Melted hole in top cover experimental fix

[Orange Ripper]

Hey there everyone,
Recently tackled a little cosmetic fix on a 2006 Husqvarna 55 top cover.
I got it off the Previous owner and it had a hole melted in a spot just above the muffler from it touching. (I think the owner ran the saw with the muffler loose and didn’t bother fixing it and it rattled around).
Selling this saw so I figured I’d make it look a little better, so this is what I did step by step to make that happen! It’s just a little experiment I thought might work so why not try

1-(cleaned top cover real good with cleaner and dish soap for final clean).

2-(rough up and texture area around hole so epoxy can stick).

3-(tape area and shape it accordingly so that the tape becomes the new surface that takes up the space of hole when tape comes off).

4-(mix epoxy and apply to affected area as needed and let cure then remove tape)




5-( [optional*] cover the affected area with a sticker so the patch job is covered up and then put back onto saw!).

 

[thompsoncustom]

Ha I was wondering how you were going to get it orange but that works. Nice job

 

[Orange Ripper]

Ha I was wondering how you were going to get it orange but that works. Nice job

Haha I do wish it came in orange all the same, thanks buddy !

 

[RedneckChainsawRepair]

Wish they would do all cylinder covers. Used melted one and then NOS one I did before it had the chance to.

Looking at pics now looks like I could go little further to edge on NOS one.

 

[KostasVolos]

Nice job !
Just a tip : For better adhesion of 2-part epoxy onto Polypropylene
( PP ) , nylon ( PA6 ,PA66) ,polyethylene ( PET,PE,HDPE) ,POM and other thermoplastic polymers ,after degreasing and roughening the polymer surface(s) give it ( or them ) the flame treatment !

For small parts a jet-lighter will do
for the job just fine .
It works wonders and it's pretty easy to do ,once you try it couple of times in a scrap piece of polymer.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/topic...al,stoichiometry) mixture of hydrocarbon gas.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flame_treatment
https://theepoxyexperts.com/flame-treatment-plastic-substrates-adhesive-bonding/

 

[Orange Ripper]

Nice job !
Just a tip : For better adhesion of 2-part epoxy onto Polypropylene
( PP ) , nylon ( PA6 ,PA66) ,polyethylene ( PET,PE,HDPE) ,POM and other thermoplastic polymers ,after degreasing and roughening the polymer surface(s) give it ( or them ) the flame treatment !

For small parts a jet-lighter will do
for the job just fine .
It works wonders and it's pretty easy to do ,once you try it couple of times in a scrap piece of polymer.

https://www.sciencedirect.com/topic...al,stoichiometry) mixture of hydrocarbon gas.
https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Flame_treatment
https://theepoxyexperts.com/flame-treatment-plastic-substrates-adhesive-bonding/

Thanks!
And I’ll definitely have to look at that technique a bit more and try that next time I have to do any sort of top cover fixing to do! Thanks for the tip!

 

[Orange Ripper]

Wish they would do all cylinder covers. Used melted one and then NOS one I did before it had the chance to.

Looking at pics now looks like I could go little further to edge on NOS one.

View attachment 1087272View attachment 1087273View attachment 1087274

Looks Like you could trim a little off the melted one to match the NOS one yep,

Wish there was something sensible I could do to make this 266 top cover look better if I did the same as my 55, would be not pretty looking when I was finished I’d imagine though hahah

I’d also like to fix the crack in my white top 61 but unsure of the best way to go about it, for now I’ve just put a piece of that metal tape over it underneath

 

[LuDookie]

I put reflective tape on the underside, just over the muffler on my 395, as well as a wrap around the chain break where it was melting. It all stays cool now.

I have wondered if it keeps the heat under the cover and not let it escape the way it’s supposed to. Husqys like to burn plastic.

 

[Paul-]

Haha I do wish it came in orange all the same, thanks buddy !

How to use acrylic paint to pigment epoxy resin


I was wondering how to make epoxy color matching. Found this video which starts with clear, and adds acrylic paint up to 4%.
Have not tried this, but at least I know it's possible. Great ideas on the sticker and silver tape!

 

[HansFranz]

flame treatment !

+1 The Gougeon brothers at West System Epoxy have been talking about this for a few years. Apparently polyethylene and a lot of other plastics are technically waxes (based on their molecular structure), but doing the flame treatment transforms them from polar to non-polar molecules ... or maybe vice-versa (I forget and am not a chemist) but flame treating causes molecular changes that allow epoxy to adhere to PE. If I recall right, they stress degreasing the plastic real well before applying epoxy, and the best degreaser they found for this was isopropyl alcohol, which was a surprise to me...check their online "Epoxyworks" magazine to verify, or for more details if you want to know more...)

Here's an article from the West System folks on flame treating:
https://www.epoxyworks.com/index.php/flame-treating-plastics/
Another trick if you really really really want it to adhere is to use West System's "G-flex" epoxy. It's expensive but the stuff grips like you wouldn't believe. I saw a Youtube video where some guys cut up a polyethylene kayak with a chainsaw and then glued it back together with G-flex ... and then dropped it off a highway overpass onto the concrete 15 feet below, and it didn't faze it...

According to the West System tech support guys I've talked to (I do marine repair and construction), you can also mix the G-flex with other epoxies (so long as you mix one brand of resin+hardener, then mix the other brand of resin+hardener, then mix the two mixtures together) ... and thereby combine the characteristics of the different epoxies (for example if you want the epoxy more or less "watery"), or reduce costs if you don't want or need to use 100% G-flex. (Note: They all have to be epoxies...you can't mix epoxy with polyester/gelcoat or vinylester, etc...)

