Two stroke engines, opinion sought

[dickm]

I have a couple of Stihl strimmers, an FS200 which runs like a train, but is getting too heavy for this ancient guy and a much lighter FS66, which runs well when it wants to, then refuses to start, or dies unexpectedly. Suspect there is some sort of carburettor problem. Looks like a Chinese copy of the original Walbro is £12-15, or full gasket set (also from China, it seems) is about £5. Question. Would folk advise keeping the OEM carb but fitting new gaskets etc, or go for the complete carb?
Just don't say buy a modern battery Stihl!

 

[af99]

Not Stihl, but I have used the copies of Honda and Briggs carbs on our collection of elderly mowers and they have been pretty good. Much better quality than I expected for the money, came with a set of gaskets, and fitted perfectly. The only difference I spotted was that the replacement for the Briggs engine doesn't have a drain screw, but otherwise identical for much less money.

 

[Bingy man]

your genuine Stilh carb is probably far superior to the Chinese copy’s so for me I’d always go with genuine parts . As long as the carb is in good condition then I’d clean it -especially the needle and replace any gaskets. My reasoning for this is 90+ % of the carb is just a lump of cast alloy . Also it’s worth bearing in mind that this new petrol may not like older machines.

 

[sawtooth-9]

We run a couple of Stihl trimmers and never found a problem with the carbys
The usual problem is either a dirty air filter or most likely, a blocked spark arrestor.
I would check these out before spending money on a new carb.
If the spark arrestor is even partially blocked, it reduces the ability to fully expel exhaust gasses resulting in poor running etc.
Spark arrestors are easily cleaned - simply unscrew the arrestor, heat until the mesh is red hot, allow to cool and use a small brass wire brush to remove the carbon deposits.
Much cheaper than a new carby

 

[Jameshow]

Not Stihl, but I have used the copies of Honda and Briggs carbs on our collection of elderly mowers and they have been pretty good. Much better quality than I expected for the money, came with a set of gaskets, and fitted perfectly. The only difference I spotted was that the replacement for the Briggs engine doesn't have a drain screw, but otherwise identical for much less money.

That's good to know my generator needs one.

 

[John Brown]

I, also, have fitted a third party carb to a Stihl strimmer with no problems. Had to mod the throttle cable slightly, but works fine.

 

[Orraloon]

I know you said dont mention a battery job but its worth thinking about. Over the years I have had a few 2 stroke strimmers and while they are great for the first few years they become a pain in the @&$£ when they play up. They usually time the "I am not going to work today moment'' to cause maximum bu&&eration. Anyhow last year I opted for a 40v Ryobi.
It just goes when you need it, is lighter, quiet, cleaner and has as much grunt as the petrol job had. Pretty happy with the change. Cost about what a decent petrol job would have been but since then I have found that there are generic fittings like hedge trimmers, edgers and tree loppers that can fit it plus batteries. All much cheaper than the brand name. I treated myself to a hedge trimmer and a bigger 6 amp hour battery.
Regards
John

 

[clogs]

I only ever bought Stihl but the qual has hit the floor......the old old ones are still great.....
had to have replacement machines under warranty.....then they fell apart.......
Note there's a couple of prominent UK suppliers that wont sell Stihl anymore due to warranty issues.....
ever since, very happy with Echo....all my garden machinery is now Echo apart from an old Kawasaki strimmer and a Robin hedge trimmer that just wont die.....
I too cant handle the big ones anymore so those little Echo's of mine do suffer a lot.....
biggest prob with those 2 stroke engines is the oil, I only ever use Synthetic oil now..so much better than the old type and no real price dif when u compare the cost of machines now.......

I think u'll find that all carbs for small engine are made in China.....cant ever remember seeing a carb that said made in the US etc for years......
Those Chinese carbs work great BUT u have to be very clear to get the same model as there are hundreds of diff types........
I've no idea how they can send em around the world for £20 but all those I have fitted worked well, certainly as good as the original......
Further, my Ultra=Sonic cleaner cost £500 and on occ it can't clean the carbs so that they run right, then a new carb is nec.....from China it's around 2-3 weeks....

As for the battery models ....wait for the next generation in batt tech....unless u have money to burn......

 

[pe2dave]

Stihl FS55, changed the carb (complete kit, carb and gaskets), no problem.

 

[dickm]

Thanks guys! Definitely confused at a higher level. I'd been sort of thinking that maybe the original alloy body was possibly better quality than Chinoiserie, so fitting new gaskets to the old one might make sense, but .....
Sorry to be a total donut, but where is the spark arrestor????

