Stihl 034 Super AV EQ

Lookin gooder for sure....just curious though...why bondo instead of wood putty?

 

Because I had leftover bondo and no wood putty.

I've used it before and it is stronger than wood putty so I figured it would only be a benefit on a workbench top. It was really unsmooth and rough with gobs of paint and holes drilled everywhere before which is why I decided to fix it.

I've used it to fix a number of things including the jamb on the garage door opening, jamb on my front door when the storm door closer got ripped out due to an Amazon driver being an idiot and propping the storm door open with a package on a super windy day, to rebuild the bottom of a greek column in front of a church, to rebuild dry rot on my teak benches. Anywhere there is water and wood damage Bondo can be used.

 

I'll put your chainsaw back together if you'll redo my workbench...



Cleaning it off will be the hardest part... I've got junk everywhere...

 

I'd redo your workbench for free. How 'bout dat?

 

Looks great! Now let’s get it cluttered with 1125 smalls…

 

Well then...........I saw some threads on AS that were super helpful as well....and decided to take the plunge and put the bearings in today.

I think it went ok....except I guess I was a bit shy in the heating department. The laser thermo read 400F which I thought would be plenty hot. I used the yellow MAP gas torch.

Had the guiding pins just barely sticking out, had my socket and brass hammer ready (good thing I did that), and had the gasket in place after putting the flywheel bearing in. Had the balls pointing towards the center on the flywheel side and the opposite on the PTO side so that the groove that fits into the oil pump was on the right side (facing outward, thus balls facing outwards, and plastic towards the center).

I had to tap in both sides. After tapping in the flywheel side I push the crankshaft in there and gave it a few tappy taps with the brass hammer. I probably should have waited longer for the heat to soak into the bearing but I probably didn't heat up the case enough. Then put the gasket on and proceeded to install the PTO side. Had to tap that guy in with the socket as well. Then I slipped the cases together and gave just a few gentle taps before insert the 3 main screws + the 2 outside screws and pulling the cases together.

Gave each side of the crankshaft a tap to align as the shaft was tight......and as soon as I did that I was able to rotate freely.

Fingers crossed. I have to shave the excess gasket off where the jug sits and I guess one does the same to the exterior extra of the gasket.

Figured I'd let it cool down overnight (it's 8:35pm) and call it a day.

Flywheel side bearing to show which side I was going to install it.



PTO bearing. Prior to install.



This is the old oil pump I just temporarily installed to make sure the PTO bearing stops where it is supposed to. Man it took some damage. It's all scraped up as if chunks of something were being tossed around in there.





Here's one of the guiding pins just below one of the case screws. Took me a hot minute to straighten out my brain and eyeballs. Couldn't see the threaded holes with my glasses on.



Here's the other pin.



I hope I did it right. Feels pretty good. I just hope I didn't damage anything by tapping it in. It took a little bit of tappage and I kept moving the socket slightly so as not to beat down on any one side.

 

Here's a quick video I took post install.

 

One thing I did notice was that the flywheel bearing seemed to spin for a lot longer time right out of the package compared to the PTO side. I tried adding a drop of oil and while it made the flywheel side spin even longer, it didn't really help the PTO side. Is that normal?

 

Yep, normal. Some new bearings do that.

Looks good! As long as the case was hot and the bearings aren’t crooked, you’re good to go. Gently tap that shaft on both sides to find the “center” and relieve the load on the bearings. You’ll find the right spot.

Clean everything, rinse the case out with mixed gas if needed, use clean two stroke oil on the bearings and crankshaft. Get ready for seal install next.

 

Thanks. I will clean with mixed and blow it out with the compressor tomorrow and then get on with the seals.

I did gently tap the crank shaft on both ends as it was initially binding and feels nice and smooth now.

 

The flywheel side seal is pretty easy. Remove the key, grease/oil the seal lips and shaft, and put the optional sealant on the OD of the seal (I like Loctite 518 unless there’s damage on the case… then it gets Dirko or Hondabond).
The pto side requires a sleeve over the step of the crank. One could use electrical tape, plastic, film, or a piece of aluminum can. Washers/sockets are your friend for both sides. I like to use large washers until the seals are flush with the case (fw side) or bearing (pto side). I’ll then switch over to the appropriately sized socket and/or my Stihl install tools to send ‘em home.

 

Get blocks ready to support the case while installing the fw seal. The shaft protrudes out a bit.
Do you know approximate seal depth?

 

Thanks. Wait I don't get it - you need to put electrical tape there.......permanently? Or just for the installation? Will the seal not install with the tape/plastic/film/or aluminum can?

Yeah I have some scraps I can use to raise it up a bit.

I do not know the approximate seal depth. I have to watch some videos. But any advice is greatly appreciated. Thanks!

 

For example this guy doesn't use anything to install the seal (he actually pushed it to far the first time and had to get a new seal again).

Timestamped for the replacement seal install.

 

There’s a step on the crankshaft on the pto side. The tape/sleeve covers it temporarily. You slide the seal over everything, send it in, then carefully pull the tape or sleeve.

 

Don’t watch that guy unless you’re interested in what not to do.

 

So is that to prevent the rubber on the seal from perhaps getting stuck and/or ripped on the step of the crank?

I've learned quite a lot from watching what not to do from lots of people in person and online. What specific parts are you referring to in terms of what not to do in that particular video? Thanks.

And are you talking about wrapping electrical tape on the crank so it is level with this step?

 

He sent that seal in blind with no remedy for the step.

yep, that’s it. You’re correct… it will prolapse, rip, or lose the spring.

 

I got the seals in, piston rings, piston pin, circ-clips, cylinder, and oil pickup line installed today.

Also got the service manual and parts list for the 034 in the mail today. I figured it'd be a wise investment at $19. Of course I got it after I did all this work.

I cleaned out the crankfshaft housing with Motomix and kept pouring it back into the quart container and used it to clean everything.

I took my time with the seals and just tapped it real slow. Picked up a bottle of Stihl Ultra 2-stroke oil and lubed up the crankshaft bearings and the shaft itself prior to seal installation.

Lubed up the rings and piston before installing the rings. I made sure the orientation was correct for the tips of the rings and did my best to keep it centered around those bumps. Hard to tell if successful since you can't see anything once the jug is on there. I hope it's ok. Put some 2-stroke on the crankshaft needle bearing and the piston pin. The pin did not require me to tap it just slid right in. Is that normal?

It felt like the flywheel side seal took a bit more tappage to get in there. I removed the fw key prior to installing the seal.

The circlips for the piston were not fun to install. I ended up using a square head screwdrive to help push it in. I hope I did that right.

I used a little bit of blue loctite on the cylinder bolts.

Here's a quick video of me turning the flywheel and checking the piston out.

Up next I have to install the oil line to the pump, clean up the muffler a bit more and paint it, maybe open it up a little so it breathes better. Will put some pics of the inside of the muffler later.

 

Flipping through the service manual I see it mentions using the STIHL tool for installing the circlips.

I am wondering if it is worth $100 for you guys (huskihl BuckthornBonnie and others) to own. I don't plan on replacing too many pistons in my future....but if I had a constant stream of stuff to work on I might consider it.

Stihl Part # 5510 890 2210