eBay Mac!

[martyinmi]

After nearly 51 years of life on this planet I finally bought something off from eBay! 8)
I paid $42.41 for a Pro Mac 430VC. ($18.00 s&h)
I've been an eBay member for a few years, but I've only come close to buying a few times. Every time I got close to getting something, someone decided they wanted it more and out bid me in the last few seconds. My kid says they were "sniping" me.
"Sniping" is kinda fun. I got to be on the other end of it this time!

NOW- I have to find a way to legitimize my purchase to my beautiful bride. Every man needs 4 small brush trimmin' saws, doesn't he?(MS170,mini Mac,Poulan Wood Shark, and now the 430)

Any suggestions??

[samandothers]

Beg for forgiveness for your addiction.

[Al_Smith]

 :D Well when it comes to the old chainsaw lecture from most women it's pretty much all the same .

I aways say what's good for the goose is good for the gander .Hen peck her for a little bit over some trival matter and see how she likes the shoe being on the other foot .Oh of course you'll get the hot tongue and cold shoulder routine but that's the way the cookie crumbles .

[thecfarm]

Cheaper than getting her nails done,hair done,new dress,new out fit,new shoes??? Need anymore?
Ask Al, he should know.  :D  :D

[JohnG28]

Ha! I spent $300 on a used MS460 may about 2 months ago. She still doesn't even know I have it!   :D I have even had it sitting in the garage in view most of the time. Lucky for me she really doesn't know the difference between my saws and most likely couldn't pick it from my 361 that she knows about. Probably about the same way I would never tell if she bought new shoes. I'm saving this confession for some time post holidays!  ;D

[Ianab]

Any suggestions??

Slip it in the line with the others and pretend it's always been there?  ;D

[martyinmi]

NOW....I need some more suggestions to deal with my pretty half  when she finds out about this one. I couldn't pass up a Mac 250 that I'd been watching on eBay. $102.51 later and it is now mine.

I've been wanting one for more than 5 years. Back then I'd watched a modded one quite handily out-cut a 460 Stihl at a farm show up north and told myself right then that I'd own one someday. 8) I guess today's the day!

The 430 is supposed to be here Thursday and the 250 on Friday.

I'll try to get home before the Lovely Lucy(my wife) does both days to hide anything incriminating.

Thanks for the suggestions. At some point I'm sure I've tried them all, typically to no avail :-[

She knows me quite well!

OK Al, what can I bolt on to make her really throw chips?(The saw, not my wife ;D)

[Al_Smith]

What a 250 .Well it's got enough grunt but it ain't no hot saw .Find a rim drive and hang an 8 tooth 3/8 rim on it .They are tough old buzzards I'll have to say that .

They do okay with the original .404 by .063 chain but they will do better running 3/8" with an 8 tooth .

Of those models the super is the best mainly because it has the 87 cc engine which as far as I'm concerned is the very best reed valve engine McCulloch ever built .

[grweldon]

It's time to entertain the notion of attending "Chainsaws Anonymous"!

[mad murdock]

It's time to entertain the notion of attending "Chainsaws Anonymous"!

I nominate Al to be group leader ;D He knows a lot about anonymous chainsaws!

[Al_Smith]

 :D Anoymous chainsaws ,who knew .

Well first of all I'm no expert but the acquired knowledge is simpley because the danged things didn't run at the time .So just dug in and found out why .

For a collector I'm really a small fish with between 40 and 50 .Some people have several hundred .Many maybe 1/3 of my small collection were actually given to me because people got tired of stumbling over them .Surprisingly really not much was wrong with them to stop them from running and that usually was a  funky carb .

It all started with one Lombard Comanga I got for 25 bucks at a garage sale .Had it running 15 minutes after I got it home .It's a fun hobby I must admit and goes along with a fastination I've had since a little boy with mechanical things . ;D

[martyinmi]

I'm thinking that maybe...just maybe...I should stay away from eBay. A few days ago I put a bid in on a 550 Homelite, knowing full well from my past experience that everyone tends to want the same items that I want, and that there is no way I'd ever get it. My dad and my uncle owned one 30 years ago, and my dad said it was probably the best saw they'd ever owned.

Fast Forward a few days and it looks as if I might be owning one. There's only an hour or so left in the auction and it looks like I'm the only one who wants it. Now that I have the Mac 250 I don't really have much interest in the Homelite. :'(

Anyone have that number for "Chainsaws Anonymous"?

Al, this is all your fault! This chainsaw disorder (or is it a virus, or worse yet, a disease? :P) is apparently highly contagious and obviously can be contracted via the pages from the FF.

Hopefully there will be a cure in the not so distant future 8)

Wish me luck!

[isawlogs]

 Don't you be worrying none, once da boss finds out, the cure will hit you right upside da coconut.  ;) ;D

[thecfarm]

marty has not replied.  :(  Maybe someone found out about the saw before we did. Isn't there a thread about something hitting the fan?  ;D

[martyinmi]

Well, it's official. My 1050 Automatic now has a little brother...or maybe sister. Won't know the gender for sure until I make my first cut with it.

