A few years back my dad gave me his old chainsaw. It is a Stihl AV 031 Electronic Ignition with a 16” bar. The saw was purchased by my father in either 1977 or 1978. It was used to clear some property that my parents owned and then basically put into storage for a couple of decades. I’ve spent the past year off and on getting it back into optimum working condition.
Most recently I tackled the project of swapping out the chain tensioner adjustment screw. I just couldn’t get it right and after taking off the cover you could see that the original screw was bent, pulling the little nubby away from the bar and effectively rendering the tensioner useless.
Now, finding parts for a nearly 40 year old chainsaw wouldn’t necessarily be as difficult as you would think. A few Stihl dealers in my area told me they no longer stocked the part, but that it was readily available on-line. After a few clicks of the mouse I discovered www.sawagain.com. I purchased a reconditioned tensioner as well as a new aftermarket product. I also purchased an extra stud in case I messed one up while tackling this task.
All I can say about this outfit was they were awesome, from easily finding the parts I needed to paying to having it delivered in a matter of days. If you ever find yourself looking for an old part for an old saw…start there first.
So once you get the needed part you need to find a semi clutter-free workspace. You then remove the nuts holding the cover and arm assembly. Then you remove the bar and chain. Utilizing vice grips you extract the studs. I spoke with a Stihl dealer before doing any of this mentioned here and he said there were no special tools required to extract the studs.
Once you have the studs removed you are then able to remove the tin cover that is holding the tensioner in place. There was a little piece of plastic that fit in the grove where the screw was set…make sure you don’t just treat that like the rest of the gunk and grime you will encounter.
You then put in the new tensioner and then put everything back together. One word of advice…make sure you put the chain back on correctly. It is possible to install a chain backwards. It just won’t cut anything. A quick glance at the internet message boards and you will see that even the most experienced chainsaw folks have done this at least once.
The saw is a beast. It still has great compression and it quite frankly makes many newer chainsaws look and sound like a toy. It is a heavy item, however and not very easy to use off a ladder. But for my purposes it is a great tool and one that I hope to pass on to one of my sons some day.
