How To Repair A Chainsaw

How to Clean A Chainsaw, the easy way. And why it matters? I know many people who never fifty-fifty think of cleaning their chainsaws but equally you'll larn in this article, it's a good idea to keep your chainsaw clean.

Earlier nosotros commencement talking about the tools needed and the procedure of cleaning your chainsaw, allow united states first explain some of the issues that forbid a dirty chainsaw from running properly. A chainsaw is an extremely simple motorcar on the surface, but there is plenty of stuff going on underneath which cannot exist seen until you remove the covers and take the whole thing apart. Whenever a cutting tooth on the saw chain digs into forest, it carves out pocket-size fries of material along with tiny powder- like specks of sawdust. The momentum of the moving chain carries these particles into the groove of the bar upon which the chain rides.

Some of the sawdust and wooden chips also get flung into the spaces in-between each chain link, combining with wet and bar oil to form a semi- solid and highly viscous substance that soaks up new bar oil and prevents it from lubricating the concatenation. This will cause your chain to run hot, and it will besides scrape confronting the bar runway more often causing the formation of a burr on either edge of the bar. Now, not simply is the concatenation running hot and causing more than friction, simply information technology is as well bouncing off the uneven edge on the bar which volition forbid you from cutting straight and increment vibrations. A chain that isn't lubricated volition fail sooner, and the last thing you want is sharp metal links flight into your face at 60mph.

Sap, sawdust, grease, and other unwanted substances volition also accrue underneath the clutch cover on the side of the chainsaw. This volition somewhen clog the oiler holes from which bar oil is secreted into the bar of your chainsaw and can impairment performance equally well equally reliability of the parts. If too much gunk collects around the chain brake mechanism, it can crusade the inertial brake to slip and you lot may not exist able to cease the saw in instance of an emergency. Sawdust and clay are also sucked in through the other side of the chainsaw, via the grill underneath the starter rope. This grill sucks in air to cool the engine and it also sucks in debris that is ejected when you cutting woods.

Sawdust and wooden chips tin accumulate in betwixt the cooling fins on the cylinder head, restricting airflow and reducing cooling performance. Equally a result, the engine will run hotter than usual and this may eventually result in harm to the internals of the motor (piston, cylinder, etc.). The air filter is what allows your chainsaw engine to "jiff", and when information technology is chock-full the carburetor isn't going to get sufficient air and this will affect engine performance at college RPMs. If the air filter is extremely dirty, yous may not fifty-fifty be able to start the chainsaw.

You volition also demand to audit the spark plug for carbon aggregating, because a dysfunctional spark plug volition result in incomplete combustion of the fuel/ air mixture and loss of ability. A faulty spark plug may likewise hateful that the engine won't start. Stihl recommends that you replace the erstwhile spark plug with a new i every 100 service hours. There are different types of spark plugs, check the owner'due south manual to make sure you are replacing the old 1 with a proper model.

VIDEO | How to Clean your Chainsaw

How to Clean A Chainsaw

Tools you will need to clean a chainsaw

Wire brush (here is a nice set)
1" or 2" paint brush (like this Wooster Q3108-1 soft tip castor)
Grease gun (simple push-blazon will suffice)
WD40 spray (serves as a lubricant and degreaser)
Universal cleaner of some kind (similar Simple Greenish Pro Hd )
Flat hand file
Bar groove cleaning tool (putty knife or a folded business card also works, pretty much anything that is flat and fits in between the bar grooves)
Pick to clean oiler hole (you tin too employ a minor flathead screwdriver)
Scrench
Warm water

Optional:

Air compressor
Store vac
Pressure washer

Annotation: Y'all don't need all the tools that nosotros have mentioned in this listing, the optional category is mainly for readers who own multiple chainsaws and demand to clean iv or 5 of them together. Unless you are a professional logger, workshop possessor, or DIYer, yous won't need a force per unit area washer or shop vacuum. But if you lot happen to ain a workshop, y'all probably take the aforementioned tools which are going to brand your chainsaw cleaning feel much more than convenient. And yous might non demand the universal cleaner fluid either, many experienced chainsaw users use simple household ammonia solution or kerosene to clean their grimy chainsaw confined and chains. On the field for quick cleanups between cutting sessions, all you need is a scrench and a castor.

