Nik's Poulan Thread

[Eccentric]

Thank you. I feel more educated already and I've only started the day! I'm sure the general public has no idea what the difference is between all these saws. Looks like Poulan might have saved some money by just offering one model rather than changing them so often, but what do I know about it? Homelite did it also with the small (and large) XL series.

Yep. I have a SERIOUS beef with the knuckleheads at Homelite who used 'XL' on four different saw families, covering displacements from 26cc thru 82cc. Then there is "EZ", and "E-Z", which mean two COMPLETELY different saw families. One is 82cc and large. The other is 34/38/41cc and small. The hyphen differentiates the two, but most folks (including Homelite at times) are quite lax at using the hyphen at the right time. Would it have killed them to think up other letter designations for the saws???

OK, now I am slightly less confused about the XXV/25/S25/DA variants, but still unsure of what I am looking at unless I measure bore and find an auto oiler or not. Am I correct in thinking the Super varieties had the metal toggle kill switch? And the 34cc models had a sliding kill switch? Most of the ones I see have no bars on them, so I can't reference that at all(and I only put 14" on them, for pruning and small limbs). Does the color mean anything or is that just and indicator of the production timeframe?

Nick

In the XXV Series, "Super" ony denotes the larger bore. The changeover to the toggle switch happened early in the production run. I don't know if there were any 2.3/Super saws with sliding switches. My Craftsman 2.1A (red 25DA) has a toggle switch. Without badging, the only way I know for sure to tell a 25 from a Super 25 is to measure the bore. External parts and assemblies are often swapped on these saws (ever seen a three color 25? They are often on feebay), so labels and switches can be 'wrong' for the saw. P/C's can be swapped too. I'd forgotten about the "250A" error. Happens a LOT on CL and feebay. Sometimes on AS too. Micros are a whole other subject. They're quite easy to tell apart from the XXV series, but have a million variants within their own series. And there's Poulan's reuse of "25", "Super", and "XXV" between the two unrelated saw series...:bang:

 

[rms61moparman]

No the deluxe micros got longer bars. No 2.3 micros unless labeled as 2300.....

My Bad!!!


See,
It's even hard for us to keep them sorted out!!!


Mike

 

[Modifiedmark]

Mark, the Oregon Manual calls the 20BPX a Micro Chisel Chain. Yes the cutter is taller than the 33 cutter but the width seems to be about the same.

Yes Micro Chisel. Thats just another variation of the original semi chisel. Basically a semi chisel with a side plate with a little steeper angle on it. No matter how you look at it, its still a round corner semi chisel.

Both .325 chains your talking about are standard kerf, not narrow so no surprise there cutters would be close to the same kerf.

Yep. I have a SERIOUS beef with the knuckleheads at Homelite who used 'XL' on four different saw families, covering displacements from 26cc thru 82cc. Then there is "EZ", and "E-Z", which mean two COMPLETELY different saw families. One is 82cc and large. The other is 34/38/41cc and small. The hyphen differentiates the two, but most folks (including Homelite at times) are quite lax at using the hyphen at the right time. Would it have killed them to think up other letter designations for the saws???



In the XXV Series, "Super" ony denotes the larger bore. The changeover to the toggle switch happened early in the production run. I don't know if there were any 2.3/Super saws with sliding switches. My Craftsman 2.1A (red 25DA) has a toggle switch. Without badging, the only way I know for sure to tell a 25 from a Super 25 is to measure the bore. External parts and assemblies are often swapped on these saws (ever seen a three color 25? They are often on feebay), so labels and switches can be 'wrong' for the saw. P/C's can be swapped too. I'd forgotten about the "250A" error. Happens a LOT on CL and feebay. Sometimes on AS too. Micros are a whole other subject. They're quite easy to tell apart from the XXV series, but have a million variants within their own series. And there's Poulan's reuse of "25", "Super", and "XXV" between the two unrelated saw series...:bang:

I have never seen a 2.3 saw with a sliding switch period so you can pretty much rest assured any sliding switch saw will be a 2.1.

