Homelite Chainsaws

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I got so caught up trying to produce pics that I forgot to Thank You Tim!

Now, here I am at home, on this tablet, with no smilies. Beer Mugs
 
The older saws do have those inserts at the bar studs so that is likely stock. I didn't know that.
My 700 and 902's have 5/16" bar studs. The 922, VI922 and 925 have 3/8" studs. The distance between stud centers on the 5/16" studs is about 1.25" and on the 3/8" stud saws it's about 1.5". That should tell you what size stud should be in there.

You certainly have an interesting saw there.
 
The older saws do have those inserts at the bar studs so that is likely stock. I didn't know that.
My 700 and 902's have 5/16" bar studs. The 922, VI922 and 925 have 3/8" studs. The distance between stud centers on the 5/16" studs is about 1.25" and on the 3/8" stud saws it's about 1.5". That should tell you what size stud should be in there.

You certainly have an interesting saw there.
Thanks again, Tim. The local dealer lets me go through his dead saws. I don't even look at all those new Husky's & Echo's on the wall, I do my "shopping" upstairs, in the attic. It's not very well lit up there, so I bring my flashlight & start digging. Everything's really organized, I could spend hours up there.

There are some better looking saws up there (not counting all the new ones in boxes) but I picked this old Homie out this time, as I was thinking it was a 923/924/925. I don't know much about it yet, but it rotates for a bit & then locks up. Kinda acts like something might be getting caught in the flywheel (hopefully, that's all it is).

That info you provided about the bar studs is interesting. Evidently, someone replaced the rear one with a 3/8". That explains the elongated hole in the "944/955" clutch cover (good call on that one, buddy).

So far, are there any indicators that this saw may be a 902, vs. a 901, such as the vented cap & auto oiler, or did the 901's come both ways? By the way, is there a secret spot that may provide some #'s?
 
I have a 902 with a tank vent and another with a cap vent.

If I look at Acre's site there are quite a few of the series which are not common. Your saw has definitely been worked over with parts that may or may not belong to the original saw.

The 902's had auto oilers. The IPL for the 901 says it did not. If you can check the bore that will at least tell you if it's 77cc (2" bore) or 82cc (2-1/16" bore).

As far as hidden numbers if the saw doesn't have a tag on it I don't know of any. There may be part numbers on the die cast parts but you couldn't be sure if the part was original or not.

The Canadian saws typically had the tag glued to the rear handle and carb box on the flat horizontal area on the outside of the box below the carb mixture screws and just inboard of the starter handle. I'm not sure about the US saws.

I PM'd you a link to a Homelite repair manual which contains the saws from the XL-700 through the Super XL-925. If you look on page 51 you will see what each model had for features. The manual goes on to describe differences in the various saw as you read through the section.
You won't see any Canadian specific models assembled in Pointe Claire, Quebec at Terry Industries like the XL-902, XL-902AM or VI922.
 
Thanks for the manual, Tim, that was a huge help. Ol' Franks codes are B C D H L, which narrows it down to either a XL 800 AM, XL 870, or XL 900EAM. It was stated that the XL 800 didn't have both oilers, so I assume the AM version stands for auto/manual (I say assume). Those three saws all had the exact same codes, so I don't know how to narrow it down any further. It is a 2 1/16" bore.

I got to the bottom of the "locking up" problem. It would roll easily, to a point, then lock up solid (but not all the time). I removed the muffler, to measure the bore, and I noticed that the piston wasn't moving with the crank all the time! :surprised3: I pulled the cylinder and found needle bearings everywhere. Also found a rod bolt, the other one was still attached by a few threads.

At this point, the cylinder looks fine & so does the crank. The only damage to the piston, is some slight gouging at the bottom of the skirt. I have to give it a thorough inspection, but so far, it looks like I need a rod & needle bearings. So far, I've recovered 26 needle bearings. I know none got spit out the exhaust, as the screen is intact in the muffler. The IPL listed the number of needles for some models, but not all (including this one). I also need to find rings, seals, & gaskets.
 
There are 28 needle bearings in there. They all have a 1-1/2" stroke. Go fishing with a magnet. Why do you think it needs a new rod? Just curious.
The crank seals are SKF 6119 which are readily available at any industrial supply place that sells bearings etc.
The cylinder base gasket was .012"compressed so I would think paper gasket material .015" might work. Ask round on that one as I am not positive how much it compresses.
If you wish to make your own, I think I scanned an old one and I can send that to you in pdf form, actual size.

The rings are likely available one line or try DLA engine parts. Great guy, fast shipping (he's in Greece and sell's Caber rings).

It's a wonder the saw didn't sustain end of life damage.

Good thought on the AM. I would go with that unless I hear differently.
 
