Poulan Woodshark

John1397 · 05-26-2009, 08:34 PM

My chain saw runs and pulls good if you can get it started, but sometimes it will not idle just stops. I have disassembled carb everything seems ok adjusting don't help much. I can push down the reed so it should be working but I am wondering if I have enough suction or compression to open the reed valve to let fuel in, can one use a compression tester and what is the mininum psi to open reed valve? Two biggest problems it will not idle and hard to get started it cuts good under load so that should elimanate fuel, air cleaner, sparkplug. I just wonder if it does not have enough compression would it not cut wood?

pat mcgroin · 05-27-2009, 08:15 AM

I would suggest a new diaphram in the carb.
When they get old they tend to get harder and are less responsive.
I just went through that with my homelite and it and the following made a huge difference.
I think it cost about $8.

Also Im not sure of the Poulan but on my homelite the fuel lines that go into the tank are very soft. It is that ability to compress that creates the seal so I had to pull the line up about 2 mm to get to where the line was soft again.
After years of being in that posistion the line compressed and stayed that way and caused a vacumn and minor fuel leak under the carb.

One other thing that you can try is to turn the idle screw all the way in (be gentle) and count the turns. Then remove it and shhot some carb cleaner in there to make sure there is no varnish in there not allowing the idle circuit to work.

**K-B** · 05-29-2009, 01:15 PM

If you own or have access to a compression tester, that's the first step of troubleshooting a 2 cycle engine. It should have a bare minimum of 90 psi, most chainsaws will have power loss at 125, trouble running at 115 and most will not run at all below 100.
A quick & easy test if you don't have a compression tester is to make sure the spark plug is in tight, then pick up the saw by the starter handle. If the rope runs out quickly & smoothly, the compression is too low. If it comes out slowly and stops for a few seconds at compression, it's OK.
Other causes could be bad diaphragms, plugged carburetor, cracked fuel line, leaking seal or gasket.

05-26-2009, 08:34 PM	#1 (permalink)
John1397 Registered User Join Date: May 2009 Posts: 1 OS: xp	Poulan Woodshark My chain saw runs and pulls good if you can get it started, but sometimes it will not idle just stops. I have disassembled carb everything seems ok adjusting don't help much. I can push down the reed so it should be working but I am wondering if I have enough suction or compression to open the reed valve to let fuel in, can one use a compression tester and what is the mininum psi to open reed valve? Two biggest problems it will not idle and hard to get started it cuts good under load so that should elimanate fuel, air cleaner, sparkplug. I just wonder if it does not have enough compression would it not cut wood?

05-27-2009, 08:15 AM	#2 (permalink)
pat mcgroin Registered User Join Date: May 2009 Location: Toledo Oh. Posts: 495 OS: XP Professional SP2 Vista Ultimate SP2	Re: Poulan Woodshark I would suggest a new diaphram in the carb. When they get old they tend to get harder and are less responsive. I just went through that with my homelite and it and the following made a huge difference. I think it cost about $8. Also Im not sure of the Poulan but on my homelite the fuel lines that go into the tank are very soft. It is that ability to compress that creates the seal so I had to pull the line up about 2 mm to get to where the line was soft again. After years of being in that posistion the line compressed and stayed that way and caused a vacumn and minor fuel leak under the carb. One other thing that you can try is to turn the idle screw all the way in (be gentle) and count the turns. Then remove it and shhot some carb cleaner in there to make sure there is no varnish in there not allowing the idle circuit to work.

05-29-2009, 01:15 PM	#3 (permalink)
K-B Moderator, Linux Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: NY Posts: 2,872 OS: Vista, Ubuntu My System	Re: Poulan Woodshark If you own or have access to a compression tester, that's the first step of troubleshooting a 2 cycle engine. It should have a bare minimum of 90 psi, most chainsaws will have power loss at 125, trouble running at 115 and most will not run at all below 100. A quick & easy test if you don't have a compression tester is to make sure the spark plug is in tight, then pick up the saw by the starter handle. If the rope runs out quickly & smoothly, the compression is too low. If it comes out slowly and stops for a few seconds at compression, it's OK. Other causes could be bad diaphragms, plugged carburetor, cracked fuel line, leaking seal or gasket. __________________