On the other hand most toggles will be 2.3 but some later 2.1 were toggles as well. The red trigger pretty much assures a 2.1 as well but when it comes to relabled saws, all bets are off.

 

[Modifiedmark]

My Bad!!!


See,
It's even hard for us to keep them sorted out!!!


Mike

I hear you brother Mike! Just trying to keep it straight.

The original Micro was a 10" bar then they came out with the deluxe with a 12".

 

[StinkyBunny]

012 by robzuk5, on Flickr

New sawdawg, one of the hazards of having a wife that's a vet tech and a soft heart for abused critters. Pics of a HUGE oak tree tomorrow.

 

[Showme]

Bar oil

I'm wondering if before I tear into the oiler's on my 3400's I'm using the wrong weight of bar oil. I've currently got TSC bar oil in them and I'm not getting a flow with it. Weather hear is good for this time of year at about 45 or so. Do they need lighter oil to flow or what should I start to look at?

 

[Modifiedmark]

The TSC oil is pretty thick and the 3400 is a impulse driven oiler that dont like heavy oil that well in the colder weather.

In fact my thinking is not the same as alot of others here who think that heavy/thick oil makes it automatically superior. Most impulse oilers do much better with thinner oil and new saws with plastic oiler gears dont like heavy oil either.

You can thin your oil down with some diesel or kerosene.

In fact, run some straight diesel fuel through the oiler a bit before you tear it down to wash it out good.

 

[Showme]

The TSC oil is pretty thick and the 3400 is a impulse driven oiler that dont like heavy oil that well in the colder weather.

In fact my thinking is not the same as alot of others here who think that heavy/thick oil makes it automatically superior. Most impulse oilers do much better with thinner oil and new saws with plastic oiler gears dont like heavy oil either.

You can thin your oil down with some diesel or kerosene.

In fact, run some straight diesel fuel through the oiler a bit before you tear it down to wash it out good.

Thanks, that's what I'll do. The diesel was what I did with my 10-10 and it oils good now.

 

[Wagnerwerks]

012 by robzuk5, on Flickr

New sawdawg, one of the hazards of having a wife that's a vet tech and a soft heart for abused critters. Pics of a HUGE oak tree tomorrow.

Nice dog. I used to have a dog just like that.


(Also... I like the german auto in the background too)

 

[Wagnerwerks]

Thanks, that's what I'll do. The diesel was what I did with my 10-10 and it oils good now.

You can thin it out with some atf in the winter. The red tint also helps me remember which jug is winter mix.

 

[rms61moparman]

Nice dog. I used to have a dog just like that.


(Also... I like the german auto in the background too)

DANG!!!

You'all are starting to give me a case of diaper rash with that German auto sh!+!!!


Mike

 

[crowellmachine]

a sweet video.......

Good evening fellas!

Here is a video of our "Setup" up at my parents house. It's real high tech..........

Homemade barrel stove maple evaporator - YouTube

***a Poulan generator is used to tap trees, & run sap pump, so.....this is..legal ***


Karl

 

[zogger]

The TSC oil is pretty thick and the 3400 is a impulse driven oiler that dont like heavy oil that well in the colder weather.

In fact my thinking is not the same as alot of others here who think that heavy/thick oil makes it automatically superior. Most impulse oilers do much better with thinner oil and new saws with plastic oiler gears dont like heavy oil either.

You can thin your oil down with some diesel or kerosene.

In fact, run some straight diesel fuel through the oiler a bit before you tear it down to wash it out good.

I keep my bar oil in the house all the time when not out cutting. I've been doing that since my first saw. (of course then my bar oil and mix oil were just 30 wt car oil..)

Hot to warm oil goes into the saw, then start it up. After that, when it is running low almost completely out (you know, how you can tell the saw is running out of mix, rpms start to climb, boom, shut it off) I just stop and put more oil in and wait five minutes before refueling, this lets the engine heat spread to the new cooler oil. I sorta like a five minute break between tanks anyway, plus I always thought you should let air cooled engines cool down a little for safety sake when refueling..

