EA4300/Dolmar 421 + bar + 95VPX stock chain?

[MountainHigh]

My Makita EA4300 (Dolmar 421) came with Oregon 95VPX chain on its 18" original bar (too long for this saw).

I've finally got around to buying a K041 .325 16" bar which I thought would work ok, but my dealer put Stihl 23RS chain on it and the kerf is obviously too large, as it rubs slightly inside of the clutch cover top and bottom. Rubs enough that I won't fire it up like this.

Question - what's the difference between an Oregon 160PXBK041 bar and a 160GLGK041 bar?
And can they both run 95VPX chain or another Stihl narrow kerf equivalent or at least something that will fit under the EA4300 clutch cover without mods, or will I need a different bar/chain?

I've got the Oregon 160PXBK041 in my possession so would prefer if there is a narrower kerf chain than the Stihl 23RS that will fit and run well on this bar.

Thanks in advance for any feedback.

 

[brent denny]

160pxbk041 is a pro-am bar with small nose profile (9t I think). 160glgk041 is a pro-lite with larger nose profile (12t I think). That prolite also has a " guard-mate" hole for the kickback protector. It will dribble a little oil out of there during use if not utilized. 160slgk041 is prolite with no "guard-mate" holes. 20lpx does not rub with these bars and 95vp would be fine also. Can't comment on the Stihl chain but it's possible the cutters are just slightly wider and enough so to make it hit the side cover. I would try a loop of the 20lpx.

 

[MountainHigh]

thanks for that clarification ... good to know the 160PXBK041 should be compatible with 95VPX or 20lpx chain. Your thoughts on Stihls 23RS being slightly wider cutters is likely right.

I'll give my local guy a call and see if he's got any 20lpx in stock.

 

[brent denny]

95 VPX is narrow kerf chain that is meant to be run on a narrow kerf bar but I've seen combinations of bars and chains either way and it never really seems to be a problem

 

[MountainHigh]

95 VPX is narrow kerf chain that is meant to be run on a narrow kerf bar but I've seen combinations of bars and chains either way and it never really seems to be a problem

ya I was wondering about that ... hoping the 20lpx cutters are a little narrower then I won't have to worry about running 95VPX (now evidently replaced by 95TXL ) on this non-narrow kerf bar.

 

[CoreyB]

If I where buying a new bar for the 421 in .325 I would look real hard at Oregon new speedcut bars. They are K095 but you can modify them real easy to oil. That is what I have been running on my 421 with the talk chain and it cuts well. Balance nice to boot.

 

[Franny K]

The clutch cover for those is supposed to be about $15 from my memory of reading on here. I would just let it dig in, there is no (official or dedicated separate) chain catcher on those saws so I figure on going through a few covers eventually. If It hits the powerhead that is another matter. I doubt the Stihl 0.325 chain has more than a couple thousands more kerf than the Oregon equivalents. There is no Stihl narrow kerf 0.325 equivelant. Their picco 63 class is a bit more robust than the other 3/8 lp like 91vxl, not sure there is much point in them inserting another product.

All the 0.325 Nk bars I have have a 10 tooth nose, the B by their chart could be 10, 11, or 12. The G is 12 tooth nose. B and G are .325. The Speed cut aluminum cored bar I have like CoreyB mentions has a 10 tooth nose. The bigger nose bars are heavier. I would suspect the NK chain is designed to plunge cut on a 10 tooth nose and the lpx, bpx and Stihl RM, RS for a 12.

If a laminated bar with slot for the drive links 0.058 (code 3 instead of 0 third character) the overall bar thickness will be larger and your clutch cover spaced 8 thousands farther. Solid bars with replaceable nose generally are significantly thicker overall. the laminated hard nose Oregon bar I have seems similar to the 3/8lp or 0.325nk and hard nose solid bars at least the ones I have are thinner than the solid replaceable nose ones.

 

[MountainHigh]

If I where buying a new bar for the 421 in .325 I would look real hard at Oregon new speedcut bars. They are K095 but you can modify them real easy to oil. That is what I have been running on my 421 with the talk chain and it cuts well. Balance nice to boot.

What is "Talk" chain (95TXL?)?

Can you post any photos of the holes you modified on the KO95?

 

[MountainHigh]

The clutch cover for those is supposed to be about $15 from my memory of reading on here. I would just let it dig in, there is no (official or dedicated separate) chain catcher on those saws so I figure on going through a few covers eventually. If It hits the powerhead that is another matter. I doubt the Stihl 0.325 chain has more than a couple thousands more kerf than the Oregon equivalents. There is no Stihl narrow kerf 0.325 equivelant. Their picco 63 class is a bit more robust than the other 3/8 lp like 91vxl, not sure there is much point in them inserting another product.

