John Deere CS 56

[Phil McMartin]

I am trying to decide if this saw is worth rebuilding. From what I have found the piston is severely scored and the cylinder did clean up with some small vertical groves left. I am open to suggestions. Looks like parts are not available through John Deere.Thank you

 

[pioneerguy600]

Everyone that runs mine thinks it`s a great saw, one friend that does more cutting than most wants me to sell it to him. I only have the one, it came to me much like yours, scored piston and cylinder so I got a new piston through the good folks over in the Efco, Oleomac thread and put it back together, it resides at my summer place on the lake and used a fair amount, is an easy starter no matter how long it sits so the purge bulb works. I find them heavy due to I almost always run Stihl PRO saws and have no intentions of selling it even though there are many around me that would gladly take it off my hands. Your saw looks to be in very good shape and definitely worth fixing.

 

[Phil McMartin]

Thank you, I will check that thread.

 

[pastryguyhawaii]

I have one that I really like. If Jerry likes it you know it’s a good saw. Mine, too, had a scored piston & the cylinder was missing some plating. I have a spare new piston. PM if you want it. More than likely you need new seals. Mine was leaking on the flywheel side.

 

[pioneerguy600]

I have one that I really like. If Jerry likes it you know it’s a good saw. Mine, too, had a scored piston & the cylinder was missing some plating. I have a spare new piston. PM if you want it. More than likely you need new seals. Mine was leaking on the flywheel side.
View attachment 1059768

There were a good many of those saws sold here not far from me, the poor dealer had so many returned with destroyed P&C sets from operators leaning out the mix screws to get max RPM out of them for small softwood harvesting that he had to stop selling them. The dealer support from Efco just was not there and so many destroyed units he could not afford to replace out of pocket, unfortunately those saws got a bad rep for no fault of their own. Operator error killed them.

 

[Phil McMartin]

Thanks for the info. I thought about the seals also, but I would need to split the case to get them out. I don’t have a fancy puller to get the small one out. Maybe I should just sell it for parts rather than spend alot of time on it as like everyone else I have to much stuff. Thank you for the offer of your spare piston.

 

[Phil McMartin]

I live in Iowa and have never seen an efco. With most saws a screw driver along with poor oil or improper mix and don’t forget the air filter are the demise of most saws.

 

[pioneerguy600]

Around my area the guys were using these saws to harvest pulpwood, they want a saw that litterly screams with RPM as the trees are generally smaller in dia. and have a lot of small limbs that need to be cleaned off. They work piece work so the only thing that counts to them is how much wood they can pile in a day, the H speed screws were set about 1/2 turn or less out on the destroyed saws even though the mix was more than adequate . The guys running these saws have years of experience under their belts and have run the top two chainsaw makes for years and years. The tool does not mean that much to them, it`s just a tool.

 

[pioneerguy600]

 

[pioneerguy600]

View attachment 20220925_145143.mp4View attachment 20220925_145132.mp4

 

[pioneerguy600]

We have thousands of trees to clean up, aftermath of a severe hurricane, all this winter I have been going over my saws readying them for the upcoming season. The 56 will see a good bit more running and so will my fleet of Stihl saws with the 66 - 72 cc saws seeing the most action. A 20" bar on an 044 is my most all time favorite saw for this type of cleanup, the 046 with a 25" bar will see some duty while the 362 will be at the ready for smaller trees. I love removing the limbs with a ported/modded 026, nimble and fast.

 

[Phil McMartin]

I worked on a 201 for our local tree guy and the first thing he wanted to borrow was my screwdriver! It will be toast in 6 months. Your correct all it is a tool to make more money.

 

[pastryguyhawaii]

Thanks for the info. I thought about the seals also, but I would need to split the case to get them out. I don’t have a fancy puller to get the small one out. Maybe I should just sell it for parts rather than spend alot of time on it as like everyone else I have to much stuff. Thank you for the offer of your spare piston.

You’re welcome. No need to split the case or for a special puller. Let me know if you change your mind, or if you decide to sell it.

 

[TLG]

Nice saw for sure. Don't know why but the Cs 56,62, and even 81 all had issues running for extended periods on their sides felling. Bucking firewood never had any issues. New seals, boots, still didn't seem to cure the issue. It's been a few years but Efco still has parts support as far as I know. Just add a 1 to the above JD series. And for what it is worth the fellar from Greece did have cylinder kits in the past as I have used them before.

 

[pioneerguy600]

You’re welcome. No need to split the case or for a special puller. Let me know if you change your mind, or if you decide to sell it.

What did you use to pull the seal with Jeff? My usual is the hook ground into the screwdriver.

 

[pastryguyhawaii]

What did you use to pull the seal with Jeff? My usual is the hook ground into the screwdriver.

Yes, the same.