Bought a new Poulan Pro 5020 to see what there about

[2Twannabe]

I finally finished reading this entire thread and thought I might as well throw in my two cents worth.

I bought one of these last March for firewood cutting and helping a friend clear out some hedge rows. I didn't have quite the experience that Mark described as far as the carb tuning being close out of the box, but I had the tool and quickly got that sorted out. Overall, for a straight stock saw it did pretty good.

My biggest beef is with the darn thing throwing chains. This isn't a problem when you're just bucking logs, but when you're working in cover and cutting at odd angles, it tends to throw the chain - a lot. I noticed it most when I was clearing hedge rows. If you look at the space between the spur and the case, it's not difficult to understand why. There's a pretty good gap there, and if the chain gets even a little loose, it comes off. I've been thinking maybe a fellow could put a fender washer on the clutch shaft under the drum/spur and/or run a better quality chain and maybe this wouldn't be a problem.

 

[fossil]

I finally finished reading this entire thread and thought I might as well throw in my two cents worth.

I bought one of these last March for firewood cutting and helping a friend clear out some hedge rows. I didn't have quite the experience that Mark described as far as the carb tuning being close out of the box, but I had the tool and quickly got that sorted out. Overall, for a straight stock saw it did pretty good.

My biggest beef is with the darn thing throwing chains. This isn't a problem when you're just bucking logs, but when you're working in cover and cutting at odd angles, it tends to throw the chain - a lot. I noticed it most when I was clearing hedge rows. If you look at the space between the spur and the case, it's not difficult to understand why. There's a pretty good gap there, and if the chain gets even a little loose, it comes off. I've been thinking maybe a fellow could put a fender washer on the clutch shaft under the drum/spur and/or run a better quality chain and maybe this wouldn't be a problem.

There should be a washer between the spur and the saw case to prevent the chain from coming off the spur.
530015611 Washer - Clutch
If there isn't one there, make sure you get one.
Here's a link to the parts list.
http://www.poulanpro.com/ddoc/PPOI/PPOI2011_AAaa/PPOI2011_AAaa_PP5020AV_577387301.pdf

 

[2Twannabe]

There should be a washer between the spur and the saw case to prevent the chain from coming off the spur.
530015611 Washer - Clutch
If there isn't one there, make sure you get one.
Here's a link to the parts list.
http://www.poulanpro.com/ddoc/PPOI/PPOI2011_AAaa/PPOI2011_AAaa_PP5020AV_577387301.pdf

The saw I had (I've since let go of it after a fellow gave me a stihl 031av) did not have said washer.

 

[fossil]

The saw I had (I've since let go of it after a fellow gave me a stihl 031av) did not have said washer.

That would explain the thrown chains. There is always a washer there for either spur or rim sprockets to keep the chain or rim sprocket from moving off the drum on any saw I've seen.

 

[HDRock]

I read most of this thread, cuz I was looking for something to fill in between my older Mcculloch 35cc , and the Husky 61, and with the $165 price for the 5020 now, it was very tempting, but I decided on a Husky 445, because among other things, the 20" bar on the 5020 and most important for me the weight,
I didn't want to spend more on shorter bar n chain, I did order a LPX for the 445 though.
The 445 I got is a referb $217 shipped, which was very close to the going price for the 5020, aside from Amazon.
Grrreat thread

 

[2Twannabe]

That would explain the thrown chains. There is always a washer there for either spur or rim sprockets to keep the chain or rim sprocket from moving off the drum on any saw I've seen.

I got to thinking about this and finally I just had to get in the truck and drive down to Lowes to look at one. There is, in fact, a washer there, but it's nowhere big enough to prevent a chain from coming off the sprocket. Interestingly enough, the PP5020AV was the only Poulan with an outboard clutch. The PP4218, the 3816, and the 3314 all had inboard clutches with a great big washer on the outside of the spur to keep the chain on. Go figure.

 

[Stihl_crazy]

hello all i am new here but had to throw out my change on this one.I have a friand that comes around on 5 acres and we cut and pile slash and we also hall pallets and cut them up for fire wood for a big shop urban logger anyway about 10 years ago i got a 025 stihl and it started falling in...back to the story so he has a poulan 40cc pro i think well we cut alot of pallets long story short he gets a new poulan every year but then the last one he got has lasted about 2 1/2 years now cut 100 cord of pallet wood with that saw its the biggiest cc they had then i dont like runnig the saw bt it did supprise me to see the same saw for more then a year with the amount of wood we cut with it but my old 025 i cant even count how many chains i wore out on that saw.back to the topic they seem to have come along way with the brand in the last coupe years,but we have done 60 in repairs on the saw a year mostly had to redo the chain tensioner all and all he keeps buying them i would have to say if you plan on cutting any amout of wood like even 1 large tree get a stihl its cheaper in the long run and my little 025 has cost me alot in parts but it was all chains and a spark plug 1 time nothing wrong with the saw for 10 years thats worth the litte more i payed for my little 025 and i work the crap out of the saw thats why i am stihl crazy if ya want a saw to beat up and work to death get a stihl if ya want to get a saw to look at get a poulan/hus ow never mind:msp_ohmy:

