Problems…

Over the weekend I cut down a 30” standing dead oak with the help of my neighbor and his MS460. My cs590 was operating fine but I noticed the chain needed a touch-up and I sharpened it afterward. During sharpening I had a lot of trouble moving the chain around even with the chain brake off.

The next morning, I started the saw to buck the logs and let it sit idling (with brake on) while I suited up. The chain started smoking heavily from the clutch. After that I couldn’t start or run the saw with the brake on. It seems like the chain is always connected to the motor and at idle the chain would spin slowly. Engaging the chain brake would cause a stall.

What do you guys think happened? Do I need a new clutch?


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Clutch bearing seized would be my guess...have no first hand knowledge of that model though...

 

I almost always start with the brake on, and the brake goes on before taking more than a step or two unless I’m in a flat clear yard. I started on saws without a brake, but the safety gurus drill this in as one of the basic things to do.

Sorry, no help to the OP.

 

Sounds like your saw might be broken too


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Same here. If the saw is not in a cut, my chain brake is on.

 

Have you tried to adjust the idle lower? If the saw doesn't stop, the chain might.

I had an issue with a chain moving while pulling the cord to start. Swapping out the clutch fixed that problem.

 

That has an outboard clutch doesn't it ? Look for broken springs or as brenndatomu said the clutch bearing is seized.
The only time I engage the brake is on accident.

 

Remove the clutch cover and share a pic of the back of the cover, and the clutch area itself. If your idle was too high, as it sat there the clutch could have been trying to engage causing it to heat up. Or a spring could have broke, lots of maybe's that a pic or two could clear up.

 

Remove bar and chain. Clean bar groove.

Remove e-clip, washer, and clutch drum. Pull the needle bearing (expect it to be damaged as said above). The Echo 440 class has the outboard clutch and integrated drum bearing. I believe the 590 has an inboard clutch and conventional bearing/drum/washer/e-clip.

https://www.echodependonit.com/upload/XECCS59020150210151637.pdf

 

Pics pics pics

 

I don't overuse the chain brakes on my or anyone elses saws.
No reason to. If the saw is running correctly and the throttle safety functions properly.
The chain won't be turning !
Chainsaws have one thing in common with firearms. They have a trigger !
Same rules apply to both . Keep your finger OFF THE TRIGGER until you are ready to make things get Loud !

I have and maintain chain brakes on all my saws. I am very appreciative of the chain brakes on my saws.

The only time I sometimes pop the brake on on my saw is when I'm climbing. And have the saw clipped short to my saddle.
Chain brakes weren't even available on saws when I started cutting.
Neither were chaps.
But they are both good things to have working well if they are ever needed.

 

Here's a pic of the clutch on a 620 Echo. I believe the 590 is the same.

 

^ This right here is most likely the culprit. Cleaning the groove.

 

Sorry for the delay - I didn’t have time to work on this until tonight. The chain groove was clean but the sprocket had debris and was hard to turn at first. The clutch did not spin freely and had a lumpy feel. The clutch cover was hard to get off and everything in there has a blue vulcanized look. There is a ridge of carbon deposits on the inside of the clutch drum. For what it’s worth the bearing seems to spin ok and the springs seem to be working. Pic below. Any ideas?

 

Clean all that out, look closely at the springs (sometimes they look ok but are shot), lube the needle bearing, re-install everything and fire it up.

 

So if you slide that clutch drum over the clutch, it’s rubbing? You have to figure out if it’s that bearing or rubbing the clutch shoes. Light sanding of the inside of the drum to clean it up real good (not harsh grit).

 

Needle bearing and drum race look dry to me. Exercise the chain brake while the drum is off and see if it expands and contracts as it should.

 

I cleaned out the inside of the drum with fine sandpaper on wolverine’s advice. Put it back together and the clutch drum was spinning great and I was convinced it would work. I started it up without the bar and it has the same problem. The clutch still seems to want to engage at idle. The idle sounds fine to me (i.e. not too high). The brake seems to be working and it fully disengages when off. At this point I’m stumped - I guess it could be weak springs…

 

The silver lining I guess is I need a saw this weekend so I might be buying a second one. Broken saw CAD.