parts anymore which the creation and advancement of the Internet began to help. Don't get me wrong I believe in there being an economical option vs commercial for the average Joe and it helps the company survive but what I don't like is this exact scenario Joe buys a budget saw cause he will barely use it or its what he can afford and something so relevant to function like the throttle was made cheaply and ridiculous to repair. The other side is the commercial products that are supposed to be much higher quality imo are nowhere near what they should be now when yrs ago they were.
I think this planned obsolescence is just a race to the bottom in the name of profits. Design engineers are pushed to have a product that is cheap to produce and made for ease of manufacturing but not maintainability. Compounding problems for the end user are proprietary features that make repair difficult (looking at you John Deere and Apple) and outrageously priced repair parts.
Because I suffer from Neandratholism I initially had some trouble with this ,but I caught myself before I just threw saw on ground and stomped on it ,.Better to get a small Echo Ive had three or four lost count best .
Great tip Don! I haven't broken one yet, but I honestly don't remember how I removed that lever. I'll pay attention to it the next saw that comes my way for sure, and use your tip. I'm a part time mechanic. It's a hobby for me, but in a little over 3 years I plan on retiring and doing more repair work. I often wondered how you make a living as a mechanic. Most shops sell new equipment as the main source of income. I'm guessing that's the main reason for this channel. It looks like your shop is quite busy, but that only goes so far.
Most ships that sell new equipment get about 50% gross from sales, and the remainder is service. They also have overhead, employee payroll, insurance, etc. A small shop focusing on just service can make a decent living given time and good service.
If youre honest , do good work and reasonably priced you will stay busy and make a good living even if you do repairs only but if you are nasty to them , shxt em around do shoddy work and lie about shoddy work ovecharge and dont repair in timely fashion word will get around quick and you will have to sell the products on line to try and survive but even they will catch on to crook trying to screw them outtatheir time , effort , and hard earned money and will cry to all that has itching ears but it WASNT them that TRASHED your name . Listen to Doni and conduct youself as such and you will stay busy 🏁
Hey Don it has been awhile. Hope all is well. Good tip on this saw. You would think Stihl would avoid making this so easy & expensive to break even on lower price saws just to protect the integrity of their brand. Stay well, Joe Z
Hey I went through everything like you just did on you Cub cadet sc300 push mower. And everything checks out. But it will only start and run for a few seconds only when I pour gas directly into carb
Thanks mate, Stihl saws are getting worse. I have an 880 magnum, 17 years old now and a great saw, the rest of the newer ones are getting more and more shitful. My newest small saw is a Husky, great piece of gear!
howdy I have a similar problem to what your explaining the little bracket is not broken but the choke switch keeps popping and could it be the spring is stretched ,i line it up back in the slot on the choke switch but that pops out as well after flipping it is the spring the problem ?any help would be much appreciated ,cheers .
STIHL is great but this is a design flaw that aggravates users. I have never broke it on my two wonderful saws. Another irritant is the oil pump and volume setting screw. The last is lubricating the clutch spindle. No one knows about the grease hole unless they watch you! TY for your channel.
Dony, I don't see any videos on you channel about replacing sump/crankcase gasket on a 4-stroke. I'm doing one that's really stuck on there. Any solvents that will soften it? Sharp blades can cut into the aluminum, and power tools will send debris inside crankcase.
Hey ! Thx fopr tips and a thourogh illustration. Do you know....that the break handle is wider on the mounting on 160 C than in 180 ? I thought it was the same...but the ones i had...for my 170 and 180...did not fit 180 C ! As it is wider or broader... at the mounting gab. Hope i make sense and understandable. Ok. Jostein, Norway.
I sell Stihl equipment here in Georgia and there's also something I warn my customers about concerning the MS180C and the MS181C. Never loan your saw out to someone who doesn't know to properly start these saws or any of the other easy start saws. I promise you they will bring them back to you with a broken starter cord.
Hi Don, I have an MS180C I use at work and I cannot seem to get my switch to turn off the engine correctly while it is running. I try to switch it off but it continues to run. I have to put it in full choke to get it to to kill the engine. Can you offer me some advice on how to fix this?
@donyboy73, Could you comment on non standard or non manufacturer add ons to pole/line trimmers. I have a ryobi rpp254fejsn 2 stroke pole saw/hedge trimmer and a ryobi RLT1038 electric trimmer. The RLT1038 trimmer head fits the rpp254fejsn but it didn't have the high speed rotation at the bump head and the engine sounded under load so I immediately stopped. Any thoughts on this in general?
