Stihl 462s, they're not my cup of tea.

[Rich Fife]

Maybe it's just my porting and machine work... but, I'm not a fan of these 462s. Sure, they're a Light saw and that plays a major factor in things... chain speed is decent... but, I feel as if they just lack Power... I prefer Stihl Saws, but in the 72cc group I think I lean more towards a Husky 572xp... I'll post pics of this recent build and what it took to get it running.

 

[Rich Fife]

This is how the 462 build began... these are honestly my favorite type of build.

 

[Rich Fife]

The piston I ordered from VA came in not finished... I had to clearance the bottom as well as the inside... took some work, but we got it done.

 

[Rich Fife]

Once the piston was done, we moved onto the flywheel. The flywheel key was sheered.... My "I'll just make and a tool and fix it" kicked-in... why? because I didn't want to spend money on a new flywheel for an old/used saw. That and I couldnt justify spending $90 on a used flywheel... so, I made a tool and broached the flywheel.

 

[Rich Fife]

The saws timing is slightly retarded... it starts super easy, but feels as if it lacks a bit of power... after a few test cuts, I'll advance it 5*. If that's too much I'll split the difference.

 

[huskihl]

They’re a bit different from most saws in how they port. I don’t mess with the piston though other than to adjust the intake notch. Being fed from the bottom of the case, there’s no mix flowing through the piston so I couldn’t see an advantage

 

[Rich Fife]

They’re a bit different from most saws in how they port. I don’t mess with the piston though other than to adjust the intake notch. Being fed from the bottom of the case, there’s no mix flowing through the piston so I couldn’t see an advantage

I completely agree. My piston selection was solely based on cost... OEM vs AM... I've had good luck/success with a few AM products... I figured I'd spend half of the cost and purchase a pop-up... well, I saved money but lost time... lol. And I'm certain the AM piston is a pig (heavy) compared to the OEM piston.

 

[Rich Fife]

You can see on the piston, the bottom casting was never completed/removed... and look at that total weight!!!! Those are my numbers, I'll probably go back into it, and slightly raise my uppers and play with direction. Intake # may be a bit heavy... but, that's why I am here... to learn and share my trials and errors.

 

[huskihl]

I’d buzz the popup off. It’s deflecting the charge up, causing a couple things.
1) blowing the charge uphill raises rpm’s but at the cost of torque. Some saws like that, but imo it’s backwards on a 1st gen 462.
2) it could be shooting the charge uphill enough to mix with the spent charge and be lost out the exhaust

 

[Rich Fife]

I’d buzz the popup off. It’s deflecting the charge up, causing a couple things.
1) blowing the charge uphill raises rpm’s but at the cost of torque. Some saws like that, but imo it’s backwards on a 1st gen 462.
2) it could be shooting the charge uphill enough to mix with the spent charge and be lost out the exhaust

I never once thought about that... damn, now I'm going to be standing in front of my Machine thinking about that until I get home. Lol
I do have another piston, I'll turn the pop-up off of 1 piston and I'll do some test cuts this weekend and compare the 2 to see how the saw reacts. Pop-up vs Flat top.
Thanks for giving me some of your insight... my brain will be feasting on this for the next 5hrs.

 

[davidwyby]

I ain't no porter but I have a few saws by huskihl, and they pull...he and the other porters around here generally don't recommend popups.

 

[Rich Fife]

Here is a link to the 462 running. (Still trying to navigate the site... if this is in the wrong location I'll move it or delete it).

 

[huskihl]

Here is a link to the 462 running. (Still trying to navigate the site... if this is in the wrong location I'll move it or delete it).

There are no wrong places to post something here. If the mods don’t like it, they will move it and let you know.

A 462 will pop in the cut when you have a little bit too much timing. I would advance it until you find that and then back it off a couple degrees

 

[farminkarman]

I ain't no porter but I have a few saws by huskihl, and they pull...he and the other porters around here generally don't recommend popups.

One of the first saws I messed with modifying was a Stihl 028 super....even after machine work, port work, muffler mod, etc. the saw was meh. Those saws have a huge pop-up on the piston....maybe some day I will get to do another one with a flat-top piston.

 

[Rich Fife]

There are no wrong places to post something here. If the mods don’t like it, they will move it and let you know.

A 462 will pop in the cut when you have a little bit too much timing. I would advance it until you find that and then back it off a couple degrees

That's good to know. Thank You. It's looking to me like this 462 will have a few trial runs In the wood... pop-up vs flat top, and then advancing the timing. It should serve as decent content as well as knowledge gained.

 

[Rich Fife]

Just a side note... I don't have 462 bearings in this saw... one is a koyo and the other Is the west ??? BUT... seeing how I am expecting this saw to fail catastrophically, I have a complete gasket set, bearings and seals ready to go... my other thought was, if I don't like it, I'll machine the case "slightly"... turn the counter weights on a 460 crank and make a stroker... 462c 77cc saw would be nice... Light with the power of a 461-ish...

 

[Rich Fife]

I ain't no porter but I have a few saws by huskihl, and they pull...he and the other porters around here generally don't recommend popups.

I agree with that about pop-ups. It's no different in the racecar world... dome pistons give power and add torque but you also sacrifice efficiency... and in my way of thinking, the smaller the motor, especially a 2 stroke, you want that motor to be as efficient as possible... with that said, depending on the build, I'll do a flat top, I used to always chamfer the piston and squishband, but... I'd match the exhaust roof and floor so that the flow is streamlined... on some cylinders, that's not feasible or even possible... other saws I'll do a pop-up, swap pistons etc... it just depends on what i want to tinker with. But, all-in-all... flat tops seem to yield great results.

 

[Gearshifter]

What aftermarket pistons do u recommend?

 

[Rich Fife]

What aftermarket pistons do u recommend?

I've only been doing this for a year... I like OEM but I dislike the prices... I have used the Dukes pistons in a bunch of builds to include the 500i/hybrids... $27 I believe for the pistons and so far they're still running strong, 1yr later. Plus they're dimensionally they have been spot on. I've tried the place in Va... .. Lil red barn... I've had good and I have had things that needed to be messed with to work... Hyw pistons are good... Meteor pistons are good... believe it or not, I've even had really nice Farmertec/Holzfforma pistons... I'm sure the vast majority are made in the same place and the QA process is a bit different per company... (I could be wrong)... idk. Lol

 

[Rich Fife]

A 462 will pop in the cut when you have a little bit too much timing. I would advance it until you find that and then back it off a couple dedegrees.

Can you Define "pop"...
I advanced the timing 7*.... it fires and seems to have a little crisper throttle response... rpms seem about the same... I haven't tossed the tach on it. I'll do that tonight. Idk if I was over thinking things, or hyper listening but, it seemed to get warm pretty fast... maybe Saturday I'll toss it into some wood and check the cylinder temp.