Husky muffler revisted

[mga]

i posted a while back about my Husky 350 losing the muffler bolts. i tried using the thread lock and it seemed to have worked...for a while. one bolt came loose again and i ended up blowing the muffler gasket.

so, i take it all apart, thinking i'll just run down and get another gasket, however, i noticed that the one threaded hole has stripped threads in it for the first 3/8" down. argh!!! i never over tightened the screws and i'm going to say that it came from the factory like that since the saw is only 1.5 years old.

so, i have two choices i can think of:

1. tap the hole to a larger size, but that means drilling the hardened muffler bushing as well (the guide tube the bolt slides into...i wasn't making a joke)

or...

2. buying a longer bolt. it has to be about an inch longer to grab sufficient threads. i know they are metric, any one know the thread size?

the bolts only protrude past the muffler about < 3/8" and that was supposed to be enough to securely hold the muffler in place(??????) i'd like to have a word with the engineer who designed that. the threaded hole in the head is deep enough to go with a bolt an inch longer. this should (theoretically) give me enough bite to secure the muffler.

so, here i am stuck with my husky garbage (of which i will never buy another one...even tho it is only a 350...i would expect the same quality as in any of their products) but, it is my most used saw.

ok...any other suggestions on how to correct this problem?? i'm sure someone out there has dealt with stripped holes before...?

oops.....i should have posted this in the chainsaw forum. my bad!!!!

 

[avalancher]

You could just drill out the head and put helicoils in, that way you wouldnt have to drill out the muffler.
i had the same issue with the 350, finally gave up and traded it in on the 455.
One guy told me something that I never tried, after putting in the helicoils you could dab the bolts with JB weld before inserting the bolts. The downside would be a bolt that would be really hard to get out, but according to the guy that I talked to he said rarely will a bolt back its way out again after being treated to some JB weld.

 

[Tazman1602]

i posted a while back about my Husky 350 losing the muffler bolts. i tried using the thread lock and it seemed to have worked...for a while. one bolt came loose again and i ended up blowing the muffler gasket.

so, i take it all apart, thinking i'll just run down and get another gasket, however, i noticed that the one threaded hole has stripped threads in it for the first 3/8" down. argh!!! i never over tightened the screws and i'm going to say that it came from the factory like that since the saw is only 1.5 years old.

so, i have two choices i can think of:

1. tap the hole to a larger size, but that means drilling the hardened muffler bushing as well (the guide tube the bolt slides into...i wasn't making a joke)

or...

2. buying a longer bolt. it has to be about an inch longer to grab sufficient threads. i know they are metric, any one know the thread size?

the bolts only protrude past the muffler about < 3/8" and that was supposed to be enough to securely hold the muffler in place(??????) i'd like to have a word with the engineer who designed that. the threaded hole in the head is deep enough to go with a bolt an inch longer. this should (theoretically) give me enough bite to secure the muffler.

so, here i am stuck with my husky garbage (of which i will never buy another one...even tho it is only a 350...i would expect the same quality as in any of their products) but, it is my most used saw.

ok...any other suggestions on how to correct this problem?? i'm sure someone out there has dealt with stripped holes before...?

oops.....i should have posted this in the chainsaw forum. my bad!!!!

HELI-COIL IT MAN! They hold up under the worst conditions. You can buy them at any auto parts stores.

 

[mga]

thanks!! man, i forgot about using a heli-coil.

if the JB weld holds up under heat, it looks like that might be the ticket. i mean...how often do you change a muffler?


i saw this topic in the chainsaw section:


http://www.arboristsite.com/showthread.php?t=70882

same problems. i wrote (again) to husky and asked them for some help. if they tell me to fly a kite, i'll try the heli coil and jb weld.

 

[KsWoodsMan]

If I had another inch of threads to work with in there I would opt for 2 more bolts long enough to take full advantage of the existing threads. 5 minutes to the parts/hardware store versus drilling, tapping, inserting a new helicoil and loctiting it in place. I doubt you would ever have to worry about it coming lose with decent threads in the bottom of the hole.

If the threads weren't there and the hole bottomed out at 3/8 - 1/2 inches then sure the helicoil would suite me fine.

You might have $1.00 in the pair of capscrews. You would still have the option of the helicoil in the future.

You would have thought that coming from the factory it would have been better designed to start with. How much did they save by skimping on a pair of bolts 1/2" shorter than needed? Pennies per saw at best. Bean counters ! you gotta endure'em 'cause you sure cant shoot'em.

 

[mga]

If I had another inch of threads to work with in there I would opt for 2 more bolts long enough to take full advantage of the existing threads. 5 minutes to the parts/hardware store versus drilling, tapping, inserting a new helicoil and loctiting it in place. I doubt you would ever have to worry about it coming lose with decent threads in the bottom of the hole.

If the threads weren't there and the hole bottomed out at 3/8 - 1/2 inches then sure the helicoil would suite me fine.

You might have $1.00 in the pair of capscrews. You would still have the option of the helicoil in the future.

