Now that your components are cleaned, reinstall the guide bar on the saw. First, turn the chain tensioners adjustment screw counter clockwise, allow the pin to move back toward the sprocket. This will allow slacking in the chain, making it easier to install. When installing your guide bar, always place the bar with the opposite side up from when you last took it off. Doing so you will displace the wear more evenly on both sides of the bar, resulting in a longer service life.

Place the bar over the bar studs, sliding it as far back as you can. Install the chain on the bar, making certain that the cutting edge of the chain will rotate in a clockwise direction around the bar when looking at it from the sprocket side. Once the chain is placed on the bar and the drivers are properly engaged with the sprocket, position the bar where the chain tensioners adjustment pin lines up with the proper hole in the guide bar. Reinstall the chain sprocket cover ad the nuts but only finger tight as you will need movement on the guide bar to adjust the chain.

The bar will have a slight upward downplay. To adjust your chain properly, turn the adjusting screw tensioning the chain to the point where it sits firmly against the bottom rail of the bar but not so tight that the chain won’t rotate freely around the bar. Continue to hold the tip of the bar up and tighten the nuts on the cover. Double check your work by pulling down on the chain and letting it snap back, snugly against the bottom rail. You will need to tighten it some more and if it won’t rotate freely around the guide bar by hand, you have over tightened the chain and will need to loosen it slightly. Repeat the adjustment process until the proper chain tension has been achieved.

As the chain gets hot, it will stretch as well as by wear through use. Constantly keep an eye on your chain’s adjustment when working with the saw. If you see that it is loose, turn the saw off, let the muffler cool down, disengage the chain brake and make the necessary adjustments and remember even a dull chain can be sharp to cut you so always wear gloves when handling the chain or making adjustments.

A loose chain can cause serious damage to your saw and if loose enough can even come off, possibly causing serious injury to the operator. If your chain appears to be sticking to the bar or will not rotate smoothly when you accelerate the saw, turn off the saw and check it to see if your have bar and chain oil in the bar and chain oil reservoir. You can check to see if your oiler is working by holding the tip of the guide bar near a fresh cut piece of wood, taking extreme precaution not to let the tip of the bar touch the wood and accelerate the saw with the chain brake disengaged. If the oiler is working, you will see a fine film of oil that will appear on the wood. If you have sufficient bar and chain oil and your oiler is working properly but the chain will still not rotate, you should take the saw to your nearest authorized dealer for necessary repairs.

Starting your chainsaw must be done in the proper fashion to help avoid the damage that can occur in the starting process. Never start your chainsaw by drop starting it or throw starting it. There are two methods that are acceptable in starting your saw: one by starting your saw on the ground and the other by starting your saw in a standing position.

To start your saw on the ground, use the following procedures. First, find a firm, flat area, free of any obstacles where you can maintain balance and good footing and remember it cannot be any closer than 10 feet from where you fueled your chainsaw. Always make certain that there are no bystanders in the immediate area. Engage the chain brake and place the master control level in the full choke or cold start position. If your chainsaw comes with a decompression valve, decompress it at this time.

Insert your right foot through the opening of the rear handle with the bottom of your foot firmly placed against the wide flat portion of the handle. Stabilizing the left side of the saw, place your left hand on the top forward handle. Firmly grasping the handle with your fingers and thumb fully wrapped around the handle, your arm fully extended and elbow locked.

Grasp the starter handle with your right hand and pull up on the rope slow until you feel resistance. At this point, give the starter a sharp pull. At the end of this pull, slowly guide the starter rope back in the starter housing. Never release the handle and allow the rope and grip to snap back in the housing. Doing so could cause damage to the saw or injure yourself. Continue pulling on the start until the saw tries to start. Some people refer to the noise the saw will make as a burp. Once this has happened, it is critical you don’t pull the rope again until you have moved the control level off choke into the warm-up position. If you fail to do so and give the rope just one more pull with the choke on, you can flood the saw and it won’t start without performing minor service. If your saw does flood, check your owner’s manual for the procedure recommended to get your saw started.

The saw has burped and you have placed the control level to the warm up position. Continue pulling on the rope, usually only a few pulls are required at this time and the saw should begin to run. Pick the saw up and hold it in a safe manner with both hands. Then release the chain brake and accelerate the chainsaw. Accelerate the saw two times to warm it up until the saw accelerates without hesitation. Your chainsaw is now ready to use.

The proper way to turn off your chainsaw is to first engage the chain brake by rolling your left wrist forward, then slide the control lever to the off position with the thumb if your right hand, never letting loose of the saw.

Once your chainsaw has been warmed up and you shut it off, it should not be necessary to choke it to restart, if you are at least restarting it fairly soon after having stopped the saw. Use the same procedures we just discussed but start the saw with the control lever in the warm up position rather than the choke position.

The second method of starting your chainsaw is in the standup position. This can come in handy if you are in an area that doesn’t have a great deal of flat, unobstructed surface for ground starting the chainsaw. The process of engaging the chain brake and operating the controls will be exactly the same as ground starting. The only difference will be the way you hold the chainsaw in the process. Again, make sure that you area is clear, you have solid footing and there are no bystanders nearby.

With the chain brake engaged and the controls in the proper position, grasp the forward handle with your left hand, thumb and fingers wrapped around the handle. Place the rear handle between your legs with the upper portion of the handle braced against your right inner thigh. With your left arm extended and locked, pull briskly on the starter handle with your right hand in the same manner as we have discussed in ground starting. Once you have started the saw, grasp the rear handle with your right hand and begin the warm up process.