Stung by a "Bumble Bee" Chainsaw?

[chowdozer]

ok, I gotcha Lake. more to do with the materials than the actual molding process then?

Usually sand casting is done for low volume production or R&D because the setup for die casting requires more $ to get started. There can be a problem with core shift not to mention the sand will work it's way out for a long time. In the case of China, I'm sure cost isn't much of an issue and probably the easiest for them. You can sand cast in your garage if you wanted. For producing alot of units and minimizing machining, die casting is the way to go.

 

[bcorradi]

I was talking to a buddy from Poland who said his dad (who owns a dealership) bought a few of these to try out. He said they can be bought for about $65 out of china and only BUZZ for about 30 hours if your lucky ; )

 

[chowdozer]

I was talking to a buddy from Poland who said his dad (who owns a dealership) bought a few of these to try out. He said they can be bought for about $65 out of china and only BUZZ for about 30 hours if your lucky ; )

First ever no maintainence saw. :hmm3grin2orange:

 

[Gologit]

If the internals were the same as a Red Max it would be worth the $. Maybe we should all chip in a buck and get one to check it out. I got first dibs!

I'll kick in a buck. Put a little hour meter on it and we can start a pool on how many hours 'til it goes into meldown. Real world product testing.

 

[ChuckinOhio]

As far as where they come up witht the names for these things, they got some half azzed translator that tries to copy some well regarded American brand name and it gets fubared in the translation, or is totally unapplicable to the product.

Chinese metallurgy is very suspect at best, and downright laughable most of the time. We fabricated some corrosive piping awhile back for a customer that provided the weld flanges for us. Upon completion of the weldment and after subsequent radiographic inspection, it was discovered that the flanges contained more half melted scrap than a Chrysler tranny. Literally they contained readily distinguishable bolts, nuts, and what could only be best described as squiggly things that looked like lathe turnings.

Hoiwever, they make kick azz AK-47s, and they are totally serious when they tell you, "Me F**k you long time roundeye"


Chuck

 

[rb_in_va]

Literally they contained readily distinguishable bolts, nuts, and what could only be best described as squiggly things that looked like lathe turnings.

Metal chips? Cs, 6s, and 9s baby! That's what good lathe chips look like. I concur on the metallurgy thing. The chinese machine tools I used were crap. If you want a quality machine tool look for USA on it!

 

[Lakeside53]

So.. does anyone think the saw pistons and cylinders coming out of China are any better???

 

[rb_in_va]

So.. does anyone think the saw pistons and cylinders coming out of China are any better???

I'm gonna go out on a limb and say no on this one.

 

[max2cam]

"We F**** You Long Time Round Eye."

That above statement is true with capital T.

But however much "cheap junk" speculation about Chinese Bumbled Bee chainsaw, somebody has got to pony up and buy one and put it over the hurdles and post about it here with photos.

Too bad it ain't gonna be me!

I called Harbor Freight customer service yesterday about parts and dude said to contact their tech dept to get name of actual manufacturer. So probably if you want to backtrack to China "gen-u-whine" Bumble Bee parts would probably be available.

I predict, however, that since building a decent chainsaw ain't rocket science Chinese-made chainsaws will become more and more common and perhaps even popular and will eventually sport famous names on them.

I have Chinese made SKS rifle and it's perfectly good or better considering how little it cost.

True story: I was at a Rotary breakfast and a local manf. of motors was bragging and I inadvertantly froze and terrified the poor guy by merely asking about possible future "We F**** You Long Time Round Eye" Chinese competition.

It ain't pretty but it's official U.S. govt. and Wallstreet policy and no mistake....

 

[max2cam]

I was talking to a buddy from Poland who said his dad (who owns a dealership) bought a few of these to try out. He said they can be bought for about $65 out of china and only BUZZ for about 30 hours if your lucky ; )

Yes, but was this "famous" Bumbled Bee brand or knockoff of already junked Homelite, etc.?

 

[Austin1]

That above statement is true with capital T.

But however much "cheap junk" speculation about Chinese Bumbled Bee chainsaw, somebody has got to pony up and buy one and put it over the hurdles and post about it here with photos.

Too bad it ain't gonna be me!

I called Harbor Freight customer service yesterday about parts and dude said to contact their tech dept to get name of actual manufacturer. So probably if you want to backtrack to China "gen-u-whine" Bumble Bee parts would probably be available.

I predict, however, that since building a decent chainsaw ain't rocket science Chinese-made chainsaws will become more and more common and perhaps even popular and will eventually sport famous names on them.

I have Chinese made SKS rifle and it's perfectly good or better considering how little it cost.

True story: I was at a Rotary breakfast and a local manf. of motors was bragging and I inadvertantly froze and terrified the poor guy by merely asking about possible future "We F**** You Long Time Round Eye" Chinese competition.

It ain't pretty but it's official U.S. govt. and Wallstreet policy and no mistake....

Yes but drill the receiver on a Chinese one then a Russian one you will see the difference right away. The Russian sks is much harder.

