Considering port work on Stihl 362

[ehp]

file your chain, the faster your chain spins the more power you are loosing on just driving the chain, You only need to gear the chain speed up if your filling the gullet of the tooth to full amount , After that the chain skips and rides the rest of the way threw the cut until its gets a chance to clear itself . This is not just here say, I have spent lots of time with high speed cameras checking and testing on how to make chains cut and what it takes to make what setup on which saw works best . Bigger gear also produces greater  engine heat cause of the stress , In the beginning I thought higher gear speed was the answer but I was WRONG , we played with a 325 cc rotax and ended up at 24 tooth gear size , now were down to a 18 tooth gear and made the chain cut proper with that chain speed with what torque band the motor produces and saw is a lot faster , its not just a single thing , you have to have everything set up to work together . The cr 250 bikesaws I have made all run just a 16 tooth gear  now if I build another one it will have a 17 tooth on it cause new engines are making more power . Even my ported 461's which are pretty strong only run a 7 tooth and out cut a stock 395 bad and I mean bad . If I put a 8 tooth on it I honestly slow down in timed video cut with the 461. Its all about mating the chain to engine torque band to what type of wood you are cutting .

[mike_belben]

Are any of your chain vids on youtube?

[OH logger]

ehp I run ported 395s and have only ever ran 8 pin sprockets. would seven be better? im cutting big hardwood with a 24 inch bar. similar timber to yours I imagine. but on flat ground though

[ehp]

ya lots of chains videos on youtube and lots of other guys using chains . 395 should run a 8 pin , it has enough torque to pull a proper filed chain plus if you are using the big spikes that come with the saw and a 24 inch bar your only cutting abit more than what a 20 inch bar cuts on the smaller saws with the shorter spikes . We run 28 or longer on the 395's here cause of the bigger spikes . I read lots that say the spikes on the new 462 are way to small. I find them perfect for me . Now I will take a brandnew chain and not file it when its used to cut on the landing in dirt or mud season cause Im only going to get a couple cuts with it before the sand gets to it but I never take a new chain and go cut timber with it , a new chain just never cuts free and takes twice as much pressure to be a lot slower in the wood

[HolmenTree]

Better yet, get an 064, light and nimble like an 036.  Port that or do an OEM 066 P/C.  What Holmen did with his 064 was one of the best I've seen, I wish I had time/$$$ for.  That thread has given me direction and ideas.

M.P.,
Actually that was a 2nd year 066 Mag red light I rebuilt there with 064 parts to get the weight and bulk down. 064 flywheel, rewind housing, brake lever, top cover,  air filter setup, etc. Then I put a Husqvarna 162 top handle on it to make it even more lighter and compact.
I saved a pound gutting the muffler and getting rid of the dual outlet muffler front.
14 lbs 9 oz the weight of 461/572XP
Merry Christmas everyone!!

[HolmenTree]

I really like the 1980's 064 air filter setup on the 066 without the intelli air compensation setup.


 

[mike_belben]

ya lots of chains videos on youtube and lots of other guys using chains . 

Link?  

[Greyhound]

I've got a Stihl 362 that has been a decent saw, but just lacks a little power it seems.  I guess when I got my 660 it really made the 362 seem like a slug but I know that isnt fair.  

At any rate, I've been considering shipping off my 362 for a woods porting, but am wondering if its gonna be worth the cost, or would I be better off to trade it off and pick up a 440/460/461 something in that size range.  I use it mostly for bucking logs at landing but it backs up my 660 as stump saw from time to time.

Anybody have a experiences that might help me decide?

It's kind of a tough choice between a ported MS362 and an MS461.  FWIW, I own an 026, ported MS261CM, ported MS361and ported MS461. I REALLY like my MS461, even before it was ported.After porting and modifying to high-output oiler it's amazing. But it is definitely heavier than the MS361.   It will easily pull and oil a 32" full comp, full chisel bar and chain in hardwood.  

If I were you, I would lean toward selling the MS362 get the MS461.  It's a very good saw stock.  Save up some $ and get it ported down the road.  Then the MS660 will "feel like a slug."  That said, no one would ever fault you for porting your MS362 either.  My ported MS361 is probably the "best" single saw I own, but it's quite a different bird from the MS362.  Maybe go to your local dealer and handle the MS461 and your MS362 and go with whichever one "feels" the best in your hands.  

[Dave Shepard]

If these ported saws will outcut a 395, then I guess what I need is a ported 395.

I'm running an 8 pin on a stock 395 running a new Stihl RS. I had to take 3 strokes off the rakers to wake it up some. I'm cutting brush and small trees right now. I think in larger hardwood,  a 7 pin, and another couple strokes off the rakers would cut smoother. 

