2014/15 done - saws?

i'm estimating that i'm done cutting for 2014/15. the pile of rounds here is about 5 cords. couple that with many many rounds of white pine and i'm good to go for shoulder season wood too. i guess i could keep cutting hardwood but i want to get this pile split after hunting season so i can stack it in the spring and give it 2 summers to cook.

what do you guys (or gals?) do when you put your saws away for the season? (realizing some cut year-round) i've always run them dry and put 'em away. some guys with alot of experience running tricked-out saws say NEVER run the saw completely dry. as in - when it starts to sputter, refill the gas.

just curious about different philosophies and why.

OT

Nice work onetracker. Not 100 percent sure on the saws but would say empty the gas & oil out, I usually run my saws until Feb. so they only sit for a couple of months.
I will check with my stihl dealer just to make sure.

zap

I am usually cutting 2-4 days/month,year round when free time and/or weather permits.If I know I wont be using any of the saws for at least a month,I drain the gas from the tank.It goes back one of the mix cans.Other than that,no special storage procedure.

I empty the gas also, to be honest I don't remember why. I also try to clean it out a bit, especially the air filter, and sharpen the chains. That way when I go back out it should be good to go. And that is awesome that you are so far ahead! I was splitting a bit today thinking that it was going to be for 14-15, but I would have to use that at the beginning of that winter, and would need a few more cords to be fully 3 years ahead.

my saw never sets for more than a couple weeks so i dont worry about it

Feels good to be that far ahead , eh?
Will be some real nice dry wood when you burn it

If my saw is going to sit for a long time, few months or more, I dump the gas & run it dry.
I do that to all gasoline engines
1 reason is , they always get fresh gas when it's time to run them again.

After every cutting session whether 10 minutes or 8 hrs the saw being used gets a good cleaning with compressed air.Down inside the clutch cover underneath & in front,pop the top cover & gently blow off the air filter too.Rarely takes over 5 minutes.

Always wear your safety glasses.

thanks gents -
i've always run my power equipment dry, and never had (noticed) any ill effects. i was follwing some stabilizer thread somewhere and the reasoning for not draining fully was that the stabilizer helps to keep certain components from dry rotting - the 2 stroke oil and stabilizer acting as lubricants. i'm going to continue to clean and drain out my saws until i get convinced otherwise.

and yes....it feels good to finally be 2-3 years ahead. it took me 5 years to get there and the log splitter was the factor that really helped make it happen.

If my saws are sitting for awhile I drain the gas then I put in a little Tru-Fuel or MotoMix and restart the saw for a minute. Both of those fuels contain no ethanol and have a shelf life of 2 years. This way nothing dries out in the fuel system and it's good to go next time I need it. A can of Tru-Fuel can be purchased for around 6 dollars and will treat a saw about 5 times.

Stihl is selling some premix stuff that has a couple year shelf life. They recommend it for the occasional or camp saw kinda user. No worries about how old it is. Might be a good can to put in for storage. Mine.. gets no rest!

I dont really think about it much, but seem to quite on an empty saw. (Just a good place to call it a day)

If your going to put your saws up for an extended period, I'd probably dump the gas and run them dry. We've had this conversation before, I've had different opinions but after really thinking about it, that's what I'd do. Don't throttle or rev the.saw, just start it and let it run dry.

right!
so its the ethanol that's the problem?

YES, that is exactly the problem. Ethanol is alcohol, and alcohol attracts water. It is also a solvent. So it is hard on the plastic/rubber parts in your carburetor and fuel system, and as an added bonus it attracts humidity which leads to water deposits laying in your carburetor, which leads to corrosion and destruction of your carburetor....

Yes, if the saw sputters, shut it off and fill with gas immediately. As for storing the saw, my idea of storing it is putting it in the case and setting it in the barn. Although I cut the firewood in winter, it seems there are many, many times I have to start that saw to cut something, be it wind damage, a neighbor wanting something cut, etc. So our saw always has gas in it.

JP, I bought a can of that stuff. I had been having problems with the weed whacker with the jets plugging. The Stihl guy suggested when I want to store the weed whacker, empty the gas from it and put just a little bit of the new stuff in. Run the motor until it runs out. Since I started doing this, there has been no problem with plugging.

i use shell v power (ethanol free) and stihl ultra synthetic mix (it has fuel stabilizer) , my saw generally never sits more then a couple months so it works for me.

I know.. that stuff isn't cheap... but it WORKS. My Stihl guy says that ANYbody who's having a bad running saw or trimmer should run a tank of that stuff first and see if it clears up. Now.. I wouldn't want to run it all the time.. but for something like the saw that we LEAVE on our snowmobile trail groomer.. PERFECT.

JP

if mine are going to be sitting for a while i will run them dry

Pretty much the same here . . . saw is still fine after all of these years. I probably should add StarTron in it . . . but why mess with what has worked?

The Stihl fuel is the Motomix I was referring to in my earlier post. From what I have read both Tru-Fuel and Motomix are bottled at the same place with the Motomix using Sthils Ultra oil. I can get the Tru-Fuel cheaper at Lowes and since I only use it for storage I'm not concerned with what oil is in it. You can get the Tru-Fuel in 50:1 and 40:1 mixes as well as straight gas. I've noticed it does smell different than regular gas and the engine exhaust smells different as well.

High octane ethanol free race or marine fuel in my saws 100% of the time. Some of them sit for as much as a month in between use, but I "store" em clean, sharp, & full of fuel & oil so they're ready when I need em. They're usually "stored" in the box in the truck bed with the rest of the cutting gear. Turn key pour coffee & go cut. A C

I use a decent 93 octane fuel during the cutting season which is from Sept. thru March for me. The rest of the year, during occasional use season, I use VP Small Engine 50:1. I'd use it all year if I could afford the stuff!

My 15 yr old lawnmower gums up all the time now. PITA to fix so often.

But for occasional winter chainsaw use, Motomix seems to fit the bill.
If I get a lot of cutting to do then I'll mix some regular.