Echo CS 4910 air filter issues

[scootertrash]

Hello everyone, new guy to the forum! Anyhow, off to the problem. I picked up a new CS 4910 at a big box store and headed to the woods. It ran like a scalded dog for the first tank and a half, then it started running crappy and lost power. Dumped fuel and open a new can of true fuel, poured it in and the same thing. Pulled the air filter and it was completely plugged up. Since then, I have put about 6 or seven tanks of fuel through it but the air filter has to be replaced (with a clean one) every tank. Has anyone seen this before? This is my third Echo and they have been awesome...except for this air filter issue. Any suggestions?

BTW, we had an old Poulon and a 445 Husky there, we have all been cutting hedge in the same spot on the same trees.

Thank you!

 

[Fabz]

Fines getting thru are a known issue with these saws and will kill the engine prematurely… Greasing the lip may help as will a pre-filter or I can fab ya a custom intake with a KN and outwears (or filter of choice) and you can go cut wood without the hassle of the stop , drop and tap dance every tank of fuel. I’ve got over 100 tanks thru my 241c with this setup and NO fines to be seen !

 

[scootertrash]

Fines getting thru are a known issue with these saws and will kill the engine prematurely… Greasing the lip may help as will a pre-filter or I can fab ya a custom intake with a KN and outwears (or filter of choice) and you can go cut wood without the hassle of the stop , drop and tap dance every tank of fuel. I’ve got over 100 tanks thru my 241c with this setup and NO fines to be seen !

Thanks for the reply, its going in to see if there is anything noticeably wrong with the saw but I am sure, they will just tell me to pack sand as always. The first time I pulled the filter, it wasn't seated on the air intake so I had to put some bar oil on the packing to get it to go home where she belonged. So, you an fab some sort of intake that would cure that issue? I suppose carb adjustment would be necessary. Also, at that time...would more than likely do a muffler mod. How can I get in touch with you to get that intake setup? Thanks again!

 

[Oakie]

Thanks for the reply, its going in to see if there is anything noticeably wrong with the saw but I am sure, they will just tell me to pack sand as always. The first time I pulled the filter, it wasn't seated on the air intake so I had to put some bar oil on the packing to get it to go home where she belonged. So, you an fab some sort of intake that would cure that issue? I suppose carb adjustment would be necessary. Also, at that time...would more than likely do a muffler mod. How can I get in touch with you to get that intake setup? Thanks again!

Can you post a picture of the filter or a video. I have had 5 Echo saws, none had filter problems, but I did
find a way to keep more dust out of the carb box on two of them, by putting some nylon pot scrubber material
in the bottom of the box of one, that stopped the particles coming up to the filter, the other one I put similar
into the hole for adjusting the idler in the side of the case, it was like a funnel and seemed to attract dust and
funnel it into the carb box, but having said this, no dust ever got through the filter nor were the filters ever overly
dirty, I could cut a whole day and not have to clean the filter at all, these were the nylon mesh type filters, not the
automotive type, which are supposed to be better. Something is wrong with your saw setup, either they supplied
the wrong filter, or the fitting it sits onto is damaged in some way.
Have you actually found dust in the elbow below the filter that leads into the carb.

 

[scootertrash]

Can you post a picture of the filter or a video. I have had 5 Echo saws, none had filter problems, but I did
find a way to keep more dust out of the carb box on two of them, by putting some nylon pot scrubber material
in the bottom of the box of one, that stopped the particles coming up to the filter, the other one I put similar
into the hole for adjusting the idler in the side of the case, it was like a funnel and seemed to attract dust and
funnel it into the carb box, but having said this, no dust ever got through the filter nor were the filters ever overly
dirty, I could cut a whole day and not have to clean the filter at all, these were the nylon mesh type filters, not the
automotive type, which are supposed to be better. Something is wrong with your saw setup, either they supplied
the wrong filter, or the fitting it sits onto is damaged in some way.
Have you actually found dust in the elbow below the filter that leads into the carb.

Hey Oakie, attached are pictures of the filter I just removed from the saw. As I said before, the saw has to have a cleaned filter for every tank and yes, they are the correct filters in which I have three. The first time I pulled the filter, it wasn't sitting on the carb correctly and had to put some bar and chain oil on to get it down over the carb where it belonged. I was lucky enough to find the receipt, it was purchased in November of 22. It does appear (under light) that there is a small amount of dust inside the carb. We shall see what the repair shop has to say about all of this.

