MCCULLOCH The official McCulloch thread

[edju1958]

I went out cutting yesterday for the 1st time this season.A big old cherry tree had fallen into my farmer neighbor's field & took out a small hard maple with it.I took 5 saws with me,they were a Mac 5-10,one of my recently repaired 610s,my Super 10-10,another 10-10,& a Homelite XL-113.Every damn saw I took out had a problem.The Super 10-10 decided that the push button for the manual oiler wasn't going to be pushed in,it worked at first & then it "locked up".I then got the XL-113 out & it fired right up,but the idle was set way too high,so I shut it down.The other 10-10 has a carb issue in that it wants to run way too rich.The 610 has a damn Zama carb on it & it won't throttle up the way it's supposed to.The 5-10 won't start unless I hold the trigger on while pulling it over,other than that it ran flawlessly till I noticed the screws holding the spike on decided to loosen.I loaded up what I managed to cut & came home for a late lunch at around 3:00.
I took the spike off the 5-10,then made some adjustments on the Homie & the 610.I grabbed another 10-10 & went back to the site.It was deja vu all over again.The XL-113 made one cut,then it developed an ignition problem,could be a bad plug,or a condenser breaking down.I'll investigate it later.The 10-10 started up & ran great,but as soon as I put it to the wood the chain stopped.I think it's either a clutch problem,or the chain may not be on the rim.I like rim drives,but on a Mac they're a PITA to get on the rim.Next up was the 610.All the carb adjustments in the world didn't make a difference with the bleepin' Zama carb.There's only one good place for a Zama carb & that's in the nearest dumpster IMO.
The hero of the day was the 5-10.I had a problem with the saw right after I got it.I had the carb off for a rebuild & I had cleaned the points & was re-gapping them when it locked up & I couldn't turn the crank to get the points to break.I thought I hadf dropped a small washer down the carb throat,but as time went on that wasn't the problem.I sent the saw to a friend of mine & he tore it down.He texted me with the diagnosis - the piston was scored & he happened to have a new piston on hand that he'd sell to me,but it had no rings.Fortunately I had the foresight to buy a new set of rings from Bob J.& sent them with the saw.The reason the saw was locked up was because one of the rings was broken.The ring broke when I was turning the engine over by hand.What are the chances of that happening?If the ring had broke when the engine was running it'd probably ruined the cylinderr.I got lucky there.My friend put the saw back together & had it running like a Swiss watch & sent it back to me.I put a 22 in.Partner bar on it that I modified & it pulls that buried in hardwood like nobody's business.
Today it's raining here,thank goodness,Lol.I need a couple days off to recuperate & repair saws.

 

[edju1958]

I got the 10-10 squared away that had the wrong bar & chain on it.I put a new bar & chain on it & fired it up.It ran perfectly.
Then there was my Super 10-10 that I still can't figure out why the oiler button wouldn't push in yesterday.I picked the saw up to see what was wrong & I tried pushing that button again today & it worked! Maybe it was because I kicked it yesterday & threatened to part it out,Lol.Not really.I also had a friend give me a Homelite SEZ.All I had to do was dump out some old fuel,put a new fuel filter in along with fresh fuel & it was running within 5 pulls.One day I'll have to dig out all my SEZs & take count again.I think I'm up to 20 something.

 

[Maintenance Chief]

I got the 10-10 squared away that had the wrong bar & chain on it.I put a new bar & chain on it & fired it up.It ran perfectly.
Then there was my Super 10-10 that I still can't figure out why the oiler button wouldn't push in yesterday.I picked the saw up to see what was wrong & I tried pushing that button again today & it worked! Maybe it was because I kicked it yesterday & threatened to part it out,Lol.Not really.I also had a friend give me a Homelite SEZ.All I had to do was dump out some old fuel,put a new fuel filter in along with fresh fuel & it was running within 5 pulls.One day I'll have to dig out all my SEZs & take count again.I think I'm up to 20 something.

That oiler button might be sticking because the check disk is sticking or compression from the cylinder is making it to the manual oiler.
Which is why it works when the saw isn't running.

 

[heimannm]

If the automatic oiler is sticking with the pin blocking the port the manual oiler won't work because the passageway for the oil will be blocked...and you may notice the manual oiler button will not depress.



Mark

 

[edju1958]

That oiler button might be sticking because the check disk is sticking or compression from the cylinder is making it to the manual oiler.
Which is why it works when the saw isn't running.

I don't think that's the case because it worked fine today when I had the saw running.I had the tank cover off for cleaning & to take a look at the muffler that was acting weird.The saw originally was a manual oiler only & when I had it apart I added automatic oiling .

