Can't. The fuel lines had disintegrated over the years sitting in the storage shed. Can't tell for sure what went to what. No worries though, I'll eventually get it figured out, and if I can't I've got my eye on some new saws..
Help me resurrect my old Craftsman chainsaw
- Thread starter wavinwayne
- Start date
The metering diafram will be crispy and a carb teardown will not be optional in my opinion. It is NOT hard. Inside house garage channel and homegarage has tons of carb videos. it will really make the difference.
I may buy a new carb instead of rebuilding. I'm going to pay a visit to my local small engine shop tomorrow to see what they sell for this saw. Heck, I may even decide to let them fix it for me.
Like Fordiesel69 said, rebuilding the carburetor on that saw is a piece of cake. Here is the rebuild video on a 38cc Craftsman saw. While your saw is slightly larger at 40cc's, the carb is almost identical.
OK, after waffling back and forth on what to do, I ordered all the parts. I'm going to try and rebuild the carb. We'll see how it goes.
FWIW, I rarely replace that little needle and the spring unless it is stuck or looks covered in gunk. I usually just spray out the passages in the carb with spray, and replace the diaphragms and gaskets.
Update: Today I installed new fuel lines, fuel filter, spark plug, and primer bulb. Waiting on the carb rebuild kit and a carb to engine gasket so I can finish the job. This old saw should be running again very soon! Thanks for all the helpful suggestions you guys gave to help me along.
Awesome thread!
I saved a 30+ year old Husky trimmer. 32R, I believe. The carb was some sort of Walbro and 14 bucks later I got a genuine rebuild kit from a small engine shop. After a thorough cleaning which included a small copper wire segment to clean the discharge holes in the venturi. It runs beautifully and it's my go to trimmer.
It's great to see some old stuff have new life.
I saved a 30+ year old Husky trimmer. 32R, I believe. The carb was some sort of Walbro and 14 bucks later I got a genuine rebuild kit from a small engine shop. After a thorough cleaning which included a small copper wire segment to clean the discharge holes in the venturi. It runs beautifully and it's my go to trimmer.
It's great to see some old stuff have new life.
Also forgot to mention I found a glaring omission in my socket inventory today. Apparently I have never had a 3/4" deep well socket, which was needed to remove the spark plug. After contemplating a trip to the store, I remembered my Craftsman pass through ratchet+sockets, which worked like a charm. That's the first thing I think I've ever used them for.
Went to my local, very well stocked small engine sales/service shop this morning to see if they had a carb-to-engine gasket, since mine was damaged when removing the carb, and it doesn't come in the carb rebuild kit. You would have thought I was asking the parts guy for ground Unicorn horn or something. I gave him the part number and the best he could offer was to order one for twice the price and lead time vs. what I can source myself. Ordered one myself a few minutes ago, which should be in this weekend-ish. Sigh. This is how projects never get finished...
I lost a very good outdoor power equipment dealer that was local. They had the top notch old skool guys that knew it all. Now its unbeleivable the level of customer service (or lack there of) you experiance out in the wild.
The best was when my echo blower was sitting right behind the service counter on the floor. They guy claimed it wasn't done yet and the guy that works on them isn't in that day. I pointed to it, and out of disbelief he handed it to me and then gave excuses as it "wasn't listed in the computer".
The best was when my echo blower was sitting right behind the service counter on the floor. They guy claimed it wasn't done yet and the guy that works on them isn't in that day. I pointed to it, and out of disbelief he handed it to me and then gave excuses as it "wasn't listed in the computer".
OPE dealers are tough. The really good ones are becoming hard to find. The reason for this is their business model and clientele has changed. Most homeowners go to the box stores now for the cheap riding mowers and equipment, then when it breaks they throw it out and the cycle repeats. The OPE dealers mainly cater to the commercial landscape businesses that take their equipment there for repair or warranty service. One of the local OPE dealers is really good, but more often than not I would bet they would have to order the part for something I need if it isn't a commercial piece of equipment.
The part will be twice the price because it is an OEM part that they need to warranty, not the cheap Amazon crap, and they also mark up their parts like any other repair shop. That saw the OP is working on is a good saw, but due to the age of it, I doubt they see more than one or two people looking for parts for those a year.
I can't fault them for it though, the one near me deals almost exclusively with landscapers, and he is scheduling repairs 3 months in advance right now.
The part will be twice the price because it is an OEM part that they need to warranty, not the cheap Amazon crap, and they also mark up their parts like any other repair shop. That saw the OP is working on is a good saw, but due to the age of it, I doubt they see more than one or two people looking for parts for those a year.
I can't fault them for it though, the one near me deals almost exclusively with landscapers, and he is scheduling repairs 3 months in advance right now.
@jeepman3071 The OPE shop I visited this morning is one of, if not THE, oldest in Huntsville, AL and they definitely cater to the professional landscape businesses. I was hopeful they would have what I needed in stock, but in all honesty was not surprised one bit that they didn't. The parts guy did recommend a couple of other shops in town that he thought might have the part in stock, so that was cool of him. I just don't have time to run all over town so I ordered what I needed. This is an exercise in patience, which I am working on. 
I'm not very patient, so I usually just order stuff online, at least then I know when it "should" arrive haha.@jeepman3071 The OPE shop I visited this morning is one of, if not THE, oldest in Huntsville, AL and they definitely cater to the professional landscape businesses. I was hopeful they would have what I needed in stock, but in all honesty was not surprised one bit that they didn't. The parts guy did recommend a couple of other shops in town that he thought might have the part in stock, so that was cool of him. I just don't have time to run all over town so I ordered what I needed. This is an exercise in patience, which I am working on.
