HELP! Stihl 038 Mag 2

[BS67]

I Recently Acquired What Is Supposed To Be A 038 Mag 2 But I Thought They Were All Made In Brazil And Serial # Started With A 3 And Exhaust Also Had Dual ports ,My Serial Starts With A 1 And Single Port Exhaust,Any Thoughts

 

[PA Dan]

I Recently Acquired What Is Supposed To Be A 038 Mag 2 But I Thought They Were All Made In Brazil And Serial # Started With A 3 And Exhaust Also Had Dual ports ,My Serial Starts With A 1 And Single Port Exhaust,Any Thoughts

@Glock37 should be around with some info.

 

[drf256]

I do have a friend that bought a new 038M, I think it was in 1989, but I may be off. It was the year that the 044 was a new Stihl introduction. He still has the advertisement from Stihl about the 2 saws. He was looking for a stumping saw and the dealer led him to the 038 over the newer lighter 044. The saw hasn’t had any work or even a carb adjustment screw turned in 34 years and still runs, even with moderate commercial use and 50:1 red armor.

His saw is a very late one and is Brazil made. The top badge only says “038”. There is no magnum designation on it. At the end of its run, I believe all 038’s sold in the USA were 52mm mags.

The Mag II were typically german made from my recollection. If you have a 52MM saw it’s probably all original, but someone coulda swapped out you muffler.

Do the chop stick/drinking saw measure through the ex port and see what size cylinder bore you have. In addition, if you post your SN, there is a way to find out the year it was made.

 

[Al Smith]

I've got a Brazilan 038 mag plus a German made model .The Brazilan only has a decal below the badge that says magnum .The German has magnum in the metal tag .It's the same saw though no matter what it says and where .I might add this model responds to modifications very well no matter where it was made .Plus it's one tough old saw because I had kept the German model running for over 20 years with two rebuilds until it was given to me from the tree service that owned it .It still does well .

 

[drf256]

I should have added that it has the “magnum” sticker like most Stihls of its era. The problem with the Mag decal is that it’s generally a meaningless sales pitch marketing item. They went on saws regardless of any change in model to designate that it meant anything.

 

[BS67]

Ok,That Explains The Serial # Starting With 1 Then ,Mine Top Badge Also Has The Magnum 2 In The Badge And The Recoil Stihl Badge Says Made In West Germany ,I Was A Little Confused Because A Guy Told Me All The Mag 2’s We’re Made In Brazil But It Just Didn’t Add Up Unless Some One Had Switched Covers out ,Thanks For The Info ,That Makes Me Feel Better About The Saw

 

[BS67]

I Thought The Exhaust Was Only Single Port But It Is A Double Port Exhaust ,Now I Need To Find A Nice Tank Handle And It Will Be A Looker

 

[BS67]

I do have a friend that bought a new 038M, I think it was in 1989, but I may be off. It was the year that the 044 was a new Stihl introduction. He still has the advertisement from Stihl about the 2 saws. He was looking for a stumping saw and the dealer led him to the 038 over the newer lighter 044. The saw hasn’t had any work or even a carb adjustment screw turned in 34 years and still runs, even with moderate commercial use and 50:1 red armor.

His saw is a very late one and is Brazil made. The top badge only says “038”. There is no magnum designation on it. At the end of its run, I believe all 038’s sold in the USA were 52mm mags.

The Mag II were typically german made from my recollection. If you have a 52MM saw it’s probably all original, but someone coulda swapped out you muffler.

Do the chop stick/drinking saw measure through the ex port and see what size cylinder bore you have. In addition, if you post your SN, there is a way to find out the year it was made.

 

[BS67]

Did The Straw Trick To Measure Bore And It Is A 52mm ,Checked The Serial # And It Comes Up 1988,Upon Double Checking The Muffler Is A Dual Port ( I Just Got Off 11-7 And Was Tired When I Looked At It ) Somehow I Overlooked The Second Port

 

[Al Smith]

Many manufactors just slightly changed the model designations but never changed the actual saw .It's a marketing ploy that still remains in practice . Same applies to for example the tonnage ratings on log splitters .In reality to achieve those ratings it would take hydraulics exceeding 5,000 PSI.
Unless of course somebody changed the laws of physics .