Starting a chainsaw repair buisness

[Brewz]

Hi folks.

I have a good job as a control systems engineer working for a massive multi national company in the coal mining industry in Australia.
I program PLC's and SCADA systems which is what operators use to run the mine processing plant.

Things have not been going so well in the industry lately and my fabulous employer decided to tell us that any over time we work (which is usually 12 to 20 hrs a week) will no longer be paid...... at all.

So, now that I am back to working a short week every week, I will have time on my hands.

I have struck up a couple contacts that will likley bring in saw repair work.
I am setting up a dedicated workshop bench for the work.

I am wondering what gear, equipment and tools people would recommend I have on hand.

I already have an air compressor and a large array of hand tools.

What specialty stuff might I need considering I could get anything dropped on my bench

 

[Onan18]

Case splitter, a GOOD set of T handles (I personally use the WiHa set, Made in Germany, highly recommend as they are who make all of the factory service tools) Pressure/Vacuum testing equipment with all of the assorted block offs, a digital tach (I REALLY like my Oppama PET1000, bought it through Echo) a tube of Hondabond HT, and trust me other things will prove useful as you get into it but these are what I would call the essentials for getting started.

Joe

 

[Canadian farm boy]

Ultrasonic cleaner,
toaster oven or large heat gun(for heating cases), clutch removal tools(a lot can be made from old sockets with a cut off wheel),
Piston stop,
ring compressors,
seal puller,
seal drivers(a lot of seals can be installed using deep sockets)

 

[Onan18]

Ultrasonic is nice but not an ABSOLUTE necessity, but if you can afford it fight off the bat then go for it. For a piston stop I recommend nylon rope, the plastic ones can break off in the engine and the screw in metal ones can put a hole in the top of the piston or pull the threads out of the cylinder (TRUST ME I KNOW!!!!!) A set of ring compressors is nice too.

 

[the GOAT]

Lots of fuel line and starter rope in various sizes.

 

[Mattyo]

An electric impact to tear saws apart fast

 

[67L36Driver]

Lots of fuel line and starter rope in various sizes.

3 1/2mm, 4 and 5.

Fuel filters in small, med. and large. 5mm torx screws in various lengths for Stihls (fine replacements for other brands as well they are!).
Mineral spirits by the gallon (liters down under). Gumout spray (carb cleaner).

Add 'shop supplies' charge for every repair job. That stuff adds up!

 

[wildroamer]

Good luck @Brewz ! Wish I had some good suggestions for you...
Oh! I know! How about one of them spark plug taker-offer-thingies!



.

 

[Guido Salvage]

An hourly rate that covers your overhead and time. I know nothing of Australian law, but you may need a business license, etc. if you are running a business out of your home you could run into insurance issues if a customer injures him/herself on your premises or items get stolen.

 

[czar800]

WiHa set, Made in Germany,

I love my set!! Best thing I've bought in awhile.

I would also get a carburetor adjusting set too.

 

[Simondo]

Good workshop lighting !!! You can never have enough to see into the depths of something. A stand mat...you may spend a lot of time on your feet in front of the bench ...it helps not having "sore dogs barking at you" !

 

[czar800]

Get a shop stool. I've get two different ones I use at different heights.

 

[jmssaws]

Good workshop lighting !!! You can never have enough to see into the depths of something. A stand mat...you may spend a lot of time on your feet in front of the bench ...it helps not having "sore dogs barking at you" !

This is the best suggestion here.
Lights and more lights then get some more lights

 

[Genius]

To add what others have said, a spark tester too.

 

[Genius]

I started by going to dealerships and putting adds on Craigslist looking for non running saws. As time went on word spread that I work on saws. Little by little I started getting saws from friends, then friends of friends started bringing me stuff. Then CL people started contacting me if I work on saws and the snowball started rolling and getting larger and larger.

I am at the point where I am in my shop 3-6 hours a night and all day on Saturdays, as of lately I seem to be 10+ saws behind.

Give it time, if you do good work word will spread and before long you will be busier than ever.

 

[MustangMike]

The T handle torx wrench & cheap ring compressors have been invaluable to me. Also, some sand paper & carb cleaner for cleaning things when doing a base gasket delete.

Don't forget some chain sharpening stuff. An inexpensive but fast process is the 12V hand held sharpeners, but get the diamond stone for it (the ones that come with them are crap). I have 2 of em, keep a 7/16 stone on one and 5/16 on the other. You can go very fast with them when you get used to them.

Offering square file sharpening would be great too, but I do that by hand.

 

[jmssaws]

90% of the money I make is from rebuilding junkers and porting,it's almost 100% profit once your equipment is payed for.

When I started I made all of my special tools,it doesn't take a bunch of tools to fix saws. I try to mainly work on stihls,only need one wrench to do most everything on one of them.

 

[RIDE-RED 350r]

I wholeheartedly agree with every single suggestion made above.

I would add: A rifle bore light. These can be very handy for having a peek inside a cylinder from the sparkplug hole, or into an exhaust port. My brother and I use a bore light very frequently when working on our saws, especially when porting. This is almost exactly what we have. The flexible shaft is key.. https://www.campinggearsurplus.com/...=16059143811&gclid=CKWFybHx18wCFQ1ahgod6vUCiQ

Also, a good set of vernier calipers comes in handy as well.

Don't forget a set of feeler gauges.

(Funny how some of our ammo reloading tools migrated to the saw bench this winter! LOL!)

 

[Time's Standing Stihl]

Some good hemostat forceps, flywheel puller, coil gap gauge. Extra spark plugs...

Definitely need a sonic cleaner. I love using my 1/4 impact....

Sent from my SM-G900R4 using Tapatalk

 

[czar800]

I have never said a word about fixing small engines. Started with my own stuff & family members then neighbors and word-of-mouth spread. It seems like now I'm fixing 2-3 things a week! I really don't want any more then that so I don't quite enjoy it!!