 

[Oakie]

Wow, that looks a mess, is this the nylon mesh type, or the flocked type filter.
Mine were all nylon, those flocked ones don't work well in moist conditions.
Do you pull the choke on before removing the filter, this will keep anything falling
off it going into the carb.
Does that coating of what ever it is completely come off the filter when you clean
it, is it gummy, is it wet dust, are the other saws in your proximity having the same
build up on their filters.

 

[RedneckChainsawRepair]

Easy fix. O-ring

 

[scootertrash]

Wow, that looks a mess, is this the nylon mesh type, or the flocked type filter.
Mine were all nylon, those flocked ones don't work well in moist conditions.
Do you pull the choke on before removing the filter, this will keep anything falling
off it going into the carb.
Does that coating of what ever it is completely come off the filter when you clean
it, is it gummy, is it wet dust, are the other saws in your proximity having the same
build up on their filters.

Yes, a mess! I went through 5 (lost count) filter changes/cleanings in 1/2 truck load of hedge. It isn't the mesh filter like on my old Echo 450V (John Deere) saw that I just retired to the hopper. I has some felt looking material all over it. Yes. I pull the choke to keep anything from falling past the choke while servicing. We have three saws on this job that are cutting the same wood "Osage orange", a 20 year old Poulon Pro and a 445 Husqvarna, not one filter cleaning on either of those saws. The dust does mostly come off but not all of it. It isn't gummy or a sticky residue, just chips and dust. You can separate the top from the bottom half of the filter, blow it out with compressed air and snap it back together.

I have been a mechanic for over 30 years, the saw may have a air/fuel mixture problem once the filter gets plugged to a certain degree?? Nonetheless, that filter system is awful!

 

[scootertrash]

Easy fix. O-ring

View attachment 1412 View attachment 1413

Thanks for that tip, I will do that to make the seal more robust! The real issue is, the filter will barely make it through a tank of fuel without it completely plugging up!

 

[RedneckChainsawRepair]

Yep they need to redesign them with the 7310 4310 set ups.

Could also do what Joe did to one. Using echo parts from another saw. Thinking 400 set up.

 

[Oakie]

Yes, a mess! I went through 5 (lost count) filter changes/cleanings in 1/2 truck load of hedge. It isn't the mesh filter like on my old Echo 450V (John Deere) saw that I just retired to the hopper. I has some felt looking material all over it. Yes. I pull the choke to keep anything from falling past the choke while servicing. We have three saws on this job that are cutting the same wood "Osage orange", a 20 year old Poulon Pro and a 445 Husqvarna, not one filter cleaning on either of those saws. The dust does mostly come off but not all of it. It isn't gummy or a sticky residue, just chips and dust. You can separate the top from the bottom half of the filter, blow it out with compressed air and snap it back together.

I have been a mechanic for over 30 years, the saw may have a air/fuel mixture problem once the filter gets plugged to a certain degree?? Nonetheless, that filter system is awful!

I never seen a filter get clogged in such a short time.
The nylon mesh type might not hold onto the dust as much as the flocked type,
maybe try one of those.
Look at the size of that hole in the side of the case in the picture above,
I blocked that 10 mm hole on the side of the case, its where the idle gets adjusted,
that was like a hoover pulling in a huge amount of dust, may be that is why I
had no problem, I literally saw the dust being pulled in like a vacuum cleaner
to the air box. Try blocking that hole,it made a huge difference on mine,
its not easy as its angled, piece of strong tape over it, we call it tank tape here.

 

[Oakie]

Yes, a mess! I went through 5 (lost count) filter changes/cleanings in 1/2 truck load of hedge. It isn't the mesh filter like on my old Echo 450V (John Deere) saw that I just retired to the hopper. I has some felt looking material all over it. Yes. I pull the choke to keep anything from falling past the choke while servicing. We have three saws on this job that are cutting the same wood "Osage orange", a 20 year old Poulon Pro and a 445 Husqvarna, not one filter cleaning on either of those saws. The dust does mostly come off but not all of it. It isn't gummy or a sticky residue, just chips and dust. You can separate the top from the bottom half of the filter, blow it out with compressed air and snap it back together.

I have been a mechanic for over 30 years, the saw may have a air/fuel mixture problem once the filter gets plugged to a certain degree?? Nonetheless, that filter system is awful!

Is the saw your retiring like this,
if so, would you recommend one, they have the full split case, which I like over the clam shell type,
they seem a slight bit heavy, and any video I have seen on them they seemed to have more torque
/ power than they are advertised to have.