Orange_Ripper -- If you have adhesion problems with your repair and don't want to mess with G-flex, another option would be to do the epoxy patch again, except in such a way that the epoxy is "keyed in" to the plastic substrate, like this:

That way, even if you have adhesion problems, the patch should still stay in place, if somewhat "loosely."

If you wanted to get fancy, you could add a couple layers of wetted out fiberglass or carbon fiber or fabric or even strong paper (like a coffee filter), which would add flexibility but wouldn't be required:

After the epoxy hardened, you could sand the exterior fair and paint (be sure to deblush by washing with clean water after sanding but before painting) and still retain the "keyed in" characteristics...

 

[Orange Ripper]

How to use acrylic paint to pigment epoxy resin


I was wondering how to make epoxy color matching. Found this video which starts with clear, and adds acrylic paint up to 4%.
Have not tried this, but at least I know it's possible. Great ideas on the sticker and silver tape!

Thanks man!
And that’s pretty neat, I’ve never heard of doing that before!! I’ll have to experiment a bit with that too I guess and thank you sir for the idea!

I put reflective tape on the underside, just over the muffler on my 395, as well as a wrap around the chain break where it was melting. It all stays cool now.

I have wondered if it keeps the heat under the cover and not let it escape the way it’s supposed to. Husqys like to burn plastic.

What I’ve been wondering is if it will stand up to the heat from the muffler, and if it will melt the adhesive on the tape and start peeling off the top cover, how had yours held up ?

 

[Captain Bruce]

Hey there everyone,
Recently tackled a little cosmetic fix on a 2006 Husqvarna 55 top cover.
I got it off the Previous owner and it had a hole melted in a spot just above the muffler from it touching. (I think the owner ran the saw with the muffler loose and didn’t bother fixing it and it rattled around).
Selling this saw so I figured I’d make it look a little better, so this is what I did step by step to make that happen! It’s just a little experiment I thought might work so why not try

1-(cleaned top cover real good with cleaner and dish soap for final clean). View attachment 1087135View attachment 1087130

2-(rough up and texture area around hole so epoxy can stick).View attachment 1087131

3-(tape area and shape it accordingly so that the tape becomes the new surface that takes up the space of hole when tape comes off).View attachment 1087136View attachment 1087133

4-(mix epoxy and apply to affected area as needed and let cure then remove tape)

View attachment 1087137
View attachment 1087138

5-( [optional*] cover the affected area with a sticker so the patch job is covered up and then put back onto saw!).View attachment 1087139View attachment 1087140View attachment 1087141

 

[Orange Ripper]

+1 The Gougeon brothers at West System Epoxy have been talking about this for a few years. Apparently polyethylene and a lot of other plastics are technically waxes (based on their molecular structure), but doing the flame treatment transforms them from polar to non-polar molecules ... or maybe vice-versa (I forget and am not a chemist) but flame treating causes molecular changes that allow epoxy to adhere to PE. If I recall right, they stress degreasing the plastic real well before applying epoxy, and the best degreaser they found for this was isopropyl alcohol, which was a surprise to me...check their online "Epoxyworks" magazine to verify, or for more details if you want to know more...)

Here's an article from the West System folks on flame treating:
https://www.epoxyworks.com/index.php/flame-treating-plastics/
Another trick if you really really really want it to adhere is to use West System's "G-flex" epoxy. It's expensive but the stuff grips like you wouldn't believe. I saw a Youtube video where some guys cut up a polyethylene kayak with a chainsaw and then glued it back together with G-flex ... and then dropped it off a highway overpass onto the concrete 15 feet below, and it didn't faze it...

According to the West System tech support guys I've talked to (I do marine repair and construction), you can also mix the G-flex with other epoxies (so long as you mix one brand of resin+hardener, then mix the other brand of resin+hardener, then mix the two mixtures together) ... and thereby combine the characteristics of the different epoxies, or reduce costs if you don't want or need to use 100% G-flex. (Note: They all have to be epoxies...you can't mix epoxy with polyester/gelcoat or vinylester, etc...)

Orange_Ripper -- If you have adhesion problems with your repair and don't want to mess with G-flex, another option would be to do the epoxy patch again, except in such a way that the epoxy is "keyed in" to the plastic substrate, like this:

That way, even if you have adhesion problems, the patch should still stay in place, if somewhat "loosely."

If you wanted to get fancy, you could add a couple layers of wetted out fiberglass or carbon fiber or fabric or even strong paper (like a coffee filter), which would add flexibility but wouldn't be required:

After the epoxy hardened, you could sand the exterior fair and paint (be sure to deblush by washing with clean water after sanding but before painting) and still retain the "keyed in" characteristics...

Thanks for your insight on the topic kind sir, definitely some helpful info there!

 

[LuDookie]

Thanks man!
And that’s pretty neat, I’ve never heard of doing that before!! I’ll have to experiment a bit with that too I guess and thank you sir for the idea!


What I’ve been wondering is if it will stand up to the heat from the muffler, and if it will melt the adhesive on the tape and start peeling off the top cover, how had yours held up ?

It has held up remarkably well. Nothing special about the tape either, just some metallic tape I had laying around. No problems with the adhesive.