Anyone okay with tool-less chain tensioner?

thesawincanada · Oct 14, 2019

I have an ms181 & ms291 with the toolless ajuster. Both work well. The ms 291 set up adds extra weight to the saw, compared to an ms 291 without

treesmith · Oct 15, 2019

Far better solution for me...

Bigmac · Oct 16, 2019

My first saw was a ms250c easy to start an quick chain adjustment, it was a Christmas present years ago, mine worked great, was handy to make fast adjustments. Poor oil flow will cause a chain to stretch as well and some chains are just junk! I have a 2100cd that oils like crazy , well the oil cap was bad and it leaked out a bunch oil, when I fired it up I didn’t realize it was empty, and a brand new 36”chain sagged 1 inch, let it cool back down abt it was almost back to normal, oil is a big deal! lol I had to throw out a chain that was on my homelite 550, it oils great and the chain just keeps stretching, get it tight, make two cuts and it’s loose, it was a used Stihl chain so who knows the history.
But I like the quick adjuster on the 250, works just fine, but the oil hole hole in the bar needs to be clear to keep chain stretch at bay.

a. palmer jr. · Oct 17, 2019

One nice thing about the Stihl adjuster, if you don't like it you can change it back to the two bolt system with little effort or cost..I've done several.

heimannm · Oct 29, 2019

The only saw I have with the tool less chain tensioner is a "McCulloch" XM40 which I believe is actually a Husqvarna product. It seems to work O.K. but you have to understand how it works and be able to tickle it a little to make it work right.

It seems to me the people who need it most (occasional users) are the least likely to figure out how they are supposed to work and be able to compensate or tweak them as needed to get them to work properly.

Mark

Terry Syd · Oct 30, 2019

Bigmac said:
But I like the quick adjuster on the 250, works just fine, but the oil hole hole in the bar needs to be clear to keep chain stretch at bay.

Try grinding a 45 degree angle on the inside of the oil hole on the bar. With the angle directed to the front of the bar, the oil and chips will flow in that direction. The 90 degree angles on the holes, on some bars, will tend to 'catch' the chips. Get everything flowing forward...

fearofpavement · Oct 30, 2019

I've got a Stihl 018 and MS180 that has the tool less chain adjuster. They work ok but I don't like them.
I've run a Poulan saw that had it and it was pretty worthless. Bar was all loosey goosey.
I put them in the same category as flippy caps. ie, they solved a problem that didn't exist.

Derf · Oct 31, 2019

heimannm said:
View attachment 205431

I see an orange saw, a yellow saw, a green saw, and then I see a saw that looks like it doesn’t know what color to be. Orange. Red. Yellow. Blue. Like some fisher price junkyard mish-mosh. What makes you think that is a Husqvarna product?

heimannm · Oct 31, 2019

Production was at a time when the McCulloch name was owned by Husqvarna as it was explained to me.

Mark

Philbert · Oct 31, 2019

I have it on a few saws. Some only come that way, so you do not have a choice, and I have learned to use them. I like the ones with a large, outside knob for tension adjustment better than the ones with small thumb wheels (e.g. STIHL): I frequently have to take my gloves off and fuss with the thumb wheels, and do not feel that I can adjust tension as accurately as I would like, or as I can with a scrench.

The tool-less systems generally have more parts, which means more parts to break, more parts to lose, more difficult to clean, etc. On the STIHL system, there is also a toothed wheel attached to one side of the guide bar with a very small, non-standard screw, which is easy to lose in the field, and discourages flipping the bar frequently.

Philbert

Anyone okay with tool-less chain tensioner?

thesawincanada

For the love of saws

treesmith

Tree Hugger/Cutterer

Bigmac

Mastermind Approved!

a. palmer jr.

Pinnacle OPE Member

heimannm

Here For The Long Haul!

Terry Syd

Pinnacle OPE Member

fearofpavement

Pinnacle OPE Member

Derf

Pinnacle OPE Member

heimannm

Here For The Long Haul!

Philbert

Chainsaw Enthusiast

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