Ground score; husky 51

[Dune]

Found a husky 51 in the pile at the junkyard I haunt. Guy wanted to give it to me, but I gave him $10.
Complete, pulls over, feels like good compression.
I dropped it to the local shop for appraisal.
Seems to be 51 cc. The guy at the shop said that model hadn't been made for 15 years, that is pretty new to me.

Anyone familar with this model? Even the bar and chain seem good.

 

[kenskip1]

Yes I am most familiar as I own one.Put a 16BC in 325 and let it cut. Parts are available and a 55 cylinder will bolt directly on.Pull the muffler and check the piston, see what it looks like.It may have been straight gassed. Link Removed

 

[Dune]

Yes I am most familiar as I own one.Put a 16BC in 325 and let it cut. Parts are available and a 55 cylinder will bolt directly on.Pull the muffler and check the piston, see what it looks like.It may have been straight gassed.

Cool. So I can make it into a race-saw?

 

[ScotO]

If the piston/cylinder is bad, go for it! Honestly, check the cylinder for scoring. Sometimes very light scoring can be sanded out (400 grit wet sand in a crosshatch pattern) don't sand through the chrome. Get new rings, and do a quick intake/exhaust match port and that saw will turn an 18" bar all day long....You got it basically for free, don't spend a fortune on it. Make it that "go to" saw in your shed for bucking up the small/medium stuff, the one that pays you!

 

[Jags]

Dune - those were pretty decent mid range saws. I wouldn't go sticking hundereds of bucks into it, but if it a low cost fix - your gonna end up with a good firewood saw.

 

[Dune]

Dune - those were pretty decent mid range saws. I wouldn't go sticking hundereds of bucks into it, but if it a low cost fix - your gonna end up with a good firewood saw.

Still not into the big league? I thought I finaly graduated.

 

[simple.serf]

A 51 is what keeps me warm, Though I am planning on buying my father's 55 when he gets a new one here soon. My 51 was abused pretty bad when i got it (for free!) and it needed a coil. I have an 18 on it, but I have run a 21 in the past. Poor old girl won't do that anymore.

That saw is a good machine, treat it well and it will treat you well.

 

[MasterMech]

Still not into the big league? I thought I finaly graduated.

Gotta Say XP after the numbers to be "big league!"

Unless of course there's white with the orange and it says "Magnum" on it.....

 

[Jags]

Still not into the big league? I thought I finaly graduated.

That saw is a great firewood saw, it just ain't gonna pull a 25" bar buried balls deep into white oak.

 

[golfandwoodnut]

I have an even older model called a 50, it still runs great and I still use it on anything up to 16 inches (I have a 16 inch chain), it can handle larger but I have bigger saws for that stuff. I find them very handy and light weight on the smaller stuff.

 

[Dune]

That saw is a great firewood saw, it just ain't gonna pull a 25" bar buried balls deep into white oak.

Awesome. Thanks for the help.

 

[surviverguy]

I'm gonna make a prediction here...that saw was barely used and just needs a carb kit and a fuel filter. It'll run for you for ten years or 'till you get bored with it. Then you'll sell it for $100.

 

[Dune]

Got impatient and went by the small engine shop. Saw starts and runs awesome, but the mech said he had to keep it for a few more days to see what the gas does to the diaphram, since it was empty for so long. He indicated it would likely need a new diaphram.
I assume that the cost of the diaphram (?) and the tuneup ($59) will still make the saw worthwhile. I can't wait to try it.

 

[MasterMech]

Should just replace it right from the get go if there were any doubts. Diaphram kit for carbs is uber-cheap.

 

[Dune]

Should just replace it right from the get go if there were any doubts. Diaphram kit for carbs is uber-cheap.

This is Cape Cod dude.

 

[MasterMech]

You guys have some kind of tariff on carb kits?

 

[Dune]

You guys have some kind of tariff on carb kits?

No, we are just supernaturaly cheap. I brought my last free saw to the same guy. He is about 65 and cranky. I asked him to give it a tuneup and a new bar and chain. When I got it back with the old bar, he said the bar was still good so he didn't change it. He wasn't about to spend my money on something I didn't really need.

 

[surviverguy]

I'm gonna make a prediction here...that saw was barely used and just needs a carb kit and a fuel filter. It'll run for you for ten years or 'till you get bored with it. Then you'll sell it for $100.

 

[heaterman]

The 50,51&55 were all variations of the same saw and were very durable. We sold literally hundreds of them for light and medium use and even had one of the larger Christmas tree companies around here (harvest 800,000 per year) use them for their felling saw out in the fields. They held up well in a very tough set of working conditions. The 55 had a larger cylinder bore so the jug and piston are different than the 50/51 series.