spudulike

I was never keen on stoned hones but was on the point of using one and had a MS660 in that someone had used one three years earlier - good compression and a bore in good condition and it sort of swayed my judgement. I tried it out hard an a buggered 026 cylinder and it gave it a decent finish without wearing through the plating at all. I agree that they are not great when you have big transfer windowed piston lowers or open transfers but for most, you just want to break the glaze above the exhaust port so the piston rings will wear in much quicker. I have had very good results using this method and afterwards, the bore is lightly honed as the plating is that hard, the hone just gives it a light abrasion and nothing more. It works for me and has given good reliable long lasting results so something is right! Each man to his own and remember - we are using this tool for 5-10 seconds and not spinning it up on high speed for 5 minutes!

And how are we going to quantify that Eddie, you have no dyno, I have no dyno, I can compare to my ported 357XP but thats about it as everything else I have has a different engine size and it won't show you if it is faster. The saw has a 3/8 7T on it and I have one B&C that will work with it, not sure if that even compares with what you are running. This saws cylinder had a fair bit of damage and an aftermarket piston that isn't run in yet......it all makes a difference as you know! Not sure what else Matt is running up in Kielder Forest......probably a 6R4 knowing him! So.......how are you going to judge how they compare with each other??? Impatient aren't you:001_rolleyes:

I was using silicon carbide paper!

The old MS180s had a strange idle adjuster, it isn't a mechanical stop on the throttle valve but a screw that adjusts the amount of fuel flow against a throttle valve that is held open in a set position. That being said, try adjusting up to 1/2 turn one way and the other and look for the idle to be stable and not spin the chain. Also check nothing is binding the clutch drum to the crank - make sure it spins freely as twine and crap can get around the clutch and cause drag on it against the crank causing stalling. Did the saw struggle to idle with the chainbrake on before the idle went?

Agreed on that, you may get away with just wet and dry plus a litle oil if the transfer isn't too much - just depends on how much you have. I have had an 880 with around 0.3mm thick aluminium slab adhered to the cylinder wall - the cyinder looked almost perfect when done:thumbup: I did use acid though and for around two hours!

Sorry, you are wrong as in the early days I did a cylinder and tried to get rid of a score with a little too much rubbing and the piston then showed signs exhaust was blowing by the ring! Any semi deep scores are best left and not smooted off - we are talking scores IN TO the cylinder and NOT raised areas of aluminium transfer! Emery paper is damn abrasive and will even rub away Nikasil plating - you don't need to take much off to cause an issue. Not arguing with you for fun but saying what I have found having done many cylinders fom MS200s up to 395XPs/MS880s!

Yeah, a chain is always good, a sharp chain makes the cut faster I believe.......technical stuff:sneaky2:

The aluminium needs removing with chemical - it etches it off. The remaining oxidised aluminium can be removed by using 150 wet and dry. Do not rub heavily in localised areas as it will produce cavities that will make compression drop and cause blow-by. Once this is done, heavily oil the bore and you can use a two or three legged stone hone but just go lightly and back off the spring adjustment. You wont remove all scores that are a little deep but you never will and it doesn't hurt compression too much from my experience. One did a MS260 and it looked boderline - over 1.5 years on it and very high compression. Just hone to break the surface and allow the new piston to bed in fast. I am not knocking the soft hone - it will work better on open transfers better but the earlier hone you mentioned, will work if used carefully - proof is out there!

Nice:thumbup: just depends on how the 560XP goes!

You sure you didn't launch it out of a tree:sneaky2: I know your history:lol:

I have noticed, my Niece with first class honours degree thought Worzel Gummidge tried to blow up the Houses of Parliment - think she meant Guy Fawkes:001_rolleyes:

Times have changed, back when I was job hunting, a university degree wasn't the be all and end all. Grafting long hours and putting away a dollop of cash was possible and then making sure you got best return was what it was about. Heck, back in my 20s, we had a 9% interest rate! Now you can't fry burgers without having a degree:001_rolleyes:

Thanks Chris, a pleasure and thanks for the good rep:thumbup:

That looks fine, the outside black and sooty with good colour on the electrode. If that was lean, it would be bleached white, if it was overheating it would go graphite grey with atomised alumininum coating. Relax:thumbup:

