Thread: Pioneer chainsaws

Thanks for that they look amazing, Is it true that a P 60 61 62 piston and barrel will fit on a P50s size saw? I dnt think P60 size saws are common in nz Guy ive spoken to have only ever seen dead ones and never a complete one And i dont know if its worth importing one from usa lol

Is it true that a P 60 61 62 piston and barrel will fit on a P50s size saw?

Yes, the piston and cylinder from a Pioneer P60 series will fit the P50 series and vice-versa. However, a Pioneer/Partner P62 and P65 as well as Poulan Pro 655 cylinder will not fit the older Pioneer saws. The crankcases manufactured after the merger were cut away for a new cylinder design that had a shoulder at the bottom. As a general rule for 98cc saws, cylinders from an orange saw will not fit a yellow saw, but a cylinder from a yellow saw will fit an orange saw. I'm not sure that I could confuse you any further, so I'll stop now.

Hello Trusted Gurus
Aggghhhh! Okay maybe I'm jumping the gun here, and being a little negative, but that low hours P41 Western that I acquired recently,maybe has a few more hours than low hours.Come to think of it exactly how many hours is low hours anyway,I mean beside the obvious?I had a chainsaw and ran it 3 hours,I'm exaggerating here but I think you get my point.Okay back to my point on the P41W it seems to have had quite a bit of carbon in the exhaust port,which I removed gently and avoided any carbon going down the cylinder.There is some carbon on the side of the piston and on top of the piston.The carbon on the piston side is more just the black carbon colour.Top of the piston has some flakes of carbon for lack of better wording.Can I try and remove that carbon from the top of the piston,say with a homemade wooden little scraper,while at the same time sucking it with a vacuum? I will try and take some pictures tonight or tomorrow so you will have a better idea of just what i have got here.Maybe I should post a pick of the spark plug end as well.Man,hope I didn't't get burned here so to speak.
Thanks
Lawrence

Lawrence, I tend to judge a saw's usage by the overall looks first. The more nicks and scrapes, fading and flaking of paint, missing decals, etc. The more a saw has usually been used. Granted, it may have rolled around in the back of a truck for years but this is what I've found in most instances.
Secondly, I look to see if it has an original bar. Low time to me means that it should have the original bar. Maybe a worn out chain, but the original bar it was born with.
We can't really see inside an engine when we buy something but a compression check is always a good pre-buy bonus. Unless, of course, you have a new piston and cylinder for it and you don't really care if he's run it on straight gas.

Your carbon buildup is likely from one of those guys who likes to run it with extra oil, because his theory is that if a little is good, then a lot is better. I'd bet that half of early piston and cylinder failures in two-strokes is caused by carbon scraping caused by too much oil in the mix. Hopefully yours is OK. The best thing to do would be to remove the jug and clean the parts up like that. That way you'll get a much better look and you'll be able to clean up the ring grooves as well. I'll send a gasket your way if you need one.

Speaking of buying saws, I have another low time Poulan Pro 655 on the way. I bought it for a good price. I'll see what it's like, fix any snags and then maybe use it for a camp saw or pass it to one of you fine gentlemen if you have use for it.
Brendon.

Originally Posted by petesoldsaw

Hello Trusted Gurus
Aggghhhh! Okay maybe I'm jumping the gun here, and being a little negative, but that low hours P41 Western that I acquired recently,maybe has a few more hours than low hours.Come to think of it exactly how many hours is low hours anyway,I mean beside the obvious?I had a chainsaw and ran it 3 hours,I'm exaggerating here but I think you get my point.Okay back to my point on the P41W it seems to have had quite a bit of carbon in the exhaust port,which I removed gently and avoided any carbon going down the cylinder.There is some carbon on the side of the piston and on top of the piston.The carbon on the piston side is more just the black carbon colour.Top of the piston has some flakes of carbon for lack of better wording.Can I try and remove that carbon from the top of the piston,say with a homemade wooden little scraper,while at the same time sucking it with a vacuum? I will try and take some pictures tonight or tomorrow so you will have a better idea of just what i have got here.Maybe I should post a pick of the spark plug end as well.Man,hope I didn't't get burned here so to speak.
Thanks
Lawrence

