The Small Dolmar/Makita Thread..Max 50cc class

[Ford3000]

Did you not have a ps420? I forget where you were, was it County Wexford?
I have a 420 in great condition I just got in and am about to port it. May sell her on, dunno since they are getting harder to find here, huh?

Hi Wes, I hope all is well with you. I had two lovely new EA4300 saws, and when Makita / Dolmar did the dirty and shut up shop on gas powered saws I sold them, they were perfect for my needs too, still have not found a replacement, I have a small echo just for bushes in the garden. I found this, think its local as there are two places with the same name, one too far away, https://www.donedeal.ie/gardenequipment-for-sale/stihl-chainsaw-ms-361/34588102 , really on the fence, its too big for my current needs, but if it is as described its not too dear, even though the plate says 2013, looks like it done very little, what do you think of them Wes.
EDIT, just noticing am in the Makita thread, sorry Re the Stihl 361 question.

 

[Wilhelm]

Why would You abandon two new EA4300's just because Makita suspended production & sales?!
It is not like You would wear through both annually requiring loads of spare parts on a regular basis.

Just saying, kinda sad.
I have an EA4300 and she is hauling in small stuff set up with .325" full chisel.

 

[Wilhelm]

And please, don't involve the Dolmar brand name in Makita Corp. greed driven decisions.

I doubt that Dolmar Hamburg themselves would ever consider, lest execute, the eradication of their own brand name.

 

[00wyk]

That 361 is sort of a weird thing - it's always for sale in Donegal. A mate rang him and said he sounded legit, but is very odd.
Like, he didn't trust him just by how odd he was. In any case - Donegal...
Chainsaws sure are getting difficult in every aspect here in Ireland now...

 

[00wyk]

Why would You abandon two new EA4300's just because Makita suspended production & sales?!
It is not like You would wear through both annually requiring loads of spare parts on a regular basis.

Just saying, kinda sad.
I have an EA4300 and she is hauling in small stuff set up with .325" full chisel.

Prolly my favourite saw to port. Huge huge gains. And the clutch lasts forever.

 

[Ford3000]

Why would You abandon two new EA4300's just because Makita suspended production & sales?!
It is not like You would wear through both annually requiring loads of spare parts on a regular basis.

Just saying, kinda sad.
I have an EA4300 and she is hauling in small stuff set up with .325" full chisel.

Hi Wilhelm. I sold them because I read of people trying to find case seals, and that over time these seals were changed which made it even more difficult, it also turned out the seals were OEM, and that they getting the right seal for the specific saw / year was more than difficult, I also saw many adds looking for other parts that people said they could not get, not in stock not available. I tired to buy some parts, a set of case seals, and I forget the others, but could not locate them, then I sold them so I could have the money for a saw that parts would be more readily available. I really liked them saws, that is why I bought two of them, both set up with .325 NK on 15 inch bars.

 

[Ford3000]

That 361 is sort of a weird thing - it's always for sale in Donegal. A mate rang him and said he sounded legit, but is very odd.
Like, he didn't trust him just by how odd he was. In any case - Donegal...
Chainsaws sure are getting difficult in every aspect here in Ireland now...

I can not see a phone number on his add. I asked if it was ever run lean or straight gassed, no answer back.

 

[Wilhelm]

Prolly my favourite saw to port. Huge huge gains. And the clutch lasts forever.

Same clutch from 420/4300 through 5105/5000 up to 6100 - only makes sense the clutch lasts forever on a 420/4300.

I just wish my teal EA4300 was a still made in Germany red Dolmar PS-420.
There was a PS-420 close to me the other day on Marketplace, but the ad got removed so I assume she sold - otherwise I would have gone and picked her up this weekend.

 

[Wilhelm]

Hi Wilhelm. I sold them because I read of people trying to find case seals, and that over time these seals were changed which made it even more difficult, it also turned out the seals were OEM, and that they getting the right seal for the specific saw / year was more than difficult, I also saw many adds looking for other parts that people said they could not get, not in stock not available. I tired to buy some parts, a set of case seals, and I forget the others, but could not locate them, then I sold them so I could have the money for a saw that parts would be more readily available. I really liked them saws, that is why I bought two of them, both set up with .325 NK on 15 inch bars.

I recall posts of Yours asking about seals.
Still, shame.

 

[FergusonTO35]

Hi Wes, I hope all is well with you. I had two lovely new EA4300 saws, and when Makita / Dolmar did the dirty and shut up shop on gas powered saws I sold them, they were perfect for my needs too, still have not found a replacement, I have a small echo just for bushes in the garden. I found this, think its local as there are two places with the same name, one too far away, https://www.donedeal.ie/gardenequipment-for-sale/stihl-chainsaw-ms-361/34588102 , really on the fence, its too big for my current needs, but if it is as described its not too dear, even though the plate says 2013, looks like it done very little, what do you think of them Wes.
EDIT, just noticing am in the Makita thread, sorry Re the Stihl 361 question.

