Stihl 024

[SLawyer Dave]

(Warning, large intro to get to the chainsaw part)   ;D

Most of my legal work now involves working with children and families who are having problems with the law, (where CPS, Probation, Juvenile Probation, Drug Court, or other governmental agencies are involved).  One of the things I see all too often, are kids that don't seem to have any deep "connection" to their own life.  What I mean by that, is that they don't really seem to have any real "love" for anything, (other than playing the X-box).  When you try to talk to them and get a sense of what they "want" or would "like".  You either get Marvel Comic super hero ideas, (super powers) to make their lives better, or you get simple requests like a "nice place to live where the heater works", "a safe place".  Its like they are so caught up with the details of "surviving", (either physically or emotionally), that they don't ever get to the point of learning to enjoy life. 

It makes me appreciate my upbringing all the more.  My dad was a very busy man when I was growing up.  He never had the chance to go to college, but through grit and tenacity he built his way up in the California banking industry.  He had high standards, for both himself, and his family.  Not that I was expected to be "perfect", but I better be polite, work hard, and demonstrate good values.  One thing that always amazed me about my dad was how comfortable he was dressed in one of his 3 piece suits dealing with very wealthy and powerful people, and then just hours later, kicking back in jeans and t-shirt with "the guys" (contractors, laborers, you know, the hard working blue collar guys that made this country great), drinking beer after work.  I learned first hand that "great men" were not defined by how much money they made, or how educated they were; but by how they lived their lives.

My dad made time for me.  He would be there for my games and practices.  He would be there for the school concerts and productions.  He wanted me to know that what I did was important to him.  I didn't have to be the star, (and rarely was), but he expected me to do my best.  All of this helped make me a "good" person, (no cracks about lawyers not being able to be good persons).    
(For the moms out there, no slacking, I had the best mom ever.  I talk about the time I spent with my father, because it was in some ways a lot more memorable, because it was a lot more limited than with my mom.)

The two activities I absolutely LOVE in my life, I can directly trace back to the time my father spent with me not because it was important to me, or to him, but it was because it was something we could share together.  One was fishing, and the other is working with wood.  While I hated chores like every other kid out there, I learned to love going after firewood.  It was one of the few times my family could go out together, no pretenses, no having to act "good", it was just us out in the woods working together.  I was always eager to move up to the next job.  When I could barely carry and stack wood, I wanted to start splitting it.  Once I could split it, I wanted to start using the chain saw to cut.  I look back at this "struggle" as another example of the age old process of the son learning from the father, and trying to grow to the point where you can attain the "status" and respect for being able to "work like a man", or more accurately, "work like your father". 

When I turned 14, my "big present" was a brand new Stihl 024 (1982 first year they made that model).  18 inch bar, steel body, and with the saying, "Made in West Germany" on the side.  I know that seems weird, but that is what I wanted for my birthday.  My dad had been letting me use his Stihl 040 on occasion, but it was just too heavy for me.  The 024 was still hard for limbing for me, as I just didn't have the forearm strength to really twist and hold the saw for cutting, but I could control it for vertical cuts.  So that was the system we employed.  My father would fall the trees, and then he would start limbing them.  I would follow behind him and start cutting 16" lengths.  My mom would start hauling and loading the wood.  Then my dad and I would take turns splitting with me helping mom loading and stacking.  Mom would always bring a great picnic feast, and we would spend the day out working together. 

Like I tell some of my teenage clients, I learned a lot of great lessons from my dad in the first half of my life, and I have learned a lot of bad lessons from my dad in the second half of my life.  Both are very valuable in helping me choose how I live.  My parents separated 2 months after I started college.  My dad had the classic mid-life crisis, affairs with younger women, and poor choices that cost him his career.  My comfortable middle class existence was in for a rude awakening.  Suddenly my part time job used to pay for "my expenses" while my parents paid for my school tuition, was at an end. 

That was when my 024 really saved my butt.  College kids in my area were a dime a dozen, and got paid like it.   I however, could work all weekend, and throughout the summer after my normal job, cutting, splitting and selling firewood.  I have no idea how many hundreds if not thousands of cords of wood I cut during 9 years of college and law school with that dang little saw.  I could bury that 18" bar in a 30" oak, and it would keep right on cutting through it. 

About 7 years ago, after building up my law practice, and packing on over100 lbs, I decided I needed to get more active.  So I started trying to cut my own firewood again, (I had been buying it for years).  So I pulled that old 024 out of my mom's garage where it had been sitting for a decade or more.  With just a simple cleaning and new spark plug, it fired right up and ran like a champ.  Unfortunately, I did not.  Sheesh, I felt like that 14 year old kid again, too weak to really use it, and so out of shape that within minutes of starting it, my legs and back were screaming at me. 

