$200 Running MS660 - Now What?

[bulletpruf]

OEM piston finally showed up and I checked squish with no base gasket - .012" - too tight.

The factory gasket is .019" so I could do better than that. A paper grocery bag is .006" so that would still be a bit tight, I think. I also have some gasket material at .013" that would be better than .019", but only by a small amount.

Thoughts? Just not sure I want to go through the trouble of cutting a new gasket if it's just .006" difference.

Thanks

 

[Powerstroke Cowboy]

Sand the base of the jug down. A flat surface, some good sandpaper, elbow grease and patience will yeild great results. I mic all four corners and make sure they are going down evenly.

 

[Mad Professor]

Acetone, brake cleaner, and soap and water.

I thought about the Meteor but I like to have OEM in case I ever sell it; non-OEM stuff makes some folks nervous.

For acid rinses better to use: 1)Baking soda, 2) water

 

[Junk Meister]

"MOST" Gasket material is petroleum resistant, Cereal/beer boxes breakdown after time. (My thought for the day).

 

[bulletpruf]

"MOST" Gasket material is petroleum resistant, Cereal/beer boxes breakdown after time. (My thought for the day).

Good point. I just went with the factory metal gasket. Saw the comment from @Powerstroke Cowboy after it the jug already installed and torqued down, but that would have been worth trying.

Thanks

 

[bulletpruf]

Had a bit of a scare this morning. Was getting ready to use the blower to clean off the garage floor and saw something familiar - one of the little #^$(&*# clips that hold the piston wrist pin in. Ruh-roh. I was thinking it might have been one from the old piston so I checked the ziplock bag with the original piston. Two clips. Damn. Took the jug off and sure enough, I was missing one. That would have been an expensive f*ckup.

 

[Powerstroke Cowboy]

Had a bit of a scare this morning. Was getting ready to use the blower to clean off the garage floor and saw something familiar - one of the little #^$(&*# clips that hold the piston wrist pin in. Ruh-roh. I was thinking it might have been one from the old piston so I checked the ziplock bag with the original piston. Two clips. Damn. Took the jug off and sure enough, I was missing one. That would have been an expensive f*ckup.

Well, now you can sand the jug down! LOL

On a more serious note. I'm glad you found the clip and had enough sense to check your work! That will save you a lot of heartache.

 

[bulletpruf]

Well, now you can sand the jug down! LOL

On a more serious note. I'm glad you found the clip and had enough sense to check your work! That will save you a lot of heartache.

Yep, that would have been an exceptionally painful mistake.

 

[066 redeye]

Yep, that would have been an exceptionally painful mistake.

When I do circlips I check each side bout 10 times for some reason.
Twice would be enough.

 

[hacskaroly]

I just went with the factory metal gasket

Not sure if a gasket made out of an aluminum can would be a happy medium between the factory metal gasket and no gasket. Might be worth a shot.

 

[bulletpruf]

It's alive. Sounds good with a gutted baffle and an extra port on the muffler. Still need to tune it.

It still has limiter caps on the carb. I'm inclined to leave them in place if it will let me richen the mixture up enough to where I like it - four-stroking at WOT, but cleans up in the cut.

 

[Mad Professor]

What base gasket did you use?

 

[bulletpruf]

What base gasket did you use?

Factory metal one at .019". That gives me .031" piston to jug. I'd prefer .020" or so, but I'm not going to lose sleep over it.

 

[bulletpruf]

Well, it's done. Idles at 2,500 and I have it tuned to hit 13,800 at WOT, four-stroking. I need to sink it in some wood to verify that it cleans up under load. Also need to do a compression check; curious to see how much it picked up with a new piston and cleaned up jug.

Everything OEM except for the bar plate and the oil cap. Next time I pass by a Stihl dealer, I'll see if I can pick up new OEM stuff.

Total investment is $1,270. Breakdown: $250 purchase price, $75 West Coast clutch cover, $10 oil cap (not OEM), $75 Max Flow air filter setup, $15 muffler port, $30 Elasto Start, $10 screw for rear handle, $115 piston, $15 bar plate (not OEM), $25 clutch drum bearing, $20 chain catcher, $40 skid plate for bottom of the saw (not installed yet), $170 wrap handle, $15 impulse hose, $10 fuel filter, $15 carb kit, $20 handle cover, $15 trigger and throttle rod (used OEM), $60 gasket set, $215 fuel tank, $70 top cover.

I threw on my spare 044 bar; it's 25" and I prefer a 28" bar on an 064/066/660. I do have a few 36" bars on the shelf, too, if needed. FYI - the bar it came with was an OEM Stihl 25" and as expected, it was in need of TLC. Spent a lot of time dressing it before I was happy with it.

So, to answer the question posed, $200 MS660, now what? The answer: spend a bunch of time and $$$ so you can spend $1,270 on a saw that's worth about $1,000.

To do it all over again, I'd skip the new fuel tank for $215; mine looked fine after it was cleaned up. I could have kept the original 1/2 wrap handle, too, I guess.

 

[hacskaroly]

So, to answer the question posed, $200 MS660, now what? The answer: spend a bunch of time and $$$ so you can spend $1,270 on a saw that's worth about $1,000.

Chainsaws, cars, airplanes, houses....it can happen to just about anything. Not sure if you can put a price on the time, effort and enjoyment you got out of the process.

 

[bulletpruf]

Chainsaws, cars, airplanes, houses....it can happen to just about anything. Not sure if you can put a price on the time, effort and enjoyment you got out of the process.

Yeah, I hear you. I've done the same thing - get 'em minty and then sell for break even $ - with most of the 0 series pro saws - 020 AV, 026 Pro, 028, 036 Pro x2, 038 Magnum x3, 044 Magnum, 046, 048, 056 Magnum, 064 x2, 066, 075/076 x6, Contra x3, 070, and 090.