351 rebuild

[oldguy]

I don't know how they do it but HLSUPPLY gets stuff up here (Minn) in 2-3 days, they are in Florida.

 

[Wood Doctor]

My Husky 353 has been my GOTO saw for 10 years, it just keeps going and going and going.
Pound for pound it is one of the best chainsaws ever made. Just MHO. To replace it today you would have to buy this one, a 550 XP, for another $150 more:

This one came into my shop looking like it had been run over by a truck. Somehow, I restored it.

 

[born to hunt]

I checked my saws and these are the cylinders I have on them.
I don't know that I correctly identified the 353 cylinders when I did my project work, but I vaguely recall finding some other markings that indicated the cylinders were worth using. They do indeed perform well.

For the original poster....

There are several videos about measuring squish using solder in a chainsaw. I didn't really have a favorite among them, but do have a favorite with regard to the general education. I really like Tinman's videos and he has a decent one that explains squish and other things too:

Tinman on Youtube

For me, I didn't want to tinker with a degree wheel so I just deleted the base gasket, measured the squish using a dry assembly. After finding the squish and rotating the assembly I was comfortable with the assembly. THEN, I used moto seal for the base gasket and bolted the cylinder to the base block. The moto seal will add maybe .004 of thickness.

There is no need to "jump" on the OE piston and cylinder from ebay. The cost for a new 346xp OE piston and cylinder is $200 from H L supply:

H L Supply

Oh, also, there is a cultural belief that .020 is a smart and safe squish, but there was some guy who attempted progressively tighter squish until impact happened. I think this was about .012 for his 50cc saw. I think my squish is .017 on one of my saws and it has performed with no impact for a couple years.


I did have a friend trim the base block with a mill on one of my saws, but this wasn't necessary really.

Run the same carb.

I recommend removing the screen from the factory muffler and maybe using a dremel burr to open the exhaust hole slightly - with the muffler removed. Bend the hood over the exhaust hole to get better access. Or, you could spend $50 for a bigger hole exhaust on ebay. Leave the screen removed

After re-assembly, check all of the screws after the saw is warm initially then after each heat cycle for maybe 4-5 heat cycles. The muffler bolts have a propensity for coming loose and the cylinder bolts have a propensity for coming loose too.

Oh a personal note, I have always coveted a 346xp, but now that my 350 saws are up and running exceptionally strong, I don't have a super good reason to get a 346xp. I will be interested to read how your project saw progresses and your opinion of the saw when finished. This is especially true since you have a good 346xp for comparison.

So, I suppose a fair summary would be:

Decide on a new piston and maybe new cylinder too.

I kinda recommend checking ring end gap for reasonable space.

Assemble without base gasket and measure squish. (maybe no ring installed in piston and a light coat of oil on cylinder and piston)

Smear the moto seal, assemble with ring in piston and good circlip orientation, and allow to moto seal to rest for a day.

Run it gently a few times. Check screws for tightness.

Open the muffler some.

Tune for maybe 12,500 rpm for the first 1-2 tanks of fuel.

Tune for maybe 13,500 rpm and let us know how it performs !

My thoughts tend to be scattered. Hopefully enough of them make sense and there aren't too many typo's.

Sincerely,

Dave

Dave- this took a lot of time and effort to put to paper and write. I am humbly grateful. I’ll follow the steps to the letter.

 

[born to hunt]

346 oem is the way to fly, you can also put a 357 carb on it, you will need 357 air filter and its mount.
If you do base gasket delete, do you know how to measure squish?
If you have a dremel you can do some grinding that will help.
You are not far from me, I'm a couple miles out of Becker

Thank you for your wisdom! If I can ask, once I get the parts and general plan, I’d love to connect to learn how to measure “squish” and learn anything you have to teach. I’m by sugar lake, for reference. I’ll gladly pay you for your time or provide comparable service in beer, beverage, or ammunition. I happen to have significant knowledge in the latter.

But please don’t feel obligated. I know we’re all busy. I can drive to you, to reduce your inconvenience.

 

[oldguy]

Thank you for your wisdom! If I can ask, once I get the parts and general plan, I’d love to connect to learn how to measure “squish” and learn anything you have to teach. I’m by sugar lake, for reference. I’ll gladly pay you for your time or provide comparable service in beer, beverage, or ammunition. I happen to have significant knowledge in the latter.

But please don’t feel obligated. I know we’re all busy. I can drive to you, to reduce your inconvenience.

Oh yeah, we need to hook up here, been huntin & shootin all my life, gonna be 84 in a month.
Just got one a them thermal nite vision things, it is fantastic.

 

[born to hunt]

If I had it down that far I'd just do the seals regardless. I'm understanding that series of saw was known for poor sealing of the adapter base straight from factory, too.

Do I recall that not all adapter bases of that series work for the 346 hybrid? It seems like the 350 is the common one to use. And 340, 345 do not work for some reason.

What “seals” are you talking about?

 

[oldguy]

What “seals” are you talking about

Wait till we get together, we'll square it away, he was confused about which model you have. Don't pull those cases apart yet, that's a lot more than may be needed.

 

[born to hunt]

Wait till we get together, we'll square it away, he was confused about which model you have. Don't pull those cases apart yet, that's a lot more than may be needed.

Copy that. I’ll order the OEM kit from HL and when it’s here we can build a plan to get together. Gonna be fun!