[ehp]

Im not a sponsor here nor do I want any saw work from here or any where else so with that I am not posting videos on here , I log full time but did saw porting full time for quite a few years , now I just port mainly my own stuff or friends that need saws done . Now back to the 362, a ported 362 will out cut a ported 361 mainly cause the 362 can be made to produce more torque than a 361 can , 361 can be made into a faster cookie cutter but for a everyday logging saw the 362 is a better choice but if it was me I would trade the 362 in or sell it and just buy say the 462 , Its a lot like running the 362 just better

[teakwood]

but for a everyday logging saw the 362 is a better choice

I'm interested in this comment. I use two 361 (muffler mod) for professional use in my plantations, i really love the saws, they are light and have decent power. For the next thinning in 3years with bigger trees i will upgrade to a 462.
I think i read here from some members that the 362 is way slower than the 361 and feels clumsier and fatter. You seem to love the 362 better. Is that because you modded them and like the 362 more? How about stock?

[ehp]

I have a pretty much brandnew 361 and have owned most likely 15 or so, If you cutting smaller trees say 16 inch on the stump or so the 361 is a better saw, but in bigger timber the 362 will cut faster cause of the new design engine , it produces more torque compared to rpms that the 361 . But the 361 to me feels better in my hands compared to the 362. If I get a red pine bush I got to cut I run the smaller saws cause most trees are 20 inch or less on stump . The newer engine designs cut bigger hardwood better with less engine heat so will last longer . Ported now it depends on what you want, a cookie cutter to show off to your buddies the 361 is better but a ported 362 will cut faster in bigger hardwood and last longer doing it , Ported 362 power band will be in the 12,200 to 12,500 rpms , Ported 361 can be that or higher and that depends on the porting , 13200 to 13500 power band and running on pump gas the operator has to watch very close on whats he is doing , Lean burn is right there , out of the wood you will be up at 17,000 rpms and that's about the limit unless you want to pull the crank out and get everything balanced perfect

[HolmenTree]

I've got a Stihl 362 that has been a decent saw, but just lacks a little power it seems.  I guess when I got my 660 it really made the 362 seem like a slug but I know that isnt fair.  

At any rate, I've been considering shipping off my 362 for a woods porting, but am wondering if its gonna be worth the cost, or would I be better off to trade it off and pick up a 440/460/461 something in that size range.  I use it mostly for bucking logs at landing but it backs up my 660 as stump saw from time to time.

Anybody have a experiences that might help me decide?

dsroten, I decided to bump this excellent thread you started. Lots of good reading here.
So have you made any decisions what your going to do?

[ehp]

I pretty much have made my mind up to take the 362 out of the truck and get another 462 to go alone with 2 - 461's and the other 462 I carry . I am liking the 462 quite abit , its light , makes decent power and for me its a better saw to have on hand than the 362 for my kind of work , 362 is a great saw but so far the 462 is just better for me

[MG2186]

EHP not using 562’s any more? 

[ehp]

I tried posting a couple times but nothing never happened

[ehp]

I just built myself a new 562 with heated handles . Porting is pretty hot in it and mainly want saw when I end up cutting a pile of pine

[Mad Professor]

I do not run a 8 pin gear on any of my 70's cc saws . We have tested that tons of times and video tape it lots to show people that what they think is going on is not . Even using a 20 inch bar on a 372 if you file your chain proper the 7 pin will always out cut the 8 pin if cutting hardwood like hard maple or oak . Im not talking a brandnew chain out of the box cause they do not cut and you will not see me falling timber with something unfiled , I gain a lot just filing the chain to make it cut .

Check out this 034S running an 8-pin in hardwood.  Note the chips a flying!

Also a good example of tuning Hi by ear/sound

[ehp]

ya and its turning about 2500 rpms less in the cut than it should be once under load and listen to how the motor sounds . Its producing a ton of heat because your making it lug . You go ahead and run your 8 pin, I will stay with 7 pin, I have seen guys run 9 or 10 pin gears on saws , they thought it was faster but on video it was not  

[HolmenTree]

Yep my 395XP came from the factory with a 7 pin 3/8" rim sprocket for good reason.

Work saw with a round filed chisel chain no matter what cc 7 pin is the best.
Race chisel bit chain thinned out, cutter square filed half ways back, .015 lowered depth gauges you can get by with a 8 pin fine in smaller logs with a work saw.
But round filed chisel chain sucks the power out of todays high revving work saws.

Race saws....I once had a Stihl 090 I raced that was ported etc on a tune pipe. Madsens from the PNW saw pictures of my small logs we cut in our contests. They said you need a 11 pin sprocket on the 090, I believed them and got beat by the Mac 101's race after race.
Then I found out they were running 7 and 8 pin sprockets on the Macs, I put a 7 on the 090 and was then beating them or keeping up to them.

My 40 horse YZ125 bike saw I run a 11 pin sprocket. Works good for big and smaller wood.