Poulan Chainsaw

I had a small Poulan chainsaw in the shop recently.  These saws are inexpensive, but not very durable or long lasting.  They are so cheap that normally it is hardly worth repairing, for three hours of labor you could buy a new one.

The customer that brought me this saw complained that it did not idle and seemed to need choking every time it was started.  This sounds like a classic gummed up 2-stroke carb problem.   I started it up and noticed right away that the clutch seemed to be stuck and the saw did not run very good.  Normally the centrifugal clutch should release at low rpm and allow the saw to run without the chain moving.  On this saw the chain moved even when I pulled the start rope.

I put a little Sea Foam in the gas tank and let it sit for a while.  Well the Sea Foam was working its magic on the carb I check out the clutch.  When I pulled the bar off and removed the clutch cover I discovered that the spring in the clutch was broken.  I looked through my collection of broken saws and found a used spring that would work.

After putting the saw back together it ran great.  I am normally not a big believer in these "miracle in a can" engine treatments, but I have had great success with Sea Foam.  Anytime I have an engine that has been sitting unused for a long time and it does not run properly due to a carb problem, I put a little Sea Foam in the tank and it clears it right up.