I Got The 'Ol 290 Out Again

[edju1958]

I guess because I bought another 290 fairly cheap ($35),I decided to get the 290 out & go through it again.Back about 5 1/2 yrs.ago I got the 290 for $15 & the carb was missing one of the needles.I stole either the needle or the entire carb from a 340 that was roached.I got the saw running & took it out cutting & was a bit disappointed with it,but that was my fault for not sharpening the chain.I was just getting started with chainsaws back then.

       So today I got the saw out & gave it a prime & it fired up.That was a good sign,so I filled up the fuel tank & gave her several pulls & got nothing.I primed it again & it took off running,but wouldn't idle.I adjusted the carb & then it idled,but so fast that the chain kept turning.I fiddled with the carb several different times & if I got it to idle,then there was either a problem with it throttling up,or just being too rich.I finally looked at the linkage on the carb where the idle screw is & saw that it dfoesn't pull all the way back to where it should be.Now keep in mind that I have the idle screw all the way out.Something is wrong the way the linkage doesn't seat properly.I can move it back with a screwdriver to where it should be & then it idles just fine & the chain stops turning.

       A couple of days ago I was scrolling through eBay looking for saws to buy cheap ( seems like a thing of the past) & I spotted a NOS Tilly HU63 carb (I'd been looking for one for several yrs.).I ended up buying it with the thought that I only had $15 invested in the saw anyway,so a few more in a new carb couldn't hurt.If nothing else,I can compare the new carb to the old one & see if I can make them both good.Time will tell.

     Meanwhile the 290 ran fairly well except for the high idle,so I decided to sharpen the chain.I was sitting at the picnic table & couldn't figure out why I was smelling a strong odor of raw fuel.I got done sharpening the chain & found out why I smelled raw fuel.The fuel cap was missing! I had to search through a thick layer of leaves that had fallen out of the nearby maple tree & found nothing.I went back to the area where I'd been working on the saw & lo & behold,there was the fuel cap laying on the lawn! I got lucky there.I noticed though that the reason why the cap came off in the first place was because the gasket was missing.I'll have to call my buddy Buford to see if he has any gaskets.

[edju1958]

I haven't done anything with the 290 as I've been waiting on the new carb.Well it finally arrived today,but I was busy working on replacing elbows on my wood furnace exhaust pipe.I hope to get at it over the next couple of days.

[edju1958]

I believe I figured out why the saw doesn't come down to idle the way it should.I dug out the 340 to get the fuel cap off & it didn't have the top cover on over the carb & air filter,so it was easy to see in the airbox.There was a plastic shaft in there that the 290 didn't have.I looked on the IPL & saw that the 290 is supposed to have that throttle shaft as well.I called Buford out in Ky.& gave him the part #s of what I needed.I needed the throttle shaft,part # 98362,M5-45 screw,part # 88143,spring washer,part # 83208.Buford had the throttle shaft,but not the spring washer or the screw.Leon had the spring washer,but not the throttle shaft or the screw.I ended up finding everything I needed on RepairClinic.com.& for a very good price too.

[edju1958]

Well so much for getting the missing parts for the 290.I placed the order with RepairClinic.com & today I got an email from them telling me that my order was cancelled due to the parts being NLA.I can get 2 out of 3 parts,but the M5-45 screw is the one that seems to be elusive.Does anyone have a 290 or 340 that's just a parts saw that they'd be willing to part with?

[edju1958]

I found out why the saw wouldn't idle properly.The carb had about 10 holes in the throttle shaft & apparently the last time I worked on it when I was a rookie,I got the linkage hooked in the wrong hole.The new carb had only one hole to hook the linkage in.Both carbs were stamped HU63A,which is not correct.The new carb I just got is indeed an HU63A because it has the one hole in the throttle shaft plus it has the steel fuel inlet barb.The carb that was on the saw was most likely an HU63C because it had the many holes in the throttle shaft & a plastic fuel inlet bartb.

     Anyway,I pulled the old carb off (it needs a kit anyway) & I put the new carb on & I now have a good running 290!

thumbnail by edju1958, on Flickr

thumbnail by edju1958, on Flickr

As it turned out,I didn't need all those parts that I thought I did.