Are you focused more on a 288 or an older saw? A couple more questions you should probably ask yourself is what do you really need and are you going to take it to a shop or fix it yourself if something goes wrong. Are some things just not made to last thing they used to be? Sure. Are the 288 or 281 saws indestructible? Definitely not. Like you say, is the 288 going to turn into a money pit? Both saws should produce close to the same power, but I bet the 288 might have more torque. I don't know that saying the new saws aren't designed to last is accurate, there are several that are strong runners......they're just made differently. Mechanically the 288 is much simpler. I don't really have any experience with the new 585's, but with a new saw you at least know what you're getting(for the most part). If anything does go wrong early on at least it is on warranty. A new 585 is going to have a much better anti-vibration system! This is kind of the timeless old versus new question and I could keep going, but to prevent a wall of text I will stop here. Can't really sum up a real solid comparison between the old and the new in just a few sentences. Maybe someone with more experience with a 585 might chime in.

I would take the 288 the 200 series feel light for their displacement and are as simple as a saw can get. You can replace just about anything in half an hour oil seals can be done easily without splitting case. The 200 series huskies some of my favorite saws just for the performance and simplicity plus with clones on the market at very worst there will always be cheap parts and with 288xp still made in Brazil lot of new oem parts available.

Sounds like the injector is partially sticking open after you shut it off. How long are you waiting between shutting off and restarting? A pressure/vacuum tester can test for this without too much effort. If you don't have a tester like this then I would take it to the hands of a decent tech to run the test.

@@northwestperformancesaws6212 Thank you!!

Hello. Some saws like the old mccullochs and the 288 in the video can suck the starter rope back in when the saw is shut off. To prevent any damage from occurring to the rope, starter or pawls you can pull the starter cord out some to give it a little relief slack. The 288 did suck the rope back some but it wasn't as bad as a few of the old macs that I have. Some of those jerk the recoil back rather violently!

Hello Brody. Hope that saw is serving you well! You back out in the eastern part of the country now?

@@northwestperformancesaws6212 Yeah it's been a great saw. I did loose a screw off the ignition that broke a flywheel fin, but got another flywheel and it's good to go. I'm in NC now, but still go back home to Oregon a couple times a year for wildfire related stuff. Cheers!

yeah it was punky in a few places. wasnt a very good log to test with, I should have been more patient and looked for something better.

I know a guy in Fall River. Lol

Around $50

They're a great piece of history and a good saw in general. Pretty well balanced with a long bar!

@@northwestperformancesaws6212 …much appreciate your thoughts on this!

That is correct. I found this tank online and replaced the original one with it.

@@northwestperformancesaws6212 she's a damn good runner for sure. I have a d55 or as some call the 55 (72cc) on the way and to my suprise, not one video on KZbin of one. So guess I'll be making a video series on reviving it.

It actually was a pretty simple swap. After swapping modules the system adjusted and ran without skipping a beat. There are 4 screws that bolt the entire injector housing to the cylinder and two really small metric size 3 screws that secure the injector itself to the housing. Just have to go slow and easy when dealing with the wiring harness and the plastic shroud that goes around the top of the housing and spark plug. I went slowly when getting that plastic shroud off, constantly felt like I was going to break it.

@@northwestperformancesaws6212 Thanks. It is pretty much what I thought, that the Stihl was a solid machine and wouldn't require specialized equipment to fix something like a faulty injector module.

@@canamrider7195 Yes indeed a lot simpler than one would think.

@@canamrider7195 I should actually backtrack a little. In certain cases you are supposed to hookup the saw to the MDG1 analyzer and SDS to re-calibrate the saw. Stihl says that you're suppose to do it when replacing major engine components, fuel system parts or ignition components. This being said I would probably do the re-calibration if I had to replace major engine components or the ignition parts under the flywheel but otherwise I don't feel that its absolutely necessary to make it run right. Others may chime in that feel differently and that's ok. Personally i'd rather share all knowledge possible when it comes to the new 500i's.

@@northwestperformancesaws6212 Thanks!