Pioneer Farmsaw Advice

[njs22]

hey again guys - quick update....( because I know you are all waiting impatiently :O) )

- cleaned the rest of the saw well today. I really like this thing - solid - well made , all around cool.
- cut 2 new gaskets from gasket material to replace old ones
- emptied out the old fuel - and this is where it got interesting: tank has some serious corrosion inside, looks like the orange paint gives way to rust over about the top 1/3 to 1/2 of the whole interior. After emptying the gas into a clear container it looked pretty brown and there was visible sediment when i looked in the bottom . Lord knows how old that gas was though. Fuel line is nice and clear tho....

Adding a few days of vinegar treatment for the tank as I slowly rebuild i think, unless there are better ideas out there. I'll keep you posted - thanks again for all the help!

 

[pioneerguy600]

There is better cleaners but unfortunately they are classed, industrial use only, and that makes getting them much more difficult. Is that brown color really rust or is it more likely fuel residue/varnish?

 

[njs22]

Hmm don't know- I'll have a closer look tonight and send a pic. Very rough to the touch , but I get what u mean as it doesn't look like rust in a traditional sense ...

 

[njs22]

OK....probably not rust- maybe the varnish you were referring to? Yep it's time for another pic or two!

cheers

 

[pioneerguy600]

That is likely dried out fuel residue. Iss the vinegar doing anything to remove it?

 

[njs22]

vinegar went in clear, started fizzing right away, and 6 hours later is black as coal. So it's taking something out for sure> appears to have stopped reacting so I'll flush with fresh tomorrow.

Guys, I'm gonna need a lot of vinegar. :O)

 

[pioneerguy600]

Havn`t tried vinegar for removing crud from fuel tanks, maybe you have started a new trend.

 

[njs22]

Havn`t tried vinegar for removing crud from fuel tanks, maybe you have started a new trend.

Yeah, that or it's just melting the fuel line...

 

[njs22]

Well hello again guys!

THE FARMSAW LIVES!!!!!!!

here's a few details to keep u in the picture and for anyone else with similar problems

- The vinegar worked - cleaned the brown crud out of the gas tank and left me with, well, bare metal. Probably better than crud
- The fuel line in the tank was like tissue paper - replaced all lines with clear vinyl - also handy to see if gas is getting sucked in I discovered
- rebuillt her , left the air filter off just so i could watch the carb and tried starting her...
- first no gas going thru lines until i removed the gas cap - then the flow started.
- lots of tries with no success, choke/no choke... finally got her to turn over when i started her with the throttle wide open....is that required? probably should have asked here first
- had to turn out the hi/los - especially the lo out quite a bit until she would idle and not die at throttle release.
- .....it was about this time i realized i was now pretty much deaf - this thing is loud!
- needs some hi/lo tweaking still, but tried a few cuts and she runs nicely...completely blunt of course.... but runs nicely.

My last few issues... any help would be great.
- ... Do i have to open the throttle to start the saw? Any other starting tips?
- Is tweaking the LO screw the right way to adjust the idle?
- there's a loud "ching ching" noise coming from the clutch area...not in time with the piston, something else - any ideas? (nothing obviously loose)
- after trying a few blunt cut attempts she died after throttle release. Assuming lo screw adjustment will address?

Finally - A big thanks to you all for your help!! - Really couldn't have pulled this off without the help I received from this thread and forum in general. Together we've saved me some serious $$, preserved a bit of Canadian manufacturing history from the trash and had a few laughs along the way. Thanks Again.

Neill

PS - see you all soon on my upcoming " homelite xl12 advice " thread- let's live this dream again! :O)

 

[chainmaster]

Happy you got her going the Ching Ching sound from the clutch is normal check your gas cap see if it is breathing there is a check valve inside

 

[pioneerguy600]

If the carb is operating properly its a no on the wide open to get it started, usually needs the choke set to start when cold, re starting if the engine is warm,no choke needed and the throttle normal at idle position. The carb may be leaking fuel past the inlet stop needle valve causing partial flooding if the throttle needs to be wide open for starting.

 

[njs22]

Hmm ok - not sure how to identify/ fix that issue ...I did notices what I think was furl coming out of the carb on the open side when I was trying to start it numerous times with the choke open, so things may not be right in the carb as u suggest. Are there other adjustment beyond the hi/ lo? Also is the chain pitch 3/8 for a replacement on this saw?

CheerS​

 

[pioneerguy600]

H and L are mixture screws and then there is the throttle adjuster on the carb, it basically adjusts the carb butterfly so the saw just idles smoothly. All 3 adjustments need to very close to perfect for an easy starting and solid running saw. The carb interior parts need to be in like new clean and flexible condition so that the adjustment screws can do their job.

 

[njs22]

Thanks for the carb 101- after some tinkering today she's much smoother . Now I'm stumped on something else...
- went to buy a new chain today from ca tire ( first mistake?)
- my bar is an original pioneer with 20-058- 3/8 stamped on it ... I only noticed this after I bought a 3/8, 20 inch .050 chain...

The weird thing is my original chain and the replacement chain are different lengths, so much so that it is plain too long by about an inch for my 20" bar at max extension...

All other factors aside- shouldn't chains for a 20" bar all be the same length? What am I missing?

 

[pioneerguy600]

Not quite that simple, chains are measured by the number of drive links, not necessarialy by bar length due to many manufacturers measuring their bars from different points on a bar. Either count the number of drivers on the chain or look on the bar for a number, likely somewhere between 70 - 72 dl for that chain.

 

[njs22]

Ah ok - gotcha- it looks like mine is 70 and the replacement was 72 . Thanks again.

 

[njs22]

well guys,I think we need some"closure" pics :O)

Finally got the right chain, and took the old saw for a spin today. Great fun, a little bit too much smoke at WOT ( probably a mix adjustment needed) but she cuts beautifully.

Not bad for a few hours work on a saw found by the side of the road.

Thanks all one more time

o and yes I tightened the chain after the pic!

I'll apply everything I learned on this thread to my little red XL12 next, once I've done a little splitting.... :O)

 

[pioneerguy600]

Good job and thanks for posting the picts, nice saw!

 

[timdavis]

I just threw a parts saw "The Farm Saw" in the shed, interested?

Yes I am how much ha boy

 

[ChoppyChoppy]

That was over 6 months ago. I doubt I could even find it now!