Husky 50 Rebuild Questions

[chiefs15]

Hi all,

I am working on rebuilding my dad's 1985 Husqvarna 50 Rancher and I'm looking for some guidance as this is my first try at any sort of rebuilding on a saw. He got a new saw and gave this one to me to play around with. The saw runs and seems to have good compression. He bought the saw new and it has not been heavily used through the years. Though, being 35 years old I'm sure it needs some updating. My dad put in a new carb kit and replaced the clutch a few years ago. I'm at the point where I'm trying to determine how much money I want to throw at it to keep it going. I have a newer Stihl that will get the bulk of the work. I mostly want to get this one going for occasional use and I know I'd appreciate the sentimental value down the road and for my son to use.

Its still got the original 20" bar on it and I know it needs a new bar and chain. I'm planning to get a 16" which I think will be a better fit for this saw. I also plan to at least replace the impulse pipe, induction pipe, a few of the gaskets, and fuel line/filter. I am not sure on the crank seals. I don't have any of the special tools to get to them and swap them out so I need to do some more digging on how to do those. I'm guessing it would be a good idea to vacuum test to see what kind of shape they're in. I took the cylinder off today to see what kind of shape the P/C was in. I've attached some pictures and am looking for some guidance on whether either/both are in good enough shape to salvage or not. I'm just not familiar enough to know what kind of scratches or scoring is OK or not. I'd appreciate any guidance that can be provided about getting this saw updated, especially about how the P/C looks. I've been able to learn a ton already about these older Husky saws thanks to this forum.

Thanks,
Travis

 

[auskip07]

you need to replace the Piston and cylinder.

i started with a 50 and turned it into a 55 rancher but my saw was mostly garbage.

 

[Deleted member 117362]

Cylinder may clean up. Piston and ring need to be replaced. Looks like you had an air leak. Is lower rod bearing tight?

 

[Pioneer]

I would replace the P/C, there are a lot of kits out there. Any price to fit your budget, but the chances of getting a cylinder with bad plating are quite a bit higher on the cheap ones. You may be able to fit the 55 piston and cylinder, the later saws had a wider opening for the cylinder base. Depends on the serial number on the Husqvarna made ones, the later Electrolux are probably all wide base, maybe someone can verify that.
These saws are one of the easiest to work on that you will find, a good choice to start off with. You can still get OEM parts for them, I just replaced the air inductor and carb mount on mine. A 16 inch bar is a good choice if you have to deal with some hardwood. It will have no problem with 3/8 chain in that length if that's your preference. They are good firewood saws, simple and reliable and well worth working on.

 

[ML12]

Pretty sure that cylinder will clean up, there are a few methods, I like emery cloth on a split mandrel and patience....

I also turned my 50 into a 55 and ported it. Fun times for a small saw. pulls an 18" with .325 really well in PNW wood.

I'd recommend replacing the seals. They're cheap and relatively easy to do on these saws. Just pull the flywheel and oil pump and they're right there. Use a 3/4" or 1/2" pipe fitting to pull the worm gear (can't remember the exact size), make note of how deep its seated on the crank before you pull it though.

 

[chiefs15]

Cylinder may clean up. Piston and ring need to be replaced. Looks like you had an air leak. Is lower rod bearing tight?

Just checked both crank bearings and there doesn't seem to be any play at all. Would one or both of the crank seals be the likely source for the air leak? I'd go ahead and just replace both but it sounds like they are a total pain to get swapped out. Thanks for the tips ML12. The small impulse grommet that sits in the cylinder did not look to be in good shape.

I'll probably move forward with getting a new piston and cylinder. I doubt I'd have success cleaning this one up without really knowing what I'm doing. Might give it a shot though. I read through a bunch of posts from over the years about upgrading from the 44mm to a 45 or 46 and probably came away more confused than when I started. I came away thinking that my saw is old enough that it wouldn't take the upgrade without some modifications but could certainly be wrong. Its a 1985 and serial number is 5355186 if that helps. I'm having a hard time finding any 44mm P/C kits but there seem to be some options for 46mm including an OEM kit from Baileys for $105. I don't mind spending a bit on a quality P/C kit if I know it will last.

 

[Pioneer]

Measure your cylinder base at this point. This one took the 55 cylinder. It's 1.985 in inches. I have another that is 1/10th Inch less at 1.88, an Electrolux made one, so I guess you can't go by Husqvarna or Electrolux tags.


Just found these cylinders, the one on the right is a 45mm from a 51. Notice the difference in cylinder wall thickness between it and the 44 cylinder on the left. The 45 cylinder does not fit in the Electrolux tagged case.

 

[chiefs15]

Measure your cylinder base at this point. This one took the 55 cylinder. It's 1.985 in inches. I have another that is 1/10th Inch less at 1.88, an Electrolux made one, so I guess you can't go by Husqvarna or Electrolux tags.
View attachment 833371

Just found these cylinders, the one on the right is a 45mm from a 51. Notice the difference in cylinder wall thickness between it and the 44 cylinder on the left. The 45 cylinder does not fit in the Electrolux tagged case.
View attachment 833373

Thanks for taking those measurements! I just checked and I measured 1.885 inches for the cylinder base. Mine is also an Electrolux tagged case. Looks like a 45mm or bigger won't fit with this case which is a bummer. Is anyone aware of a 44mm cylinder anywhere? I'm having no luck searching for one. Not sure whether it would be easier to try and clean up the original cylinder or try to modify the case to make a bigger cylinder fit.

 

[chiefs15]

Thanks for taking those measurements! I just checked and I measured 1.885 inches for the cylinder base. Mine is also an Electrolux tagged case. Looks like a 45mm or bigger won't fit with this case which is a bummer. Is anyone aware of a 44mm cylinder anywhere? I'm having no luck searching for one. Not sure whether it would be easier to try and clean up the original cylinder or try to modify the case to make a bigger cylinder fit.

After a lot of searching I was able to find a new OEM 44mm piston and cylinder on eBay for this saw at a good price but the piston kit doesn't include a ring. Can anyone tell me if the ring linked below will fit this piston? I'm new this to so I'm not sure how universal these 44mm rings are. It says it is a replacement for the original Husqvarna 505266065 listed in the manual but just want to verify. I also found a Husqvarna from Baileys that I think would fit but the 50 isn't listed in the model numbers that it can be used as a replacement so its got me wondering.

https://northwoodsaw.com/index.php?l=product_detail&p=201https://www.baileysonline.com/husqv...-44mm-x-1-5mm-503289010-hvp-503-28-90-10.html