You would have thought that coming from the factory it would have been better designed to start with. How much did they save by skimping on a pair of bolts 1/2" shorter than needed? Pennies per saw at best. Bean counters ! you gotta endure'em 'cause you sure cant shoot'em.

ok...ya sold me to try that out first.

now...do you know the thread size of those bolts? all i have is english thread gages.

 

[KsWoodsMan]

No. I dont know the size. I don't have a 350 Husky, I'm sure it is in the 5-7 mm range. 8 mm is 5/16", 7mm is 9/32" , 6.4 mm is 1/4" still a bit much but 6 mm should probably be pretty close. If all else fails take the old one with you to be sure of the thread pit and length.

I'd scream, cuss and kick if I was to go down there without it and comeback with 2 the same length/size as the old ones. :bang:
Nothing like having the pattern in your hand to look at when getting a replacement. I'd pick up some extra washers, for shims, just in case the threads wernt cut all the way to the bottom of the hole. Unless you checked this already by running the old one all the way in and measured the difference. If the new ones were just a touch too long you could take it to a grinder and remove any excess. No washers needed this way.

 

[mga]

i think i figured out they are 5mm x 8 screws.

however, i'm having a hard time finding them to the length i want.

man, i hate this saw!!

 

[avalancher]

i think i figured out they are 5mm x 8 screws.

however, i'm having a hard time finding them to the length i want.

man, i hate this saw!!

I feel your pain man, I went through the same situation with the 350. The only reason they gave me credit towards the 455 was i did lots of shouting in that showroom, even the other customers were getting nervous. I figured that if i spent my money on a saw and bolts were falling out of it within an hour and kept falling out then there was obviously a serious design flaw.
Hopefully you will remedy this problem with longer bolts.

 

[The Lorax]

M5 x 0.8 thread is the bolt size.

 

[mga]

M5 x 0.8 thread is the bolt size.

thanks.

anyone know where i can get two that are 110mm long?

 

[The Lorax]

Is it hard to get metric bolts there?
I get some stainless ones from a chandlery.
If you have no luck give me a pm and I can send some out.

 

[mga]

Is it hard to get metric bolts there?
I get some stainless ones from a chandlery.
If you have no luck give me a pm and I can send some out.

i spent a good part of the day looking on line for bolts that size with no luck. i even emailed several places, but i never heard back....maybe because they didn't want to bother with only 2 bolts.

will stainless steel be strong enough for the exhaust? i was under the impression they had to be case hardened(?) i could be wrong.....

but, if you can definately match them up with the size i need, i can easily pay pal you the cost of them and shipping!!

 

[The Lorax]

Give me a couple of days to try and get some, I am up in Dublin at the moment in a hotel.
Hex head bolts right? Not allen head or any strange drive?

 

[mga]

Give me a couple of days to try and get some, I am up in Dublin at the moment in a hotel.
Hex head bolts right? Not allen head or any strange drive?

the original ones are round head flanged allen....but, beggars can't be choosey...right?

man, i appreciate that!!!!!

 

[woodchop]

Another option would be if you use threaded rod and use washers and nuts. Bottom out the threaded rod ( hand tight!) and cut of what you don't need. Safety wire the nuts.

 

[avalancher]

Another option would be if you use threaded rod and use washers and nuts. Bottom out the threaded rod ( hand tight!) and cut of what you don't need. Safety wire the nuts.

That would work fine if you can find a piece of all thread that is made of hardened steel, not the regular stuff you find in the hardware store. It wont take the heat from the muffler. Not to mention all thread in metric sizes is a little hard to find. I have never seen any around here anyways.

 

[KsWoodsMan]

i think i figured out they are 5mm x 8 screws.

however, i'm having a hard time finding them to the length i want.

man, i hate this saw!!

This is a bit of a surprise but I was looking around town here and didnt have much luck either. Then I thought about Fastenal fasteners of all types right here in town , going to stop in there this morning.

Do you want them 110mm ( 4.5" ) or 225mm ( 9" ) ?

 

[mga]

This is a bit of a surprise but I was looking around town here and didnt have much luck either. Then I thought about Fastenal fasteners of all types right here in town , going to stop in there this morning.

Do you want them 110mm ( 4.5" ) or 225mm ( 9" ) ?

the original bolts are, measured from the bottom of the flange, 87mm long.

if i want them about an inch longer, then they would have to be about 110mm long.

hey...thanks for keeping me in mind!!

 

[mga]

after i emailed Husky and complained, once again, about the muffler issue, they wrote back and said this:

Mr. X,

Very recently, we have come up with a new muffler mounting system that will address this problem. It is a new muffler with 3 mounting points instead of 2. The new muffler part number is 544 02 83-02 and the third mounting screw is 503 21 75-16. This will solve the problem you are having.

so, they're admitting they know there is a vibration problem with certain models and the correction is to add a third mounting position. at least they found a solution.

however, i still have the problem of a stripped hole and the longer bolts is my best solution.