 

[John Brown]

I believe it's a metal mesh that stops sparks or fire from exiting the exhaust.

 

[Spectric]

or go for the complete carb?

Just fit a new complete genuine carb and airfilter, the one on my rotovator with a 4 stroke Honda engine was destroyed by using E10 fuel and could not be repaired, I also had a similar issue with a 2 stroke hedge trimmer but in this case the carb was repaired although at the end of the day it was no cheaper than if they had just replaced it. This E10 fuel is no good in carburetor engines unless you drain it out at the end of the season, I now use Aspen in the rotovator as it gets little use.

 

[Myfordman]

Whichever route you take to get it running, don't use ethanol polluted fuel and run it dry if infrequently used and ALWAYS at the end of season.
Look up Chickanic on youtube - easy on the eye and what she does not know about small engine fault and fixes ain't worth knowing.

 

[pe2dave]

Thanks guys! Definitely confused at a higher level. I'd been sort of thinking that maybe the original alloy body was possibly better quality than Chinoiserie, so fitting new gaskets to the old one might make sense, but .....
Sorry to be a total donut, but where is the spark arrestor????

On my 55, there wasn't a spark arrester.

 

[Housey210]

I have a couple of Stihl strimmers, an FS200 which runs like a train, but is getting too heavy for this ancient guy and a much lighter FS66, which runs well when it wants to, then refuses to start, or dies unexpectedly. Suspect there is some sort of carburettor problem. Looks like a Chinese copy of the original Walbro is £12-15, or full gasket set (also from China, it seems) is about £5. Question. Would folk advise keeping the OEM carb but fitting new gaskets etc, or go for the complete carb?
Just don't say buy a modern battery Stihl!

is there a service kit available for it? Some kits on ebay, jet may be blocked / worn. I use Aliexpress a lot for bits and bobs now, cheap and around 2 weeks to arrive. Just bought a remote alarm fob, one week. just found these- carb ali- kit ebay

 

[dickm]

Now even more unsure what to do. Had intended to sell the FS200 to a guy who helps with the garden, but today needed to do some serious strimming, so heaved the beast down from its resting place, started it up and had fogotten just how much "grunt" it had. Felt like it could drop small trees, and got all the trimming done between showers. It's not ideal in confined spaces, but with a clear run, it does a really good job. But how much longer will my prostate treatment let me use it????
Looked at AliExpress, but reluctant to put any more money into China; the site is actually owned by China, which I guess could cause problems if there was any dispute. Know I'm swimming against the tide here, but still prefer if possible to use sites based in Europe or at a pinch, USA.

 

[Bingy man]

I’m probably asking a daft question here but as you mentioned a few times the” handling of the beast “ but I’m just wondering/ curious if you use the harness when using your Stilh.

 

[Housey210]

Now even more unsure what to do. Had intended to sell the FS200 to a guy who helps with the garden, but today needed to do some serious strimming, so heaved the beast down from its resting place, started it up and had fogotten just how much "grunt" it had. Felt like it could drop small trees, and got all the trimming done between showers. It's not ideal in confined spaces, but with a clear run, it does a really good job. But how much longer will my prostate treatment let me use it????
Looked at AliExpress, but reluctant to put any more money into China; the site is actually owned by China, which I guess could cause problems if there was any dispute. Know I'm swimming against the tide here, but still prefer if possible to use sites based in Europe or at a pinch, USA.

"Looked at AliExpress, but reluctant to put any more money into China; the site is actually owned by China, which I guess could cause problems if there was any dispute" - where do you think those on ebay come from? Neighbour bought a copy carb, chinese, for his belle mixer, still working 5 yrs on. £8 for the carb, worth a punt.

 

[sawtooth-9]

Thanks guys! Definitely confused at a higher level. I'd been sort of thinking that maybe the original alloy body was possibly better quality than Chinoiserie, so fitting new gaskets to the old one might make sense, but .....
Sorry to be a total donut, but where is the spark arrestor????

Spark arrestor is located in the exhaust. Usually it's screwed into the muffler with the mesh pointing up stream. Because of the tighter constraints of spark emissions, the mesh is quite fine and blocks quite easily.

 

[af99]

Have you considered a walk-behind strimmer? I always seem to twist when I use a conventional strimmer + harness, which hurts my back. I bought a walk-behind strimmer and it has been amazing. Loads of power, bigger cutting area, no back pain. I got mine second hand for £60 and they are about £500 for a new one. Highly recommended.