Winter CSM maintenance

[mtngun]

Today was the maiden voyage of my CSM wheels. I was milling a cant, so it wasn't much of a challenge for the wheels.

However, one of the wheels got chewed up by the chain. This is on the "slack" side of the bar. The chain was not loose, and I never see it jump that far away from the bar at that location, but obviously it must.

I'll make a steel bushing to mount the wheels and weld the bushing on just beyond the square tubing. Update later.

 

[BobL]

Uh - ho, looks like the clutch area near the housing got a bit of a scratching as well? It also look's like a good indication of how close not to have the bar bolts, or a good reason not to use bar bolts.

 

[mtngun]

Uh - ho, looks like the clutch area near the housing got a bit of a scratching as well? It also look's like a good indication of how close not to have the bar bolts, or a good reason not to use bar bolts.

If you are referring to the bright shiny spot at the bottom right of the clutch area, that's the chain catcher. The catcher is unpainted aluminum so it is supposed to be shiny.

I've never had a problem with the Granberg bar bolts being nicked by the chain.

It's surprising how much the chain must whip and ripple in use.

 

[mtngun]

I made a steel bushing out of scrap metal, and welded it to the Alaskan like so.

The chain should not hit the "problem" wheel now.

 

[mtngun]

ENM tach display died. I noticed the display seemed a little dim a few weeks ago. It kept getting dimmer and dimmer until it was gone. Prolly dead battery.

I contacted ENM, and they said told me I had to go through Amick's instead. So now I am waiting to hear from Amicks.

ENM claims an 8 year battery life. This tach was purchased in November 2009, so it didn't even last 8 months.

I'm hoping they make it right, because other than the bum battery, the ENM is ideal for a CSM.

 

[Andrew96]

I assume then that it's been working great up until the display vanished? When it's out of warranty, is there no way to open the case up and replace the battery yourself?

 

[BobL]

ENM tach display died. I noticed the display seemed a little dim a few weeks ago. It kept getting dimmer and dimmer until it was gone. Prolly dead battery.

I contacted ENM, and they said told me I had to go through Amick's instead. So now I am waiting to hear from Amicks.

ENM claims an 8 year battery life. This tach was purchased in November 2009, so it didn't even last 8 months.

I'm hoping they make it right, because other than the bum battery, the ENM is ideal for a CSM.

The 8 year life refers to the length of time these tachos to be used on an irregular basis so if the tacho is used for a few minutes even once a week, 8 years is effectively the shelf life of the battery. How long they can be used continually depends on the efficiency of the circuitry, or if it gets a little damp etc. If the battery had already spent some time on the shelf to begin with that could also cause a problem. All the same, I would expect more than 8 months use out of them.

A few years ago when those small tacho's became available a number of 2 stroke scooter enthusiasts started used them them on their scooters and they identified a similar problem to what you describe. The cause was eventually traced to hairline cracks developing in some of the circuitry since they are not really designed for extended used on a vibrating surface. Some tachos were better than others but ~3 months was all they got out of the first generation spark counting tachos.

 

[mtngun]

Nice to see you back on AS, BobL.

The display was on continuously -- there is no on/off button. When the saw is off, the ENM displays the total run hours.

If it is like most electrical gadgets, the display consumes more power than the IC, so it will continue to consume power even when the CSM is not being used.

The manufacturer markets this tach to be permanently mounted on an engine or vehicle -- generators, tractors, boats, etc.. You would think that they anticipate a little vibration ?

It sure acts like a dead battery to me. I observe the same fading display behavior on my digital calipers and micrometers -- display fades and becomes more difficult to see when the battery is at the end of its life. Install new battery, display is bright again.

Except the ENM's battery cannot be replaced -- it's a sealed unit.

Since the ENM didn't cost much, it's not a big deal, just that I had grown quite fond of it and don't have any great alternatives. I could mount my Fast Tach as BobL has done, but the Fast Tach is kinda spendy to be knocking around in the woods, and the fast display update is annoying on a CSM.

 

[mtngun]

It sat on my desk overnight, and I just now noticed that it was displaying again -- faintly. The display is invisible unless you hold it just so.

 

[BobL]

Nice to see you back on AS, BobL.

Cheers mtngun, network access has been sporadic this last while while I was visiting still more relatives and I was flat out restraining myself on drinking (because I had to drive) and eating I had no time to scratch. Right now I am in Venice recovering from the food and drink onslaught we experienced in the last week

The display was on continuously -- there is no on/off button. When the saw is off, the ENM displays the total run hours.

If it is like most electrical gadgets, the display consumes more power than the IC, so it will continue to consume power even when the CSM is not being used.

Both of my tacs switch off their displays after a few minutes of inactivity

The manufacturer markets this tach to be permanently mounted on an engine or vehicle -- generators, tractors, boats, etc.. You would think that they anticipate a little vibration ?

Yeah I would think so.

It sure acts like a dead battery to me. I observe the same fading display behavior on my digital calipers and micrometers -- display fades and becomes more difficult to see when the battery is at the end of its life. Install new battery, display is bright again.

Except the ENM's battery cannot be replaced -- it's a sealed unit.

Since the ENM didn't cost much, it's not a big deal, just that I had grown quite fond of it and don't have any great alternatives. I could mount my Fast Tach as BobL has done, but the Fast Tach is kinda spendy to be knocking around in the woods, and the fast display update is annoying on a CSM.

