Stihl 361 chain spins at idle

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jotul8e2

Minister of Fire
Feb 2, 2008
595
Ozarks
I finally got around to fiddling with the idle speed on my Stihl 361. If I back off the idle until it simply dies, the chain will still spin. I am now of the opinion that the idle speed is not the problem - it does not sound to fast, anyway. But the chain will spin even at idle. If I try and force it to stop - laying the bar down on a log, for example - then engine dies.

As I am typing this it occurs to me that there must be some kind of clutch involved here and it must not be disengaging. Yes? No?

Any suggestions are valued.
 
Something is obstructing the clutch by the sounds.

Have you taken the cover off and looked? Could be something stuck in there or perhaps a broken spring that is making it stick. Tough to say without inspecting.

Take a few pics if you are unsure after you remove that side cover.
 
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A weak, broken or missing clutch spring will do this. They're fairly cheap; I'd replace all three if you don't find a more obvious cause.
 
Jon1270 said:
A weak, broken or missing clutch spring will do this. They're fairly cheap; I'd replace all three if you don't find a more obvious cause.
Click to expand...

...and in fact I found a broken clutch spring.

I appreciate the help.
 
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jotul8e2 said:
...and in fact I found a broken clutch spring.

I appreciate the help.
Click to expand...

No problem, and it's good that you found it because this issue can easily end up snowballing into a much bigger problem. One of the saws I bought and fixed up last year was a really nice 034 that had lost a clutch spring sometime before, and the owner kept using it without ever investigating why the chain wouldn't stop spinning. Eventually the dragging clutch shoe wore all the way through the drum. When the drum tore, the shoe came completely out of the clutch assembly and was driven around by the still-running motor. Instead of a $3 spring, the otherwise very nice saw needed a whole clutch, drum, oil pump and some repairs to the chain brake, and he ended up buying a new saw instead of paying for all that.
 
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