They make some of their parts and buy some of their parts. I have seen the parts change over time from the first kits sold. All the parts have changed multiple times. They have even had at least two handle/tanks molds which is the most expensive part for them to produce. Some were improvements and then those improvements sometimes back slid. The different cylinders are mind blowing, that has been constantly changing. I will say this. They have never changed the spike package that shorts you the nuts. They were short in the first kits and are still missing. I could go on.
I have kept up with this and the recent problems are simply because they bought outside cylinders. Nothing would cause bearing faliure faster than the symmetry being off in the cylinder. Oh one more thing, a crappy carb. They can starve those bearing. To start they don't produce enough volume they are very restricted. Then many kit builders excersise there ability to customize and change the saws they produce and they almost always want to increase compression, most use a FarmerTec carb and that carb has the EPA jets and boom...
I have said from the get go that they are good if they are copies and with the changes we adapted and changed to some oem parts. Giving us a saw that will serve us well. The first kits had 76-1 cloned, that went away fast
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