Chainsaw Repair

Stopped at the local pawn shop yesterday. They had a pretty clean 290. I fired it up in 4 pulls......Carb. seemed to be adjusted nice. Quick response an a 4 stroke tone when opened up.  He had 250.00 on it, got him down to 225. w/little effort. Can anyone tell me anything about em'? I've always been pretty much a husky guy. Just lookin to pick up a limber,brush saw.

I had a low hr. 250 for a short time. It had some carb. issues, once that was cured it was a good runner, for a little saw.

Is the 290 a discontinued saw?

Since you know Huskys I would compare the Stihl 290 to a Husqvarna 455 Rancher.   Both are clamshell engines. 

We have one on the shelf at work, it gets very little use.  I will typically sign out the MS390 and a top handle saw for the day.

When I do have to sign out the MS290, I typically have to give it plenty of warm up time and then fight to keep it running.
(We are not allowed to work on them....maintenance personnel get upset when you try to do their jobs for them)  So I just don't tell them about what I fix   The MS290 w/18" .325/.50 semi-chisel set-up does cut well, but I would consider it a 'hand full' for limb trimming all day!

Now, if the truth be known...these saws do not get treated awfully well.  Most guys that are cutting on the crews are just waiting to get back into JD tractors and start the mowing season.  So if they can handle the beatings, then the can't be all that bad.


As far as price.....pawn shops aren't what I would consider in the top ten places to get stuff from.  $225 seems pretty high for a saw you know very little about the history(in could have been sitting in a 55gal barrel of water for a month).  Seen a few on C-list for $200 that look minty(just from photos).





Scott (did you get it?) B

Quote from: 3000 FPS on February 22, 2014, 11:21:15 am

Since you know Huskys I would compare the Stihl 290 to a Husqvarna 455 Rancher.   Both are clamshell engines. 

YES, I gotcha now.....didn't realize it was the clamshell, you all refer to.......thx


I think I'll just hold out till the funds come a little better. I really need to pick up something that will handle a 24" bar w/o being under powered.

Look for something of a minimum of 60cc or bigger for a 24" bar.

I totally agree with you.   Sometimes it is just a matter of expense.