Ebay Husqvarna 262xp scored piston. Advice please.

[BonScott46]

First post, been lurking for a few weeks and reading until my head hurts. Bought my first saw last week, a 1990? Husqvarna 262xp, from Sweden's version of Ebay. I saw that it had the plastic clutch cover and thought it was likely an early model possibly with the hda-87 carb, so I took a chance. Ended up paying about 390 bucks, which isn't too bad considering everything is expensive over here. Got the saw and was happy to see no decomp and the hda-87 under the plastics. Took off the muffler and noticed that someone had gone to town with a screwdriver 'cleaning' up the saw, scratches everywhere. Other than that it seems to be in good shape, no cracks/dents, missing screws, broken pieces, etc. A small amount of melted plastic under the top cover at the front of the muffler. Has a bit of hard build up which I assume is carbon on the heat shield, possibly caused by the gasket being MIA? Peaked in the exhaust port and saw machining lines on the piston and a nice oil sheen, excited, but as I dropped the piston the top half showed significant scoring, disappointed. One scratch looks to be a couple of mm wide and might be down into the ring. It seems to have good compression/pop when I pull on the starter rope. The sellers description was 'starts easy, good compression, runs like clock.' How do I proceed from here? Should I try to run it? Should I pull the cylinder and check it? I don't have access to vacuum/pressure test equipment. Advice? Thanks. Exhaust port pictures are upside down.

 

[Full Chisel]

Does the saw run?

 

[BonScott46]

Does the saw run?

Have not tried. Wondering if it is wise considering the damage. I am thinking you would suggest to try?

 

[rynosawr]

That is a really clean saw and with the most desirable cylinder and carb.

I would absolutely not run it at all until you do the following:

My thought would be that you send these pics to the seller of the saw and ask if they would cover parts cost and labor to fix it or split it with you.

How are you with working on saws?

Even if the seller won't agree to help on parts or labor, I would just fix it up if mine.

Do you have a local shop that you could pay just a little money to have it vacuum and pressure checked before disassembly?


If it vacuum/pressure checks out fine, it is likely poor fuel quality/poor carb tune that caused the damage.


A new Meteor piston is very high quality and affordable. A set of caber rings is also best. You should be able to repair the KOLBENSCHMIDT cylinder with the Mastermind method since the piston isn't too bad yet.

You will have a great saw with a bunch of power once you get it fixed.

 

[BonScott46]

That is a really clean saw and with the most desirable cylinder and carb.

I would absolutely not run it at all until you do the following:

My thought would be that you send these pics to the seller of the saw and ask if they would cover parts cost and labor to fix it or split it with you.

How are you with working on saws?

Even if the seller won't agree to help on parts or labor, I would just fix it up if mine.

Do you have a local shop that you could pay just a little money to have it vacuum and pressure checked before disassembly?


If it vacuum/pressure checks out fine, it is likely poor fuel quality/poor carb tune that caused the damage.


A new Meteor piston is very high quality and affordable. A set of caber rings is also best. You should be able to repair the KOLBENSCHMIDT cylinder with the Mastermind method since the piston isn't too bad yet.

You will have a great saw with a bunch of power once you get it fixed.

I have messaged the seller asking how long he had the saw and how much he used it. 1, 10, 100+ tanks. He said he had it for 5 years, 'cut a little wood' with it and did not clean it before putting it out. He has offered to buy the saw back if I am not happy, whether or not he would remains to be seen. I am going to try and find someplace to vac/pressure test it and go from there. I do want to keep it if nothing major needs to be done. I have never worked on saws but would not shy away from changing a piston as long as I had some goo gasket for a little extra piece of mind. Like you said it is the desirable configuration and these saws are MUCH harder to find over here, especially in good condition. People drive saws hard here and there are not many 60+ cc saws in the hands of firewood cutters. By the way anybody know which carb adjusting tool fits the hda-87? When I search there comes up a bunch of different shaped screw heads.

 

[ChoppyChoppy]

I've seen saws with pistons far worse than that still running fine.

I've pretty well given up selling on ebay, some people seem to expect better than new used items for pennies or sellers try to sell junk described as being in much better shape.
Plus the eBay fees now are ridiculous. On a $100 sale almost $20 goes to ebay.
Lot easier to handle in person, for both parties.

