Yuppie Mountain Man Bartender Husky 350 Diagnosis

[TraditionalTool]

My new to me Husky 350, got it off a yuppie mountain man bartender, living in the hills above the city. We met up at the summit just off 9 out of big basin...the agreed $25 price as it was known to be in need of a piston/cylinder (I'm not certain just yet) per the repair tag. He was asking $50 for it.

Funny, he told me someone called and wanted to pay $50, and said they would pay $60 for it, but he had agreed to sell it to me for $25 and he showed up where we were meeting, at a day hike area overlooking Monterey Bay above Santa Cruz, about 15 miles from Boulder.

Nice guy, works up on the summit as a bartender. He bought it for $160 2 years ago used, and didn't want to put $200 into it.

It looks like the ring is gone to me, but wanted to post some pics and get some opinions as I diagnose it.

It has spark.

I haven't tested putting some gas into the cylinder to see if it will fire.

I dumped the gas and filled it with known good 50:1.

Looks like it's been sitting in his barn for a bit...

I was reading these can actually be converted into a 346xpne top end fairly easily, so if I was going to get a cylinder/piston I would go that route, but probably won't do it right now.

I probably need to pull the cylinder and look at everything to see what can be cleaned up.

This is my first saw to take apart, so I'm not really too keen to getting things apart, but I see a gasket on the bottom, so I might be able to get some extra compression by getting rid of that?

I need to sort out the ring first, but a meteor piston/ring may cure this sick saw.

Gee, isn't the ring missing from here?

Here is some vertical scoring farther down the piston, but that shouldn't prevent it from running, should it?

You can see a full gallery of pics at this link.

 

[Paul001]

I'd toss in a ring and give it a run. Might wanna pressure/vac test it just to make sure there isn't an air leak, reset the carb and blast away.

 

[TraditionalTool]

I'd toss in a ring and give it a run. Might wanna pressure/vac test it just to make sure there isn't an air leak, reset the carb and blast away.

Paul,

Not sure how to pressure/vac test, do I need something special to do that, aside from compressed air?

I was thinking that if I was gonna get a ring, I might go ahead and get a new meteor piston, about $35, but the ring is certainly cheaper to do by itself. They seem to have changed with the EPA version.

Tempted to get the dremel out today when I had this apart...but I think I should get it running first, before I do any modifications to it.

 

[Justsaws]

There is enough damage to the top of that piston that it should be replaced.

If you are not comfortable with modifying a saw then I would recommend getting it to operate correctly before you start grinding.

 

[Jacob J.]

There is enough damage to the top of that piston that it should be replaced.

If you are not comfortable with modifying a saw then I would recommend getting it to operate correctly before you start grinding.

+1. First walk, then run grasshopper.

 

[husky455rancher]

glad im not the only one who calls people grasshopper lol.

 

[TraditionalTool]

If you are not comfortable with modifying a saw then I would recommend getting it to operate correctly before you start grinding.

Yeah, do I hear an echo in here? :monkey:

+1. First walk, then run grasshopper.

Is that another echo?

Wouldn't it be wise to pull the cylinder and look at everything to decide?

 

[TraditionalTool]

What size are the cap screws holding the cylinder on?

What head size are the cap screws that are holding the cylinder on? Does anyone know? I don't see it in the IPL, just lists them as 503 21 74-25. I can get some bolts with 503 21 74 on Baileys. These must be common on other saws as well. I'm not sure if I need a t-handle allen key to get those or not.

EDIT: it is not the same size of Incra uses on their miter gages...I don't know if I have a long enough key, presumably those are allen heads?

 

[TraditionalTool]

If you are not comfortable with modifying a saw then I would recommend getting it to operate correctly before you start grinding.

BTW, this is the very reason I bought this saw, to pull apart and learn how to modify them. Maybe not the best model, but it is the model I could find on the cheap.

After I learn on this saw, I might take a stab at my 359.

But, for my $25 investment, honestly I really don't care if I ruin it.

OTOH, I might get lucky and fix it, in addition to teaching myself how to port, you never know...

 

[TraditionalTool]

Ok, 4mm or 5/32" on those cap screws...

I took the 4 screws for the cylinder, but it doesn't seem to want to come off. I removed the handle (2 short on the bottom, 3 long on the side.

It seems pretty tight on there still.

Do you need to pry with a screwdriver between the gasket and cylinder?

 

[J.Walker]

350 to a 346xp

Spike had one of those converted 350's at a GTG the other week. He said that it was easy to convert it over. I was suprised how good it ran.
For what you have into the saw, it's well worth the cost of the new 50cc P/C.

 

[TraditionalTool]

Spike had one of those converted 350's at a GTG the other week. He said that it was easy to convert it over. I was suprised how good it ran.
For what you have into the saw, it's well worth the cost of the new 50cc P/C.

J,

I have the carb off, but the cylinder is still not coming loose.

Looks like those are actually 5mm cap screws per the service manual I found. I removed everything that seems needed, but the cylinder seems to be frozen to the crankcase possibly...

Feels solid, is there some trick to get these off?

 

[J.Walker]

Is the sparkplug out? Some taps with a rubber hammer might help.

 

[TraditionalTool]

Ah, I got it apart...

I just got it apart, let me take a couple pics. I think it is going to require a new piston at minimum, the cylinder should clean up, I think.

Piston exhaust (where most damage is done):

Piston intake:

Cylinder exhaust:

 

[TraditionalTool]

Is the sparkplug out? Some taps with a rubber hammer might help.

Almost exactly what I did. I tapped it with a small wooden mallet used for working leather.

 

[TraditionalTool]

Ah, no meteor piston for the 350...:-/

I wonder how hard it would be to find a 346xpne cylinder? Seems they sell for about $250 at Bailey's.

I'll have to keep my eyes open to see if I can find a used one, possibly.

 

[J.Walker]

350xp project

Just bought a 50cc xp P/C for upgrading my old 346 to the new edition and it was about 225. Go for it! The 350 really cranks with this set up!!!!
Get a p/c with out the decomp.

 

[Trigger Man]

Did the previous owner run the air filter on the saw like it was shown in the picture?

 

[Nitro-Fish]

This is one of the easiest saws to repair that I have worked on. From what I can see the cylinder should clean up good, buy an aftermarket piston for it; looks like you have the 44mm version as it is not a dished piston (as found on the epa version). Any aftermarket piston will do, don't get hung up on a named brand, the experience is what you're after; shouldn't cost you more that about $30-$35. Meteor doesn't make one & OEM is priced way to high, and since it's your first rebuild, go cheap, get your feet wet & get it running. Once you have it running & have built a little confidence, then try your luck with the 346 conversion if you want (you can always sell the 350 P&C later to help pay for the 346 P&C). I have had great luck with the 45mm version epa/dished 350 saw by replacing bad pistons with one for a 353 (flat top), but like I said, unless I'm seeing the pictures wrong, it looks like your saw is the 44mm version. Good luck with the rebuild, if you have any questions, PM me; I can almost do these in my sleep I've done so many.

 

[Nitro-Fish]

BTW, try to clean the aluminum transfer up with muratic acid (then be sure & wash cylinder good with warm soap/water), don't just try to sand off the transfer or you'll ruin the cylinder.