sears/poulan

[opnwide]

Hi......First time poster here. I have a Sears model #358.354870 which reads 3.7/18" on the label and it looks almost identical to my Poulan 3400 countervibe except for the on-board sharpening system and the drive sprockets are configured differently. Last night, thanks to the great threads from this website, I found the saw on "Sears Parts" and ordered an owners manual. My question to you folks is which model # of Poulan would this saw extrapolate to? Thanks.

 

[Another Bucker]

poulan 3700

Your saw is identical to a poulan 3700 except for the power sharp. I don't know if poulan marketed the power sharp system themselves or just made it exclusively for sears. If you plan on using the saw to cut wood ditch the power sharp as I never heard of one working well. Remove the stones and run regular chain. Other wise a reliable saw produced in the early 1980's. A little heavy but easily worked on. Oh and the air cleaner is a marginal performer as well so keep it clean and your chains sharp to deduce dust production. good luck...:greenchainsaw:

 

[ray benson]

Another Bucker hit the nail on the head. And most of the 3400 and 3700 parts are interchangeable. 16-20" bar with 3/8" .050 chisel chain cuts real nice.

 

[opnwide]

Do you think that the 3700 could handle a 24" bar with the proper chain? I have a 20 " bar with full skip chain on the 3400 and it is just fine for my purposes.......clearing blowdowns and such......Doug fir and Madrone. Thanks.

 

[ray benson]

All I have used with the 3700 is a 16 and 20" bars, with chisel chain. Maybe someone else has run a 24" bar on the 3700.

 

[Another Bucker]

I have run 16" 18" and 20" on the two 3700's 20" seems to be the max when buried, but I've only cut hardwoods with full comp chain.

 

[daemon2525]

I occasionally run a couple of that Exact same saw. It is very happy with the 18" bar. I think that any more would be trouble. Just my opinion.

 

[opnwide]

Thanks for all the quick and good advise; I believe I will just keep what I have and look around for a bigger displacement saw with a 24" bar, which I do occasionally need. Great site here.

 

[andrethegiant70]

24-inch bar

Those older Poulans are pretty tough and you could probably get away with it on an occasional basis. You might, however, shorten the life of your 3700 running a 24-inch bar in big wood on a regular basis. Sounds like a fine excuse to get a really big saw!!

 

[Justsaws]

Air filters are available new after market for those saws. If I remember correctly they are less than $10.00. Bad air filters(missing flocking) are one of the main reasons for failure that I experience buying those as non-running parts machines. Peak through the exhaust port looks okay, peak through the intake and a nicely scuffed skirt appears. It might run but it will not idle. Have a couple of those. A good condition one is a nice machine.

 

[RIX]

Power Sharp?

What is the power sharp system? I have not heard of this before? How does it work??

 

[computeruser]

What is the power sharp system?

It is a self-sharpening system that allows the user to run the chain against some internally-mounted sharpening stones on the saw powerhead. Press a button on the saw, the stones move into the path of the chain, and it is "sharpened" as it spins. This requires the use of a unique sort of chain and the cutters have an atypical profile in order to work with the self-sharpening mechanism.

I have not heard of this before?

Most would agree that you've not been missing much. You'll notice that they don't make saws with this feature anymore. This is not by accident.

How does it work??

Poorly. If you're asking about the mechanics of it, I'm sure someone has a picture or an exploded view diagram they could post.