Forget cash ISAs, they are for old people as they are very low risk and with low risk, you get low returns. ISAs are great investments, they started as PEPS in Maggies day and then changed. They were a way of getting normal bods to invest in UK companies and support the home markets. They have relaxed the ISA criteria and you can now invest in a number of funds in different countries. Investing a lump in UK companies - large to mid in times of difficulty, small to mid in growing markets is a good first step. I have seen 20-30% in a year before, don't expect this every year but once in a while, typically after a few years of flat growth, the markets soar and that is where you make the money. Just google the best performing ISA - Isa fund tips: best UK growth funds - Telegraph Gives you a flavour - it is a waiting game and should be viewed as a 10 year + investment and not a dip in and out type scheme. The only issue is that we have had a couple years of fantastic growth in the UK and US stock markets, let the markets drop and then buy or do a regular drip feed...or both! Oh yes - the gains are tax free.....did I mention that:sneaky2:

Ethanol is hygroscopic, it absorbs water and this may have an effect on aluminium or aluminium based alloys. Having said that, there would need to be 10% + ethanol content to have much of an effect on the carb. Aspen doesn't contain ethanol so will not cause issues. Having said that, I have only ever changed two carbs in my time and they were on high mileage old model saws. I often think new carb fitment is a sign of a lazy tech who can't be bothered to get to the bottom of the issue and a new carb is an easy option. I will get a bit of flack for that statement but hey ho - I just save the cost of a new carb by taking out the H & L screws and getting some cleaner down them and if this doesn't sort them, a clean in the Ultrasonic cleaner - all part of a full service and isn't THAT time consuming. On saws with accelerator pumps, I fit new pumps, a little tricky but cheaper than a new carb! On a carb a year old - my gut feeling is that a clean will sort it!

You turn the adjusters clockwise (in) to LEAN the mix. If you can't turn the screw anti clockwise it will be due to the limit caps that are fitted. These caps ensure that you can't over lean or over rich the carb. If you need to turn the mix out any further, you need to find how to stop the limit caps stopping the adjustment. I can't remember how these saws limit the H screw - the MS201 needs a pin drilling and removing although you can sometimes get adjustment using a small allen key. Most later carbs have palstic limit caps that can be removed or clipped back. A 6mm hole shouldn't make too much difference TBH!

That pic looks familiar:sneaky2: The plug looks OK, perhaps a tad lean but no badly so. You could try giving the H screw a 1/8 turn counter clockwise just in case!

This is a 009 If this is large in your books - I would like to see a small saw:001_rolleyes:

It is typical of German engineering to take a basic design and make it too complicated where it will fail for a multitude of reasons. World War two, the Russians came up with the T34. it would run on anything, had an engine you could fix with one spanner and was as strong as a ton of reinforced concrete. The Germans got a bit pissed off with their shells bouncing off the T34s so captured one and set about designing it better. The Russians used their women and children to manufacture the T34 in somewhere called Tankograd and even moved the factory over a weekend when the Germans got a bit close. The Germans came up with the Tiger Tank. Vastly superior but the issue was that they were much slower to manufacture and very unreliable due to their complexity...sound familiar???

Ask Gardenkit, he is a dealer for their machines and will give you and honest unbiased view on Mitox!

They seem to go a bit better than most, no idea why:sneaky2:

Going from a 40cc homeowner saw to a 70cc pro aw would be a big weight increase. You will find a 50-60cc pro saw will have a huge increase in power and cut speed on a 15-18" bar and be more manageable. Personally I rarely use anything over 60cc for my firewood and that is anything up to 2' diameter!

Got one myself, nice little saw:thumbup:o

If you go through my "what's on your bench" thread, you will find many a discussion on salvaging cylinders and the best pistons to use. I always try to save the cylinder and have around a 98% success rate. The piston is best to be Meteor as they have near OEM manufacturing with Caber rings as used by many OEM engine manufacturers. Make sure the piston goes in the right way round, the arrow on the piston crown points toward the exhaust port. The bore can be lightly honed and it helps break the glaze and beds the piston on faster. Don't go too mad as you will wear the plating off the bore and font use a hone to take the transfer off, use chemicals such as acid of strong alkaline solution.