craftsman chain saws...cant beat um

[T77911S]

I have an old (15+yrs) 16in craftsman chainsaw that I have abused, mainly leaving it outside. so I decided to get another saw for the hurricane. looked at stihl and echo but decided to go back to the craftsman since the old beater lasted so many yrs.
problem was I had to get a 20in. nto to mention a lot cheaper and it came with a case.
that SOB wore me out sunday cutting up trees, heavy.
so while the power was out I decided to et the 16in back out and get it running.
pulled the carb out and did a better cleaning of it, then poured the water out of the engine. poured oil back in and drained it. think I fixed the gas leak.
poured gas in it. took it a while but it fired up. did some carb adjustments and it runs pretty good. I even think it still has the original spark plug in it. fouled it a few times due to the water/oil that was in it.

people can brag all they want about expensive saws (stihl)but I will put my craftsman up against any of the expensive saws.
note sure about this new one with this new California CARB compliant crap.
California ruins it for everyone....

my weedeater is from the early 90's too. it has a john deere name on it but it looked like all the others when I bought it. just put another head on it that the string holder attaches to. the bearings in it went bad.
my lawn boy push mower is form the early 90's too.
I had not used it as much since my yard is so big now and the rings froze up and lost compression recnetly. BUT, I picked one up from the dump (no I am not a dump hunter, it was just there) that had the same motor. so I cleaned it up and got it started but swapped that motor over to my deck since it is aluminum.
I am going to put rings back on the old motor and see if it will still run.
BTW, all 2 strokes,

[Steve F]

I have the same one and 15 years as well with a 18" bar .....still humming I "think" they are re-badged Poulan saws. Good stuff and only $159

[KFC911]

A new saw ain't like a 90's saw, which ain't like a 70's saw .

I probably have cut more with two old 70's Homelites than all my Stihls combined before they finally wore out

That said, if you want to put that Craftsman up against my older Stihls or a Husky, then I will give you decent odds .

Ps: you don't...

Oh yeah....all Stihls are not created equal btw.

[john70t]

Have a 90's Craftsman air compressor(used to prime panels with inline driers but still too small for intended use) and a drill I lent to a tweeker(who buffed his car nightly for hours).
They still work almost perfect.

I would have bought them again..

[Dantilla]

Originally Posted by T77911S

looked at stihl and echo ...

Hmmm.... Do I want the new Mercedes, or the used Taurus?

[Dantilla]

Originally Posted by KC911

Oh yeah....all Stihls are not created equal btw.

+1.

The professionals do not buy their Stihl chainsaws at the local Ace Hardware. They also pay way more than Ace prices.

[VincentVega]

I moved up from a sears 50cc that worked great. It was the best thing since sliced bread, until I got a Stihl 026. Ok, now I get it. I heat the house with a wood stove so I cut a bunch of wood. I'm sure many cut much more, but I appreciate the pro Stihls as a great tool. I'm close to adding a 362, but as usual wish I could go on more step up.

[dw1]

I agree with the good views of old Craftsman chainsaws. I now have my late dad's Craftsman 358.351062 (16 in. bar). It's now about 20 years old.

After I got it from him, it sat for over 5 years buried in the garage. When I needed to use it, I found he left gas in it! What the hell.. I figured. I'd try to start it. It started on the 3rd or 4th pull!

A year or so after that I went to use it and found that it would run for a short time and then die. Quite simply, the fuel line had wore out and split. I ordered the fuel lines and replaced them (along with a new fuel filter) and once again it runs like a champ.

Oh, and it did have the "swollen and tight" gas cap problem. An inexpensive replacement gas cap fixed that.

I look forward to using it for many years more. Parts are still available and cheap.

I've used a relative's Stihl (24 inch bar) - great saw but far more than I need for most jobs. I have an electric pole saw (10 inch bar) that comes in handy on and off its pole, but the Craftsman is my usual go-to chainsaw.

