Husky 257 won’t idle

N

Nkymatt

Location
Northern Kentucky
Just bought a husqvarna 257. Obviously a older saw but it cuts great and starts easy once its warm. Took it out for a day at work with a new full chisel chain and it cut through 12-18inch diameter logs no problem. Only issue I’m having is that it dies right after the cut. Doesn’t want to idle after I first start it either. If I rev it lightly between cuts it’ll stay running but dies if it sit it down or put the brake on to go to the next cut. My first thought is to adjust the idle on the carburetor but not something I’m completely familiar with so I’m going to look into it more first. Are there any other thoughts on what the issue could be? Also I have been considering a muffler mod after I get this issue handled just to try to increase the performance a little more. Any added thoughts on how to go about that or other recommendations for upgrades/mods? Might use this for full time work as a middle saw between the 193t and the 441


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I'll bite. Find a factory technician service manual, even for a different brand if necessary, and it will walk you through all the gotcha's that can hinder your saw. Things like leaks, seals, compression, carb specs/performance. It all comes together for good starting and running. You'll need a compression tester and hand vac/pump for the basics.

take care
 
There’s a whole list of possible issues here. Carburetor might need adjustment, spark plug could be fouled, could have bad fuel. Also could be an air leak somewhere, a clutch that’s acting up, or scored cylinder. On an older saw, any of the above is possible.

I’ll second what @Bart_ said, find a service manual and start reading and eliminating things. Or just drop the saw off at the shop and pay to have it sorted out.
 
Thank you for the advice. I got this saw for a good price so it wouldn’t hurt me to use it to learn on. I’ll get the tools together to start on it and see what I can find. I emptied the tank when I bought it and used fresh gas and oil which I know is good from my other saws. I checked the plug last night and was getting spark. At this point the only issue I’m having is the idle. It will not idle after I start cutting.

I’ll go through the manual, I found one for another saw in the same series and I’ll check all the boxes as I go. Thank you again.


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Does this saw have hi/lo adjustments? The pics I saw online (eBay) don't show any jet access holes in cover, but with the cover removed, there looks like there's a black piece of plastic connected to carb that has 2 access tubes that look suspiciously like jet adjustments. If so, I would start with jet adjustment. Saws [can] have a slightly different A/F mix preference once warm/hot, so set it to operate properly there. If you ultimately can't find a balance between cold cranking and warm/hot cranking/operation, then you will need more advanced troubleshooting.
 
Oh and may sure the air filter has been clean out thoroughly. Simple Green, Purple Power, carb cleaner, whatever. Any oil in there can mess up your A/F ratio. I had that happen on my Stihl blower earlier this year and it gave almost the same symptoms.
 
Some diagnostic stuff you can do is pull the muffler and look at the condition of the piston, rings, and cylinder, seal the saw and pressure/vac test to find an air leak, pressure test carb to see if the needle seats and seals and go from there. Like someone else said it could be all kinds of things. It may be a stiff metering diaphragm in the carburetor or something like that, but I suggest learning diagnostics to avoid firing the parts cannon at her.
 
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