 

[rms61moparman]

hello all i am new here but had to throw out my change on this one.I have a friand that comes around on 5 acres and we cut and pile slash and we also hall pallets and cut them up for fire wood for a big shop urban logger anyway about 10 years ago i got a 025 stihl and it started falling in...back to the story so he has a poulan 40cc pro i think well we cut alot of pallets long story short he gets a new poulan every year but then the last one he got has lasted about 2 1/2 years now cut 100 cord of pallet wood with that saw its the biggiest cc they had then i dont like runnig the saw bt it did supprise me to see the same saw for more then a year with the amount of wood we cut with it but my old 025 i cant even count how many chains i wore out on that saw.back to the topic they seem to have come along way with the brand in the last coupe years,but we have done 60 in repairs on the saw a year mostly had to redo the chain tensioner all and all he keeps buying them i would have to say if you plan on cutting any amout of wood like even 1 large tree get a stihl its cheaper in the long run and my little 025 has cost me alot in parts but it was all chains and a spark plug 1 time nothing wrong with the saw for 10 years thats worth the litte more i payed for my little 025 and i work the crap out of the saw thats why i am stihl crazy if ya want a saw to beat up and work to death get a stihl if ya want to get a saw to look at get a poulan/hus ow never mind:msp_ohmy:

The most sensible thing you conveyed in your whole post.
Ahm glade yew lik yer stil! Hop yer friand liks it two.


Mike

 

[HDRock]

hello all i am new here but had to throw out my change on this one.I have a friand that comes around on 5 acres and we cut and pile slash and we also hall pallets and cut them up for fire wood for a big shop urban logger anyway about 10 years ago i got a 025 stihl and it started falling in...back to the story so he has a poulan 40cc pro i think well we cut alot of pallets long story short he gets a new poulan every year but then the last one he got has lasted about 2 1/2 years now cut 100 cord of pallet wood with that saw its the biggiest cc they had then i dont like runnig the saw bt it did supprise me to see the same saw for more then a year with the amount of wood we cut with it but my old 025 i cant even count how many chains i wore out on that saw.back to the topic they seem to have come along way with the brand in the last coupe years,but we have done 60 in repairs on the saw a year mostly had to redo the chain tensioner all and all he keeps buying them i would have to say if you plan on cutting any amout of wood like even 1 large tree get a stihl its cheaper in the long run and my little 025 has cost me alot in parts but it was all chains and a spark plug 1 time nothing wrong with the saw for 10 years thats worth the litte more i payed for my little 025 and i work the crap out of the saw thats why i am stihl crazy if ya want a saw to beat up and work to death get a stihl if ya want to get a saw to look at get a poulan/hus ow never mind:msp_ohmy:

"Stihl_crazy"

 

[Stihl_crazy]

ok i was just saying my friand went and had to get a new saw every year almost and had to work on them as well i never had to do anything to the stihl thats what sold me on them.with the down time and ordering parts and all that its a bad deal if your are trying to get something done and dont have time for it.I would say that we overworked the saw for what the poulan was designed to handel but all we did was cut wood and they dont seem to hold up.Thay have come along way in the last couple years thats for sure

 

[HDRock]

ok i was just saying my friand went and had to get a new saw every year almost and had to work on them as well i never had to do anything to the stihl thats what sold me on them.with the down time and ordering parts and all that its a bad deal if your are trying to get something done and dont have time for it.I would say that we overworked the saw for what the poulan was designed to handel but all we did was cut wood and they dont seem to hold up.Thay have come along way in the last couple years thats for sure

It's all arbitrary :msp_biggrin:

 

[redunshee]

I'm out of breath!

 

[Chris-PA]

Punctuation is your friend!

 

[brokenbudget]

Punctuation is your friend!

maybe sticking around a bit more in grade 2-4 would've helped with the spelling and punctuation:msp_confused:

 

[LegDeLimber]

Modifiedmark , WoodHeatWarrior and or anyone else
that's familiar with tear down and reassembly of the 5020 oiler.

yesterday was sharpen up chains day
to get ready to try grabbing some video (finally!)
but it looks like the oiler is getting weaker.. crap!
bar is clear, etc just seemed to be flowing less than my first useage view of it.

Wal-mart or poulan bar oil used, tried some cut with bit of old kerosine
to see if made diff, hard to if it did..

any of you guys been into this one and got any tips to look for??
purtty Please !!!
kinks, dingle berries, factory sluff ??

I looked at diagram and see a vent tube
along with the pump body etc
and and the typical tube fittings to and from it.

any reason I can't access and pull the entire pump and its tubes
pick up , screen etc.. from the clutch side

BUT, my biggest question of access here..
Wondering if I can entirely access That vent tube,
from the clutch side ?
vent tube is item #10 in pdf

will check tank etc.
then I figure to go from oil pump plunger/gear & crank gear-spiral
and then onward to pickup tube, alway through to the outlet at bar mount, etc


www.oscar-wilson.com/MANUALS/POULAN/PP5020AV.PDF

if anyone has a faster loading copy of the pdf, would be appreciated!