 

[SawTroll]

I can confirm it is a 1990 saw, made week 49 that year.

 

[BonScott46]

Can somebody please put up the link to the Mastermind Method? Looked through the chainsaw stickies and 10 pages of his threads but still came up blank.

 

[justtools]

I've seen saws with pistons far worse than that still running fine.

I've pretty well given up selling on ebay, some people seem to expect better than new used items for pennies or sellers try to sell junk described as being in much better shape.
Plus the eBay fees now are ridiculous. On a $100 sale almost $20 goes to ebay.
Lot easier to handle in person, for both parties.

That is very true. lets use this saw as an example. If the seller bought you a new piston, possibly a cylinder he gave the saw away. He could have very likely got almost as much money showing some light scoring in the cylinder.

 

[rmh3481]

What I would do is order a complete gasket set and replace the seals. Replace the carb diaphragms. Replace the fuel lines. Check the bearings, etc. Get all the leaks out of the way first. Get your hands dirty and learn a new skill. The piston doesnt look too bad. After its back together run it at 32:1 not 50:1. If you would like to send me an email address via private message, I will forward the shop manual.

 

[rmh3481]

http://www.arboristsite.com/community/threads/how-to-remove-aluminum-transfer-without-acid.248325/

You wont need this, but here is the info you asked for anyhow.

 

[ChoppyChoppy]

What I would do is order a complete gasket set and replace the seals. Replace the carb diaphragms. Replace the fuel lines. Check the bearings, etc. Get all the leaks out of the way first. Get your hands dirty and learn a new skill. The piston doesnt look too bad. After its back together run it at 32:1 not 50:1. If you would like to send me an email address via private message, I will forward the shop manual.

If the saw runs fine there is no reason to replace anything you listed.

50:1 for most saw applications is just fine. Why breathe more fumes than needed and make a mess all over with oil sludge and carbon deposits?

 

[rynosawr]

While I respect your style RMH, it would be overkill for this poor guy to have to do all that work on what was supposed to be a good saw vs just a new piston, rings, and carb kit with new fuel line and filter.

My suggestion would be a piston replacement, but only after a pressure/vac test verifies the saw engine condition. If it shows a vac leak, see if they can locate the area. If not easy (base of cylinder or intake manifold area), you are definitely in for more work or consider the buy-back option.

I never recommended a new cylinder with as little transfer as occurred, as the KS cylinder is the best running stock cylinder, but, I would definitely recommend cleaning it up, using a stock cylinder gasket (no sealant required)and replacing the piston and rings with a known quality aftermarket option (meteor is considered very good quality and closest to OEM for 1/2 or 1/4 the price, and they are made in Italy).

The piston was likely damaged by a combination of old gas mix, dull chain, and an overzealous user pushing it hard and hot.

I have fixed 50+ saws for this combination of reasons and haven't had a seal problem to deal with.

Valleyfw, I agree that some saws can get away with that amount of scoring without issue, but it sounds as though this gent is in Sweden where saws are very expensive and he doesn't have the luxury of tossing it aside and picking up another good one off of his shelf or from craigslist or a local arborist, like you or I could do.

 

[Mattyo]

Ok, this seems like a nifty find... but...

#1 .... what is the compression? did the seller disclose what the compression was? or just said "good compression" ...????

#2 ... the hda 87 carb is likely worth $100 by itself, so is that cylinder, assuming you can clean it up.

#3... if this saw doesn't have a rebuild in its past, .... think of a car built in 1990. How much of the rubber would still be good on the car? you really think those seals and bearings are still reliable. Even if they still hold pressure, are you really going to rely on them to keep your super nice super rare KS non decomp cylinder healthy?

#4....this is a factory hotrod....and an enthusiasts saw...that is 26 years old. you bought it ....without history of a rebuild...and you don't have the equipment to service it? sorry for being snarky here and down on ya, but I'm not exactly sure what you were expecting here

please, don't get me wrong, this is a cool saw. anyone on the forum will likely echo that sentiment. but you'll need to familiarize yourself with rebuilding such a saw, or risk completely destroying a diamond in the rough.

otherwise the saw seems to be in very nice shape.... is it worth the $390? with a P&C in that condition, I don't know....but the risk is significant if you run it without figuring out why the piston is messed up.....

here's my vid series on rebuilding the 262 ...follow it and you'll be fine

 

[Full Chisel]

I would definitely put the effort and money towards getting that saw in good running condition and look past the potential mis-representation of the saw. You have a very nice, very desirable 262 in otherwise great condition. A lot of guys would sell their soul to have that saw, myself included.

