Seen this on Feebay about 10 days ago,only the 2nd one I noticed in past 7-8 years or so.Auction ended Sunday night 11/13. My contact in Redding CA listed it,he mentioned something about it over the phone last Friday night but with family issues & work being hectic last week I just totally forgot about it.Glad I remembered to check the listings again. Late 60's VERY RARE McCulloch 54cc Chainsaw Generator arrived this afternoon.Used back in the day for jump starting various equipment especially on cold mornings,Caterpillar dozers,other machinery used in logging operations. Has both 12 volt & 24 volt capability,Seller didn't test the 24V however.Jumper cables are good,it starts like any other gas saw,produces a steady source of temporary power when needed.Has alternator & enclosed belt/pulleys. One of the more unusual & seldom seen items McCulloch made back in the day.Also they produced ''normal'' gas powered generators,water pumps,even an arc welder or two up until the late 70's-early 80's.Though Homelite was better known for their gas powered pumps,generators,concrete vibrators,pavement breakers & other non forestry/construction equipment,they are rarely seen today also.Magazine ads for such products are somewhat commonly found with a little searching however.
I think this would be awesome for jump starting dead cars at work!! At least fun!! Those new hand held jump start things that are like the size of a cell phone are probably more ideal.
Can you imagine what someone might think if they had never seen one of these before. "That guy is crazy, he is sticking a chainsaw in his engine!"
My Lear charger is pretty rough. I think they were originally equipped with the 7-10 power head, mine has been replaced with a 10-10 and is somewhat whimpy. Even so, the belt take a beating when it is in use. The 12/24 volt option is because they were designed for use in remote airports etc. so you could keep your Lear jet charged up and ready to go. I can't find the photos right now so you will have to take my word on it. I do have a couple other unusual McCulloch items like the Entwhistle modified 7-10/PM700 power head for a bomb hoist. I was also able to find one of the 170 welders. I have copies of some of the patents given to Robert V. Jackson, I never got to meet Bob but his son Mike has stopped to see me a couple of times and brought some other interesting McCulloch items. I have some other interesting McStuff as well. Mark
Before they were in the chainsaw business themselves, McCulloch was making engines for other chainsaw manufacturers and engines for drones for the WWII fighter pilots to practice on. I have not seen one personally, but the drones looked like this... There was a turbocharged 6 cylinder version that would apparently outperform the turbojets at high altitude. Mark
