Help needed with a Poulan 2800; cylinder gasket, carb adjustment

[pacmanfan]

I have an old Poulan 2800 that is a great saw when it runs, but has had idle problems for a couple years, with very light use. I noticed a while back the cylinder was a little bit loose and rattling, so I suspect that's the reason I can't get the carb tweaked to idle worth a hoot--the compression varies when the cylinder moves around? Tonight I finally got the 4 cylinder bolts to loosen up, and removed the cylinder. There is a small tear in the gasket, but otherwise seems to be in good shape. Do I need to put a new gasket on? I've seen people mention a silicon sealant, is that better?

I'm not sure why the cylinder is loose. I'm thinking either the bolts loosened up and started backing out, or a shop I took it to a while back put in too long a bolt set, and they are bottoming out. Not sure what I'll run into when I try and put them back in.

I'm a complete newbie to engine work. I've dropped some gunk in the crankshaft, and it's already got a little crud in there. How should I clean it out?

Finally, once I get it all cleaned up and the cylinder installed properly, what is the procedure to "reset" the carb settings, so to speak? It's all goofed up, now that I've tried to adjust out the idle problems. As mentioned above, I'm a newbie to small engine work, and any help would be appreciated!

 

[redunshee]

You can replace the cylinder w/o a gasket by using a fuel resistant sealant. Many use Dirko Ht, Permatex #1, etc. Put a bit of blue thread lock on the cylinder bolts for good measure. I tighten by hand and they hold well. You can clean out the crankcase by pouring in a little mix and shake it good. I've even used compressed air to blow out the crud. Carb settings are 1 turn open from lightly seated for the Lo and HI. You may want to rebuild the carb if its never been rebuilt.
Bob

 

[Stihl-Pioneer]

I would also inspect the impulse line and myself I would change it out to a rubber line if its original. The original is Tygon and hardens and crumbles.

 

[ncfarmboy]

+1 on the impulse line. Most every saw in this series I've picked up the impulse line is bad. I change it whether it needs it or not. As I said most do. It is cheap insurance. I use Loctite 515, 518 and Three bond 1194 for cyl. gasket. As always need to check squish before going "gasketless".
Shep

 

[redunshee]

+1 on the impulse line. Most every saw in this series I've picked up the impulse line is bad. I change it whether it needs it or not. As I said most do. It is cheap insurance. I use Loctite 515, 518 and Three bond 1194 for cyl. gasket. As always need to check squish before going "gasketless".
Shep

I like to use the black Echo fuel line.

 

[pacmanfan]

I ended up waiting for a backordered cylinder gasket to come in, rather than trying to go gasketless. I damaged the vacuum line and had to replace it, but the saw needed a partial teardown and cleanup anyway, right?

The saw is all back together now and running fine. So far it's idling like a champ, but I haven't gotten it good and warmed up yet. It's cutting slowly, which leads me to my next newbie questions...

How do I go about tweaking carb settings? Should I leave them at default (one turn loosened), or is it generally safe to tweak it to get more high-end speed out of it? How do I ensure I'm not leaning out the mixture too much?