MS 151 TC, new, but I think bar stud threads were buggered during assembly..?

[Woody Stover]

Chain was too tight the first time I got ready to try it. I adjusted it, thought I had it right, but then suddenly after I ran it a minute, the chain was too tight again. Then I tried tensioning again, and it didn't seem like the nut was tightening as expected...took more turns than I thought it should to tighten it, once it got snug. Yesterday when I tried to loosen the nut, the stud started turning with it and the nut won't come off, keeps turning the stud. I don't wanna keep turning on it for fear of messing the stud threads up even more.
I'm wondering how the stud is secured during assembly. Do they screw it in with some high-temp threadlocker on it, or what?
I was thinking I could groove the top of the nut/stud, then hold the stud with a screwdriver while turning the nut to separate it from the stud. Then how would I get the stud out, without stripping the threads more, and repair it?
Seems like I should just take it back to the dealer to deal with. He went in the back and fired up the saw before giving it to me--Surprised he didn't notice the too-tight chain..??

 

[salecker]

It's a new saw
go see the dealer

 

[ericm979]

Since it's new, take it back to the dealer.

If it wasn't under warranty you could unscrew the stud to get it out, then torque it back down with double nuts (and thread locker). The dealer might fix it this way, which would be fine.

 

[Woody Stover]

Yep, I took it back to the shop. When I came to pick it up the next day, the owner couldn't say whether the tech had used threadlocker on the bar stud, or just tightened it down. He said it may have started backing out if I had cranked the nut down too hard. But I think the stud had to be loose from the get-go for the chain to keep getting too tight. After a couple attempts at re-adjusting the chain tension, I did eventually crank the nut down pretty firmly--That's when the stud and nut locked together.
But the saw is working great. I've been stripping punky sapwood off the White Oak in my other thread in the Wood Shed forum..."how would you get this down" I've stripped the sapwood off about 1/2 the rounds those guys cut, or just tossed em in the quad trailer if the sapwood was OK. The other half of the rounds are what you see in this pic.
I'm envisioning the saw coming in handy when limbing trees I drop, or for trimming yard trees while balancing on the top step of a 12' ladder on one foot and stretching out to get the extra reach I need.
I probably need to get a steel mesh glove, like meatcutters use. Standing a round up with one hand while sawing with the other seems like it would be an easy way to remove body parts I might need later..

 

[ericm979]

Yep, I took it back to the shop. When I came to pick it up the next day, the owner couldn't say whether the tech had used threadlocker on the bar stud, or just tightened it down. He said it may have started backing out if I had cranked the nut down too hard.

Nope.

I probably need to get a steel mesh glove, like meatcutters use. Standing a round up with one hand while sawing with the other seems like it would be an easy way to remove body parts I might need later..

OMG don't do that. Find a way to prop it up or another way to accomplish the same thing.

I use the wood splitter to split off rotten stuff. It's not 100% accurate but if I throw away some good wood or include a little rotten stuff in the firewood it's not a problem.

 

[Woody Stover]

Nope.


OMG don't do that. Find a way to prop it up or another way to accomplish the same thing.

I use the wood splitter to split off rotten stuff. It's not 100% accurate but if I throw away some good wood or include a little rotten stuff in the firewood it's not a problem.

I don't mess with the sapwood unless it's loose to the point of falling off. But I really need to be holding the smaller rounds to speed up the process over what I've been doing; Scraping off the crumbly stuff with the blade of a hatchet.
I'm going slow enough right now with the saw, and being careful to contact the round with the chain well below where I'm standing it up on end with the other hand. It's still scary, though.
The steel mesh glove would be good insurance for when I make the inevitable mistake...

 

[SpaceBus]

I have one of these little saws and I love it. If you find yourself needing to one hand the saw, you need to be using a pole saw. My Stihl kombi system pole saw attachment uses the same bar and chain as THES 150/151 TC.

 

[Woody Stover]

I have one of these little saws and I love it. If you find yourself needing to one hand the saw, you need to be using a pole saw. My Stihl kombi system pole saw attachment uses the same bar and chain as THES 150/151 TC.

Interesting--I didn't know about their Kombi.
I'm one-handing the saw as little as possible. In the pic above, that's the second half of the stuff I was trimming and as you see, most of it was big stuff where I just stood them up and two-handed the saw.
Yep, I like the little saw too, especially the 5.7 lbs. 👍

 

[salecker]

get a hatchet to hold the wood...
sink it in the top, at least your hand will be further away.

 

[Woody Stover]

I have one of these little saws and I love it. If you find yourself needing to one hand the saw, you need to be using a pole saw. My Stihl kombi system pole saw attachment uses the same bar and chain as THES 150/151 TC.

Interesting--I didn't know about their Kombi.
I'm one-handing the saw as little as possible. In the pic above, that's the second half of the stuff I was trimming and as you see, most of it was big stuff where I just stood them up and two-handed the saw.
Yep, I like the little saw too, especially the 5.7 lbs.

get a hatchet to hold the wood...
sink it in the top, at least your hand will be further away.

Good idea. I also recently scored a pickaroon from Menards. Haven't used it much yet, but seems like it might be pretty handy.

 

[Woody Stover]

OK, now I've run into the "oil cap won't close" issue. I have the tool-less caps on a couple other saws, but this hadn't happened to me with those saws.
I filled the oil, then couldn't get the cap to drop in far enough to engage the threads. I tried pressing it down really hard, but no go.
So I took it back to the dealer again and he said "Yeah, don't overfill the oil, or it can do that." I asked why, but he said "I don't know, I'm not an engineer." Well, I'm not either but I'm guessing that with no air space in there, only oil, you can't compress a liquid and therefore can't get the cap down far enough to catch the threads..