Got my gaskets, now all I'm waiting for is the new chain. Going to work on the carb this weekend. Not a lot of demand for these parts apparently because the date on the carb kit is 2011. 
Got my new chain today.
Wayne,
Cant wait to hear how this runs when you are done.
I have done tons of carbs from 2019 thru 2023 as I bought a bunch of abandonded OPE from a dealer closing. Even though I have had some carbs that cant be saved, Im fairly confident you'll win this over. A few quick suggestions:
-Clean the outer body of the carburetor with carb cleaner so it is spotless. This will keep the insides clean.
-I prefer fresh mixed gas in a squirt bottle like the guy on home garage / inside house garage on youtube, compared to carb cleaner as certain carbs have little check valves deep inside that can be damaged by the acetone in the carb cleaner.
-I like to use an air hose set to 30 psi with your air nozzle, and each port, inject the fuel mix, then blast it out with air. I really think even if it looks clean, doing this still helps.
-I like to reuse the old needle valve arm that touches the metering diaphram. This way you will avoid having to adjust it. You can watch videos on steves small engine saloon how to set the arm.
-As a last step before you close up the carb, inject some fuel mix on top of the little debris screen and press the needle valve. Fuel should flow thru effortlessly. I have had new ones not flow, and you need to find out why or the engine will never run. Also make sure all the gaskets and diaphram is wet with fuel as you close it up. They will be pretty dry in the package.
-After the carb is assembled, hook up the fuel hoses and fill the tank, make sure the carb can prime fuel thru it without leaking all over. Also make sure the primer can prime up nice and firm.
Moving onto the starting and tuning. Because this saw has been sitting so long, the crank seals are dry, the cylinder, rings, and crankcase most likely has a stale film / varnish all over it. You will want to do a rough adjustment (error on the rich side) and just get it running, then, do a bunch of test cuts, and just run the thing without worrying about getting the perfect tune. After it is blistering hot, consider dialing it in fully. On these cheaper saws run them richer. Don't worry about trying to get them to scream like a husqvarna. They use bare aluminum cylinders and cast rings so they will never survive running like the big saws.
You will want 40:1 or better yet 32:1 mix. People will argue but 50:1 is way to lean for these engines.
Cant wait to hear how this runs when you are done.
I have done tons of carbs from 2019 thru 2023 as I bought a bunch of abandonded OPE from a dealer closing. Even though I have had some carbs that cant be saved, Im fairly confident you'll win this over. A few quick suggestions:
-Clean the outer body of the carburetor with carb cleaner so it is spotless. This will keep the insides clean.
-I prefer fresh mixed gas in a squirt bottle like the guy on home garage / inside house garage on youtube, compared to carb cleaner as certain carbs have little check valves deep inside that can be damaged by the acetone in the carb cleaner.
-I like to use an air hose set to 30 psi with your air nozzle, and each port, inject the fuel mix, then blast it out with air. I really think even if it looks clean, doing this still helps.
-I like to reuse the old needle valve arm that touches the metering diaphram. This way you will avoid having to adjust it. You can watch videos on steves small engine saloon how to set the arm.
-As a last step before you close up the carb, inject some fuel mix on top of the little debris screen and press the needle valve. Fuel should flow thru effortlessly. I have had new ones not flow, and you need to find out why or the engine will never run. Also make sure all the gaskets and diaphram is wet with fuel as you close it up. They will be pretty dry in the package.
-After the carb is assembled, hook up the fuel hoses and fill the tank, make sure the carb can prime fuel thru it without leaking all over. Also make sure the primer can prime up nice and firm.
Moving onto the starting and tuning. Because this saw has been sitting so long, the crank seals are dry, the cylinder, rings, and crankcase most likely has a stale film / varnish all over it. You will want to do a rough adjustment (error on the rich side) and just get it running, then, do a bunch of test cuts, and just run the thing without worrying about getting the perfect tune. After it is blistering hot, consider dialing it in fully. On these cheaper saws run them richer. Don't worry about trying to get them to scream like a husqvarna. They use bare aluminum cylinders and cast rings so they will never survive running like the big saws.
You will want 40:1 or better yet 32:1 mix. People will argue but 50:1 is way to lean for these engines.
@Fordiesel69 Good points, thanks for the tips. I'll post an update this weekend or as soon as if I get the saw running. I may post a short video on youtube. Just a short clip of the saw firing up, not any tutorial.
Awsome!
Here is an example of one running what I term "pig rich" as this had a fresh top end installed and the original top end suffered a lean seize. After it broke in, I did lean it out some more, but did not repost a video.
FF to 1:50 in the cut the engine is "4 stroking". This is a good starting point so you do not burn yours up until you can tweak it.
Here is an example of one running what I term "pig rich" as this had a fresh top end installed and the original top end suffered a lean seize. After it broke in, I did lean it out some more, but did not repost a video.
FF to 1:50 in the cut the engine is "4 stroking". This is a good starting point so you do not burn yours up until you can tweak it.
Got "Lil Crafty" up and running again. Here's a couple videos I took. I'm not sophisticated enough to video myself running it full speed. I'm very happy my work, and y'all's help, paid off.