 

[Scott Kelsey]

Guys, is it pretty straight forward setting the lamination gap on a coil for this SP81? Feeler gauge between the coil and magneto? I have never done one before?

 

[Steve]

Guys, is it pretty straight forward setting the lamination gap on a coil for this SP81? Feeler gauge between the coil and magneto? I have never done one before?

Yes.

 

[Al Smith]

That deal on the oiler can often be traced to the o-ring on the manual pump .You need to remember these things could have sat for decades with no use and thusly the o-ring could likely stiffened up However in some cases the good old kerosene flush might work and some times not . The air gap on the ignition coil can be done with a standard business card and be close enough .

 

[Vinnywv]

Guys, is it pretty straight forward setting the lamination gap on a coil for this SP81? Feeler gauge between the coil and magneto? I have never done one before?

Yes it is. I loosen the bolts on the coil so it just slides. Get the feeler guage on the magnets as i turn the flywheel into the coil. Then push the coil into the magnets, tighten the coil bolts evenly, then turn the flywheel backwards to remove the feeler. I typically set at .010.

 

[Maintenance Chief]

Guys, is it pretty straight forward setting the lamination gap on a coil for this SP81? Feeler gauge between the coil and magneto? I have never done one before?

I often use an index card or regular size business card.

 

[Maintenance Chief]

Followed me home, forced 10.00$ on the fellow I got it from for being generous.
Usual McCulloch condition, filthy but runs strong.

 

[Lee H]

Guys, is it pretty straight forward setting the lamination gap on a coil for this SP81? Feeler gauge between the coil and magneto? I have never done one before?

Yes .010 feeler gauge gets you where you need to be.

 

[Dream]

Guys, is it pretty straight forward setting the lamination gap on a coil for this SP81? Feeler gauge between the coil and magneto? I have never done one before?

Same as most air cooled engines.
Just use a matchbook cover, the front/back covers of any paperback book, or a business card.
Its .008-.010".
No need to overcomplicate, Mac did that in plenty of other areas.

 

[Dream]

Followed me home, forced 10.00$ on the fellow I got it from for being generous. View attachment 332937 View attachment 332938 View attachment 332939 View attachment 332940
Usual McCulloch condition, filthy but runs strong.

Nice Ira!
Almost looks like Ethanol mildew around the tank.
Corn squeezins leave those marks behind.
If so, you should flush the whole fuel system with E-free or a good canned fuel to avoid future corrosion.

 

[Maintenance Chief]

Nice Ira!
Almost looks like Ethanol mildew around the tank.
Corn squeezins leave those marks behind.
If so, you should flush the whole fuel system with E-free or a good canned fuel to avoid future corrosion.

You absolutely right, I dumped a full tank of very brown fuel out of it and filled it half way with the good red stuff.
Let it idle for a minute or two, goosed the throttle a few times and put it away.
Gonna have to sit for a month as life is busy for me right now.

 

[Al Smith]

Basically three things determine how hot a mag is .Air gap, speed of rotation and of course the design of the coil .Some of the hottest mags I've ever seen are a Joe hunt made for hot rods and in some cases hopped up Harleys .A John -Deere Roto fire .I'd almost bet those would light up old John running on kerosene .They'll also light you up if you grab the wrong wire ,about like getting kicked by a mule .The hottest chainsaw mag I've seen is on a Stihl 038 Mag .That one tried to pull Fred ( Stihl Boy ) through the rewind .I scolded him .If you see a D-handle there is a reason for that .

 

[heimannm]

McCulloch made a few "red dot" coils that were intended for kart engines. I have seen a few working on the older saws but never bothered to take a photo. They were supposed to have some extra juice but I'd say from my 101 engines that any more spark might start to erode the electrodes away...

Mark

 

[Scott Kelsey]

Well with a points adjustment I got this SP81 running. Before I started I would pull it over about 10 times before I got spark. I have never done points before but thought that may be it and figured I would try it. Needs adjustment and different fuel to oil mixture but I am happy with the result. I did peak into the cylinder and noticed some chrome flaking so I will have to determine if I want to get the cylinder re-chromed.

https://youtube.com/shorts/Kz14jMxOMIE?feature=share

 

[Al Smith]

You'll have more money ,if you can find somebody to even rechrome it than the saw is worth .

 

[Vinnywv]

I know a guy that can help you with that cylinder. If you decide to repair it. Much less than rechroming. Feel free to contact me and ill get you his information.