I agree.

It sat on my desk overnight, and I just now noticed that it was displaying again -- faintly. The display is invisible unless you hold it just so.

That sounds like a continuity problem to me. Maybe it's both?

 

[mtngun]

That sounds like a continuity problem to me.

Maybe you are right.

I put the tach in the freezer for a few hours, expecting the cold to drain the battery and fade the display. Instead, the display has strengthened and now it is working perfectly. Huh ?

I'm puzzled.

Could be a flaky connection that comes and goes ?

Could be a short that bled power when the tach was connected to the saw ?

Anyway, not much I can do about it.

Right now I am in Venice recovering from the food and drink onslaught we experienced in the last week

Say, is the Italian food as good as they say it is ? I've heard they take meals pretty seriously ?

 

[BobL]

Maybe you are right.

I put the tach in the freezer for a few hours, expecting the cold to drain the battery and fade the display. Instead, the display has strengthened and now it is working perfectly. Huh ?

I'm puzzled.

Could be a flaky connection that comes and goes ?

Yep, freezing is an interesting thing to do to electronics, it can pull things closer togeher and close up and clean out (freeze dry) gaps. It can also freeze and completely stuff up circuits but if it is already stuffed you have nothing to lose. I usually go - freeze first - then if no luck, leave in hot sun.

Could be a short that bled power when the tach was connected to the saw ?

Anyway, not much I can do about it.
Say, is the Italian food as good as they say it is ? I've heard they take meals pretty seriously ?

Yep it is freeking awesome. This is my 13th time in Europe and 11th time in Italy and I am still blown way by the standard of the food. Last night we had 3 grilled fish dinner and it was superb. Even simple stuff like sausage and cheese is so much tastier. I love the way Macas are relegated to garbage food. I'm more of a beer than wine person but their dry Proseco (sparkling white) I reckon knocks the french stuff into the back corner.

Here's where we are currently staying.

There are two great little restaurants across the canal - one was where we had the 3 grilled fish dinner.

 

[mtngun]

This is my 13th time in Europe and 11th time in Italy and I am still blown way by the standard of the food. Last night we had 3 grilled fish dinner and it was superb. Even simple stuff like sausage and cheese is so much tastier.

I've heard that meals are a really big deal in Italian culture, that they spend a lot of time and money on cooking and eating.

Americans are always in a hurry, we are probably best known for our fast food and drive-thru dining. :rockn:

It's just as well that the ENM started working again, because Amicks never did respond, and the ENM rep could care less.

In the future, I'll arrange to disconnect the ENM when it is not in use. I need to work out some kind of quick connect anyhow, so I can switch the tach back and forth between the 066 and the 084.

 

[Brmorgan]

They should make these tachs so they can recharge a bit from the spark current. I have one that "bigbadbob" here sent me (thanks Bob!) but to be honest I haven't played with it much. It seems to take forever to come up to speed and level out though. As you said, good for milling, I suppose, but not so good for tuning saws out-of-cut. I'm not really comfortable holding a saw WOT without load for the time it takes to get a good reading with these.

 

[mtngun]

Since the ENM decided to start working again, I redesigned the mount.

I wanted to mount the tach on the Alaskan, rather than on the saw, to simplify using the same tach with both the 066 and the soon-to-be 084.

It'll also move the tach further from the saw's vibration and heat.

It also happens to be more convenient to view in its new location.

To simplify the wiring, the tach is grounded to the Alaskan, not the saw. The bar acts as a common ground.

The disadvantage to the new mount is that there has to be a simple way to unplug the wire to the saw's spark whenever the powerhead is removed from the Alaskan. For now, a wire nut is used. Hopefully, someday I'll scrounge some proper connectors.

Each powerhead will have its own permanent wire running from spark to the tach, so swapping powerheads will only require unplugging one powerhead and plugging in the other powerhead.

 

[Brmorgan]

Do you run the wire from the kill switch or the plug itself?

 

[mtngun]

Do you run the wire from the kill switch or the plug itself?

Several wraps around the spark plug wire.

 

[BobL]

I don't think the mill is going to be as good a mounting point as the wrap handle since the mill/bar is hard connected direct to the crank and with thus get all the vibe direct from the main body of the saw.

For the kill switch on my remote (MC based) throttle I'm using an audio jack. I'm not sure how well that would work long term for the HV field of a spark plug.

 

[mtngun]

More carnage from the first outing with the unistrut rails.

The scratching and gouging is after only 1/2 day of milling on the unistrut.

I'm thinking to try some adhesive backed UHMW strips (McMaster Carr #7701T411). Gotta do something, the scratching and gouging and high friction are totally unacceptable.

Also, one of the wheels has suffered more damage. I thought I had fixed the problem by moving the wheel further from the chain (it's now 1.5" away) but somehow the wheel got way out of round. Not sure if it was caused by the chain or by exhaust heat. It is useless now, so I will take it off.

I'm thinking to improve the Alaskan "skid" rather than wasting time on these wheels which don't work well, anyhow.

The good news is that my ENM tach is working perfectly, after the mysterious malfunction that mysteriously came and went. I really like having this tach, it is just right for a CSM. But if you buy one, bear in mind that there does not seem to be any support or warranty.

 

[mtngun]

The adhesive backed UHMW showed up. Only time will tell if the adhesive will hold up to milling duty, particularly where it gets blasted by the exhaust.