Pace i

Removing the bar and chain

In order to clean the diverse parts of a chainsaw, nosotros must get-go take it apart to gain easier access. For this, yous need some kind of flat and stable surface. A workbench or table of some kind would exist perfect, and brand sure to go along all the tools nearby. If you're cleaning an electric chainsaw make certain it is disconnected from the ability source, and if it is a cordless chainsaw take out the battery before you start cleaning. For gas chainsaws, drain all fluids (gas and bar oil) before you first cleaning. At present, located the 2 nuts on the side cover which keep your bar mounted to the powerhead. Loosen these nuts from the bar studs using the hexagonal wrench part of the scrench, and make sure that the anti- kickback chain brake is disengaged before yous remove the clutch embrace. On some chainsaw models you cannot remove the comprehend while the brake is engaged, on others you might be able to remove the embrace but putting it back on will be impossible.

Step 2

Cleaning the bar

Afterward the bar and concatenation have been separated from the powerhead, take out the chain and put information technology bated. Depending on how dirty the bar is, you might need to use a degreaser or solvent of some sort. If it has been used to cut down a couple trees over the weekend, yous should be able to become all the clay and grime off with some warm soapy water and a fabric rag. Have the wire brush and scrape away all the sawdust and hardened dirt from the bar. Using the bar groove cleaner tool or a putty knife, articulate out all the gunk that is stuck within the bar rails.

In one case the groove of the bar is clean, accept a pick or screwdriver and get rid of all the debris blocking the oiler hole. At that place are two oiler holes on each bar, one on either side of the bottom end (the end that connects to the powerhead). If you have an air compressor, you tin can apply it to blow away any stubborn debris. Steam at around 300°F also works bang-up, if y'all happen to have a steam cleaner in the workshop.

Hot soap water works simply fine for chainsaws that are used occasionally on weekends to cutting some firewood. But what if y'all're a professional who uses the chainsaw daily for felling trees in the woods or cutting branches fourscore feet above the ground? Compressed air and loftier pressure level steam are the perfect choice to make clean the dirtiest of chainsaw guide bars. But since most of you don't ain a steam cleaner or air compressor, there is a neat little fox to getting rid of pitch and dried up resin from your chainsaw bar. We are going to use Unproblematic Light-green Pro HD Heavy Duty cleaner. This is a not- corrosive, biodegradable, multipurpose cleaner which acts every bit a solvent and degreaser to remove all the grime and dirt.

Mix the concentrate in a 1:3 ratio with h2o and fill up up a saucepan with the solution. And so dip the bar into the bucket, along with the clutch cover. Let it soak for well-nigh 10 minutes and use the wire brush to scrape away the dirt. Dry the bar, and so give it a low-cal coat of the WD40 spray and leave it to set for about half an hr or and then, then wipe it off with a rag.

The bar is virtually prepare for installation in the chainsaw, just check the edges to make sure in that location is no mushrooming going on around the rails. Run your fingernails over the border of the bar rail and if your nails click on a sharp metallic burr extruding out of the rail, it is fourth dimension to take the hand file and make a few passes on the bar. This will ensure that the bar edges are smooth and apartment, so the chain can ride without bug. A great tool for removing burrs and uneven edges from the guide bar is this redresser tool, it volition reset the rails to a xc° angle and remove all burrs at the same fourth dimension.

VIDEO | Basic Chainsaw Maintenance

Pace 3

Cleaning the chain

To make clean the chain, soak it in some turpentine or a solution of household ammonia and h2o (for x to xx mins). This should get all the grease and resins out from within the links of the concatenation, and dissolve most of the caked upward sawdust. Now take the wire brush and scrape it clean. When working with an ammonia solution, it is crucial that you stay in a well- ventilated area and prevent contact with skin or eyes. Use gloves and middle protection. If the concatenation isn't too dingy, you can simply scrape off the dirt with a brush and wipe it clean with a rag. At present there is some other method of cleaning the concatenation if information technology is admittedly engulfed in pith and caked up sawdust, merely nosotros only recommend this if you are experienced with tools or if you are a professional logger (no other way your chainsaw would get that dirty).

Take some household lye, used to open up drains. Pour out some pellets onto the cap of the container and mix information technology with near one-half a bucket of h2o. Wear thick gloves and eye protection, do not let these pellets come in contact with your peel. Put the concatenation in the solution and allow it soak for near 20 minutes or longer depending on how dingy it is. Don't let it sit in there overnight though, since the chain will start to rust. Later it is soaked, pull out the chain with a hooked tool of some kind, Exercise Non employ your easily to remove the chain from the solution even if you lot are wearing gloves. Throw information technology on the ground exterior, let all the excess solution run off and hose it down thoroughly with water. Once it is dry, take the chain back inside and wipe it clean with multiple newspaper towels until all the dirt is gone.

Of import: brand certain to dip your freshly cleaned concatenation in some bar oil and wipe off the excess oil earlier you lot put it in storage. This way, information technology won't rust. Too glaze it with bar oil before reassembly with the guide bar.

Step four

Cleaning the powerhead

To clean the powerhead, use a 1" soft tip pigment brush and remove all the dirt that has settled downwards around the crankcase surface area. Use the pick or scrench to access tight spots, and gradually scrape abroad every bit of sawdust around the clutch drum and bar studs. Make sure that the oiler port is free of debris. You can also use compressed air to clean the powerhead, just we don't recommend a pressure washer as it tin can impairment the air filter and electronic systems if you aren't very careful.

Remove the top cover and you should be able to access both the air filter too as spark plug. Inspect the air filter, if it is covered with low-cal to moderate amount of dust take a soft tip paintbrush and gently make clean the filter medium. It is extremely important that y'all stuff the air intake of the carburetor with a make clean rag to prevent foreign objects from falling within. Or, you can set the asphyxiate to "closed" position to seal the carburetor from the inside.

Yous can also use compressed air, but make sure the compressor is set for low pressure, so you don't blow a hole in the air filter. Stihl recommends a not-inflammable, not oil based cleaner if you want to rinse the air filter under running h2o. If the air filter is really dingy, take some warm soap water and make clean it from the inside out (water flows from clean side of filter to muddy side). After using the soap solution, rinse the filter with some clean water and let it dry completely before you reattach it.

Inspect the spaces between the cooling fins on the cylinder head and utilise a screwdriver or the bar cleaner tool (preferably something made from a soft metal) to make clean out all the gunk from between the cooling fins. This will better engine cooling and increment its lifespan. Also retrieve to accept out the grill cover for the starter rope and brush away all the sawdust that is accumulated effectually the crankcase.

Finally, remove the spark plug and inspect information technology for signs of deposition. If the electrodes are a java brown colour everything should exist fine. Bank check the gap betwixt the electrodes to meet if it is likewise large or small, incorrect gap size will prevent the spark plug from working properly. If the tip appears nighttime blackness or is covered with broiled-on dirt, information technology might be fourth dimension for a replacement. Refer to your owner's manual for the correct replacement part no., and make certain to check the gap between electrodes since some spark plugs may not be gapped from the factory. Stihl recommends a gap of 0.02 inches or 0.5mm for its NGK CMR6H and Bosch USR4AC spark plugs.

Step 5

Putting information technology all back together

Reattach the engine cover, starter cord cover and remount the stale up chain to the bar. Make sure the concatenation is mounted in the CORRECT direction. Now mount the bar back on the studs, connect the clutch cover and hand tighten the nuts. Hold up the bar by the tip of its nose and suit the tensioning spiral such that the segment of concatenation on the bottom side of the bar isn't sagging (y'all should not over tighten it, but enough for information technology to move freely). Once the chain is properly mounted, take the scrench and tighten the bar nuts. Now your chainsaw is set up to cut wood, but refill information technology with gas and bar oil.