A little 394 build...

jacob j. · Sep 18, 2019

I thought you guys might like to go through another HVA 394 build-em-up. A member here had a crisis moment a few weeks ago and was looking for some help with projects - I thought I'd volunteer my time and some parts and get this old boy back on the road.

The saw came from the son of a legendary builder who passed away several years ago. It looks like it was started but never finished. The cylinder has had some porting, but I'll need to get an idea of what kind of numbers it has in it before I know if it's going to be a real runner.

The owner didn't want me to split the case on it, but I'm glad I did. The PTO side of the case had some damage and after coming apart, I found that the PTO side main bearing has a broken cage. I thought about re-using his old case gasket, but decided it had given its all.

The owner only gave me two instructions: "Nuttin' fancy" and "No dead kittens in the crankcase."

jacob j. · Sep 18, 2019

I got the case halves cleaned up nice and installed new Nachi 6203s. I fortified the new case gasket with a little Loctite 518.

jacob j. · Sep 18, 2019

The crank is in great shape so I was pretty happy about that. The saw had obviously been run but didn't have high hours, but the one bearing was very strange. I decided the saw was initially bought by
a homeowner or a wood worker and broken in on low quality oil. You can see it's an early 394.

jacob j. · Sep 18, 2019

Here's a before and after on that case damage. I sent the case half off to Mr. Carr and he did his usual excellent work on it. He gave it a blast of TSC enamel so I ran it through a couple of heat cycles
in the oven before putting it into service. I also had to run a die over the bar studs to get the threads cleaned up nicely.

jacob j. · Sep 18, 2019

Buttoned up with new seals and the flywheel torqued down. After I find out where the engine is at, I'll likely give it a little timing advance.

jacob j. · Sep 18, 2019

The port work in the cylinder looks interesting - it looks like it was shaping up to be something pretty fast. The intake and exhaust ports are widened about as much as can be with the stock piston.
The cylinder has no machine work.The intake was lowered a bit and the exhaust raised a hair. The lower transfer tunnels are huge.

jacob j. · Sep 18, 2019

Stock piston and rings - the piston is in real good shape, which makes me think it's not original.

jacob j. · Sep 18, 2019

I'm glad I pulled these parts out of the tank - the fuel line and filter are both aftermarket and the filter has a much smaller opening than a standard OEM Husqvarna filter that came on these saws. I've seen these in weed eaters before.

jacob j. · Sep 18, 2019

The tank cleaned up nice and got a new line and filter - unfortunately I only have Tygon at the moment and a new Husky filter.

jacob j. · Sep 18, 2019

That's it for tonight - I'll get some numbers on this tomorrow night and figure out if we can make this a runner as is, or if the jug will need more work...

Definitive Dave · Sep 19, 2019

You are the MAN!!

Armbru84 · Sep 19, 2019

Definitive Dave said:
You are the MAN!!

Ditto.

rattler · Sep 19, 2019

You Rock JJ.

Frank bierce · Sep 19, 2019

Great build, and well done checking through the whole saw!!

Mattyo · Sep 19, 2019

Split it split it split it!! Oh wait...u already did

very nice build.

I'm splitting every single one of these I get. Just too risky leaving old bearings and seals in for reasons just like you encountered. Doesnt add much to the cost of the build either. Love me some fresh 6203s nachis

MG porting · Sep 19, 2019

Cool build looks like it will be a great saw when you get finished with it.

cuinrearview · Sep 19, 2019

Great thread JJ. Can't wait to happen onto one of these to go through. This thread will hopefully be my guide.

jacob j. · Sep 19, 2019

Mattyo said:
Split it split it split it!! Oh wait...u already did very nice build.

I'm splitting every single one of these I get. Just too risky leaving old bearings and seals in for reasons just like you encountered. Doesnt add much to the cost of the build either. Love me some fresh 6203s nachis

I've had good luck with several brands of bearings but prefer Nachi or SNR. I have saws going on five/six years now with both brands. I'm with you - it's just too much of a crapshoot to leave old bearings in a case, especially when the rest of the machine is getting worked over. Plus, it's likely this saw will eventually end up with another member and I don't want them dealing with another full rebuild.

Frank bierce said:
Great build, and well done checking through the whole saw!!

MG porting said:
Cool build looks like it will be a great saw when you get finished with it.

cuinrearview said:
Great thread JJ. Can't wait to happen onto one of these to go through. This thread will hopefully be my guide.

Thank you men - I'll go through the rest of the assembly in more detail, especially if I use a different carb and intake. I'm mulling over some carb options for it. Wiggs told me he sticks with the WJ-39 and another member has used both the 39 and the WJ-70 for good running 394s. I may also try a bored out HS-298.

rattler · Sep 19, 2019

I like the wj39 the best to have used a 70 but prefer 39

dustinwilt68 · Sep 19, 2019

WJ39 is my favorite, set and forget. I have used 3 or 4 different combos but that's my favorite.

A little 394 build...

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