Love your videos . Brief and to the point. Lately I have had a little trouble seeing the finer details of what you're showing. Black on black parts. Maybe a new light for recording??
Hi Donyboy, please if you can assist me with some info. I have a homelite 250 chainsaw which bogs down in high speed..ive done some elimination and have changed carb kit but m problem still exist. However i looked down in the high jet chamber after removing the adjustment screw and i found 2 holes in there..one is the normal hole where the screw goes and another is on the side and looks more like a tear. My question is-is it normal to have 2 holes in the said chamber or not?? Its a walbro wt 185 carb..m a diy person and dont hv any other carb as reference..
I recently removed the choke lever on my Stihl 018, looks like the one on that ms180c. I intuitively lifted it up with a random plastic brush handle. Wow, how barbarian must one be to break it. My aforementioned Stihl starts cold just fine, then while warming up (and while being used) suddenly stops. Takes a good few seconds to get it started again. Then it runs fine and strong for a few seconds and then suddenly stops again. Can be repeated any number of times. Now, I listened to some 'experts' here on RUclips and in forums. It's the carburetor. Got me a new one along with a fuel hose and a fuel filter. The old ones looked perfect. Assembled everything, same symptoms. Really annoyed by these self-proclaimed experts. My initial thought and gut-feeling was the ignition coil. I had a very old 60s moped some 20 years ago and it would produce the same symptoms. Installed an other coil and it ran great. But with this chainsaw all I got told by these *EXPERTS* , no, it's the carburetor. Can't be anything else than the carburetor. I should have asked you :D So my question: It's possibly the ignition coil, right? I'll get one anyways, but I'd still like to ask. Thanks in advance.
I have never broke a poulan husqvarna part yet because the stuff goes on and comes off like a puzzle If they're jamming a flat head screw driver in there i could see them breaking stuff off then i take my time when I work on those things
![BLACK BAG - Official Trailer [HD] - Only in Theaters March 14](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/Du0Xp8WX_7I/mqdefault.jpg)
Check out this cool chain adjuster MOD upgrade for your ms170 here;
ruclips.net/video/RnFd2NMWPYo/видео.html
Thank you this informative thank you again!! Why doesn’t sthil do something differently that is BS.
Just saying
Thanks again!!!
Gilligan Solution:
---------------------------
Yeah, I fixed one of these once.
Drilled a hole through the remaining plastic,
and looped stiff wire through it.
Put the choke arm in place and secure the wire around it.
Insanely simple and cheap and fast.
Saw still works.
Sometimes, you need to repair things as if you are on
Gilligan's Island.
I explained all to the owner, and SHE was thrilled.
Best to almost everybody.
Mr. Brown.
I was thinking how to repair just in case good idea!
Got given one with a broken part you mentioned drill a small in bracket and used a small cable tie to hold the choke. Arm in place still going strong
I did the same. :)
Brilliant
Thanks again Stihl !!! That part should have NEVER been made from plastic in the first place !!
It’s made of plastic for a reason, to make as lightweight as possible, which is a good thing. A Proper mechanic wouldn’t break it.!!!!!!
The main problem I think is a lack of knowing by chainsaw users. There are only two choices plastic for the economy saws and metal for the pro saws kinda ting. Lol. Education is key.
My chainsaw did start but would not stay running. Changed plug, cleaned spark arrestor screen, new gas, adjusted idle. Saw would run and then die when I tried to accelerate. Was about to bring it in for service when I caught this video. It turned out that the choke bar was not completely set in the plastic hook that is shown in this video. After properly seating it, the saw ran correctly immediately and the choke lever worked as per factory specs. I was worried that I had broken that plastic hook. Thank you for this video Dony.
Dony says what needs to be said and no more. Excellent photography and every step explained. These videos are simply brilliant.
I had this happen. The retainer broke without trying to remove the choke lever. And you're right, it totals the saw. I'm done with Stihl for this reason.
Well if you can’t afford anything from stihl other than this model you should go with an echo. This homeowners saw is for rich people who don’t know Jack squat about equipment but want the product to use for a tree or two. Most people who actually cut invest in a higher quality model like the 462 or 500i if they are going with stihl products. Something that’ll last a lifetime and isn’t designed badly like the 170. If you want a good product you’ll want a saw that at least comes with a metal handle and not a plastic one. That’s usually an indicator. A plastic handle is a red flag
I agree it’s junk and China beats them now in every way possible 😊
Hands down Doni gives the very best tutorals and explains in great detail w'out wasted words 🌻🌻
Your tips are gold! Thank you for your time and effort!
