346xp rebuild or replace

[mrc]

Saw just quit on me. Piston and ring done. Should i rebuild or replace. 13 years old.

 

[spuldup]

For me it is worth the time to rebuild them. New piston and rings are $40 for no name and $90 for namebrand. Coils, carbs also not expensive. You can be a youtube expert in about an hour.

But if you want an upgrade and have the funds, go for that!

 

[mrc]

I was looking at oem cylinder kit for $125. Talked to 2 people about doing it for .One said $75 and the other said $90. I buy the parts I want to use. Is cylinder kit and gasket all I need or should I do more?

 

[spuldup]

Usually at that point the wrist pin bearing, drive sprocket bearing and clutch/drive link need attention. Also could need fuel/oil lines and filters. Intake manifold can stretch and get small leaks. Need to take apart and inspect to be sure. Like I said all parts are cheap so if the person doing the work is any kind of craftsman they will inspect and replace as needed.
Hyway and Meteor are aftermarket brands that can well exceed OEM. Of course you can't go wrong with OEM. But when something needs repair I take the opportunity to improve reliability, power, or both.

 

[Woodsplitter67]

Id do the rebuild.. Not that I have a ton of experience.. Id probably do it myself and just watch a couple videos..

 

[Newbie78]

You likely have an air leak which caused a lean condition to destroy your saw. Maybe not..

known issue is failure of the plastic intake boot clamp and possible cracking of the boot itself.

since that is the holy grail of 50cc saws it is worth a full rebuild. They don't make'em like that anymore.

I have a cs2152 which is a husky 353 in red. It's the lower performance version of the 346 and is a beautiful saw to run. Very well balanced and as handy as toilet paper in the outhouse.

oh, while you're at it fix the bar oil leak...

 

[mrc]

I want to keep the saw. You can’t buy it anymore. The guy charging $90 said he would pressure test it. I was cutting with it and it started smoking.Took the bar and chain off and didn’t see anything wrong. Greased the clutch and put it back together. Hard time starting it. Held the throttle and started like it was flooded. Ran it a couple of minutes and it was hot and then stalled. Knew it wasn’t good. Took off the exhaust and could see the piston and ring were shot. I think I’ll get the cylinder kit,gasket,impulse line, bellows that attach the carburetor,and new fuel line. How about a spark plug. The one that’s in it is original. 13 years. I’ll look at that clamp for the bellows and probably add that. I have a 372xp but I’ll bet I use the smaller saw 95% percent of the time.

 

[ericm979]

I'd take it apart to try to find the cause and see what the damage is before buying parts.

 

[Newbie78]

Buy oem parts.

 

[Doublebogey]

I would definitely upgrade the intake boot clamp if it is plastic like the one on my 359. That is a common source of failure and the metal clamp is an easy cheap fix.

I recommend you look into a 550 mark II. Great replacement for the 346 (which I would be happy to take off your hands!)

 

[spuldup]

Id do the rebuild.. Not that I have a ton of experience.. Id probably do it myself and just watch a couple videos..

Exactly my thought. These are simple machines. Porting and timing become mathematical but beyond that is it just assembly and good practices.

 

[KDubU]

Rebuild for that machine. Wish I had one.

 

[salecker]

Pressure and vacuum test before you take it apart so you can find the reason it died.
Pressure and vacuum test after it's all back together to make sure it is fixed.