Stihl 026 hard to pull

[Coyote machine]

Also, you might want to consider replacing the carb, IF it turns out to still be problematic after this current rebuild attempt. Sometimes things just can't be fixed, for whatever reason, and one's time has value, especially after all you've done to date. Just a thought to add to the equation...

 

[timsch75]

Here's a good step by step:
How to Rebuild a Stihl �26 Carburetor Wood Shop Mike

Thanks for this - just what I needed.

I'm embarrassed that I didn't search for rebuilding 026 carb before asking on the forum, since it shows up on the 1st page of the results.

Edit: reading Woodshop Mike's writeup, it dawned on me that I had checked what I thought was the impulse line, but was actually just the fuel line. I must have misinterpreted the info in the video I had watched a while back.

So---I've not actually checked the impulse line.

I searched for info on how to remove the impulse line, and I don't get many results that give me a good idea of how to do it. The most promising video manages to skip right over the removal part. Can anyone point me to a better source? thanks.

 

[newbury]

I may have missed it but did you try the "eye dropper of fuel MIX"?

Don't use straight gas, starter fluid or ether, just fresh mix, maybe even the EXPENSIVE store bought mix (the can comes in handy afterward).

 

[timsch75]

I may have missed it but did you try the "eye dropper of fuel MIX"?

Don't use straight gas, starter fluid or ether, just fresh mix, maybe even the EXPENSIVE store bought mix (the can comes in handy afterward).

I did forget to do that. I'll do that 1st thing after I clean the carb and put it all back together. Thanks for the reminder.

 

[Ford850]

I did forget to do that. I'll do that 1st thing after I clean the carb and put it all back together. Thanks for the reminder.

I don't think you removed the needle valve before. If not, that might be the most critical place to clean.

 

[timsch75]

I don't think you removed the needle valve before. If not, that might be the most critical place to clean.

I just pulled the needle valve out and it all looks so clean that I think it may be a new carb installed by the PO. It sure doesn't look very used. I sprayed it off with carb cleaner anyway. I could see through the jet.

I'm still trying to figure out what's required to get to the impulse line.

 

[dfkrug]

Thanks for this - just what I needed.

I'm embarrassed that I didn't search for rebuilding 026 carb before asking on the forum, since it shows up on the 1st page of the results.

Edit: reading Woodshop Mike's writeup, it dawned on me that I had checked what I thought was the impulse line, but was actually just the fuel line. I must have misinterpreted the info in the video I had watched a while back.

So---I've not actually checked the impulse line.

I searched for info on how to remove the impulse line, and I don't get many results that give me a good idea of how to do it. The manages to skip right over the removal part. Can anyone point me to a better source? thanks.

I just saw this thread and I was going to mention that you were testing the fuel line, not impulse line.
The MikesWoodShop website clearly shows the impulse line just behind the fuel line. It holds the carb
in, so you have to tug a bit to get it out. Look at his 6th photo, with the yellow circles.

I have taken an 026 and replaced the cyl/piston with aftermarket one that has a compression-release
valve, making it very easy to start. Only the 026 "PRO" version has a CR valve from the factory.

 

[Coyote machine]

So it would seem that maybe the issue with no fuel to the plug has been the mix-up over the impulse line. If it's not working, or cracked or in anyway damaged, that could be the problem with the no start condition.
I suggest you follow through on wood shop mike's other thread about his replacing the piston, rings, and new head, with compression release feature, on his 026. You could easily have cylinder or ring damage, though it combined with a non-functioning impulse line could render your saw unable to start. Once you get the impulse line working/replaced, then you should have fuel delivery and a start condition- finally.

Just like I said- when you find the answer to WHY (no fuel), THEN you can resolve the issue. Now you're onto the why...soon to resolve the situation. If you can get it to start or at least deliver fuel, then you will be able to figure out IF you need to do further investigation into if your top end is good or marginal....

A few more steps....

Definitely try the eyedropper of fresh fuel and see what it tells us...

 

[Coyote machine]

Here's just one link about impulse line(s) and an 026. There are many, many threads on the net about the lines. Arborist.com is a well known site for all kinds of saw fixes, etc. Just use Google and type in how do chainsaw impulse lines work, or similar.

Stihl 26 Needs New Impulse Line | Hearth.com Forums Home

 

[timsch75]

Thanks again for the help, and the links. I've searched quite a bit for stihl impulse 026 (or similar) and did find the same Hearth.com post, but like many of the others, I didn't get a good picture of how to reinstall the impulse line. I gather that it can be pulled off from the side where the carb mounts, but getting it back on is where I'm still foggy. My technical service manual doesn't spell it out, and the Hearth post skips from someone recommending hemostats to the OP stating that he had to take it all apart afterall. I can see through the gap a part of the impulse line, which unfortunately looks pretty good, but can't see where it mounts. I assume it pushes onto a nipple. If I can't get to the nipple with a hemostat, I'll pull it apart, but would like an idea of what needs to come apart.

As far as the eyedropper goes, does the fuel go into the sparkplug port or through the carburator (filter removed)?

 

[newbury]

<snip>

As far as the eyedropper goes, does the fuel go into the sparkplug port or through the carburator (filter removed)?

I put it in the carb.

 

[timsch75]

It definitely fires with fuel dropped through the carb.

 

[dfkrug]

I lean toward this being the problem:
http://www.tractorbynet.com/forums/...stihl-026-hard-pull-img_20160309_191620-1-jpg

Your photo from above shows your carb and the fuel pump diaphragm. It looks bad. Warped
and kind of porous. The 2 valve flaps are prob not seating properly.

Carb kits come with one of 3 kinds of fuel pump diaphragms: the fibrous one you have, solid plastic
mylar-type, and the older rubber kind. The first 2, I suspect, are designed to last longer with crappy
modern fuels. They all distort and get stiff, eventually. The fibrous ones seem to last the longest.

 

[Coyote machine]

Spark plug hole, carb, wherever it can get sucked across the plug when firing...

Why wait for a definitive answer to the impulse line removal- just dig into it so we can get this thing DONE! Not everything on earth has instructions on the i-net....
Go where no other has gone before.....

 

[timsch75]

Spark plug hole, carb, wherever it can get sucked across the plug when firing...

Why wait for a definitive answer to the impulse line removal- just dig into it so we can get this thing DONE! Not everything on earth has instructions on the i-net....
Go where no other has gone before.....

I'm no stranger to digging into anything without clear instructions or someone holding my hand. Noone wants this done more than I do. I've learned enough about "haste makes waste" to know to be tentative when my gut tells me to be. I could tell you about the time in my younger days I pulled apart the engine of my 1st motorcycle trying to find a rattle that turned out to be the chain guard. That cost me a pretty penny in the end. Good judgement comes from experience - experience comes from bad judgement....

This is an old saw, and a popular one at that, so I didn't imagine it'd be too hard finding some other who has gone there before who could clue me in or show me a reference for removing the impulse line that I'd not found yet. Worse comes to worse, I'll dig into it further than I've already done, but I'm not depending on this saw for anything at the moment, so I'm being patient. Thanks again to everyone for all of the help, and I regret an inconvenience or irritation (but won't lose much sleep over it). I'm getting closer, and have learned quite a bit so far, thanks primarily to you fine folks at sites like this and the many others like it.

 

[timsch75]

I finally got the impulse line off. Removing the handle allowed better access to the left side gap and I was able to get a pair of hemostats in there. Still couldn't see much, but it wasn't too hard to feel what to do. The impulse line was in good shape - no cracks/holes. I put it back together and scratched my head some more. I checked the impulse by hooking my mityvac to the carb connection on the impulse line and cranked it. Plus/minus 4 or 5 psi/inHg indicated sufficient impulse, since I saw that fuel was being pulled through the fuel line with next to no vacuum.

So, must be the carb. Given the new kit and otherwise new looking carburator, I couldn't quite pull the plug on it. I pulled it off again, to triple check everything. One thing I learned was that there was a gauge for setting the metering level. I had seen in discussions that the metering level was either supposed to be level with the face of the carb housing it mounted into, or set according to the gauge. I didn't have a gauge, so tried to set it as close as possible to gauge depth using other tools. I put it back together, and it still wouldn't fire.

I knew from before it had spark and would fire with fuel injected directly, so I got my syringe and verified that again. This time, I put a bit more fuel into the carb, and it would sputter for a second or two. In my frustration, I pulled the throttle and it tried to run, but would choke down. A few more attempts and I got it to run as long as I held the throttle. I had previously set the high and low screws to the factory setting of one turn out each. At this point, I adjusted the low screw to 1.5 turns out and off she went, running without me having to hold the throttle. Minor adjustments from there on the low and idle screws and she runs and cranks very well. A day later it started on the 1st pull.

I'm a little baffled still that the factory settings on the carb wouldn't even give me a sputter, but I know a lot more than before, and I have a good running saw.

Thanks again everyone for the guidance.

 

[Coyote machine]

Long road to hoe; all well that ends well. And we all learn from this- factory may be the BASE setting, but it's not the final setting. And, for the OP, often a factory setting is good when everything is out of the box, and with hours on the clock those settings can fly out the window.:confused3:

Glad you have a successful outcome now.

 

[Kubota 2350]

I do have spark. I do not have new ethanol free gas/oil mix. My mix is about a year old. My new Stihl line trimmer works with it. How long before gas goes too stale for use in these saws?

I have not pulled the muffler to look for scoring.

I did clean the air filter and am letting it dry overnight.

There lies a big part of your problem, get some new gas.

 

[2458n]

No mention of blowing the carb parts with compressed air. I always do this after a night of soaking. Jets sometimes stay plugged without the puff of air.