Thank you for this information. I have this saw but have yet to do any type of maintenance that would require me to remove the choke lever. 🙂
I just bought one today and I wanted to thank you for your help ... Thumbs up DonyBoy
Dan Dan, your the man, that certainly can.
Thanks man😊
Good afternoon from Cape Cod ⛵ I've got a pair of MS 170 s I've been following you for a couple months now and following your advice and both sides are oiling properly and working remarkably well. Thanks for your great explanations and videos ✌️🇺🇲
This is the go to channel for when needing help with a repair.
Very best instructional videos by far.
Thanks for that tip. I have the 180 easy start.
Very clear. Very usefull. Grettings from Argentina.
been there, done that. the only good thing about it was because they are cheap, we had many "donor" saws to bail me out.the bad thing- it was my bosses saw! I've taken apart many of these, never had an issue, but I knew it was my bosses saw, so I decided to be "really careful " when swapping his carburetor. well, I guess I wasn't careful enough!
It’s going to break sooner or later
Junk plastic and design
Get a echo and you’ll have the best saw
Was just wondering if J B weld
Would hold?
Excellent advice I will make sure next time I use my MS 181
Thank you! I have two MS180s. Im greatful that I havent broken either.
This is exactly the thing I broke. I watched your video on carburetors and on the second time working on it, broke that part.
Removed all parts that may come in most handy for the replacement and tossed the rest out. Live and learn!
HEY OPIE, SAY HOWS ANT BEE ??
Thanks for the info. If that's what stihl calls engineering, it's not for me...
It's a cheap plastic saw made in China. Stihl has good saws, but the good ones cost a little bit more
You are right people should not do magic they don't. understand . GREAT VIDEO
First video I've seen from you. Just subbed. Bought my first Stihl saw a few weeks ago and will give it's first day or work this weekend. MS-250.
Lots of learning about the saw itself, read the manual about felling trees and watched many vids about what not to do. I'll only be cutting firewood sized trees but barber chair is something I've read up on lots!
I'm sure there will be issues for me to tackle in the coming years.
Thanks dude!! Love this channel, my ms170 about 8years old haven’t had to do any major work but if I do now I know.
Good information!!
Thank you very much!
Excellent information!
Great vid Donald boy!
Thank you very much. Excellent advise and video. I do my own repairs but I always check to see what donyboy73 has to say before I attempt my work.
I have that ms180 I’m glad you showed how to do that thank you sir
I have a 180 C thank you so much !!
I just recently noticed how many if not all of the newer saw are made up of even more plastic that didn't used to be like that.😱😲🥴 Seems like planned obselescence and shrinkflation.
The high end professional stuff is still alright though
@@ladam836 Oh, well thank God!
Don't say that - my most used saw is a plastic saw from the mid 80s. I have several high end professional saws, but I still use that plastic saw the most.
@@leifvejby8023 Wow, no metal switch or anything like that on a saw from the 80's? I'm impressed if so.
@@slhines7 There is still metal in a plastic saw, like there being plastic in a metal saw, but you are right, the switch is plastic with a few metal parts in it.
Exactly why they make things "cheap" these days, they wanna sell you 4+ saws (trimmers-blowers-etc) in 30 yrs vs you buying 1 solid dependable machine that can be reasonably repaired. Every time I hear someone bash the engineers about a design flaw that breaks I wonder if it was designed that way on purpose. Some yrs back it was not being able to find replacement parts anymore which the creation and advancement of the Internet began to help. Don't get me wrong I believe in there being an economical option vs commercial for the average Joe and it helps the company survive but what I don't like is this exact scenario Joe buys a budget saw cause he will barely use it or its what he can afford and something so relevant to function like the throttle was made cheaply and ridiculous to repair. The other side is the commercial products that are supposed to be much higher quality imo are nowhere near what they should be now when yrs ago they were.
I think this planned obsolescence is just a race to the bottom in the name of profits. Design engineers are pushed to have a product that is cheap to produce and made for ease of manufacturing but not maintainability. Compounding problems for the end user are proprietary features that make repair difficult (looking at you John Deere and Apple) and outrageously priced repair parts.
