Aftermarket Cylinder... good and bad... the Truth!

[SawTroll]

...and closed port 46mm Husky 55 p/c kits, ....... ...

Why not call it what it is, a Partner P5500 kit? :msp_smile:

 

[watsonr]

The short answer to your question is "YES". Now, I've never pretended to know everything, but I do know an OEM cylinder has works to my satisfaction every single time. Not so with the AM cylinders I've used. Working on a 039 project now and I know the AM cylinder I'll be using will be less power than the rebuilt OEM saws I have laying on the bench next to it. So, I do in fact know what combinations work for me on the saws I mentioned. I've done a few dozen.

Didn't notice the thread was referring to "ported" AM cylinders. It was?? I did point out that I've not used any ported cylinders, as they seem to go for around $250, according to the prices regularly seem in many saw builder / posters signatures. And I will add, and many here have proven the point time and time again, that a good used OEM cylinder with Meteor piston set up runs just fine and is quite near stock OEM in quality and performance. I've built up many "waiting" for OEM cylinders to become available on Ebay and have put the saws together for under $100. That said, I really don't see your point in throwing money at a AM cylinder for port work and then hoping the plating doesn't come off in a couple hundred hours. It would cost more and would be a gamble. Opinions are nice, but facts are facts and money doesn't come for "free" in my household.

Used OEM is not in this discussion, I don't sell used OEM cylinders. Were talking about the cost of OEM compared to aftermarket. If I had a used OEM cylinder in my hands in good usable condition, I would just put a Meteor piston in it and run it..... But if faced with buying a new OEM kit or an aftermarket kit and potentially saving myself 1/2 off that cost AND get a warranty if it fails.... not having that warranty with the OEM... there is no choice in my mind... its going to the aftermarket kit.

Your right, facts are facts.... I've seen the plating come off OEM. I've got an MS880 with about 20 hours run time, waited for a year now and finally a used cylinder came up on eBay..... $258. I'm past the warranty time... Stihl says to bad, OEM are $400. This used one may not last either...... and we can talk about "what if" until were both dead. The real deal is that some can't wait for that used OEM kit to finally become available, I can't afford a new one because of price and that used one is just as much a crap shoot, we've all heard the stories of how they failed after a few hours, heard that they saved the day as well. An aftermarket kit would have returned my money on this saw a year ago and really the reason I got involved trying to find something to fix this saw. Some good "Aftermarket Junk" would have bought my family a couple dinners in cost savings. Like you, I work for every dollar and scratch to save a dime!

I'm not here to twist anybody's arm to buy one, make you think this is the only way..... just that they're a good alternative to OEM in both performance, cost and available for most applications...... its that simple.

 

[PogoInTheWoods]

I'm not here to twist anybody's arm to buy one, make you think this is the only way..... just that they're a good alternative to OEM in both performance, cost and available for most applications...... its that simple.

Well, Randy.... facts are facts..., and I think you just confused everybody with that one.:msp_thumbup:

 

[watsonr]

Well, Randy.... facts are facts..., and I think you just confused everybody with that one.:msp_thumbup:

Not sure what you mean?

Edit;

Alright, I've re-read my post and maybe I did. I got involved with aftermarket to find an alternative to OEM parts at reduced prices and in the case of the MS880 there isn't one... There are alternatives to OEM for the majority of saws outs there and they have been underdogs for to long. My goal was to bring the aftermarket into the light so some of you could see what I've seen is possible. There is no reason why an aftermarket kit can't be all that at half the price!

 

[Tzed250]

Not sure what you mean?

I believe he was funnin' you.

It boils down to this. If you can afford OEM and want OEM, buy OEM. I you want 90% of OEM quality at 50% of OEM cost, here is an option.

In ancient rome there was a poem
About a dog who found two bones
He picked at one
He licked the other
He went in circles
He dropped dead

 

[PogoInTheWoods]

Not sure what you mean?

You're confusing the issue by reducing it to its initial simplicity for everyone who wants to make it something else...
"as in confusin' em with the facts."

Some guys around here just seem to hate when that happens..., me included every now and again.

 

[thomas1]

I believe he was funnin' you.

It boils down to this. If you can afford OEM and want OEM, buy OEM. I you want 90% of OEM quality at 50% of OEM cost, here is an option.

In ancient rome there was a poem
About a dog who found two bones
He picked at one
He licked the other
He went in circles
He dropped dead

That doesn't even rhyme.

 

[watsonr]

I believe he was funnin' you.

