Ported saws

[bwalker]

I agree. I never actually said it was a full time employee and was trying in vain to explain that very fact to another member here. He couldn't let it go. I am keenly aware that NO saw will last forever. I don't know what all was done to it. It was gifted posthumously as he knew I always picked it when we worked together. I treat it a lot better than the rest of the stable.

More like you back peddled when called out.. and that's plain to see.

 

[bwalker]

Saws can last pretty much forever as long as they aren’t run over by something and you have a stockpile of parts around.

They don't in a full time faller setting. After about a a year they will be down on power and sloppy. You can re ring them and get another year out of them at some point, but sometimes they don't make it to the two year mark.
This pertains to non strato saws. I haven't ran the strato saws commercially so I can't say.

 

[lohan808]

More like you back peddled when called out.. and that's plain to see.

You really should back off. Back pedal? At what point? How about sod off with the bullying.

 

[camel2019]

They don't in a full time faller setting. After about a a year they will be down on power and sloppy. You can re ring them and get another year out of them at some point, but sometimes they don't make it to the two year mark.
This pertains to non strato saws. I haven't ran the strato saws commercially so I can't say.

That’s when I’d throw a new cylinder and piston in there especially if I’m paying $1800 for a ms660.

 

[bwalker]

That’s when I’d throw a new cylinder and piston in there especially if I’m paying $1800 for a ms660.

The cylinders are typicaly not bad at that time. I just installed new rings unless the piston was bad. Mine typically were not because ainused good oil at 32:1 and was always diligent to keep my filters clean and the chain making chips.
After two years they just become unreliable and it isn't the cylinder. Its litteraly everything else.
It doesn't pay to have a piece of equipment that's unreliable so you just buy a new one, which in the scheme of things is very cheap.

 

[Xmaniac]

Don't agree with Ben all that often , but its a fact any dedicated landing saw or professional production felling saw normally only has a 2 yr life cycle . Some times less depending on the operator . P.S. Also , the majority of production cutting saws have been worked over to increase productivity & life cycle . Depending on the actual saws intended usage , porting will improve base torgue or peak horsepower , along with improving engine heat disipation & overall runability . A properly ported saw by a proven saw builder can provide added life to a casual saw users engine accordingly . The true fact is more saws are damaged by neglect ( dull chains & improper tuning & poor quality fuel mix ) than any other consideration !

I've got 8 saws, 372xp, 395xp and 461 that were modded by my buddy initially. He squashed the cylinders, lathed the piston and did some porting..We run 40 to 1 mix with high octane fuel and put a little sea foam additive in. All of them are still ripping after 7 years + of production tree work... Saws run cooler and more efficient when opened up vs. Factory....

 

[North by Northwest]

Xmaniac , I agree with your basic reasoning . I have raced & wrenched on racing snowmobiles & dirt bikes since I was a teenager . All engines, air cooled & liquid cooled were worked over to some degree depending on final result requirements . I have numerous acquaintances who port professionally . Unfortunately not on saws. I have mildly ported & polished my current Polaris RMK 850 its nite & day from stock . I have done same with numerous saws all mild degree of work mostly muffler modding & lite intake & exhaust port & transfer ports chamfering & polishing . As far as life cycle duration with production saw usage, I will stick to my previous statement . My observation up North here is 2 yrs is normally it . However I did say that it all hinges on operator usage , which includes religious preventative maintenance or basic saw pm's. Obviously if your tree species varies e.g. Soft Wood vs hardwood saw life cycle, may increase to perhaps to 7 yrs especially if the work is dedicated to multi saw felling & limbing & bucking applications only . One saw doing all three is unusual & pushing the envelope in my opinion brother .

 

[camel2019]

The cylinders are typicaly not bad at that time. I just installed new rings unless the piston was bad. Mine typically were not because ainused good oil at 32:1 and was always diligent to keep my filters clean and the chain making chips.
After two years they just become unreliable and it isn't the cylinder. Its litteraly everything else.
It doesn't pay to have a piece of equipment that's unreliable so you just buy a new one, which in the scheme of things is very cheap.

I get that it’s the tools that make people money. but at the end of the day I repaired my auto body sanders(some of them are 40 plus years old and we’re my grandfathers) when needed nothing is cheap in this world and when you need that pay heck you do what you have too.

 

[bwalker]

I get that it’s the tools that make people money. but at the end of the day I repaired my auto body sanders(some of them are 40 plus years old and we’re my grandfathers) when needed nothing is cheap in this world and when you need that pay heck you do what you have too.

Yes, but time is money and a saw that doesn't have perfect reliability is a liability to a commercial faller.

 

[bwalker]

Xmaniac , I agree with your basic reasoning . I have raced & wrenched on racing snowmobiles & dirt bikes since I was a teenager . All engines, air cooled & liquid cooled were worked over to some degree depending on final result requirements . I have numerous acquaintances who port professionally . Unfortunately not on saws. I have mildly ported & polished my current Polaris RMK 850 its nite & day from stock . I have done same with numerous saws all mild degree of work mostly muffler modding & lite intake & exhaust port & transfer ports chamfering & polishing . As far as life cycle duration with production saw usage, I will stick to my previous statement . My observation up North here is 2 yrs is normally it . However I did say that it all hinges on operator usage , which includes religious preventative maintenance or basic saw pm's. Obviously if your tree species varies e.g. Soft Wood vs hardwood saw life cycle, may increase to perhaps to 7 yrs especially if the work is dedicated to multi saw felling & limbing & bucking applications only . One saw doing all three is unusual & pushing the envelope in my opinion brother .

2 years is even pushing it in many cases I would think.