I did something similar on a 254 husqvarna, thin plastic choke rod only flexes so far lol.
Thanks for your time
Thanks for the info, just got a new 170.
Because I suffer from Neandratholism I initially had some trouble with this ,but I caught myself before I just threw saw on ground and stomped on it ,.Better to get a small Echo Ive had three or four lost count best .
Great tip Don! I haven't broken one yet, but I honestly don't remember how I removed that lever. I'll pay attention to it the next saw that comes my way for sure, and use your tip. I'm a part time mechanic. It's a hobby for me, but in a little over 3 years I plan on retiring and doing more repair work. I often wondered how you make a living as a mechanic. Most shops sell new equipment as the main source of income. I'm guessing that's the main reason for this channel. It looks like your shop is quite busy, but that only goes so far.
it's very busy indeed!
Most ships that sell new equipment get about 50% gross from sales, and the remainder is service. They also have overhead, employee payroll, insurance, etc. A small shop focusing on just service can make a decent living given time and good service.
@@mikespain8655 it can if the mechanics produce chargeable hours, I see many shops bogged down with too much overpaid or underpaid staff not producing
If youre honest , do good work and reasonably priced you will stay busy and make a good living even if you do repairs only but if you are nasty to them , shxt em around do shoddy work and lie about shoddy work ovecharge and dont repair in timely fashion word will get around quick and you will have to sell the products on line to try and survive but even they will catch on to crook trying to screw them outtatheir time , effort , and hard earned money and will cry to all that has itching ears but it WASNT them that TRASHED your name . Listen to Doni and conduct youself as such and you will stay busy 🏁
Outstanding, thanks for the heads up
Thanks for the advice. I would however try plastic soldering on that part that broke off
IT WOULD BE JUST A BANDADE !!...BEST OF LUCK SIS/BRO !!
Hey Don it has been awhile. Hope all is well. Good tip on this saw. You would think Stihl would avoid making this so easy & expensive to break even on lower price saws just to protect the integrity of their brand.
Stay well,
Joe Z
I think this is the best video I’ve seen on this topic. 👍
thanks Al
Thank you.
thank you
good day Donnie. Wow I have one like that,, that looks expensive to change all over. Thanks
You're the best Dony. Thanks
Hey I went through everything like you just did on you Cub cadet sc300 push mower. And everything checks out. But it will only start and run for a few seconds only when I pour gas directly into carb
Thanks Dony. Hope I don't need to work on it in the first place.
Thanks mate, Stihl saws are getting worse. I have an 880 magnum, 17 years old now and a great saw, the rest of the newer ones are getting more and more shitful. My newest small saw is a Husky, great piece of gear!
I have Stihl 880 and Stihl 171 chainsaw I have much problem with Stihl 880
howdy I have a similar problem to what your explaining the little bracket is not broken but the choke switch keeps popping and could it be the spring is stretched ,i line it up back in the slot on the choke switch but that pops out as well after flipping it is the spring the problem ?any help would be much appreciated ,cheers .
Great tip Don these saws are indeed tricky to work on at times.😁👍
Good explanation, I will remember it if I ever need to work on my ms170.😊
You just saved people a big headache. Great video.
Thanks for the information
STIHL is great but this is a design flaw that aggravates users. I have never broke it on my two wonderful saws. Another irritant is the oil pump and volume setting screw. The last is lubricating the clutch spindle. No one knows about the grease hole unless they watch you! TY for your channel.
Oh man looking this video Poulan chainsaw look more quality than a Stihl.
Thanks sir for making this video very helpful and educational 👍🏽👍🏽
I have Hasqavarna 135 Mark II and it's takes little time to start and also the chain is spinning at idle. Please do a video on that as well.
Dony you are the man👏👍
Dony, I don't see any videos on you channel about replacing sump/crankcase gasket on a 4-stroke.
I'm doing one that's really stuck on there. Any solvents that will soften it? Sharp blades can cut into the aluminum, and power tools will send debris inside crankcase.
grouse work and top stuff Donny mate and for me if that choke slot was broken i could easily fix that if i was do it for myself too.
Hey ! Thx fopr tips and a thourogh illustration. Do you know....that the break handle is wider on the mounting on 160 C than in 180 ? I thought it was the same...but the ones i had...for my 170 and 180...did not fit 180 C ! As it is wider or broader... at the mounting gab. Hope i make sense and understandable. Ok. Jostein, Norway.
awesome tips bud thanks for sharing have a good day
My choke lever on the carburetor has a notch worn in at the bottom , is that a total carb replacement to fix ?
