Stihl MS180

[hobbyheater]

Well here I go again. You might remember that I purchased a Husqvarna 435e II to use for stump cutting on the tree farm and for limbing/small stuff when cutting firewood, which I ended up returning. Well as @Sean McGillicuddy said at the end of the post on the 435, "I will be back" and I am. After a lot of searching I've settled on the MS180 for that work. I will pick it up in the next few days and then start to get a few hours on it and report back. Wish me luck - I'm sort of jumpy after my experience with the Husq 435.

I'm considering purchasing the Husky 439 which is just a 435 with a rear handle . What problems did you have with the 435?

 

[XmasTreefarmer]

I'm considering purchasing the Husky 439 which is just a 435 with a rear handle . What problems did you have with the 435?

To get the full story, scroll down a bit in the Gear section and find my New Husqvarna 435e II post.

Oh, I just noticed that you said 439 - that is a totally different saw than the 435. I considered that after the probs with the 435. I believe it's made by a Japanese company for Husqvarna - check that out. And I didn't pursue it - at around $400 that's twice the price of my MS180 - same HP, a little bit lighter.

 

[XmasTreefarmer]

Might try that. It is likely too late as the saw does not start anymore. The fuel line is super soft and sticky, i am pretty sure it needs replacing.

I gotta ask - did you run fuel with ethanol in that saw? I've seen a few videos of the totally mushy fuel lines and it was stated that they had use ethanol gas.

 

[Diabel]

I gotta ask - did you run fuel with ethanol in that saw? I've seen a few videos of the totally mushy fuel lines and it was stated that they had use ethanol gas.

Unfortunately, i do. 94 octane, but i do.

 

[XmasTreefarmer]

Unfortunately, i do. 94 octane, but i do.

I guess that stuff deserves the bad rap that it gets.

 

[Diabel]

The saw worked great for 10yrs (very part time mind you). It is my fault. I will not be a happy person taking 1/2 the saw apart just to replace the fuel line. Not the best Stihl design. But so be it.

 

[XmasTreefarmer]

The saw worked great for 10yrs (very part time mind you). It is my fault. I will not be a happy person taking 1/2 the saw apart just to replace the fuel line. Not the best Stihl design. But so be it.

That's a pretty good life for that gas line. And I can appreciate your not being very happy about the repair. As I was shopping for the 180, I watched tons of videos, including maintenance stuff (so that I knew what I might be getting into) ... the gas line replacement did not look like a fun cool thing. In general I sort of like working on engines and machines in general, but if there is gas involved ... those are my least favorite. You'll get 'er done!

 

[Sean McGillicuddy]

The saw worked great for 10yrs (very part time mind you). It is my fault. I will not be a happy person taking 1/2 the saw apart just to replace the fuel line. Not the best Stihl design. But so be it.

What did you end up doing ?

 

[Diabel]

I have not taken it apart yet. It is on my todo list. I might actually have a go at it this week. I am going to drop a decent size cedar that died over the winter. It has a lot of limbs. Limbing with the ms360 is no fun. Hopefully i dont need any additional parts, my Stihl store in closed due to the virus thing.

 

[Sean McGillicuddy]

I have not taken it apart yet. It is on my todo list. I might actually have a go at it this week. I am going to drop a decent size cedar that died over the winter. It has a lot of limbs. Limbing with the ms360 is no fun. Hopefully i dont need any additional parts, my Stihl store in closed due to the virus thing.

Just watch as many video on how to replace the lines.... eventually you'll understand
My go to guy ...



He makes it look easy...

 

[Diabel]

Thanks
Yes, what did people do before YouTube........

 

[Diabel]

I am happy to report that after replacing the very soft fuel line on the ms170 (very easy job) the saw runs as good as new! Oh and of course brand new high octane fuel!
Thank you @Sean McGillicuddy for vids and support!

 

[XmasTreefarmer]

I am happy to report that after replacing the very soft fuel line on the ms170 (very easy job) the saw runs as good as new! Oh and of course brand new high octane fuel!
Thank you @Sean McGillicuddy for vids and support!

Congrat's on the repair! Always feels good to have a broken piece of equipment working again and even better when you fixed it yourself.

 

[Diabel]

Congrat's on the repair! Always feels good to have a broken piece of equipment working again and even better when you fixed it yourself.

Well, i sure fixed the fuel line problem. The saw ran great for a while, then it just started acting up again. Took the cover off and this is what i found. I must’ve weakened this plastic seat when reassembling the saw back. I remember it was tough to snap that throttle line in place. Any ideas on how to approach this. Glueing i dont think is an option.

 

[Sean McGillicuddy]

 

[Diabel]

So i tried glueing the piece with epoxy.....did not work very well. I found a brand new shell on amazon for the ms170 for 25.00. But this would involve striping the saw completely and moving everything onto the new shell. I am not sure if it is worth my time to do this. I see these saws on sale for 200.00 quite often.