Over time, I got better, lost weight and started to work better.  Unfortunately, the same was not true for my saw.  It started getting really hot.  It only wanted to run for short periods of time.  I took it in to my local Stihl dealer, and he said it wasn't worth trying to fix it, as most likely the piston had become worn, and the cylinder scarred.  So I ended up buying a new Stihl which I am still using and very happy with.  I still wanted to try and get it fixed enough to at least be my "back up saw" in case I got my new one caught in a pinch.  So I took it to an independent dealer, and he "worked it over" to the tune of $120.  I am not a mechanic, so I really don't know what he did, but suffice it to say, it really is not running any better than it was before.  I can still not get more than half a tank through it before it becomes WAY too hot and it is very underpowered. 

So while I know trying to have this saw rebuilt is probably not financially "sound", I am wondering whether it is even possible, and if so, who could do this work and how much would it likely cost?  My oldest grandson is 13, and I have 3 others growing like weeds, so I am thinking it might be just the saw to try and share with them.  So I am looking for any advice or referrals from you out there in Forestry Forum Land. 

Thanks for your help, and letting me bend your ear.

Dave

[7sleeper]

Very nice story!

Getting it repaired by a Stihl mechanic usually isn't a financially sensible thing to do. And determing how much it will cost without seeing it in person is a uncertanty that is unethical to debate about.
What I would do in your situation is get into contact with saw builders and ask for their help. It will cost some money but it will be done perfectly.
I would contact one of these guys mastermindworksaws, blsnelling or others. You can find their contact info on arboristsite.com. They can surely help you out. It might be as simple as a carb rebuild or as difficult as a full rebuild with aftermarket parts.
With a saw of that sentimental value and age I would do a full rebuild with all rubber new, new bearings, carb rebuild, depending on cylinder only a rering of the piston or new piston or new topend, etc. In the end you will have a saw like brand new that will last you another life time! And yes the 024 is a saw worth rebuilding! Second smallest pro saw in the Stihl line up. Equivalent today is the 241.

Good luck!

7

[Al_Smith]

They aren't a bad little saw .Of that series 024/026 they have the most restrictive muffler .Rather quite but it doesn't do the engine any good .

Nobody was born a mechanic it's a learned thing.Rebuilding one really isn't that big of a deal although a lot of people think 2 cycle engines are a type of black art or witch craft .

If the cylinder and piston aren't real bad a set of rings and seals would fix it right up and give it a new lease on life .

I've got 50 bucks in mine which was gleened from a dealers dead pile .It has a slightly cooked exhaust side of the piston.not bad .It was caused from running probabley too lean with maybe 50 to 1 gas/oil ratio .

[Al_Smith]

----it takes about two posts to get a point across.

Back to 024 .All I did was cut the baffles out of the muffler and retune the saw and I've never had a problem with it .Oh yeah ,32 to 1 gas/oil mix too .

They don't have to be perfect to run well .To cut to the chase ,yes it's worth rebuilding .

[thecfarm]

If I had a saw like that I would want to save it too. I myself would cause more problems by working on it myself.  :  I would like to see a member take it on and fix it. Yes,it might cost $300,but it would run like a new one again.

[SLawyer Dave]

If I had a saw like that I would want to save it too. I myself would cause more problems by working on it myself.  :  I would like to see a member take it on and fix it. Yes,it might cost $300,but it would run like a new one again.

I prescribe to the Dirty Hairy line, "A man has to know his limits", and when it comes to gas engines, anything beyond simple maintenance is over mine.    

If a $300 investment would make it run "like a new one again", that would seem pretty reasonable to me.  It sure would be great to be able to teach my grandsons how to safely cut firewood with it, as my dad taught me with the same saw.

[thecfarm]

My estimate of how much things cost is usually way off. I naively thought that the wife's Garden Shack steel roofing would cost about $400-500. $1000 later the steel is on the roof.  :

[martyinmi]

Dave,
I wouldn't care how much it might cost you to get that saw up and running-just get er done!
My dad bought a new Mac 10-10 auto in around '74 or 75. We used it for firewood to heat the house with until all of us boys were out of school. He gave it to me when I started burning wood in '84 or '85.
I used it quite regularly until it blew up in about 2003.
I didn't have time to mess with it myself, so I had my local Stihl dealer completely rebuild it for me. Now(after a bit over $300) it is internally like new again.
Most of the cosmetic flaws are from me and my dad, so I'd never dream of restoring it externally.
I own about 30 or so saws, and if anyone ever feels the need to steal any of them, I really hope they'll leave the 'ol 10-10 alone. It and my dads old Mac 610 have the most value......to me anyways!