A couple of weeks ago I upgraded my ex-Home Depot DCS-6401 with a genuine OEM 7901 piston and cylinder courtesy of Chainsawr; installed a new metal base gasket, didn't bother measuring squish, didn't touch ports/timing/etc. Assembled just the way a 7901 would come from the factory. At the same time I upgraded the bar to a 24" Oregon PowerMatch in 0.058 gauge and bought 3 new loops each of both 73DPX (semi-chisel) and 73LGX (chisel) chain. I went with a 0.058 gauge bar because it supposedly oils better than 0.050 and since oiling isn't the strong suit of the DCS-64xx/79xx series... For this short bar I probably didn't need to bother, but since I was upgrading the bar length anyway, 0.058" was no big deal. After assembly I fired it up, set it a little rich and waited for the opportunity to use it.
Today I had the opportunity to run it for real. Before heading out I used my DTI-20K tach and found that what I thought was a "little rich" was actually "pig rich" at only 10,700rpm. I increased that to 12,500 and put it to work on some 24-28" green logs at a neighbor's house. It was 28F this morning and I didn't know if it was a good idea to use LGX chain on potentially frozen logs so I used the semi-chisel DPX, expecting to be somewhat disappointed with cut times. I can tell you, I was NOT disappointed! Even with semi-chisel chain it still flew through those logs; a proverbial light saber indeed. First I tried noodling and the sprocket cover got all choked up in short order. I couldn't cut more than 8-10" deep with the bar fully buried before having to stop and take the sprocket cover off to clean things out. Wish I knew what kind of tree it was, sorry. Because I couldn't noodle effectively, I ended up cutting the logs into 12" thick cookies so they would be small enough that I could lift them into the pickup bed. At least they can dry out enough to split before next winter.
A few observations:
1. I was a little disappointed in the noodle-clearing capability of the saw. The chain catch seemed to be exploring a new profession--i.e., noodle catching. Made me want to try removing the chain catch to see if the situation improved, but I didn't. The noodles were 6+" long though. Is there truly a saw that can reliably clear noodles that long?
2. My first experience with 3/8 semi-chisel was a good one and not nearly as bad as I feared. Much of the wood I cut is liable to have nails and barbed wire inside of it. Hopefully the semi-chisel will touch up easier/quicker after a tramp steel event.
3. While I can easily tune the four stroking out of a leaf blower or a string trimmer by ear, I have trouble with a chain saw, which turns over 4500rpm faster than my leaf blower. It's a perception thing. Once my tach told me I was at 11,000rpm (way rich) I could hear the four stroking and felt comfortable adding another 1500rpm. But without a tach I would definitely be hesitant to lean it out properly. As I said, it's a perception thing--I had to make my mind believe what my ears were telling me. I can always hear a rich saw on youtube videos or when someone else is operating it, but it's another thing entirely when you're up close and personal with an angry (and expensive) chainsaw. But now that I know what this saw sounds like at 12,500 I don't think I'll be hesitant to lean it out further after a few more tankfuls.
Today I had the opportunity to run it for real. Before heading out I used my DTI-20K tach and found that what I thought was a "little rich" was actually "pig rich" at only 10,700rpm. I increased that to 12,500 and put it to work on some 24-28" green logs at a neighbor's house. It was 28F this morning and I didn't know if it was a good idea to use LGX chain on potentially frozen logs so I used the semi-chisel DPX, expecting to be somewhat disappointed with cut times. I can tell you, I was NOT disappointed! Even with semi-chisel chain it still flew through those logs; a proverbial light saber indeed. First I tried noodling and the sprocket cover got all choked up in short order. I couldn't cut more than 8-10" deep with the bar fully buried before having to stop and take the sprocket cover off to clean things out. Wish I knew what kind of tree it was, sorry. Because I couldn't noodle effectively, I ended up cutting the logs into 12" thick cookies so they would be small enough that I could lift them into the pickup bed. At least they can dry out enough to split before next winter.
A few observations:
1. I was a little disappointed in the noodle-clearing capability of the saw. The chain catch seemed to be exploring a new profession--i.e., noodle catching. Made me want to try removing the chain catch to see if the situation improved, but I didn't. The noodles were 6+" long though. Is there truly a saw that can reliably clear noodles that long?
2. My first experience with 3/8 semi-chisel was a good one and not nearly as bad as I feared. Much of the wood I cut is liable to have nails and barbed wire inside of it. Hopefully the semi-chisel will touch up easier/quicker after a tramp steel event.
3. While I can easily tune the four stroking out of a leaf blower or a string trimmer by ear, I have trouble with a chain saw, which turns over 4500rpm faster than my leaf blower. It's a perception thing. Once my tach told me I was at 11,000rpm (way rich) I could hear the four stroking and felt comfortable adding another 1500rpm. But without a tach I would definitely be hesitant to lean it out properly. As I said, it's a perception thing--I had to make my mind believe what my ears were telling me. I can always hear a rich saw on youtube videos or when someone else is operating it, but it's another thing entirely when you're up close and personal with an angry (and expensive) chainsaw. But now that I know what this saw sounds like at 12,500 I don't think I'll be hesitant to lean it out further after a few more tankfuls.