I agree with the advice to get the saw pressure/vac tested for insurance and install a new piston and ring. Seals probably wouldn't be a bad idea either considering the age of the saw.

 

[M&Rtree]

I have seen several 262's this way running just fine. Over rich carb, carbon build up whatever the case they do it. Do a compression test on the saw. If it's below 145psi buy a Meteor piston and ring and pull the jug. Clean everything and reassemble with a new base gasket. I have two KS, hda 87 262's they rock.

 

[rynosawr]

The two saws I regret selling the most are an all original 242xp and a KS/HDA 87 262xp.... Both very nice condition. No repair was needed. Both went to very good, very special members of this board and that is definitely a positive side of things.


That 262xp with KS And 87 carb is snappy, peppy saw for sure over the other variants.... I have had two other 262xp's with the "other" cylinder and 120 carb and although stout, they just don't have that same edginess to them.

 

[BonScott46]

Ok, this seems like a nifty find... but...

#1 .... what is the compression? did the seller disclose what the compression was? or just said "good compression" ...????

#2 ... the hda 87 carb is likely worth $100 by itself, so is that cylinder, assuming you can clean it up.

#3... if this saw doesn't have a rebuild in its past, .... think of a car built in 1990. How much of the rubber would still be good on the car? you really think those seals and bearings are still reliable. Even if they still hold pressure, are you really going to rely on them to keep your super nice super rare KS non decomp cylinder healthy?

#4....this is a factory hotrod....and an enthusiasts saw...that is 26 years old. you bought it ....without history of a rebuild...and you don't have the equipment to service it? sorry for being snarky here and down on ya, but I'm not exactly sure what you were expecting here

please, don't get me wrong, this is a cool saw. anyone on the forum will likely echo that sentiment. but you'll need to familiarize yourself with rebuilding such a saw, or risk completely destroying a diamond in the rough.

otherwise the saw seems to be in very nice shape.... is it worth the $390? with a P&C in that condition, I don't know....but the risk is significant if you run it without figuring out why the piston is messed up.....

here's my vid series on rebuilding the 262 ...follow it and you'll be fine
Hi Matt.

1. I do not know the compression other than the 'good compression' description from the seller and the 'pop' when I pull the starter. This is not unusual here, in fact I have no one list compression in an ad let alone show a compression gauge reading.

2. Yes this saw is valuable, mostly for the fact that it has the rare p/c and carb, that is why I took the risk and bought it. I could not in fact see if it had a decomp in the pictures but from what I had read about the earlier models having the plastic clutch cover I took the risk and it paid off, at least in that respect.

3. I agree, there is obviously a risk depending on the old seals and the like to hold out. I would not be averse to tearing the thing apart and trying my hand at rebuilding it, but considering my very basic tool collection this is not an option at the moment. I also do not have hundreds of dollars for tools right now. I am trying to search and find reasonable prices on things but this is going to take some time.

4. See #3

By the way I already watched that video weeks ago with a bunch of other ones you have posted.

 

[southland1]

Have a 262 XP serial #4331032, any idea which version this is, does it have the good cylinder and carb? How can you tell the different versions?

 

[Mattyo]

Bon..

You said

3. I agree, there is obviously a risk depending on the old seals and the like to hold out. I would not be averse to tearing the thing apart and trying my hand at rebuilding it, but considering my very basic tool collection this is not an option at the moment. I also do not have hundreds of dollars for tools right now. I am trying to search and find reasonable prices on things but this is going to take some time.



So the question still stands....what were you expecting?

If you are looking to start a saw collection then you picked a pretty nice one...no question.

If you picked a saw so you can go out and cut wood immediately then I think you have made a mistake. I'm glad you aren't averse to working on the saw...and this is a pretty easy saw to work on. But if you just go out and cut you may ultimately ruin a collectors item

Personally..I'm not a collector. I try to work on saws that are easy to work on and ones with excellent parts availability. The 262xp is cool....but IMHO more of a collectors item due to lack of parts availability.

So it depends on what you are going for.