With that said, how much diesel can you cut that TSC oil with, like 10% or something? And how does that effect total consumption when running it? As it is now, it is about perfect, saw outta gas, oil tank has a scosh more left.

 

[StinkyBunny]

Nice dog. I used to have a dog just like that.


(Also... I like the german auto in the background too)

There are 4 German junkpiles there, Golf TDI, Audi 90, Audi A4 and the diesel Cabriolet. On the farm there are 8 more in various states of disrepair, lol.

I've found that thinning the oil with some 5W30 works wonders.

 

[a. palmer jr.]

The TSC oil is pretty thick and the 3400 is a impulse driven oiler that dont like heavy oil that well in the colder weather.

In fact my thinking is not the same as alot of others here who think that heavy/thick oil makes it automatically superior. Most impulse oilers do much better with thinner oil and new saws with plastic oiler gears dont like heavy oil either.

You can thin your oil down with some diesel or kerosene.

In fact, run some straight diesel fuel through the oiler a bit before you tear it down to wash it out good.

I've pretty well gotten away from bar oil for my older saws, especially the impulse ones. Just using motor oil in them now. When I cut more wood than I do now, back in the eighties motor oil worked just fine and many of mine are 1980s saws. It seems the sticky bar oil attracts more dirt than motor oil.

 

[a. palmer jr.]

I keep my bar oil in the house all the time when not out cutting. I've been doing that since my first saw. (of course then my bar oil and mix oil were just 30 wt car oil..)

Hot to warm oil goes into the saw, then start it up. After that, when it is running low almost completely out (you know, how you can tell the saw is running out of mix, rpms start to climb, boom, shut it off) I just stop and put more oil in and wait five minutes before refueling, this lets the engine heat spread to the new cooler oil. I sorta like a five minute break between tanks anyway, plus I always thought you should let air cooled engines cool down a little for safety sake when refueling..

With that said, how much diesel can you cut that TSC oil with, like 10% or something? And how does that effect total consumption when running it? As it is now, it is about perfect, saw outta gas, oil tank has a scosh more left.

Hmmm, bar oil in the house...I'll go ask the wife if that's ok. If you don't hear from me in a couple of weeks just assume it wasn't.

 

[joe25DA]

Bar oil

The bar oil sure does thicken up in the cold, I recently ran out so Saturday when we went to my local shop I figured I'd try the Stihl Blue bottle winter blend. It was 30* Saturday and the jug sat in the bed of the truck for an hour before I opened it up. I must say i was impressed, it poured easier than the regular stuff in the summer.

 

[nick 55]

Hmmm, bar oil in the house...I'll go ask the wife if that's ok. If you don't hear from me in a couple of weeks just assume it wasn't.

If she's anything like my wife, just hide the bar oil with the household cleaning products. I seem to be the only one here that opens that cabinet.

Nick

 

[StinkyBunny]

Well, finally did something I've never done today, threw a chain. Nicked up the drive side a little bit, good thing I was almost done for the day because I'll need to dress that side up a little.

 

[Showme]

The TSC oil is pretty thick and the 3400 is a impulse driven oiler that dont like heavy oil that well in the colder weather.

In fact my thinking is not the same as alot of others here who think that heavy/thick oil makes it automatically superior. Most impulse oilers do much better with thinner oil and new saws with plastic oiler gears dont like heavy oil either.

You can thin your oil down with some diesel or kerosene.

In fact, run some straight diesel fuel through the oiler a bit before you tear it down to wash it out good.

Ran the straight diesel through one of them tonight and I think with thinner oil it will be fine. It was slobbering diesel for sure. I just wasn't sure if these needed a light oil like my 10-10 or not, now I know. I might try some of the Stihl winter weight. If not it'll either be motor oil or diesel thinned TSC. I've got 2 more 3400's to see if it'll work in them. I got started buying these 3400's and couldn't seem to stop. I would like to have a 3700 or 4000 but there not on every corner like the 3400's seem to be.