=

I've got couple neighbors with no saws expecting me to pull this off
and then one guy is gonna pay the splitter rental (cool!)
and we'll divide work and wood
(they'll gladly handle the heavy lifting if I can just cut)

...so any help would be Majorly big-time appreciated !!!
-
gotta get out and start things.
so it'll be sorta spuratic to get back
to desktop and check here.
so might make me bit delayed to answer any help words.

 

[Chris-PA]

I don't have a 5020 (yet), but since you're in a hurry I'll give what advice I can. The pump looks very much like the ones on the 2775. You have to remove the clutch and the bar plate to remove the pump. Once those are out you just pull the 2 screws and it gently pry it out. One thing that happens to them is that the pump gear teeth are nylon and if too much junk gets packed in there they get jambed, and then the metal drive gear just grinds them away. The teeth should be straight, not have a rounded out section in the middle.

Once the pump is out you could blow though the pickup tube too.

But before you do any of that, I'd run the saw with no bar and look to see if oil is coming out of the bar plate. Further, the system relies on transferring the oil from the bar plate to the bar and then up to the groove. If there is dirt or a gap between the case and the bar plate or the bar plate and the bar, then the seal is broken and some of the oil will just run out there rather than making it to the bar groove. It is important to keep this area very clean. Also, if there is no seal from the bar to the clutch cover that may allow oil to run through the hole in the bar and run out there.

 

[LegDeLimber]

Thanks, Woodheat.
Yeah, seen that packed area and chewed plastic gear (pinion?) on plunger
would love to recurve the stroke guide groove in it.

will try remeber to hit all points you mentioned.
tahnks, gonna bail off here for abit and go try things.

 

[rms61moparman]

Modifiedmark , WoodHeatWarrior and or anyone else
that's familiar with tear down and reassembly of the 5020 oiler.

yesterday was sharpen up chains day
to get ready to try grabbing some video (finally!)
but it looks like the oiler is getting weaker.. crap!
bar is clear, etc just seemed to be flowing less than my first useage view of it.

Wal-mart or poulan bar oil used, tried some cut with bit of old kerosine
to see if made diff, hard to if it did..

any of you guys been into this one and got any tips to look for??
purtty Please !!!
kinks, dingle berries, factory sluff ??

I looked at diagram and see a vent tube
along with the pump body etc
and and the typical tube fittings to and from it.

any reason I can't access and pull the entire pump and its tubes
pick up , screen etc.. from the clutch side

BUT, my biggest question of access here..
Wondering if I can entirely access That vent tube,
from the clutch side ?
vent tube is item #10 in pdf

will check tank etc.
then I figure to go from oil pump plunger/gear & crank gear-spiral
and then onward to pickup tube, alway through to the outlet at bar mount, etc


www.oscar-wilson.com/MANUALS/POULAN/PP5020AV.PDF

if anyone has a faster loading copy of the pdf, would be appreciated!

=

I've got couple neighbors with no saws expecting me to pull this off
and then one guy is gonna pay the splitter rental (cool!)
and we'll divide work and wood
(they'll gladly handle the heavy lifting if I can just cut)

...so any help would be Majorly big-time appreciated !!!
-
gotta get out and start things.
so it'll be sorta spuratic to get back
to desktop and check here.
so might make me bit delayed to answer any help words.

I wouldn't think it would be an issue in North Carolina but if it gets cold enough and you run summer bar oil without thinning it or warming it up before use you can actually strip the nylon teeth off of the driven gear.

The good news is that unlike the other manufacturers, Poulan oilers are VERY affordable.



Mike

 

[Modifiedmark]

I wouldn't think it would be an issue in North Carolina but if it gets cold enough and you run summer bar oil without thinning it or warming it up before use you can actually strip the nylon teeth off of the driven gear.

The good news is that unlike the other manufacturers, Poulan oilers are VERY affordable.



Mike

Yes they are very affordable, so affordable that the cost for the first two years is free. Its called the two year warranty and should be used when needed.

Otherwise your right, I looked and a new oiler is around $5.

One other thing I found when looking is a IPL for a Poulan Pro 4818A that apperars to be the exact same saw as the 5020 but for a 18" bar.

Anyone seen one of these out there?

 

[RedneckChainsawRepair]

One other thing I found when looking is a IPL for a Poulan Pro 4818A that apperars to be the exact same saw as the 5020 but for a 18" bar.

Anyone seen one of these out there?

The pic I just looked at of 4818 looks like the muffler of old 4618 style. Nothing like a 5020 at all.

http://cache.vendaria.com/integrati...7707&cf=3000&purl=sys_homedepot_uid_203627707

But my 5020 came in and it is 5016. :msp_tongue: