My Stihl 026 blew the piston

LeeB · October 10, 2015, 03:58:37 AM

If you go to the trouble of tearing it down, replace the rubber goods, fuel line, impulse line, and vent line. Cheap insurance and likely will solve whatever happened before.

Al_Smith · October 10, 2015, 07:25:04 PM

If that thing actually has a cracked piston chances are it ingested something it should not have .Stihl cylinders are pretty tough also a good chance the cylinder might be okay .

A good after market piston/rings such as a Meteor will be around 30 dollars .Seals maybe 20 OEM ,half that after market .So for maybe 50 and change that might cure it .

Contrary to what some might think it doesn't have to be factory fresh to run well and run good for a long time.If a dealer did the work you will have more in it than the saw cost new .

Magicman · October 10, 2015, 07:43:09 PM

I see where FF Sponsor CHAINSAWR (Scott) has a 026 piston listed for $25.49. LINK about 2/3 down the page. I would give him a call.

Al_Smith · October 10, 2015, 08:37:29 PM

Hey hey hey,I'll put in a plug for Scott .One of the best parts suppliers on the internet .

Backcountry · October 13, 2015, 12:05:28 AM

Thanks for all the tips folks, much appreciated!

There was a time a couple years back, where I was cutting a lot of maple and the saw died on me, I saw lots of white smoke coming out of it. It was never right after that, seemed low on power, although it worked better than recent days. Maybe that was the original fault, and I was just limping it along since then, doing more damage.

QuoteIf that thing actually has a cracked piston chances are it ingested something it should not have

I know that feeling... Like something in the gas or air that slipped past the filter?

Hope to get this back soon, and I'll post some photos of the piston/cylinder.

In the meantime, back to cutting 4" Oak with my 18v Sawzall :D

dougand3 · October 13, 2015, 12:05:30 PM

Ingesting into engine thru fuel line is unlikely. Screen in carb would catch it. Sneaking around air filter is more likely. Or if the piston cracked first, a piece of it bounced around the crankshaft and may have worked it's way upwards, past the ring, to the top of piston. That gets ugly.

dougand3 · October 13, 2015, 11:02:22 PM

Here's some bad indigestion for you. PP260 - the choke rod broke, screw holding the plate freed up and shot into intake. Either Walbro made a cheap rod or buyer was too rough yanking choke too hard.

Al_Smith · October 14, 2015, 05:20:39 AM

In my shed resides an early Stihl 038 magnum that spent over 20 hard years in tree service work .That saw ingested something that literally grenaded the piston .

It didn't as much as even put a scratch on the cylinder .Mahl made some tough plating .New OEM piston and it probably runs and cuts as well today as when new .

Weekend_Sawyer · October 14, 2015, 06:29:04 AM

Id like to have a peek in your shed Al!

WV Mountaineer · October 14, 2015, 07:36:45 PM

First off. Rebuild it!!!!!!! Great little saws

My first choice would be chainsawr kits or a used part. I bought a rebuild kit from him for my 385 and it was wonderful. If he doesn't have one, I'd stick with the Hyway or Meteor kit. Although, my uncle rebuilds and runs hutzul and loves them. Only thing I'd do is buy some caber rings and use them instead of the provided ones in whatever kit you choose.

Check the crank. Replace the crank bearings while you are at it. I'd really replace all rubber lines and rubber intake boot. Might as well replace the fuel filter too. You could rebuild this saw for $130 if you replace everything.

Whatever you do, save the saw instead of junking it. Even if you have to put it aside for now. It is an easy fix. God Bless

Al_Smith · October 14, 2015, 08:30:14 PM

In addition to all the other advice something to think about .In my own little world I've found out given enough time concerning chainsaws that eventually when you least expect it a donor saw will pop up .

It could be something a simple as somebody backed over it with a lawnmower and broke the handle .Fact I've got a dandy of a Stihl bg 85 blower that lost a battle with a dump trunk . Freebie,the donor was 57 bucks including shipping fleabay .You just never know .

Backcountry · October 15, 2015, 12:31:33 AM

Thanks WV good tips!

Quote from: Al_Smith on October 14, 2015, 08:30:14 PM
In my own little world I've found out given enough time concerning chainsaws that eventually when you least expect it a donor saw will pop up .

True enough, the universe provides... I was given a much older looking Stihl 030 AV. Not sure how far it's from running, but I'm sure I'll learn a thing or two from the 026, and move on down the bench and maybe get that one running as a spare, or to pass on to someone else who is in need. No chain brake though, and manual oiler

Backcountry · October 15, 2015, 04:56:20 PM

<sigh> $65+ tax to find out the saw is a 'write off'. And they gave it back with the muffler detached missing the bolts. I'll be lucky if other parts aren't missing too. >:(

Well, time to dig in...

Weekend_Sawyer · October 15, 2015, 06:06:55 PM

why is it a write off? cylander scored? I'm curious.

ZeroJunk · October 15, 2015, 06:27:43 PM

Quote from: Backcountry on October 15, 2015, 04:56:20 PM
<sigh> $65+ tax to find out the saw is a 'write off'. And they gave it back with the muffler detached missing the bolts. I'll be lucky if other parts aren't missing too. >:(

Well, time to dig in...

I doubt they did anything other than take the muffler off. 5 Minutes maybe.

$65 is insane. Stihl store here charges $25 which I can understand. And, what is the tax on ? Labor ?

Backcountry · October 15, 2015, 06:37:42 PM

Quote from: ZeroJunk on October 15, 2015, 06:27:43 PM
I doubt they did anything other than take the muffler off. 5 Minutes maybe.

My guess as well... I asked the guy if it was the just the piston or also cylinder, he said both were scored. I asked if I needed a whole new top end, as I was going to rebuild it, and he said yes. I probably could have asked if my hair was on fire and he would have said yes... He wasn't the guy who actually looked at it.

It's a write off, because they sell new saws instead of rebuilding old ones. :-\ I thought I'd found the right shop, but clearly not.

isawlogs · October 15, 2015, 07:29:53 PM

Tax must be on service...... Get them to give you new screws for the muffler, they should of been there when you got your saw back.

Al_Smith · October 15, 2015, 07:55:32 PM

More times than not shops will knock off the service fees if the person buys a new saw. For a picker like myself I buy them at 50 a pop for a complete saw that more times than not needs very little work .

Backcountry · October 15, 2015, 08:07:06 PM

I went back for the screws. "oh he wants them?"... They gave me 2, but from what I recall I need more than that, some for the inside and outside. Just wanted to get the eff outta there, I'll figure it out.

And yeah, if I wanted to buy a new saw, theoretically I'd get my $65 back on the price.

Al_Smith · October 16, 2015, 08:22:11 PM

If all they did was look at the piston through the exhaust port there might not be anything wrong with it .Maybe some burn might be all .

The last saw I got out of a dealers dead pile was an 024 Stihl, complete including a plastic bar guard.50 bucks .Slight piston burn not bad .All I did was cut the baffles out of the muffler and retune it .Neat little saw.

More than likely the owner was told the saw was beyond repair and he bought a new one .So there you go .

Backcountry · October 19, 2015, 04:51:52 PM

ARgh... Going to have to get a longer torx bit to get at the last two bolts on the cylinder. Looking through the exhaust port it seems like the piston has some breakage. I can't get a good photo of the cylinder wall, but it looks like it could be scored.

ZeroJunk · October 19, 2015, 04:54:07 PM

Good lord, I don't believe even JB weld will fix that.

Backcountry · October 19, 2015, 05:26:16 PM

Quote from: ZeroJunk on October 19, 2015, 04:54:07 PM
Good lord, I don't believe even JB weld will fix that.

:D

fossil · October 21, 2015, 11:17:40 AM

I would say you are definitely looking at a piston and cylinder. More to think about is where that missing piece of piston has gone. You are going to have to make sure it's not in the crank case and if it is, that it hasn't damaged your crankshaft bearings. Sometimes they end up going up the transfers and into the cylinder.

You will definitely need to look for the cause of the damage. If it wasn't straight gassed or accidentally run too lean there will be an air leak somewhere.

sawguy21 · October 21, 2015, 12:47:43 PM

YIKES!!!

That is one of the worst I have seen. It is more than straight gassed, I wonder if it ingested the rod bearing which means a complete tear down. Probably not worth fixing if you have to buy a new crank.
Many shops have a minimum 1/2 hour flat rate charge but $65 is excessive, that is probably an hour for writing up a service order, removing the muffler and turning on a penlight.They apparently would rather sell than service which IMHO is foolish, there is far more money in parts and labor.