[DanielDudley]

I have the guard activated chain brake on my saw. I have never had it go off in an emergency, but it is nice to be able to lock the blade when you are up in a tree or scrambling in the woods.

I would never own another saw without it.

[T77911S]

Originally Posted by KC911

A new saw ain't like a 90's saw, which ain't like a 70's saw .

I probably have cut more with two old 70's Homelites than all my Stihls combined before they finally wore out

That said, if you want to put that Craftsman up against my older Stihls or a Husky, then I will give you decent odds .

Ps: you don't...

Oh yeah....all Stihls are not created equal btw.

we had an old homelite that had one of the push button oilers. ran for ever. I just dug an old homelite bow saw out of the neighbors shed that has the old oiler. was thinking about getting it going but man, that thing must weigh 60 lbs.

[T77911S]

Originally Posted by dw1

I agree with the good views of old Craftsman chainsaws. I now have my late dad's Craftsman 358.351062 (16 in. bar). It's now about 20 years old.

After I got it from him, it sat for over 5 years buried in the garage. When I needed to use it, I found he left gas in it! What the hell.. I figured. I'd try to start it. It started on the 3rd or 4th pull!

A year or so after that I went to use it and found that it would run for a short time and then die. Quite simply, the fuel line had wore out and split. I ordered the fuel lines and replaced them (along with a new fuel filter) and once again it runs like a champ.

Oh, and it did have the "swollen and tight" gas cap problem. An inexpensive replacement gas cap fixed that.

I look forward to using it for many years more. Parts are still available and cheap.

I've used a relative's Stihl (24 inch bar) - great saw but far more than I need for most jobs. I have an electric pole saw (10 inch bar) that comes in handy on and off its pole, but the Craftsman is my usual go-to chainsaw.

THATS THE ONE I HAVE!!!

the ethanol gas eats the lines,.
the carbs are really easy to rebuild and quite fun and interesting. amazing little carbs. fuel pump is incorporated into the carb. its the top, under the big screw.
you can get a new carb for about $10.

sears sells a red saw and a black one. not sure of the difference but my old one was the black one so that is what I bought for a new one.

[KFC911]

Originally Posted by T77911S

we had an old homelite that had one of the push button oilers. ran for ever. I just dug an old homelite bow saw out of the neighbors shed that has the old oiler. was thinking about getting it going but man, that thing must weigh 60 lbs.

I'd forgotten about the push button oilers, but not the weight . The Stihl I was using earlier today and the one I use the most is my smallest, lightest one...a tree climber saw with a 14" bar...it's a wicked little beast, and I ain't never gonna climb a tree either

[T77911S]

The homelite is a SUPER XL I think 66.
They stopped making them in 1983.
It's a 22lb bow saw.
Doing some research. It has some kind of "transmission" on it.
I also see they were quite dangerous.
My neighbor will probably give it to me. If so Iay try to get it running.
This thing is a beast.

[T77911S]

Check this thing out.
She also has a stihl fs66 weed eater but only the motor

[KFC911]

Oh my...is that scary looking thing what you call a bow saw? Never seen nuthin' like it...what's it used for other than causing bad dreams and back pain ?

[T77911S]

had to look it up.
its for "bucking" trees once they are down.
watched a video of a guy using one. pretty cool.

stand the saw its end and place the hook at the bottom in the top pic on the tree, then with the saw straight up, the weight (25lbs) pushes the saw down as it cuts the tree.
basically you are using the end of the saw to cut which is normally a no no with a regular saw.

saw a few warnings about kickback with this thing. don't think I would regularly use it although I may restore it.

in the bottom pic the 2 round parts that have no paint are the clutch (the bigger one) and a smaller gear. it looks like the chain speed is reduced, not sure why. perhaps as a safety thing.
that part also has gear oil in it. not bar oil, that is upper left

[KFC911]

Originally Posted by T77911S

had to look it up.
its for "bucking" trees

Yep, I used my foogle goo after I asked
Got quite a history lesson on saws too ...