Saw cleaning cabinet

Tom Dunlap

Tom Dunlap

Here from the beginning
Administrator
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Retired in Minneapolis
Everytime a chainsaw is cleaned using compressed air the gunk and nastienss flies all over the place. The cloud of sticky stuff blows all over...yuch!!!

Most of the time there's some outdoor place to clean where the debris can fall to the ground.

I want to build a small booth or container of some sort to keep the debris from spreading.

Does anyone have a cabinet design that they use?

My thoughts are something along these lines:

http://www.wwgoa.com/media/images/chop-saw.jpg

The bottom could be expanded metal with a tray to collect the debris. The key part of a design is to make sure that the cabinet vents well enough to not create back pressure which would bring the debris back to anyone whose cleaning saws.
 
Norm,

I've tried using closed containers. A lot of the debris stays inside but too much is volatized and comes spewing back out. I'd rather just blow the stuff into open-air than have blowback.

Maybe i didn't try a big enough container though. Is that why you're spec'ing a 33 gallon?
 
Tom, I've heard some reference made to ultrasonic cleaning for chainsaw parts. Might be worth a look. I mentioned Challenger Cleaner in your other thread and somebody had concerns for it for washing certain metals, but for degumming your chains and guide bars, I don't think you can miss with it or Rubbermaid degreaser. I know it works on chains.
 
Thanks for the cleaning tips.

On Friday I spent a while de-gumming a clutch on a Husky 575. The saw was running fine but I have to wonder how the gummy oils might affect it.
 
how about on the front of it some thick plastic straps that hang down from the top....like in an old walk in style freezer....? this would allow air movement , you could reach your hands in and it seems like it would knock down a lot of the debris?...just a thought ...maybe you could integrate??
 
"On Friday I spent a while de-gumming a clutch on a Husky 575. The saw was running fine but I have to wonder how the gummy oils might affect it"

I guess you're talking about canola oil?

I'd worry more about the ethanol in the fuel. Are you guys running e-free stuff yet? I know there was talk of getting some tanks of the stuff on site, and I'm thinking about doing the same for at least some of my saws. Just had to take my 5-year-old husq 372 to my repair shop, have a feeling it's fuel/ethanol related.
 
Tait...good idea!

Winch...I'm not that concerned about fuel. As long as it's fresh I've never had any fuel issues in all of my years running saws.

If you've used a saw for five years and it needs attention that sounds pretty normal. Wear and tear rather than fuel.

Yesterday we talked about 'cold' weather. A story was related about how the recoils wouldn't retract until the saws were warmed by placing them near the exhaust pipes of a truck or chipper. The 'cold' here in NC is no where near what I worked in for most of my career in Minneapolis. If a recoil wouldn't retract it was only because the saws hadn't been maintained and cleaned. Now, with canola oils cleanliness is even more important. I'm seeing that something more than just compressed air is going to be needed to maintain the saws in optimal condition.
 
I've run into the ethanol nighmare quite hard this year. My 3120 needed a new carb, my newest MS200T seems to be needing a kit and my older 200T looks like it needs a new carb.

Not at all happy with this.

Everything ran great before alcohol, We had minor problems after they added it especially since we have very humid air, then our gear just started to STB.

Not happy at all.
 
We try to run gas that doesn't have ethanol in it. But it can be hard to find at the pump here. Correct me if I'm wrong. The problems with ethanol are 1)that it binds strongly with water and 2)it degrades small rubber gaskets and parts more quickly, right? And, of course, water in the fuel of a two-stroke engine (that relies on fuel for lubrication) is all bad. So, the main thing we do to prevent problems due to ethanol containing fuel is we always use gas cans with lids/caps (and are diligent about always putting the caps on when we are not in the act of pouring) to keep rain and snow out, and we try to keep our fuel cans (and the fuel tanks in each machine) as full as possible as much of the time as possible to keep condensation inside the container down to a minimum.

We've had to rebuild and replace carbs many times on several different saws but we can't pin it down undeniably on ethanol fuel even though we all think it's the culprit.
 
I don't know this for certain but over the years of talking with saw techs, small engine techs and car mechanics there is a theme that the engine builders changed the 'rubber' materials in their fuel systems years ago to be compatible with ethanol fuels. This seems like a myth left over from the transition times back in the early ethanol days of the '70s but not valid today for modern saws. Like I said, I can't site chapter and verse but I've heard this from reputable people over many years.

Not saying that there aren't fuel issues with ethanol though. Just that it's less likely to be material degrade anymore.

Fresh fuel with high octane is the solution for me. Mix small batches and keep tight lids on like Chewbacca says.
 
My local saw mechanic tells me to make sure to run ethanol free fuel. Thankfully I'm in a town that has at least a half dozen stations that sell the stuff. I'm a contract climber and I bring my own gas to the jobs and have the crew use it to fuel up my saws to make sure that they stay in peak form.

I think the idea of the saw cleaning cabinet is a great idea. It certainly would help keep my clothes cleaner!
 
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