 

[scootertrash]

This is the saw

Is the saw your retiring like this, View attachment 1415
if so, would you recommend one, they have the full split case, which I like over the clam shell type,
they seem a slight bit heavy, and any video I have seen on them they seemed to have more torque
/ power than they are advertised to have.

This is the Echo that just wet to the hopper, i bought it in 1986 from the JD dealer I worked for. That was the best saw I ever owned!

 

[scootertrash]

Is the saw your retiring like this, View attachment 1415
if so, would you recommend one, they have the full split case, which I like over the clam shell type,
they seem a slight bit heavy, and any video I have seen on them they seemed to have more torque
/ power than they are advertised to have.

 

[Oakie]

View attachment 1417

Just realized, the picture I posted must be wrong, the site has the wrong image of the saw up.
Did your saw have the round airfilter, the 450 we get here does.
The 450 we get here looks a little different, the handle comes off with less screws,
Yours is a V the ones here are newer and are the P model, plastic case with a split
case alloy engine bolted into it.

 

[Oakie]

Easy fix. O-ring

View attachment 1412 View attachment 1413

Just seeing this, it does not look like the same filter that comes on the 501P or 4910 which are pretty much the same
saws, if I recall mine was flat at the bottom, I sold the saw so can't confirm, but I do not recall a shape like this, the O-ring
on mine sat on the elbow coming up from the carb, was easy to grease up to stop any dust getting past, was also nylon
instead of flocked.
Even so, it was the hole in the case left for adjusting the Idle that let in the majority of the dust
to the air box, until I blocked it. Was hardly any dust in the box after that.

 

[scootertrash]

Just realized, the picture I posted must be wrong, the site has the wrong image of the saw up.
Did your saw have the round airfilter, the 450 we get here does.
The 450 we get here looks a little different, the handle comes off with less screws,
Yours is a V the ones here are newer and are the P model, plastic case with a split
case alloy engine bolted into it.

I never got into other saws, the 450V was made almost 37 years ago...lol. It was super lightweight with a ton of RPM and power! It wasn't that easy on fuel but dang...did it cut a ton of wood down through the years! Parts became obsolete and the oiler case got broken and wouldn't hold oil any longer, hence...the hopper! I cant tell you how many bars and chains that thing went through, it had a grease fitting on the front bar sprocket that was greased at least twice a season. It was a manual oiler which got tiresome (that's why I have arthritis in that thumb). If you can find one, buy it...you wont be disappointed but collectors want them...running or not! Mine was looking so bad that you couldn't tell what it was. Great saw!

 

[scootertrash]

Just seeing this, it does not look like the same filter that comes on the 501P or 4910 which are pretty much the same
saws, if I recall mine was flat at the bottom, I sold the saw so can't confirm, but I do not recall a shape like this, the O-ring
on mine sat on the elbow coming up from the carb, was easy to grease up to stop any dust getting past, was also nylon
instead of flocked.
Even so, it was the hole in the case left for adjusting the Idle that let in the majority of the dust
to the air box, until I blocked it. Was hardly any dust in the box after that.

I will get that plugged and see if it makes a difference, thanks for the info!

 

[Fabz]

Thanks for the reply, its going in to see if there is anything noticeably wrong with the saw but I am sure, they will just tell me to pack sand as always. The first time I pulled the filter, it wasn't seated on the air intake so I had to put some bar oil on the packing to get it to go home where she belonged. So, you an fab some sort of intake that would cure that issue? I suppose carb adjustment would be necessary. Also, at that time...would more than likely do a muffler mod. How can I get in touch with you to get that intake setup? Thanks again!

My utube channel has my email address in the about section … Fabz Acres

 

[Oakie]

I never got into other saws, the 450V was made almost 37 years ago...lol. It was super lightweight with a ton of RPM and power! It wasn't that easy on fuel but dang...did it cut a ton of wood down through the years! Parts became obsolete and the oiler case got broken and wouldn't hold oil any longer, hence...the hopper! I cant tell you how many bars and chains that thing went through, it had a grease fitting on the front bar sprocket that was greased at least twice a season. It was a manual oiler which got tiresome (that's why I have arthritis in that thumb). If you can find one, buy it...you wont be disappointed but collectors want them...running or not! Mine was looking so bad that you couldn't tell what it was. Great saw!

You could still see the 450 on to a collector, plenty of parts still on it. that bar looks like it did not do much.