Stihl 880 mods

[woodworkingboy]

I wonder if running hot makes a saw break in faster?

 

[Al Smith]

It's been so long since I've owned a "new" saw I forgot much about the run in .However I've rebuilt a bunch of them and they do pep up after a break in period.When those rings finally set in you can tell the difference . Lean -er-out and run it like ya stole it.

 

[Magnus]

Operational temp is one thing, running hot is another...
Cast iron rings set/get broken in after some hrs, rings they use today don't change unless run hot, then they loose tension or get excessive wear.
A saw is never, ever going to do well from running hot.

Saws today run better after a while as they "learn" how to set timing after performance. Carbs also "learn" if they are electronic.

 

[Al Smith]

Even chrome alloy or tool steel rings wear in .Maybe not as much as cast iron but they do change a little bit after some run time .In addition to that things like bearings need some run time to get rid of
parasitic losses simpley because they are brand new .None of this is a big deal but it is noticeable to some degree .

As far as this 880 in question .I personally would not do a thing to it until after some run time ,It might be fine the way it is .Stock or not that is one powerfull saw.

 

[Tucker943]

Excellent point Al. Most of us defer to you when it comes to all things metal!

 

[woodworkingboy]

The 880 is powerful, but can saws get a torque rating? I wonder how that would compare with some others?

 

[Jed]

It's a knuckle dragger for sure. But not bad once you've hoisted it around a bit.

It's a hilarious feeling to use a 084 all day, and then pick up a 440. It just feels like a little toy. And then when you cut with it, it just seems like a screaming loud, gutless little pig.

 

[Silverbackarb]

I'd like to get a 28 or 32" bar for the 880, I have a couple logging style projects for mitigation and it would be nice to use it to buck anything over what a 20" bar on the 460. I think I'll get an 8 or 9 pin rim for the smaller bars to help with the low RPM/low chain speed problem. Anyone know where to source a 9 pin rim for the 880?

 

[HolmenTree]

Go with the .404 chain. A 8 pin .404 rim is approximately the same size of a 9 pin 3/8 rim.
Much more durable and matched chain for that big cc powerhead

 

[Silverbackarb]

Definitely will be 404, already had them set aside a told of full skip/ full chisel. But I was thinking a 9 pin rim for the smaller bar(28" or so) because I think the 880 oiler will be able to keep up with that kind of chain speed on smaller bars and the 880 seems like it should have enough torque to pull that. I believe a 9 pin will help the cutting speed greatly on the smaller stuff since the engine isn't doing much over an idle lol

 

[Al Smith]

--but the point is any 120 cc saw is a big timber machine .Sure you can put "taller " gears on it but most generally on smaller stuff you normally would not use this large of machine .

Try it for a day with a 24" and a 9 pin .That big SOB will wear you out .

 

[stig]

Yep.
After a day of felling and bucking with one of those you can feel your arms.

 

[cory]

I used a Husky 2100 for a few days logging, it was like driving nails with a sledgehammer- way too heavy to carry much but once you got it too the work, it worked fast.

 

[flushcut]

I like using the lightest saw I can get away with when cutting.

 

[squisher]

To a point. I don't run anything smaller than a 46 myself, besides a 200. For me it reaches a point that I'd rather just have the power than the weight savings. Espescially residential work.

 

[flushcut]

My daily runner is either a 365 or 372 with a 24-28" and that gets me by 85% of jobs. Very rarely does the 3120 see the light of day tho it is nice with a 36" for stumps and ripping big rounds.

 

[stig]

To a point. I don't run anything smaller than a 46 myself, besides a 200. For me it reaches a point that I'd rather just have the power than the weight savings. Espescially residential work.

Same goes for logging IMo. There comes a point where the weight saving starts to cost too much money, productionwise.
I don't run anything smaller than 70 cc in the woods.

 

[squisher]

I just meant espescially residentially because generally you're no to packing far or really cutting all that much anyways.

 

[squisher]

As to the 880. Can any of the gurus confirm this unlimited 441 is it, coil change? Does it work? Is it worth it? Can the 880 take the revs?

 

[Cobleskill]

We had a pro logger running a 60 -65cc saw in hardwoods. Must have been extensively modified, running on racing fuel and he changed out his square ground chain before it even seemed to be slowing down to me.

 

[stig]

We bought a MS362 either last year or the year before. Sold it again after 3 weeks.
NOBODY in our outfit wanted to log with it, way too slow.
In production logging a tree more or less a day matters in the course of a season.

 

[squisher]

I gave my modded 361 a real good chance to earn a spot on the truck but alas it's a benchwarmer. The crap dogs available in that size of saw are a factor for me too. The way the bottom dog curls up instead of sticks out drives me batty. I'd love to meet the genius that designed that, I'm guessing so it wouldn't catch in things maybe? Which sort of defeats the purpose.

 

[stig]

Made for thin barked trees would be my guess.

I once got carried away and ordered a set of XXL dogs for my 660.
They were worse than worthless with the low stmps and thin bark, we deal with.
I think 3 of my apprentices mounted them, one after the other, because they looked so cool, then took them off again.
Eventuallu i raffled them here and they are back in the US with a TH member.

 

[Peter]

Iv got a 550 with a 14" running 3/8 lo pro chain. (Thanks Willard) that sits on the machine with me or next to the chipper, but for felling work in the woods it's straight to the 441 or 660.

 

[Peter]

Made for thin barked trees would be my guess.

I once got carried away and ordered a set of XXL dogs for my 660.
They were worse than worthless with the low stmps and thin bark, we deal with.
I think 3 of my apprentices mounted them, one after the other, because they looked so cool, then took them off again.
Eventuallu i raffled them here and they are back in the US with a TH member.

The 660 dogs are fine for me, but I find the standard dogs on the 441 a little small on the big poplar, especially when they have big buttress roots to cut through. Fine on beech though.