Poulan Pro 5020av review

Arborist Forum

Help Support Arborist Forum:

This site may earn a commission from merchant affiliate links, including eBay, Amazon, and others.
I suspect that this noob is to blame. This saw was grungy like no other and I had the muffler off to check things out and was spraying parts cleaner and scrubbing/blowing. Probably "cleaned something into where it didn't belong"
 
I saw something interesting on the local Craig's List, a Poulan Pro PP4818A. I haven't yet researched it, I'm guessing ??? this is the 5020 with a different model number for marketing purposes. Making two separate engines with only a 2cc difference makes no sense. Poulan has been known to relabel some models, including Craftsman, using the same engine.
 
I saw something interesting on the local Craig's List, a Poulan Pro PP4818A. I haven't yet researched it, I'm guessing ??? this is the 5020 with a different model number for marketing purposes. Making two separate engines with only a 2cc difference makes no sense. Poulan has been known to relabel some models, including Craftsman, using the same engine.
Last I looked at the IPL all the parts were identical except for the bar & chain.
 
Yeah. I saw that a week after I bought and used mine. They had refurbished 4818's on sale for $99. Looks like the same saw.

Was is the same store where you purchased the PP5020 for $249.00? If yes, that hurts.

The best retail store price I saw for a 5020--full warranty, not a refurb--was the Craftsman version at Sears for $179.00. But that was several years ago. Some of the guys in the Poulan thread have reported seeing refurbished 5020s for around $119.00, IIRC.
 
A small building supply company near me had purchased many pallets of returned Craftsman 2-cycle equip--chainsaws, trimmers, & blowers. The Craig's List ad said $75.00 each; the guy working at the store said he'd take $55.00 each. I dug around until I found the only Craftsman-badged PP5020 they had, Craftsman model 358.35098, with tax it was a bit under $60.00.

For that price I wasn't worried about it being a return. It had a very small amount of sawdust on it, the chain was on backwards, & the inside of the case was covered in bar oil. I wonder if someone ran it a couple of minutes, couldn't figure out why it wasn't cutting, & returned it to Sears or wherever they bought it.

I checked back at the store a couple of times, but they never had any more 5020s. A different guy working at the store told me that the Craftsman equip was a one-time purchase.
 
A small building supply company near me had purchased many pallets of returned Craftsman 2-cycle equip--chainsaws, trimmers, & blowers. The Craig's List ad said $75.00 each; the guy working at the store said he'd take $55.00 each. I dug around until I found the only Craftsman-badged PP5020 they had, Craftsman model 358.35098, with tax it was a bit under $60.00.

For that price I wasn't worried about it being a return. It had a very small amount of sawdust on it, the chain was on backwards, & the inside of the case was covered in bar oil. I wonder if someone ran it a couple of minutes, couldn't figure out why it wasn't cutting, & returned it to Sears or wherever they bought it.

I checked back at the store a couple of times, but they never had any more 5020s. A different guy working at the store told me that the Craftsman equip was a one-time purchase.

That's a great score! I would dug around through everything and see if there were any other gems you could have doubled your loot on, I mean chain on backwards and they didn't see it, might have been a lot more similar in the other tools.
 
Update on the pp5020. I muffler modded it. I couldn't help myself. Removed the muffler, slid the screen out and used a dremel with an itty bitty carbide burr to open up the hole under the deflector. I didn't go too crazy, just oblonged it to about 1 1/2 times the size it was. Blew it out really good and put it back on. The saw is louder but not ignorant, and you can more readily hear when it four strokes, making tuning a cinch.
I also put a stihl rs chain on it and I should be kicked right in the twig and berries for not doing this sooner! What a difference! I noodled a bunch of elm with it tonight and it pulls really well. Between the mm and the chain it really helps this cheap saw perform.
 

Latest posts

Back
Top