How is an 038 Mag

Moparmyway said:
Thanks Al !!
Thats about how I did my 044, got a close to 60% width and eyeballed the rest, 99 on exhaust and 115 on the transferrs
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I should write this stuff down but I don't so I have rely on memory .

Seems to me on both the mag plus an Av I also did it was around 100-101 exhaust stock and 20 after transfers .I didn't raise the exhaust on the av as much ,maybe a couple but it was wide .

The mag was with a turned dome in the piston.So that accounted for some of the raise .As it is I had to hang a D-handle on it .I'm afraid if I wouldn't have raised it some I'd have a tough time pulling it over or would have needed a decomp .

The 044 would be a later series and the only thing close I've ever wrenched much on was an 034 which I hung an 036 cylinder on .Seems to me the stock piston /head deck clearance was tighter than the 038's .

Working 7-12's I don't hardly have time to do much of anything but I'll get back at it once the OT goes away .
 
There is also that Heinz cleaning vinegar, Randy, if you can find it. Higher acidity than plain distilled white vinegar.
 
Al Smith said:
I should write this stuff down but I don't so I have rely on memory .

Seems to me on both the mag plus an Av I also did it was around 100-101 exhaust stock and 20 after transfers .I didn't raise the exhaust on the av as much ,maybe a couple but it was wide .

The mag was with a turned dome in the piston.So that accounted for some of the raise .As it is I had to hang a D-handle on it .I'm afraid if I wouldn't have raised it some I'd have a tough time pulling it over or would have needed a decomp .

The 044 would be a later series and the only thing close I've ever wrenched much on was an 034 which I hung an 036 cylinder on .Seems to me the stock piston /head deck clearance was tighter than the 038's .

Working 7-12's I don't hardly have time to do much of anything but I'll get back at it once the OT goes away .
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My 044 is a runner !!
If my 038 comes out as well (or better ?) then I will be very happy !!!!

No raised domes yet for me - just the usual - clean up squish, clean up base, some port work. Nothing radical, just a working & reliable work saw !!

I had OT last month - gotta get it while the gettin is good !!! Dried up now, but if asked, I am stayin !!!! Gives me time to tinker - cold (17 Deg F), but at least I can work without any rushing through anything.
 
You don't have to dome up a piston to make hot runner .I've seen a bunch of flat tops that run like the wind .With me it was just a preference and I have the machine tools and the knowledge to do it .

Actually if you cut to the chase it's all about preferences and really there must be a thousand ways to skin the same cat .End results are what count not methods .
 
I am waiting on funds for an old Atlas .................. lathe aint goin anywhere, and the dude already said he would hold on to it untill I grab the cabbage. Once I have some time on it, I am sure I will be tinkering around with some "custom" pistons as well.

I agree with end results - many ways to get there, just gotta be comfy along the way !!
 
Be careful about getting ann old lathe. Have you examined it? Some can be beat pretty bad. The ways under the tool post slide can have slop in them, etc.
 
Yeah - expecting to have some minor repairs to tighten her down. She supposedly is pretty true .................... will see in a few more weeks
 
Atlas made a fairly substantial machine .About the same as a Southbend .They won't cut true enough to make parts for the space shuttle but can get-er-done just fine for about most anything else .You can get chucks and stuff relatively cheap too .

My Monarch 10EE can cut space shuttle parts but nothing is inexpensive on it .
 
I have an Okuma lathe, a great name in Jap lathes. i got it for scrap at a disposal place. Whoever used it before had been cutting cast iron, and hadn't been lubricating the ways under the tool post slide. It was a mess, and i spent all winter tearing it apart, stopping short of the head stock gear box which is in good shape. I called Okuma and tried to get some new parts, the youngun that answered my call told me that since the model is not on the computer, even if they have the parts they don't know it. Typical! It is inconvenient with the worn ways, but if I am careful it does ok. The memory on the fine feed adjustment doesn't hold true, that makes things harder. It would be nice to get it fixed one of these days, a machinist friend offered to do it. A brand new lathe would be a dream. You hardly see lathes at the machinery shows now, unless they are computerized.
 
I'm not aware if they even make a small manual lathe in the USA any more .If so Southbend would be it .

Monarch which built the Cadillac of all of them is now just a parts depot for several brands .They own the largest repository of NOS Lodge and Shipley parts in the world plus Monarch and several more .I've been to Monarch's facility several times ,it's about 30 miles away .FWIW Ohio at one time was the leading manufacturer in the world of machine tools which surpassed Essen Germany or Leeds England .
 
Now about parts .This is a no BS story . I know an old coot that dissasembled some old lathe ,measured what was need .Reassembled it and made new parts to repair the same machine .Saw the lathe and drank beer with the guy who owned a cutter grind shop .He may have passed by now as it was 25-30 years ago .
 
Hard to see manual lathes ever disappearing completely, such a rich history, but now that the programming on computerized lathes can be done quickly, one offs or short runs aren't a problem. That was a big blow to the manual operators. A friend of mine has a small machine shop. He does great work, but most of his lathe jobs these days seems to be parts for machinery needing repair, and jobs that require thought, not just simply replicating things. You would love his shop, Al, lots of older but cool gear in a relatively small space. He and his wife keep it really clean. A small fortune in tooling in the cabinets.
 
If I would have had to have paid for all my tooling at original prices I have no doubt it would exceed a 100 grand .This area once had a zillion little machine shops which are mostly gone now .That stuff sold at auctions for a penny ,nickle on the dollar .I scarfed it up .

I've seen good little Atlas and Southbends sell for under 700 bucks .Round colume Bridgeport mills for a grand and J head 1 1/2 - 2 HP for 1400 .You just have to be in the right place right time ,cash in hand .
 
Agreed, Burn... The 038 Mag's were great saws, well built, long lasting, but heavier than the 044.... and parts are hard to come by these days....
 
squisher said:
I have a 038 mag. Mint. It's my only collector saw. I bought it from Bryan on a treehouse auction. I run it only a couple times a year and only in fir. It looks almost new. No scratches barely at all. It's jammy.
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This is one of four saws I kept when I sold out. I used it to cut all of my firewood for next winter this spring. Still runs like a top.
 
Parts aren't that hard to find.They made so many they will be around for years to come plus after market stuff .Weight wise according to what I gather it's only about .2 pound heavier than an 044 .
I've only seen several of the 038 super models so evidently not many were sold .Probably due to the larger 038 magnum.

The magnum was superceded by the 380-381 but unfortunately not sold in North America .Which is not to say Stihl doesn't make parts for them .
 
I'm kinda in a bind. Fooling with a 290 is eating too much time, most I have is a few times a month to drop a 22"+ spar, usually not longer than 15ft, then chunk it up. I don't work on any trees that I need anything more than my climb saw in the tree. No 044/440/441's are around this area used, I'd have to travel very far for them, or buy new. Not in the cards for me at this moment. Pulled the trigger on the 038 AV super pro, new chain and extra bar. I've been looking for a very long time now, one of the few deals I've found, just to fill the gap I have at the moment.

Thanks for the great advice all!
 
Peter I actually liked the 038 Super better then the Magnum. It's more compact and better ergonomics then the Magnum. I owned both.
It will serve you well. You're not going to be logging 8 hrs a day with it. Probably the only saw you'll need to buy.
 
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