All the 0.325 Nk bars I have have a 10 tooth nose, the B by their chart could be 10, 11, or 12. The G is 12 tooth nose. B and G are .325. The Speed cut aluminum cored bar I have like CoreyB mentions has a 10 tooth nose. The bigger nose bars are heavier. I would suspect the NK chain is designed to plunge cut on a 10 tooth nose and the lpx, bpx and Stihl RM, RS for a 12.

If a laminated bar with slot for the drive links 0.058 (code 3 instead of 0 third character) the overall bar thickness will be larger and your clutch cover spaced 8 thousands farther. Solid bars with replaceable nose generally are significantly thicker overall. the laminated hard nose Oregon bar I have seems similar to the 3/8lp or 0.325nk and hard nose solid bars at least the ones I have are thinner than the solid replaceable nose ones.

The rubbing is on the metal flange housing and a little on the plastic rim edge.

Has anyone any experience using narrow kerf 95VPX/95TXL chain on the K041 non-narrow kerf Oregon bars I mentioned above? Rubbing issues? Safety issues (I guess if they're 050 there are no worries about it flying out of the groove too easily?) And/or any experience with the Oregon 20LPX or BPX chains on the standard K041 Oregon bars on this EA4300/421?

No one else have any rubbing issues when switching this saw to .325 K041 bars?

 

[Franny K]

I put a picture I found (in my album on my profile) this is a tapered cedar shingle stuck into the cut. The two lines close together are the error of measurement, the kerf is how far the shingle stuck in. I can't read my writing for the NK which was 95vp looks like perhaps 0.22 inches.



K041 just describes the tail shape, the location of the oil and adjuster holes. In this case the oil comes into the bar via the unused adjuster hole. It can be called a Poulan mount. The 095 can be called a small husky mount. Like previously stated in this thread the thread the 095 can be made to work with a little work on the oil hole at the bar and a bit of filing at the adjuster hole it seems desirable. An A041 bar in 3/8lp is what came "stock" when I bought mine but I got the small bore 351. 421 came with 3/8lp and spur sprocket at that time unless the dealer switched which some stated was over half (for the 421) as I recall. Does yours have a 7 tooth spur sprocket or a splined drive and rim sprocket? The A tails converge more height wise at the end. Or they are supposed to, I have some supposed (marked/marketed) K tails in 13 and 15 inch that really are A tails.

The Gl code bar you are calling non NK is the same as an SL code except for the extra hole for a guard tip as mentioned above. The naming has changed for the same code a while back. An SL or GL bar now has lpx, bpx, painted on it at least the ones in .325. Sorry I only have had 3/8lp and 1/4 inch chain on mine. I did get a loop of that Stihl 23RS and have used it on something else. I thought it was pretty aggressive and seemed to skate along at times before digging in, probably better for something a bit bigger even though they put it (with different drive links) on their 45cc saws, or at least the RM version.

I did re check my notes, actually a picture and I got 11 thousands thicker kerf for 23RS stihl chain over Carlton/woodland pro skip which probably is quite similar to the Oregon lpx/bpx/jpx. That was by cutting into the center of a cut and sticking a tapered shingle in then measuring at the point of how far in it went.

 

[Franny K]

Here is a picture of mine from the bottom with 1/4 chain. It would appear there is a sheet metal piece between the bar and the powerhead. That perhaps could be bent a bit more for more clearance but it will protect the next piece towards the engine. If your chain is longer than ideal the bar will have less height at that point. Post a picture of your issue and I will post some of how to modify. Might not even need to modify the oil hole looks like it barely makes contact, I plug the unused adjuster so the oil can not escape through the cover as the 095 mount the adjuster hole is often larger and is more toward the center.

 

[MountainHigh]

View attachment 560453 Here is a picture of mine from the bottom with 1/4 chain. It would appear there is a sheet metal piece between the bar and the powerhead. That perhaps could be bent a bit more for more clearance but it will protect the next piece towards the engine. If your chain is longer than ideal the bar will have less height at that point. Post a picture of your issue and I will post some of how to modify. Might not even need to modify the oil hole looks like it barely makes contact, I plug the unused adjuster so the oil can not escape through the cover as the 095 mount the adjuster hole is often larger and is more toward the center.

Dealer gave me a 67 loop, so that extra link maybe that adding to the problem - heading down to saw dealer now. I'm hearing that the Oregon chain is slimmer from others. He doesn't stock Oregon so I may have to buy from out of the area. I'll post a pic soon when I get back later. Yours definitely has more clearance than mine.

Thanks for feedback.

 

[MountainHigh]

Problem solved! Took back the Stihl 23RS chain. They had some Husky chain (Oregon 20LP) - this time we did 66 links. Noticably slimmer cutters than the Stihl RS chain. No more rubbing issues.

Got home and went into backyard, cut some cookies on an 18" softwood log. I like this chain and happy to have the shorter bar on the EA4300 - this Oregon K041 seems to oil better than the original Makita bar! Such a sweet saw in small wood! Always fun to see how little effort it takes to pull it over.

Thanks for all the excellent feedback