I totally get it. I've parted ways with alot of things I really liked when I figured out that it was one NLA part away from being useless. Used to have a 1997 Infiniti J30. Lovely, high quality car that was quite competent in every way. Unfortunately, there was no Nissan equivalent or much aftermarket support and pretty much everything had to come from the dealer. Poor thing needed struts all the way around something fierce. I got lucky and found a NOS set on Fleabay for $200.00, but as I remember the fronts were only available at the dealer and were over $500.00 10 years ago. I decided that this otherwise very nice car just wasn't compatible with my paycheck or amount of free time and so sent it down the road.

 

[Ford3000]

I totally get it. I've parted ways with alot of things I really liked when I figured out that it was one NLA part away from being useless. Used to have a 1997 Infiniti J30. Lovely, high quality car that was quite competent in every way. Unfortunately, there was no Nissan equivalent or much aftermarket support and pretty much everything had to come from the dealer. Poor thing needed struts all the way around something fierce. I got lucky and found a NOS set on Fleabay for $200.00, but as I remember the fronts were only available at the dealer and were over $500.00 10 years ago. I decided that this otherwise very nice car just wasn't compatible with my paycheck or amount of free time and so sent it down the road.

I understand, we all have our limits, at least now I don't feel so ashamed.

 

[Boedy]

Hello all! I've been reading and reading and reading, never quite getting the answers I'm looking for. So...time for questions.

I have a couple Makita EA5600 saws that I got a very good deal on and I am looking to play with one of them. From what I can tell, it seems to be identical in design to the 6100 with only minor differences. Is this correct?

What are the differences between the two saws?

Also, has anyone found success porting them? If so, what is the recipe? I noticed that they very oddly are bottom fed, but the case has no provisions for allowing fuel to flow nicely into the lower transfers nor does the piston have any sort of provisions such as windows. This seems as though it would severely limit flow into the lower transfers and so...I'm assuming they would benefit greatly from opening up the lowers.

I purchased a 6100 cylinder from eBay assuming this would be the best route, but now I have just read that the clutch may not be able to transfer the power effectively. Is there a possible bolt on clutch upgrade? I was quite impressed with the 5600 with just a muffler mod. Here's the video and I'll post some pictures of the case and lower transfer setup as it looks ridiculously limited to me.

 

[Wilhelm]

The clutch is the exact same on the 5600 & 6100!
I just commented that the said clutch is on its edge of power transfer capabilities on a stock 6100.

The 5600 is not identical in design to the 6100!
Be careful buying 6100 "upgrade" parts before cross checking whether they will bolt on the 5600.

I guess no one bothers porting the PS-550/EA5600 since they are considered clamshell saws.
Everyone ports either the Pro-models PS-5105/EA5000 or the PS/EA6100.

 

[Powerstroke Cowboy]

Hello, I have attached a screen shot from a website kept up by a gentleman that's on this forum. I would imagine he will be along shortly.

 

[Boedy]

Here's a video showing the 5600 crankcase and lower transfers.

 

[old_sir_henry]

Hello, I have attached a screen shot from a website kept up by a gentleman that's on this forum. I would imagine he will be along shortly.

I guess that's me, but I'm only the current maintainer of the DOLMAR page, not the entire website.

Funny enough the machine translation erroneously translates the saw's type designation "PS" to "HP" which would be correct
if it weren't part of a name...

In case someone wants to read the german original of Powerstroke Cowboy's screen shots:

Technische Daten Dolmar Motorsägen – Motorsägen-Portal

wiki.motorsaegen-portal.de

 

[Ford3000]

The 6100 clutch cover will fit on the 550. Cylinder unlikely, never seen a 550 to know whether the cylinder bolts thread into the cylinder or the case, will be interesting to see what kind of a frankenstein this turns out to be.

 

[Wilhelm]

The 6100 clutch cover will fit on the 550. Cylinder unlikely, never seen a 550 to know whether the cylinder bolts thread into the cylinder or the case, will be interesting to see what kind of a frankenstein this turns out to be.

Why'd You want the flimsy 6100 clutch cover on Your 5600?
The OPPOSITE is the upgrade for the 6100 - a 5600 clutch cover that supports an outer spike and features captive nuts on a 6100!
There is a whole thread on this mod.

 

[Wilhelm]

Dolmar PS-6100 / Makita EA6100 dual spike and clutch cover mod

I’m pretty sure I’m not the only one that has been annoyed by the lack of dual spikes on the 6100. @Wilhelm and I were messaging back and forth, and this came up right after he got his 6100. A couple of days later he sends me a message with this idea. The Dolmar PS-550 / Makita EA5600 clutch...

opeforum.com

 

[Ford3000]

Why'd You want the flimsy 6100 clutch cover on Your 5600?
The OPPOSITE is the upgrade for the 6100 - a 5600 clutch cover that supports an outer spike and features captive nuts on a 6100!
There is a whole thread on this mod.

I think the cover is broken on one of the saws in the video, so may be easier to get a 6100 cover second hand.