Just got the 261/262xp that Tim(killiansredleo) posted in the classifieds. He does fine work and is a fine person. Excellent customer service and a joy to talk to. If you want a saw he is selling, buy with confidence. I've been after a 200 series saw and got a good one
Great saw . Im thinking of converting my recently purchased 261 the same way !!! Enjoy...and dont forget to let us know how great it runs !!!
Hey, Fuzz, if you are going to convert a 261 to a 262, I posted a tutorial on everything you need to do. It is on here somewhere, the saw in the tutorial is the exact same saw Cory@owen purchased. There is a pretty slick way to dual port the muffler that uses all OEM parts to complete and when done looks like it came out of the factory!
The factory used two different thickness base gaskets on the 262XP. They actually used two gaskets with certain C/P combinations. If you are going to convert a 261 to a 262 you should order a couple of each gasket, that way you can mix/match gaskets to get the squish as close to the 0.020-0.024 range. There are no differences between the 261 and 262 cylinders they are exactly the same. The pistons are different 261=dished, 262=flat top. So if your cylinder is good you only need the piston. Other differences are clutch and muffler.
OBTW, there isn't much in the area of porting that can be done on a 262XP. It is, well it was the first factory produced 'Hot Rod' saw! No EPA caca, and very high compression for a factory saw. I suppose given enough squish you could nix the base gasket.
Thanks for the great info !! Maybe this winter Ill drive 3 hours your way....and learn how to do it the right way ! If you dont mind teaching a pin head like me
Not a problem at all! I believe you are always better off knowing how to do something than standing on the sidelines watching or worse yet sending it off to someone else, that is worse thn watching. There are exceptions to that, like when it takes 10K$ in equipment and 25 years experience to do a $40 job. The tutorial was written for the average person with a basic set of tools and some knowledge of his/her chainsaw.
OBTW, there is a complete list of parts needed for the conversion, part numbers, approximate costs and sources in the appendix of the tutorial.
I would add my two "Worksaws" to the exception list. Years of experience and a stellar reputation were well worth what I paid to have them done. I am quite capable mechanically but have a little ways to go before I can do work on that level. I like your style tho KRL. A refreshing alternative to the grinder craze that seems to be happening these days. And yea, anybody with a pocket full of tools and an ounce of ability should be able to follow your builds.