 

[camel2019]

Yes, but time is money and a saw that doesn't have perfect reliability is a liability to a commercial faller.

On a saw like a newer Stihl or husky I could have new seals and gaskets carb kit and a piston and cylinder on it in the matter of a few hours would only take me a night with vac and compression test.
Theirs lots of tools that I needed to make a living and relied on that I rebuilt sitting in the recliner after work.
And I get it nobody wants a saw dying mid felling cut but doesn’t mean they can’t be brought back to life.
I’m still on the side of a woods ported saw living longer then a stock choked up saw with it’s restrictive muffler. but i run at 32 to 1 with all my 2 stroke equipment and sometimes 4 stroke equipment in a pinch.

 

[bwalker]

On a saw like a newer Stihl or husky I could have new seals and gaskets carb kit and a piston and cylinder on it in the matter of a few hours would only take me a night with vac and compression test.
Theirs lots of tools that I needed to make a living and relied on that I rebuilt sitting in the recliner after work.
And I get it nobody wants a saw dying mid felling cut but doesn’t mean they can’t be brought back to life.
I’m still on the side of a woods ported saw living longer then a stock choked up saw with it’s restrictive muffler. but i run at 32 to 1 with all my 2 stroke equipment and sometimes 4 stroke equipment in a pinch.

You can do that stuff, but then the ignition coil fails or the case breaks, or the chain break comes unglued... When I was logging the last thing I wanted to do was wrench on saws after a day in the woods plus often significant commutes to the property your cutting.
Given auto body work is much less physically demanding than falling timber I imagine fixing stuff after work hours wouldn't be so bad. It's simply not something the average faller wants to deal with.

 

[North by Northwest]

2 years is even pushing it in many cases I would think.

Yep , thats why I stated in post #43 Ben in some cases even less than 2 yrs & in post #63 , it depends upon the operator of the saw & how he operates & maintains his saw !

 

[bwalker]

Yep , thats why I stated in post #43 Ben in some cases even less than 2 yrs & in post #63 , it depends upon the operator of the saw & how he operates & maintains his saw !

Also the kind of wood, bar length, etc.

 

[camel2019]

You can do that stuff, but then the ignition coil fails or the case breaks, or the chain break comes unglued... When I was logging the last thing I wanted to do was wrench on saws after a day in the woods plus often significant commutes to the property your cutting.
Given auto body work is much less physically demanding than falling timber I imagine fixing stuff after work hours wouldn't be so bad. It's simply not something the average faller wants to deal with.

You have never done auto body at all or for very long I would have to block out 10+ cars a day 8am till sometimes 7 or 8 at night most of the time and that 6 days a week I worked 7 most weeks. You use muscles you never thought you had especially when things like 5 ton trucks come into the shop and you are on a ladder doing it. I find doing what I’m doing now(property maintenance) a lot easier on the body and I still fix/maintain and even make my own equipment when I have time.

 

[bwalker]

You have never done auto body at all or for very long I would have to block out 10+ cars a day 8am till sometimes 7 or 8 at night most of the time and that 6 days a week I worked 7 most weeks. You use muscles you never thought you had especially when things like 5 ton trucks come into the shop and you are on a ladder doing it. I find doing what I’m doing now(property maintenance) a lot easier on the body and I still fix/maintain and even make my own equipment when I have time.

You ever logged? If you had you would realize is much more physically difficult than sanding cars inside a building.. a
and I have sanded cars more than once. It's no cake walk, but it's not logging and not close.

 

[North by Northwest]

Also the kind of wood, bar length, etc.

Most certainly !

 

[camel2019]

You ever logged? If you had you would realize is much more physically difficult than sanding cars inside a building.. andnI have sanded cars more than once. It's no cake walk, but it's not logging snd not close.

Nope haven’t logged drop a few here and there seems like something I could do all day if I wanted too I enjoy it.

 

[cookies]

walking a couple miles carrying a saw then running it 6 hours is physically easier than body work. lmk when you spend all day welding in panels, cutting sheet metal by hand then grinding it back only to spend hours blocking it back out. Ever tried holding a full quart paint gun arm extended straight out for 20 minute intervals all day wearing a tyvec suit and full respirator in a 90+ degree booth? It turns you into a sealed in liquid coated sausage. Heaven forbid you get exposed to clearcoat fumes and your head throbs for two days. I know a 70 year old body man that can break your hand like a vice during a handshake from blocking/painting and holding panels for decades
Hell I know a lady that ran her own shrimp boat for 20 years as captain, shes built like a gorilla from pulling lines all day. She was the county boxing champ for a few years and known to break a jaw or two in local bars.
Both are very sweet people with hearts of gold and the world needs more people like them.

 

[bwalker]

walking a couple miles carrying a saw then running it 6 hours is physically easier than body work. lmk when you spend all day welding in panels, cutting sheet metal by hand then grinding it back only to spend hours blocking it back out. Ever tried holding a full quart paint gun arm extended straight out for 20 minute intervals all day wearing a tyvec suit and full respirator in a 90+ degree booth? It turns you into a sealed in liquid coated sausage. Heaven forbid you get exposed to clearcoat fumes and your head throbs for two days. I know a 70 year old body man that can break your hand like a vice during a handshake from blocking/painting and holding panels for decades
Hell I know a lady that ran her own shrimp boat for 20 years as captain, shes built like a gorilla from pulling lines all day. She was the county boxing champ for a few years and known to break a jaw or two in local bars.
Both are very sweet people with hearts of gold and the world needs more people like them.

You ever logged? I'm betting not as it's a little more involved than a couple mile nature walk with a saw.. for starters 6 hours is a partial day. Ever did body work in 3 feet of snow or while dealing with swarms of mosquitos and black fliea?