Awesome!! thank you.
Saludos desde Argentina 🇦🇷
Once again Donyboy thank you, Sir~
Thanks for the tip
Thanks Dony, very useful information.
this is the best on choke mechanism
Great tip Dony thanks !
I sell Stihl equipment here in Georgia and there's also something I warn my customers about concerning the MS180C and the MS181C. Never loan your saw out to someone who doesn't know to properly start these saws or any of the other easy start saws. I promise you they will bring them back to you with a broken starter cord.
Hi Don, I have an MS180C I use at work and I cannot seem to get my switch to turn off the engine correctly while it is running. I try to switch it off but it continues to run. I have to put it in full choke to get it to to kill the engine. Can you offer me some advice on how to fix this?
great film thanks
Excellent video 👍✔️✔️
That guy was really happy to get that stihl saw of mine and I was happy to take his broken poulan i know what parts it needs
Thank you very much Danny you are so awesome and helpful
Nicely Done, Great Tips Don.
@donyboy73, Could you comment on non standard or non manufacturer add ons to pole/line trimmers. I have a ryobi rpp254fejsn 2 stroke pole saw/hedge trimmer and a ryobi RLT1038 electric trimmer. The RLT1038 trimmer head fits the rpp254fejsn but it didn't have the high speed rotation at the bump head and the engine sounded under load so I immediately stopped. Any thoughts on this in general?
I've had several come in my shop that were already broken, maybe a re-design is in order?
Love your videos . Brief and to the point.
Lately I have had a little trouble seeing the finer details of what you're showing. Black on black parts. Maybe a new light for recording??
Hi Donyboy, please if you can assist me with some info. I have a homelite 250 chainsaw which bogs down in high speed..ive done some elimination and have changed carb kit but m problem still exist. However i looked down in the high jet chamber after removing the adjustment screw and i found 2 holes in there..one is the normal hole where the screw goes and another is on the side and looks more like a tear. My question is-is it normal to have 2 holes in the said chamber or not?? Its a walbro wt 185 carb..m a diy person and dont hv any other carb as reference..
Great advice always enjoy your tips
thanke donnyboy always great vid , how bout DYI expansion chamber,? thoughts.
I've watched and liked a lot of your videos this was a fantastic tip.
I own M170 and sold it to my friend.
Planning to buy again,but confused between MS170 or MS180. Please help.
I took mine to stihl dealer a month ago with that problem
Explained well 👍🏻
I recently removed the choke lever on my Stihl 018, looks like the one on that ms180c. I intuitively lifted it up with a random plastic brush handle. Wow, how barbarian must one be to break it.
My aforementioned Stihl starts cold just fine, then while warming up (and while being used) suddenly stops. Takes a good few seconds to get it started again. Then it runs fine and strong for a few seconds and then suddenly stops again. Can be repeated any number of times.
Now, I listened to some 'experts' here on RUclips and in forums. It's the carburetor. Got me a new one along with a fuel hose and a fuel filter. The old ones looked perfect. Assembled everything, same symptoms. Really annoyed by these self-proclaimed experts.
My initial thought and gut-feeling was the ignition coil. I had a very old 60s moped some 20 years ago and it would produce the same symptoms. Installed an other coil and it ran great. But with this chainsaw all I got told by these *EXPERTS* , no, it's the carburetor. Can't be anything else than the carburetor. I should have asked you :D
So my question: It's possibly the ignition coil, right? I'll get one anyways, but I'd still like to ask. Thanks in advance.
Thank you for the video buddy I have one just like the one you are working on but I haven't yet had to
I did this to a saw i got for free. I was able to get nock off cover that fit, but it needed a little modification.
Thank you for the tip 😊😊😊, your videos are awsome 😊.
Excellent tip 😉👌👍
Hi Doni get vids and info keep going your the best!
I have a question I want to learn how to rebuild the older Stihl saws the O series any advice?
Thanks Dony!!
I have never broke a poulan husqvarna part yet because the stuff goes on and comes off like a puzzle
If they're jamming a flat head screw driver in there i could see them breaking stuff off then i take my time when I work on those things
Love your channel! Thank-you
Nice tip👍🇨🇦
awesome video!
That support should HAVE a support built into the mold.