PayPal wouldn't work right away for me to pay for it, so I had to make a call to straighten it out, and wouldn't ya know ma yelled from the other room and asked who I was talking to. I had to fess up right then and there on the spot :(

Don't you be worrying none, once da boss finds out, the cure will hit you right upside da coconut.  ;) ;D

I'm thinking you might be on to something. Might be a fine night to go to bed with my bike helmet on ;D

My saws are:
1)Homelite 1050 Automatic
2)Homelite 550 Automatic
3)Mac Culloch 250
4)Mac Culloch 610
5)Stihl MS 310
6)Stihl 026
7)Stihl 024 AVS
8)Mac Culloch 10-10 Automatic
9)Stihl MS170
10)Poulan Wood Shark
11)Mini Mac(My dad's saw. He gave it to me and told me to take it home with me, but he can still operate it if someone starts it for him, so I'll leave it there for now.)

So ya see, I'm not quite as ill as Al, but my sickness is progressing quite rapidly. ;D

And YES, $&it did hit the fan. It will cover the whole room should she find out about the ones I bought on Sunday and Monday. ;) :D

I received a thorough butt chewin', but thankfully I'm genetically predisposed to have an ample and nearly endless supply of derriere, so try as she might, the Lovely Lucy will never be able to rid me of it all! 8) 8)

Thanks for all of your support fellas!

[sawguy21]

 :D When I started dating Karen my buddy's wife confided to her "He collects chainsaws you know" as if it were some kind of mental affliction or something. Down to three now but always on the lookout especially since the shed is cleaned out.  ;)

[mad murdock]

At least it is a lot easier on the pocketbook than collecting classic cars or trucks. When you take them out for a joy ride, you can get some useful "work" done and not just burn gas.

[Al_Smith]

Any more I'm pretty selective what I fiddle with .Sure I've got some tin cans in the lot and boat anchors but I've also got some hotrod cutters .

A few of those large saws exceeding 100 cc I'm the only one in the area who has one except one trimmer and I have his 084 residing in my shed as I type .A big old saw like that only has a need to used about 2-3 times a year if that much .

The last one I picked up was an 024 Stihl from a dealer .They presumed because the exhaust side of the piston was a little scuffed it was a goner .Hogwash !I gutted the muffler and retuned that little lad and it's a dandy little limber .What 50 bucks complete for a runner ,big deal . 8) I was going to soup it up but it does just fine as it is .If it ain't broke don't fix it .

[grweldon]

Until recently, my Stihl 024AV was my only saw.  Good little saw.  Still labeled as "Made in West Germany" so it's at least a 1990 model, probably mid-80s.  Still [Stihl] runs good!  I use it more than my new Husky 365.  The Husky starts better and is a monster at 4.9HP...

[martyinmi]

The 250 was waiting for me when I got Home tonight 8)

I pulled the muffler off first thing. It looks pretty descent in that there are only a very small scratches on the piston.

Cold compression was 85lbs. Jumped up to 89 when hot.

The chain was shot, so I went and bought a new one.

It looks better cosmetically than the eBay pics.

It appears to have around the same power as my 610. I will remedy that this winter!

Still waiting on the Homelite 550 and the Mac 430.

I'd really like to go to the woods with it tomorrow, but I promised to help my FIL clean out a semi trailer.

Al, will it hurt that thing to run 50:1? Or should I stick with 30 or 40:1?

[thecfarm]

I run my 372 Husky 40:1. I killed one with 50:1.

[sawguy21]

 ??? What oil were you using?

[Al_Smith]

 :D I'm not going to start the oil wars again only to say I run most everything on 32 to 1 in spite of what a majority says .They're my saws and I'll run them the way I see fit . ;)

Now then the old 250 may not be the fastest saw in the shed but it should walk away from a PM 610 .With only about 90 PSI static on the compression obviously the rings are shot .However if it's sat a long time it would come as no surprise if the rings where not bound up .

FWIW I have a 700 that must have sat a decade that was low on comp but after I ran it for a while it healed itself .

So my advice is to exercise the big yellow saw ,fact run the snot out of it and see what happens over about a week or two .

If you look around you can find rings but I'd avoid it if the comp comes up .Reason being a reed valve Mac is not like changing the rings on a pro model Stihl where all you do is lift the cylinder off .This thing you have to field strip right down to the bones to get the job done .

[martyinmi]

I use the Stihl full synthetic oil @ 50:1. I think I'll fatten the ratio up to 40:1 for all my older saws.

I'm aware that the old 250 isn't a hot saw, or even a good candidate to do a bunch of wild mods to, but is there any parts swapping (cylinders,pistons,cranks,rods, etc.) that can be done to make it keep up with or out cut a modern 80cc saw? :P

I love the looks and sound of this old saw 8) I spoke to my brother last night and told him about it and he's already trying to set up a day where the two of us can get together so he can give me a good spanking with his John Deere (81cc Efco). WE can't allow that to happen, can WE Al? ;)

[thecfarm]

Oh come on Al,the oil war is almost as good as the lube war.  :D