You could do the carbon removal that way but I would strip it down, remove the cylinder and clean both the cylinder and piston properly, the rings may be stuck in their grooves and can be cleaned much better if disassembled. The rings may be a bit brittle by this time so only remove them if you are comfortable at removing vintage rings, it is the only way to determine if the rings are worn any amount. To check for wear they must be inserted into the cylinder and squared with the piston, then measure ring end gap. The amount of wear on the rings are a good indicator of how many hours of use are on the saw.
Pioneerguy600

Jerry, great minds think alike!

Originally Posted by propliner

Jerry, great minds think alike!

Yes, but you beat me to it, I type too slow.LOL
Pioneerguy600

I just found a pioneer 610 sitting in my grandfather's old garage but the gas cap was on there to tight and broke when i took the vice grips to it. however I poured gas in the carburateur and she still runs. Does anyone have a gas cap to a pioneer 600 series or know where i could possibly get one?

Originally Posted by cleaf30

I just found a pioneer 610 sitting in my grandfather's old garage but the gas cap was on there to tight and broke when i took the vice grips to it. however I poured gas in the carburateur and she still runs. Does anyone have a gas cap to a pioneer 600 series or know where i could possibly get one?

If you don't find one for a while, then send me a PM. All of my saws are currently heaped into a pile while I figure out some things. I should have a spare in there somewhere, but it won't be for a few weeks.

HTH

Brendon, Those are beautiful saws, the P62 western is my "dream" saw. Finding one is like winning the lottery, then when you do find one you need to win the lottery to afford it.

I have a gasket question. Can I make my own cylinder gasket on the P50. The old one did not seem to be reinforced in any way. I bought the best quality felpro gasket material the shop had. It says its safe for gas-oil exposure. It appears to be the same thickness as the old one. If anybody knows for sure, please let me know.

Originally Posted by Arrowhead

Brendon, Those are beautiful saws, the P62 western is my "dream" saw. Finding one is like winning the lottery, then when you do find one you need to win the lottery to afford it.

I have a gasket question. Can I make my own cylinder gasket on the P50. The old one did not seem to be reinforced in any way. I bought the best quality felpro gasket material the shop had. It says its safe for gas-oil exposure. It appears to be the same thickness as the old one. If anybody knows for sure, please let me know.

Sure, make your own gaskets. Many guys do that for the NLA gaskets.

I agree, making your own gaskets is no trouble, and they work fine. Basic gasket material will work well. A set of hole punches helps a lot.

Ed, if I could keep only one saw, it would be that P62, hands down.

Brendon.

Thanks again for the help guys. On the average how often do the P60 series saws (complete) show up on e-bay and average price? I understand it varies all the time. Just an average.

On average, you might see 2 Pioneers, 2 Pioneer/Partners and 2 Poulan Pro 655's in decent shape.

From what I can tell, the "S" suffix indicates "Safety" and has the chain brake locking mechanism. I see some other suffixes in the manual - "S, F and H" seem to indicate S= Safety, F=full wrap handlebar, H= half wrap bars. There are some other suffixes on the IPL's -"R,G,S and W." I'm thinking R=regular, G=guard. I base this on the IPL's illustration showing a hand guard without a chain brake mechanism for the G model. It looks like a large piece of plastic with a couple of rectangular holes in the guard. And of course the S-safety and W-Western. The manual shows combination's too! "FS" and "SH" are listed. "HP" saws have a higher maximum rpm listed but if I remember correctly its only faster by 500 -1000 rpm. I read that on Acres site. I'd bet there are some material differences on the HP models. Probably have stronger flywheels and higher governed speed carbs, and maybe more. Anybody know for sure?

Originally Posted by DroppedP51

Hi im new at this but what are the options that these P saws came with I have a P51 and a P41s What does s stand for? Whats a western? some saws had high performance on them? or is it all the same saw