husky model 61 for 120 smackers? ? deal or no deal?!?!?

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WoodButcher80

WoodButcher80

Feeling the Heat
Oct 6, 2008
297
Snowbelt of NE Ohio - Chardon
hey guys. i just picked up a used husky 61 rancher for 120$ . its the year with the metal crankcase.
the owner is shipping it from wisconsin, so ill get it next week.
he said the compression is 140lbs with a 16" bar. the bar is in good shape . it has a new gas filter, spark plug and was just tuned. he said it starts in a couple of pulls. if theres something wrong with it i can get rid of it within a week .

good deal???


1. i know 150lbs is the going rate for compression. is 140 ok?


2. i definitely know this is an oldie but goodie. what year you think it is? what other saw models have interchangeable parts?


3. anything i need to know? for example, i heard newer style bars and chains are thinner and not made like this one. so if i need a new chain i should get the bar as well. any other querks?

thanks guys. this should beat out my craftsman with a wiggly bar because of a broken bar lock bolt!
 

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Was it a good buy? You'll know it when you get it. If it runs and oils and cuts, then I'd say that it was a good deal. If it needs a piston and cylinder...

As for the compression, it's hard to say unless it was YOU doing the testing with YOUR gauge. Some folks use the wrong type of tester, or don't test right...
 
well he said hes a mechanic at a small engine shop and he works on chain saws every day. he gave it a once over and replaced some parts. gas filter,gas hose,new spark plug and cleaned air filter.he said he will check idle and high speed with tack. And make sure everything is working before it is shipped .

anyone know the answers to the above 3 questions ? thanks. want to make sure i know everything about this saw.
 
WoodButcher80 said:
well he said hes a mechanic at a small engine shop and he works on chain saws every day. he gave it a once over and replaced some parts. gas filter,gas hose,new spark plug and cleaned air filter.he said he will check idle and high speed with tack. And make sure everything is working before it is shipped .

anyone know the answers to the above 3 questions ? thanks. want to make sure i know everything about this saw.
Click to expand...

Heres a better question to ask. Where is the chain break? You dont want to run a saw without it. Kick backs are a killer.
N of 60....Saftey 1st. :)
 
they probably didnt make em on this old of a year (circa late '80s?) . i think ill be ok. just have to beef up on my facemask and helmet.

can i add a brake?

heres a link for the part for sale.

http://www.jackssmallengines.com/husqp61.cfm

though i wouldnt pay 61$ for a brake to go on a 120$ saw. . . i can try to find one used.
 
Hey woodbutch Iam pretty sure it would of had a chain break as all my saws are early 80,s.
Anyhow if all the sellers statement are true, Id have that saw over a new piece of $200 Poulan junk anyday. My early saws have proved that. Cheers. N of 60
 

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I wouldn't want to use it without a chain-brake, but some old traditionalists didn't like them and would take them off, especially in the early days when it was a "new-fangled-notion" It does look from the first picture like there is a bracket just above the bar cover where a brake would go.

I would be especially nervous about not having a brake when I look at that old style "fat bar" - if you look at newer saws you will notice that the bars are much narrower - this is part of the anti-kick-back design of modern saws - by decreasing the bar radius at the tip, they decrease the "danger zone" area on the top quarter of the tip where kickbacks are most likely to be caused, and be most severe...

IMHO it might be a good saw engine-wise, but I'd want to find a brake for it before I actually took it into the woods.

If you are only using it for bucking felled logs, the brake is still highly desirable, but *slightly* less essential since you have less risk of catching the tip in the wrong position.

Gooserider
 
Also keep in mind that what brake it did have was very basic. There would be no inertial chain brake on this, which was a big advancement in kickback protection, and the brake was not meant be actively used as they are today. I wont run saws like this anymore.
 
well ive run em for 15yrs and had no problems. i dont understand. ive not had one instance where i felt the saw was gonna jump up and hit me. i think its cus i refuse to do undercuts on fell trees(which i sal i cut). i cut them with my 16" blade all on one side, then take a peavey and roll her to the other side and finish.

the only time i could see kickback happening is when you foolishly use the tip of the blade or undercut..

i know its there cus you never know, i got it.
but am i missing a scenario where it happens all the time?
please divulge so i can know to avoid these situations until i order the chain brake.
 
WoodButcher80 said:
the only time i could see kickback happening is when you foolishly use the tip of the blade or undercut..
Click to expand...

Stuff happens to even the most skilled sawyers; don't make the mistake of thinking that accidents only happen to the foolish. Depending on the type of cutting you do, there are numerous little things out of your control that tip the odds against you. I have run a saw professionally for 15+ years, and I have yearly recurrent training where we see the list of all the serious injuries from old saws and other accidents over the past year. That doesn't mean that one cant successfully cut using an old saw, but based on my knowledge I choose not to. If you are just making basic cross cuts the saw is probably fine if used with caution, but be aware that when that saw was new, injuries and fatalities from chainsaws were nearly 100 time more common. There are many reasons for that, but a big one is saw design. A saw from that generation is pretty much akin to the safety features found in an old car; both are fine as long as nothing goes wrong.
 
got ya.

well, aside from the safety failures of this saw. . . how is it compared to the newer ones in regards to power? i cut sugar maples, pignut hickories, and black cherrys... thats about it. most are under 18" in diameter. my old craftsman 32cc cut through a 26" sugar round, but i had to rotate it twice to cut through. this will have more power i hope not to bog down , and maybe i can get a bigger blade, since its only 16" .

my real reason for this initial post was to see what parts are interchangeable with other saws. i read that theres a performance upgrade by putting a piston/cylinder from a 268 on it, but i dont want to do that . . it would bring me to a final purchase of almost 180$ and for 350$ i can get a 455 rancher with x-torq , which i assume is a much better saw, right?
 
I have a saw very similar to this one. This saw will outcut a brand new 455 close to 2:1. Mine has a 20" bar and no brake, and was purchased new by my grandfather. It's been under tires and trees! Pulls easy, and starts quicker than my new 357xp. And please, please don't mention this saw in the same posting as your Craftsman (jk)!
 
sorry, the XXXX(wont name it) brand was my fathers from 25yrs ago and i revived it a few months back once i bought my own house with land, kind of proud i got it going.

well, the huskie guy said hes shipping it today...

does this thing take a special chain or bar? i guess i should just give you guys the serial # once i get it on thurs or friday. .. probably make it easier, eh?

if its a 16" ide like to up it to 18"
 
That saw looks just like a 262 or 266. I wouldn't be surprised if the chain break was the same. Go hit up a saw shop, one that been in business for years and I'll bet they have one kicking around. Or flea-bay.
 
Pop your cover off and take a look, but I think it should do.
 
got it today, threw some 40:1 gas mix in it from my brothers 455 gas can . . . idled great! anyways, i called the previous owner and he said i should use 50:1 mix instead. im sure hes right. also , HERES THE MODEL #

1611 022655.. . what does this tell me? anything about the year? i wan a nice gray plastic top found on newer saws to shine her up a bit... anyone know what years or models will fit it?


also, what is the typical chain size ? 3/8? looking at going to a 18" .

thanks!
 
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