Removing Clutch on a Stihl Trimmer?..

[Batpig]

Dear Folks,

Here I am again - and so soon! Anyhow, halfway through a round of "Edging" this week, my otherwise very-trusty Stihl FS36 Trimmer developed the nasty habit of wanting to "clonk out" every time I bumped the spool down for more cord. Suspecting a broken spring in the Centrifugal Clutch, I've stripped the thing down as far as you can see in the photo below - and upon close inspection through a small gap, I can indeed see the offending broken spring dangling out of position inside the silver-coloured Clutch at the very front of the assembly.

The only trouble is - I can't get the said Clutch off!...

There surely couldn't be a screw or bolt down inside the little protruding neck that receives the Drive Shaft at the front end of the clutch, because it's just too small in diameter (well, I would have thought, anyway...) And it can't just be that you jam something into the Motor's cooling fins, and twist the Clutch with a Pipe Wrench, because the shiny outer-housing of the Clutch just spins freely when the Motor is either off, or at low RPM. And I don't think it only just presses on or off, because that's only cream-coloured plastic immediately behind the Clutch, which would offer no strength whatsoever for levering the clutch off against...

So! - I'm a little stumped. But it could be fairly typical setup...
Any ideas anyone?

Many Thanks,
Batpig.

[Batpig]

Chaps,

I'll be darned, but there was indeed a little Torx-type screw down the bottom of that narrow neck. I just couldn't see it underneath the grease in the neck (that I couldn't clean out because of the narrowness of the neck...)

Well, after shoving a small Slot-Head down the neck, and feeling the notches in the screw's head, I went off to Trade Tools (who sell different-sized Torx screwdrivers singly), but could only get up to a T25 down the Clutch's neck (at which size there still felt like there was excessive "play"...) So I grabbed a T27 "Fistdriver" out of a kit they sell that you can see at the back of the photo, and luckily enough it fitted down the neck, and was a perfect fit for the screw's head. So the Clutch is now off.

You can see the two Clutch plates in the foreground of the photo, along with the springs (the broken "culprit" is on the left...)

The kit of drivers was about $31. There's one in the foreground of the photo, and for my money I reckon they give you much more "grunt" than either a Screwdriver, or an Allen-like-Key, or one of those "Pocket-Knife" type setups...

So all's well that end's well...

Best Wishes,
Batpig

[Bluegum]

Nice job batpig, I reckon it would have cost you a bit more than $31 if you had of taken it to you local Stihl dealer. I was quoted $72 an hour plus parts for my chain saw when I visited one dealership. The bore and piston needs replacing in my saw and its $415.00 just for the parts. Needless to say I will buy a new saw for a bit less than that.

[uwheelsgy]

Chaps,

I'll be darned, but there was indeed a little Torx-type screw down the bottom of that narrow neck. I just couldn't see it underneath the grease in the neck (that I couldn't clean out because of the narrowness of the neck...)

Well, after shoving a small Slot-Head down the neck, and feeling the notches in the screw's head, I went off to Trade Tools (who sell different-sized Torx screwdrivers singly), but could only get up to a T25 down the Clutch's neck (at which size there still felt like there was excessive "play"...) So I grabbed a T27 "Fistdriver" out of a kit they sell that you can see at the back of the photo, and luckily enough it fitted down the neck, and was a perfect fit for the screw's head. So the Clutch is now off.

You can see the two Clutch plates in the foreground of the photo, along with the springs (the broken "culprit" is on the left...)

The kit of drivers was about $31. There's one in the foreground of the photo, and for my money I reckon they give you much more "grunt" than either a Screwdriver, or an Allen-like-Key, or one of those "Pocket-Knife" type setups...

So all's well that end's well...

Best Wishes,
Batpig

Thanks man. This had me going for a while until I googled and found your post