It boils down to this. If you can afford OEM and want OEM, buy OEM. I you want 90% of OEM quality at 50% of OEM cost, here is an option.

In ancient rome there was a poem
About a dog who found two bones
He picked at one
He licked the other
He went in circles
He dropped dead

One was an OEM bone and he saw the price tag:hmm3grin2orange::hmm3grin2orange:

 

[Jacob J.]

I believe he was funnin' you.

It boils down to this. If you can afford OEM and want OEM, buy OEM. I you want 90% of OEM quality at 50% of OEM cost, here is an option.

In ancient rome there was a poem
About a dog who found two bones
He picked at one
He licked the other
He went in circles
He dropped dead

Freedom from choice, is what you want...

 

[Tzed250]

Freedom from choice, is what you want...

Exactly...

 

[tlandrum]

i hate when my roids act up,its a real pain in my azz

 

[tlandrum]

look,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,over there,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,,pretty colors.:bang:

 

[mdavlee]

Shiny with chrome? :cool2: Oh wait that's duct tape or Kentucky chrome:yoyo:

 

[super3]

I'm just asking questions based on what he posted. I'm not busting anyone's chops. If he favors oem, that's fine, and is perfectly understandable. No need to make stuff up.

What "stuff" was made up?

Lots of us here don't need him to write up his life story to know what he is all about.

 

[mt.stalker]

So , in my case , (52yrs. old) if I use only one saw to cut with for my needs , and the kit lasts 500hrs. , It'll be worn out when I'm 76 yrs. old . Boy , I probably wouldn't be able to sleep @ night worrying about it .

 

[PogoInTheWoods]

With all due respect to the intent of the thread, I haven't seen the flipside "truth" of the bad products out there that are still giving the AM alternative a worse rep than it probably deserves these days.

Here's a 361 cylinder from a kit I bought from a non-sponsor a couple weeks ago -- the only one I could find after a day or so of searching around. All I really needed was a jug for the project, but a used OEM jug was more expensive even on the bay than a whole AM BB kit.

Nothing in the saw itself for me dollar-wise. A freebie project saw with (ahem....) the OEM Mahle cylinder totally cracked around its base, so...shopping I went for an economical fix.

Ended up with this after finding out there was no Meteor kit yet available and this was pretty much all there was....regardless of retailer. Same kit anywhere you went if they happened to have em on the shelf. I was told by a very reputable member here that the timing numbers in these kits were surprisingly good as was the plating in his experience with them. Good enuff for me.

Needless to say, I expected a much cleaner product and was disappointed in the quality of what I received. That stated, the original reference to this particular kit also suggested I check with the OP of this thread to see if maybe he had a nicer one on the shelf as a replacement if the original vendor would simply make good on a return. Turns out he didn't, but he spoke highly of the vendor in question and indicated I'd have no problem with an exchange or a refund as had been his experience in the past with the seller. He was right. No problem at all, though I think I'll keep the kit for the money and try my hand at cleaning it up myself if I don't send it off for a quick spit and polish by someone who's done a few of these already.

Everyone I corresponded with or talked to about these particular kits said basically the same thing; Decent numbers, nice plating, total crapshoot on the casting details from one kit to the next regardless of where you buy them -- unless, of course, they've been unpackaged from the supplier by a reseller, inspected for obvious imperfections, ported/cleaned up, or reduced in price if obvious flaws are present (can you say Bailey's 'unassembled' 039 short block kits?), whatever the case may be, and then marketed accordingly for what they are as the end result of the extra effort to provide a better aftermarket experience than just having their customers popping the shrinkwrap on a box from China and discovering this....and I applaud them for it.

 

[PogoInTheWoods]

Not sure what happened with the dupe pics in the previous post, but the thumbnails are the ones that should have been embedded.

 

[Trx250r180]

With the new models replacing ones we have now,its only a matter of time before parts will be discontinued . This site seems to have an influence on the industry,if we can work with these aftermarket companies, maybe our feedback good or bad can help develop a better product,im going to be trying out a kit on one of my saws, if it holds up i will let the suplier know,if i fails early i will let them know etc,hopefully we can work with these kits to make them a better product,i know a used 460 jug is geting hard find to make a hybid, these if work out will be a good alternitive

 

[tree monkey]

sorry spacey, let me try to clear things up for you.
i do not sell or install any am parts on my customers produts
clear enough?

 

[Mastermind]

sorry spacey, let me try to clear things up for you.
i do not sell or install any am parts on my customers produts
clear enough?

You might need to draw him a picture Scott. Wanna use my crayons? :hmm3grin2orange: