Stihl MS170 Power loss/ saw running like junk

[DonaldRobertson]

I know some of you may have experienced problems like this before but a few days ago I took my saw out of winter storage and cut down a tree but the thing is I used gas that I had from the summer of last year and after about 30 minutes of running the saw with the gas from last year I started losing power. I heard this is caused by the carburetor getting gummed up and my dad mentioned that if I buy the carburetor gum out cleaner that it will take like 3 gallons of gas before it really takes effect to clean it all out. What do you guys think of this and could this be the real problem to this. I bought the saw and the gas that I used the other day back in like August 2009. Let me know what you guys all think.

 

[Roger_Barnett]

You prolly need to repair the carb. The old gas may have ruined the diaphragm. Put a kit in it..or, better yet, have a shop do it.

Saws should be idled till the run out of fuel before they're stored.....

 

[Toparboring]

That and the spak plug could be fouled up. Basically you need to take it to a shop and have this looked over or do what Roger has suggested.

 

[DonaldRobertson]

I'm going to call the dealer where I bought it from and see what they can do or tell me what I can do to fix it.

 

[cdekkema]

The ms170 doesn't have the capacity for mid range throttle operation on the carb, its all or nothing with those saws. Running half idle can burn em out. The aren't bad for $200 bucks and they are light as hell for a cheap climbing saw for a season.

 

[banjo]

If it sat for a while with some gas in it the ethanol could cause problems with fuel lines as well as carb. I would change fuel line, clean carb, and use fresh gas.

 

[DonaldRobertson]

Well I took this saw to the shop and they fixed it to to what they thought and it turned and they didnt fix it right and didnt know what else to do. They gave me a brand new saw for replacement and I didnt have to pay anything due to the warranty covered it all.