 

[ChuckinOhio]

The Chinese AKs and SKs are top notch smooth and reliable, the only quirk you will find is Chinese .223 Aks are mag sensitive.

Maybe this chainsaw is manufactured by the Bumble Bee tuna folks, or it is designed for use on a fishing boat?


Chuck

 

[ChuckinOhio]

Hmmmm

So.. does anyone think the saw pistons and cylinders coming out of China are any better???

That is a very good question, the Chinese have the capability to manufacture good parts, and have in the past.

My negative observation on their metallurgy is based solely on the incident with the flanges, their weapons seem to be of decent quality considering their intended use. They have also been manufacturing motor vehicles and equipment for quite sometime now.

I guess that the only definitive answer to that question would be to obtain one and subject it to the full array of inspection procedures to determine if it is up to snuff and then run it like it's rented!

The only downside to rolling the dice is, occasionally they come up snake eyes.

It's all fun and games until that piston flies out of the saw and and crashes through a bus window, killing the driver and sending a load of nuns holding orphan children on their laps to a fiery death at the bottom of a gorge, and there you are unable to escape the angry mob because you fell down in a puddle of bar oil.
Is it worth it, I think not.


Chuck

 

[berryman70]

The only downside to rolling the dice is, occasionally they come up snake eyes.

It's all fun and games until that piston flies out of the saw and and crashes through a bus window, killing the driver and sending a load of nuns holding orphan children on their laps to a fiery death at the bottom of a gorge, and there you are unable to escape the angry mob because you fell down in a puddle of bar oil.
Is it worth it, I think not.
Chuck

Chuck, if that's the worst thing that could happen, I guess it's worth the chance :hmm3grin2orange: :hmm3grin2orange: :hmm3grin2orange:

 

[gatkeper1]

Komatsu Zenoah has for some years now had a joint venture to manufacture in China. Now since Husqvarna has purchaced the OPE division now they have one. BTW Electrolux AG has been in China since 1987.
Now before you Stihl guys get all high and mighty.
Chairman of the Executive Board Dr. Bertram Kandziora and the Party Secretary of Qingdao, Mr Du Shi Cheng at the ground breaking for STIHL's China factory.

Like it or not,China is a market of tremendous growth potential and no manufacture is going to let it slip away.

 

[Steve128]

Good Post Gatkeper1

Might you also know what they intend to produce at this factory?

Thank you for the info. Picture does say it all. Wonder if their business model is changing after all?:monkey:

 

[Stihl_Learning]

Inspired

It's all fun and games until that piston flies out of the saw and and crashes through a bus window, killing the driver and sending a load of nuns holding orphan children on their laps to a fiery death at the bottom of a gorge, and there you are unable to escape the angry mob because you fell down in a puddle of bar oil.
Is it worth it, I think not.


Chuck

 

[max2cam]

Yes but drill the receiver on a Chinese one then a Russian one you will see the difference right away. The Russian sks is much harder.

While that may be true, if I had to bet between the Chinese or the Russians on building the chainsaw of the future, my bet would be on the Chinese.

 

[max2cam]

Stihl in China

I thought maybe the above photo of the Stihl groundbreaking in China was a joke, so I goggled "Stihl China" and was linked right to the "official" Stihl website.

Yep, the same photo is there with an artist's rendition of the projected factory. Looks plenty big enough to make chainsaws in.

Blurb for photos runs:

"Groundbreaking Ceremony for New STIHL Factory in China: The groundbreaking ceremony for STIHL's assembly plant in Qingdao, China, was held on September 14. Chairman of the Executive Board Dr. Bertram Kandziora welcomed some 100 guests, including the Party Secretary of Qingdao, Mr Du Shi Cheng."

http://www.stihl.com.au/company/history/seit2000.cfm

If China is good enough for Stihl, why not good enough for famous Bumbled Bee knock-off Red Max brand?

 

[Lakeside53]

Komatsu Zenoah has for some years now had a joint venture to manufacture in China. Now since Husqvarna has purchaced the OPE division now they have one. BTW Electrolux AG has been in China since 1987.
Now before you Stihl guys get all high and mighty.
Chairman of the Executive Board Dr. Bertram Kandziora and the Party Secretary of Qingdao, Mr Du Shi Cheng at the ground breaking for STIHL's China factory.

Like it or not,China is a market of tremendous growth potential and no manufacture is going to let it slip away.

I'm old enough to remember when "Made in Japan" meant JUNK. Today.. the exact opposite. China will also evolve. The problem is not "China", but who makes what in China... Stihl, Husky, GE, Rockwell, and 100's and 100's more big companies.. you name it.. all produce in Chinese factories, but to their specs with their own QA/QC... The other end of the scale is the backyard operations with no cares, but to make cheaply. I love the stones in the cast iron of woodworking machines a few years back...

For high quality products, a great deal of the specialized raw materials are imported into China's trade zones, manufactured, then exported. I know when I buy 1 or 10,0000 Mahle pistons, no matter where it was made, it's going to work and have the expected lifetime. I can't say the same about a no name piston.