Small Engines (Lawn Mowers, etc.): Chainsaw spring for pull start, vise grip pliers, rope thread

Question
is there a trick to reloading the spring in a chainsaw under the pull cord spindle?  i have tried like hell to reset the spring under there but fail repeatedly

Answer
Hi David,

Sorry, all saws and different and without seeing the recoil it's hard to help.  Try removing more of the recoil if you can and if you think it will help.  See my mower recoil repair proceedure below, which you may be able to apply.

Let me know how you make out.
Michael

Remove the recoil shroud and take a look at the assembly.
You might have a broken spring or just a rope that has slipped out of the reel.
The spring usually breaks at one of the end tabs. If so, you will need to get a replacement spring and carefully wind that in, before re-assembling the rope reel. You might wish to replace the rope also, if it shows signs
of wear. Below is my proceedure for replacing a broken recoil rope.

You will need to remove the entire cooling shroud. There should be 4 bolts on the sides. You might need to remove the fuel tank also.  Pre-wind the recoil reel by hand [about 6 turns, to set the spring tension] and clamp it with Vise-Grip pliers. Remove the old rope. Thread
the new rope through the shroud housing eyelet and to the reel hub. Let the reel re-wind itself until it is full. If there is not enough spring tension you can wind it a couple of turns more by slipping the rope around
between the reel and shroud. Re-clamp the reel. Cut the rope to length and thread it though the handle. At all knots, burn and melt the rope with a lighter to prevent untying. Re-assemble.