Used Stihl 026 Gifted to Me

Hey everyone - newbie here. My father in law gifted me his used Stihl 026 as he has not used it in several years. I believe it has a riveted nameplate, appears to be pretty old. I have it at a local dealer being serviced now. Called me to today and said after cleaning out the carb and giving the unit a thorough inspection and cleaning, he tried to start and it ran ~10 seconds before cutting out. He said he suspected a potential leak somewhere (air leak maybe he said?). Next step he said was to replace the air filter and fuel lines, which will be 1-2 weeks before that is completed. After that he made it sound like he didn't know there was much else he could do aside from replacing the carb entirely for $120, and at that point I would have paid beyond what I could pay for a brand new saw. Any ideas? It would kill me to have to leave this thing sitting as a large paperweight. From what I've seen on eBay it seems like this 026 model is a pretty decent saw, so I don't want to give up easily.

 

Replacing that fuel line may be all that's needed to get it running.A new air filter won't hurt either.

 

Yeah I guess we will see, from what I've read that could be the culprit, if the line is old and cracked it could allow air to be leaking, if the pickup line in the fuel tank is cracked or damaged (which will be replaced) that could cause issues pumping fuel from the tank, etc.

He did also tell me he has already replaced the fuel filter.

 

Could have leaking crank seals too?

 

Yeah I have also been reading elsewhere on the internet that crank seals could be an issue. I have a good bit of experience installing/replacing mechanical seals and oil and grease seals so I may just get the saw back from him after he does the fuel lines if the issues are unresolved and take a crack at it myself.

 

If I were you, I'd ask for the saw back and do the repairs yourself because that he doesn't sound like a dealer that knows how to repair saws.
If a saw has been sitting for several years, fuel lines should be replaced. He should have told you when you first brought it in because that means he either
a. took that carb out, cleaned it, and reinstalled without changing fuel lines (would have only taken a few extra minutes at that point to change lines) or
b. "cleaned" the carb by spraying carb cleaner in the air intake (and therefore already had the air filter out.)

Also, he was going to just replace the carb instead of rebuilding it. A rebuild kit for an 026 will run you $10-15 dollars and if you can seals, you can definitely rebuild a carb.

The 026 is a great pro quality saw. If you learn to do the work yourself, it should give you years of low cost, trouble free operation

 

Also, if it's running for 10 seconds and then cutting out, the impulse hose could have a leak.

 

welcome aboard both of you.

pcable89 , if your not in a rush for the saw, 100% agree you should start trouble shooting it and repairing it yourself. There’s a Chat load of no chit load of shade tree saw mechanics here and a bunch of no chit ones too. More than happy to opine

 

So the dealer began by apparently cleaning out the carb, inspecting gaskets and parts within the carb, and said in his opinion the gaskets inside the carb did not need replacing, and therefore did not need a carb "kit". According to him the gaskets weren't cracked or showing signs of age. He replaced the spark plug and he also said he would take a look at the cylinder to make sure there wasn't scoring, etc. He had ordered an air filter but that won't arrive until next week. After cleaning the carb he attempted to restart and could only get it to fire for ~10 seconds, and that was only after spraying starting fluid directly into the cylinder. Now I wasn't there to witness any of this so I have no idea if he made many attempts to get it running. He suspected an air leak somewhere so at this point we've ordered fuel lines and he's planning to replace those, but again those won't be in for ~1 week.

I am trending towards the troubleshoot myself after these fuel lines are replaced if that doesn't work. He told me that an MS170 was essentially a new model of the same version but it has much less engine displacement. He also didn't make it sound like he thoroughly inspected all elastomers on the unit (i.e. impulse line, intake boot, etc.) - apparently likely potential causes with this sort of issue.

Anyway, will keep you all posted. Thanks.

 

If he sprayed starting fluid in the carb, go get that poor saw now as he has no business taking money from someone for "fixing" a saw.

 

Where do people order aftermarket or OEM parts from? Any good websites?

 

Best advice I've seen.

 

Well, live and learn I guess. I am still a novice with chainsaws so just was following advice from my father in law to have it serviced before using. But since I am mechanically inclined and have experience with engine/machine work and automotive work I guess in hindsight I should have just done the troubleshooting myself to begin with.

 

Get the saw from the dealer and fix it your self. You sound like you have some mechanical skills. I can tell you step by step what you need to do to replace the seals and can guarantee with a saw that old the seals if not bad now are not far away from going bad and then scoring the cylinder. You can ask all the questions you want either through Private message on right here and start a thread on it. You can do it..
By the way I would not be spraying starting fluid into a chainsaw. There is no oil in that spray.

 

Hi all - update on this 026 saw - got it back from the dealer yesterday after he replaced fuel lines, sparkplug, air filter, and cleaned the carb, and still the saw will not fire up and stay running. Luckily he only charged me for parts but still disappointing. I got it home and attempted to start it and found it only started with the choke all the way on, and when it starts it rev's to a high RPM (I assume because the "fast" idle is engaged to start?) and then decreases in speed after a few seconds and shuts off. I eventually figured out I could keep it running at full choke with the fast idle engaged after I removed the air filter cover on the back of the saw near the handle. It ran for probably 10 minutes this way, but as soon as the choke was adjusted or removed it immediately dies. I did manage to take a video but it's about 40 seconds long and very large to try to send over email or post on this site I imagine.

Thoughts on next steps for diagnosing/solving the issue?

 

Sounds like the carb is "plugged up"...needs cleaned/rebuilt, or replaced IMO...

 

Is there a decent brand carb that would be recommended? The guy at the dealer seemed to agree it was something in the carb but for him to replace with Stihl brand was like $180 or something crazy.

 

Wha?!
I guess I can't say specifically on this saw...but Stihl carbs are usually only $20-$40.
I'll let someone more familiar recommend an aftermarket brand... huskihl maybe...

 

I do not think 170 is new equivalent of an O26. A 262 would be... That’s a good old saw. Learn to fix it .. we will help ya and welcome to FHC

 

Funny coincidence is that i "found" my old 026 powerhead recently. It hadnt run since 2010. Couple times tried to start and finally it fired. Similar problems to your saw though. Member here will work his magic on it. The 026 is a good firewood saw. I bought mine 28 years ago.
Keep us updated on how it goes.
Pics of mine.