Nik's Poulan Thread

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Well I got a full diagnosis on the 3400 today and there where signs of what I would find. First Let me preface by stating that I purchased this saw from a very old gentleman that stated it was a good saw that had sat for a long time. The first sign was the muffler. I always clean out the carbon from the exhaust port when I buy an old saw. The screen was caked up with nasty gummy old gas. Second was the crank case was pretty nasty when I removed the cylinder. Third was the low compression. After installing the nos piston and caber rings it ran. Horribly but it ran. I let it go for a minute and decided this just aint right. Then it dawned on me. Its sucking bar oil into the combustion chamber. The old man was using used motor oil on top of it. The new piston is not new anymore. The skirt has a ding in it and the caber rings are now in the trash. Im going to try and salvage the piston and use the oem rings that came with it. The case has been split and cleaned.(it was gross). The seals where new but I don't like trying to reuse them. The bearings are out and I'll have to replace.

So a couple take aways. I don't consider myself a novice at this point as I have a few hundred saws under my belt now but feel like I should have caught this sooner. That severely gummed up spark arrestor will be a sign to split the case in the future. And trust your instincts, dont assume compression is going to go up enough in this type of scenario to fix itself. I've gone down a rabbit hole on this one spending way more money than I should but I just like this model and will not sell it.

Couple questions.
1. What are the Numbers for the crank bearings? My eyes are bad and can't make out the numbers.
2. Was there supposed to be a case gasket? It was just siliconed together.
 
Jasonrkba said:
Well I got a full diagnosis on the 3400 today and there where signs of what I would find. First Let me preface by stating that I purchased this saw from a very old gentleman that stated it was a good saw that had sat for a long time. The first sign was the muffler. I always clean out the carbon from the exhaust port when I buy an old saw. The screen was caked up with nasty gummy old gas. Second was the crank case was pretty nasty when I removed the cylinder. Third was the low compression. After installing the nos piston and caber rings it ran. Horribly but it ran. I let it go for a minute and decided this just aint right. Then it dawned on me. Its sucking bar oil into the combustion chamber. The old man was using used motor oil on top of it. The new piston is not new anymore. The skirt has a ding in it and the caber rings are now in the trash. Im going to try and salvage the piston and use the oem rings that came with it. The case has been split and cleaned.(it was gross). The seals where new but I don't like trying to reuse them. The bearings are out and I'll have to replace.

So a couple take aways. I don't consider myself a novice at this point as I have a few hundred saws under my belt now but feel like I should have caught this sooner. That severely gummed up spark arrestor will be a sign to split the case in the future. And trust your instincts, dont assume compression is going to go up enough in this type of scenario to fix itself. I've gone down a rabbit hole on this one spending way more money than I should but I just like this model and will not sell it.

Couple questions.
1. What are the Numbers for the crank bearings? My eyes are bad and can't make out the numbers.
2. Was there supposed to be a case gasket? It was just siliconed together.
Click to expand...

Bummer man. Um BH108 pretty sure is the bearings
 
Jasonrkba said:
Im chalking it up as a learning experience. Hopefully the piston is still good. I spent my saw budget last weekend so hopefully one of the saws I have listed locally sells.
Click to expand...
Jason I have a spare crankcase and tank if you need parts. Just pm me your adress.
 
Jasonrkba said:
Im chalking it up as a learning experience. Hopefully the piston is still good. I spent my saw budget last weekend so hopefully one of the saws I have listed locally sells.
Click to expand...

I got a whole top end too but shipping may be cost prohibitive. I'll give it to ya though:)
 
Jasonrkba said:
You guys are awesome. Todd loosli already pm'd me and is putting together a package. I told my wife about you guys. She commented how kind all of you are. Im incredibly grateful.
Click to expand...
It's funny but almost all of my poulans came out of scrap yards. There used to be a ton of dealerships back in the day around South Carolina.
If I wait long enough my stash will repopulate itself.
 
Maintenance supervisor said:
It's funny but almost all of my poulans came out of scrap yards. There used to be a ton of dealerships back in the day around South Carolina.
If I wait long enough my stash will repopulate itself.
Click to expand...
All my 3400s just kinda show up like that too.

Jasonrkba said:
You guys are awesome. Todd loosli already pm'd me and is putting together a package. I told my wife about you guys. She commented how kind all of you are. Im incredibly grateful.
Click to expand...
What goes around comes around if we all help each other out life is better. Todd is a wonderful dude. Many a green saw is making chips and grins because of him
 
Couple years ago I rebuilt a poulan 180Pro. While running it for breaking in it fried scoring the pc. I am certain I hadn’t tuned it lean but wtf. And I had installed new seals and pressure/vacuum tested it. There was no obvious indication of leaks.
Fast forward to today, after MANY hours of thinking, testing, research and again rebuilding pc and carb, I again again rebuilt carb and got it running. It tuned in, sorta.
While tuning it I noticed fuel bubbling on the mounting bolt holding the choke mechanism. The bubbling was at the bottom of the bolt where it goes through the carb mounting flange.
Finally, after all this time I may have a clue. When installing the carb I used a little motoseal on both sides of the gasket which after very careful inspection shows no wear or tears. I also pressure tested the carb and, while it didn’t hold pressure firmly, it has an extremely SLOW leak. Didn’t see any cracks in carb.
When rebuilding I saw no indication of cracks in the carb/handle assembly. Also the reed valve and assembly looked good.
I am open to any thoughts; I do have some but would like to hear what y’all think. Not ready to trash or part this saw after all time and effort I’ve put into it. Also, not willing to let a machine get the best of me.
 
Picked this PP330 off marketplace about 45 mins away this past Saturday. It’s definitely a low hour saw. I put a new fuel line, filter, carb kit and rim sprocket. The B&C is new. He had a 16” 3/8LP setup on it.
 

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Stihl-Pioneer said:
Picked this PP330 off marketplace about 45 mins away this past Saturday. It’s definitely a low hour saw. I put a new fuel line, filter, carb kit and rim sprocket. The B&C is new. He had a 16” 3/8LP setup on it.
Click to expand...
Nice clean saw right there! I am always in the market for this series of Poulan,,,just love the feel and power of em...
 

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