Yeah, I don't understand how it got to that point, without everything being fubared. You would think, if nothing else, the threads would be completely buggered on the rod cap. I put the cap back on the rod, the bolts screwed back in & tightened up as if nothing ever happened.

I was looking at the Greek's store last night, looks like I'll be doing more than looking this time.

Are you sure there's only 27 needles, Tim? I found one more (#27), it was stuck in the oil groove in the rod cap. The reason I ask is, I did go back to the manual & found a page that pertained to servicing the piston & rod. It said to be sure to remove all 28 of them upon disassembly!
 
Yeah, I don't understand how it got to that point, without everything being fubared. You would think, if nothing else, the threads would be completely buggered on the rod cap. I put the cap back on the rod, the bolts screwed back in & tightened up as if nothing ever happened.

I was looking at the Greek's store last night, looks like I'll be doing more than looking this time.

Are you sure there's only 27 needles, Tim? I found one more (#27), it was stuck in the oil groove in the rod cap. The reason I ask is, I did go back to the manual & found a page that pertained to servicing the piston & rod. It said to be sure to remove all 28 of them upon disassembly!


The greek is fast and a good guy to work with, he got me the piston and rings to fix my super XL-925. I use grease to "glue" the needles in place while putting the rod cap back on. I'm very curious as to how fossil's technique works.


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The IPL's call for 27 and that is what I would go by. I counted 27 on the two I have removed.
If you want, I will give you a tip on getting them back in there. I was lucky but it can be a challenge.
Sounds good to me, 27 it is, Tim. Normally, I put a little grease on those situations, to make em sticky, but I've always got eager ears for more tricks.

I forgot to mention that I would like to get a rod from ya, Tim. My wrist pin bearing does feel alright, but I may get a new one anyway. I can definately feel a little play in the flywheel side crank bearing, so I may as well do both of those, also. Good thing I only paid 20 bucks for ol' Frank here :innocent:. Heck, we might even end up doin' paint & decals.:dancing:
 
The greek is fast and a good guy to work with, he got me the piston and rings to fix my super XL-925. I use grease to "glue" the needles in place while putting the rod cap back on. I'm very curious as to how fossil's technique works.


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Yep, NOW I know what a 925 looks like, lol. I like the full wrap. Oh yeah, you use grease, too...let's see what Tim does, maybe we'll be 3 for 3. :cheers:

Edit: I was so focused on yer saw, I didn't notice the beautiful background in your pics.
 
We get alot less rain than you in Washington. It's just the barren desert. The mountain range in the background is almost 8000' in elevation and there is not a single tree in the entire range.
We work awful hard here to just have what you see in the yard, as we only get 5" of rain a year.

Funny how I want 85cc saws.
 
Sounds good to me, 27 it is, Tim. Normally, I put a little grease on those situations, to make em sticky, but I've always got eager ears for more tricks.

I forgot to mention that I would like to get a rod from ya, Tim. My wrist pin bearing does feel alright, but I may get a new one anyway. I can definately feel a little play in the flywheel side crank bearing, so I may as well do both of those, also. Good thing I only paid 20 bucks for ol' Frank here :innocent:. Heck, we might even end up doin' paint & decals.:dancing:

PM me your name & mailing address and I'll get the rod out to you.

Here's what I did to get the rod and bearings back in. It's likely not the only way but it worked well for me 1st try.

I coated the cap and rod bearing surfaces with grease and laid the the bearings into place.

I rolled the crank over so the rod journal was as far to the rear of the case (closest to you) and centered it up down. I carefully laid the cap onto the journal facing down . I slowly rolled the cap to the the back of the journal so the rod could be attached.
When rolling the cap, the needle bearings will try to roll out so hold them in place with a popsicle stick. Go slow. I held the cap against the journal by inserting a piece of coat hanger with a hook bent on the back so the cap wouldn't come away from the journal when I put the rod in place and snugged one screw down so all the bearings would be captured.

Add the second cap screw and tighten them both down.

My mistake on the 27 rollers, It is 28
 
Guy brought a 550 with no spark with coil and transformer removed and no plug.Searches I found plug# and test for spark with transformer wired separate.I did that and saw a spark and was not worried maybe just needed everything cleaned up.So did the usual carb kit,boot,fuel line,filter.Wants to start a pop now and then.Tried coil closer .007 and further .020 likes the original .012 the best but which part do I need now?Searches didn't help.Thanks,David
 
The greek is fast and a good guy to work with, he got me the piston and rings to fix my super XL-925. I use grease to "glue" the needles in place while putting the rod cap back on. I'm very curious as to how fossil's technique works.


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Yeah, I know it's dry & barren back there, but it's still beautiful in it's own way. Wide open spaces, big sky, mountain range...just not too many trees. I bet those trees in your yard shiver in their roots when you fire up the old Homie. You must not be in the middle of nowhere, as you have power poles in the mix. Is the windmill your water?
 
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