My Pop's 1979 Husqvarna 480 CD Chainsaw

heirloomtomaguy · March 19, 2016

So several years ago my Dad gave me one of his most prized possession.......his chainsaw. Let me give yall a little back story. The year is 1978 and im not even a twinkle in my parents eye yet. An ad comes out in a magazine and it features this 1979 Husqvarna 480 CD. My Dad cuts out this ad and carries it everywhere with him telling everyone he knows that someday he will own this saw. He shows it to his girlfriend (my Mom) and literally drools over it while he is explaining to her how awesome it is. Of course she could care less at the time but realized how much this saw meant to him and his firewood business. Being the awesome girlfriend that she was, she gets a second job and secretly saves every penny she earns until she has 639.00 bucks to buy this beast. They take a trip from their home in Mammoth Lakes, CA to Reno, NV. They are cruising down the road and she sees a Husqvarna authorized dealer. She proceeds to tell him how interested she is in seeing the saw that he cares so much about. Of course he rips into the dealer, runs in the building, and grabs the saw he desires so much. After explaining every little detail and again showing her the ad he carrys everywhere with him, he sadly sets down the saw and they go to leave. Thats when my Mom say no wait dont put it down im buying it for you and breaks out the 639.00 bucks. With a stupid look on his face he darn near breaks into tears and finally his dream comes true. The End.
Now i know that story was wordy and a bit dramatic but this chainsaw earned my Dad the extra money to feed us, cloth us and even to buy us braces for our teeth. This saw ran more than Forrest Gump. It meant the world to him and it means the world to me. I learned how to cut when i was just a kid with an axe, a sledge hammer and wedges, and this saw. Not many worldly things matter to me but this saw is one of them. He went home to the Lord a couple years back and ever since then i have constantly been meaning to rebuild this saw. I finally bought the rebuild kit and with my 5 year old sons help we made it new again today. Someday it will be his. And did i mention after sitting for 15 years and being completely torn down it started on the 8th pull. Anyway here are a couple pics of the process.

Hellmanns · March 19, 2016

That's great! I'm sentimental to old tools too. Motorised, mechanical, or simple hand tools..

heirloomtomaguy · March 19, 2016

I rebuild Husky chopsaws at work alot and i can tell you there not made like they once were. This old boy was made of quality parts. Not one scratch on the piston or cylinder head. Looked like the day it was bought.

Worth1 · March 19, 2016

Cool story.

I love my saw I have had it for many years and it has never let me down.

Worth

PhilaGardener · March 19, 2016

Great story! They really don't make them like they used to! Looks like it has a lot more sawing in it!

pauldavid · March 20, 2016

Awesome story! Glad you rebuilt it and it looks great. I appreciate a good saw, grew up cutting firewood too.

PureHarvest · March 20, 2016

Thank you for that HTG.

taboule · March 20, 2016

Thanks for the touching story HTG.

The last pic shows an Echo for comparison. Are the two makes related? I have a 20+ year small Echo that seems very well built.

Ricky Shaw · March 20, 2016

Good thread and good story HTG.

wildcat62 · March 20, 2016

Great story.

heirloomtomaguy · March 20, 2016

Quote:

Originally Posted by taboule

Thanks for the touching story HTG.

The last pic shows an Echo for comparison. Are the two makes related? I have a 20+ year small Echo that seems very well built.

No they are not related but Echo is another good saw brand.

Worth1 · March 20, 2016

Quote:

Originally Posted by heirloomtomaguy

No they are not related but Echo is another good saw brand.

We have an Auto Supply store here in town that is a dealer for Echo and Stihl products.
The Home Depot had Echo that looked different than the dealer stuff.
My chain saw is an older Poulan from the mid 90's, 3.7 CC they dont make it anymore.
People say they are junk but mine will run like the devil and cut through anything very fast.

I also have a weed whacker and a pole saw made by Echo I bought from the dealer at the auto supply store.
Some people here in town hate the place and say they are mean local snobs.
One guy was just telling me this the other day.
I told him they treated me great and I could have the run of the place and go back in areas customers weren't allowed to look for stuff.
Even take stuff outside to compare.
The guy was flabbergasted.

I think it might be the, "howdy how are yall doing, when I come in that make's the difference and being polite.

I also buy my saw oil from them instead of the big box store.

Al I can say is if you take care of this stuff it will serve you for many years.
All of my stuff is running on the third or fourth pull of the cord after it has sat for a few months.
Worth

Dutch · March 20, 2016

Hi Heirloomtomaguy,

Thank you for the heart warming story.

You've made my morning brighter.

Thanks again!
Dutch

kameronth · April 5, 2016

Great story and nice saw! We don't have many trees up here in ND so I don't have a motorized saw. The saying is, "A beautiful girl is hidden behind every tree in North Dakota".

I do have a Toro snow blower from the early 80's though!

**carolyn137** · April 5, 2016

And I have a Mantis tiller,with attachments from about 1983 that still works fine,so my brother tellsme,it needed a few replacement parts and my brother did that for me. I think it had an Echo motor and I had packets of oil that had to be added to the gasoline.

I also have several tool chests of my fathers from who knows how old,and don't even ask me what's in there,but one time when my brother was here,he went to two of them , out in the tool shed which is attached to the house with electricity and lights in there,to find,is it called a rachet plier,that would do what needed to be done. There were many of them with different heads,if you will.

Carolyn

March 19, 2016	#3
heirloomtomaguy Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2013 Location: glendora ca Posts: 2,560	I rebuild Husky chopsaws at work alot and i can tell you there not made like they once were. This old boy was made of quality parts. Not one scratch on the piston or cylinder head. Looked like the day it was bought. __________________ “Enter by the narrow gate; for wide is the gate and broad is the way that leads to destruction, and there are many who go in by it. Because narrow is the gate and difficult is the way which leads to life, and there are few who find it." Last edited by heirloomtomaguy; March 20, 2016 at 12:33 AM.

March 20, 2016	#13
Dutch Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2011 Location: S.E. Wisconsin Zone 5b Posts: 1,831	Hi Heirloomtomaguy, Thank you for the heart warming story. You've made my morning brighter. Thanks again! Dutch __________________ "Discretion is the better part of valor" Charles Churchill The intuitive mind is a gift, and the rational mind is a faithful servant. But we have created a society that honors the servant and has forgotten the gift. (paraphrased) Albert Einstein I come from a long line of sod busters, spanning back several centuries.

April 5, 2016	#15
carolyn137 Moderator Emeritus Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Upstate NY, zone 4b/5a Posts: 21,169	And I have a Mantis tiller,with attachments from about 1983 that still works fine,so my brother tellsme,it needed a few replacement parts and my brother did that for me. I think it had an Echo motor and I had packets of oil that had to be added to the gasoline. I also have several tool chests of my fathers from who knows how old,and don't even ask me what's in there,but one time when my brother was here,he went to two of them , out in the tool shed which is attached to the house with electricity and lights in there,to find,is it called a rachet plier,that would do what needed to be done. There were many of them with different heads,if you will. Carolyn __________________ Carolyn

March 19, 2016	#2
Hellmanns Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jul 2014 Location: kentucky Posts: 1,116	That's great! I'm sentimental to old tools too. Motorised, mechanical, or simple hand tools..

March 19, 2016	#4
Worth1 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Den of Drunken Fools Posts: 38,539	Cool story. I love my saw I have had it for many years and it has never let me down. Worth

March 19, 2016	#5
PhilaGardener Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2014 Location: Near Philadelphia, PA Posts: 1,940	Great story! They really don't make them like they used to! Looks like it has a lot more sawing in it!

March 20, 2016	#6
pauldavid Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2015 Location: NE Louisiana, Zone 8A Posts: 1,179	Awesome story! Glad you rebuilt it and it looks great. I appreciate a good saw, grew up cutting firewood too.

March 20, 2016	#7
PureHarvest Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2014 Location: Mid-Atlantic right on the line of Zone 7a and 7b Posts: 1,369	Thank you for that HTG.

March 20, 2016	#8
taboule Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jul 2013 Location: MA Posts: 903	Thanks for the touching story HTG. The last pic shows an Echo for comparison. Are the two makes related? I have a 20+ year small Echo that seems very well built.

March 20, 2016	#9
Ricky Shaw Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Aug 2015 Location: Zone 6a Denver North Metro Posts: 1,910	Good thread and good story HTG.

March 20, 2016	#10
wildcat62 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: May 2014 Location: Zone 6 Northern Kentucky Posts: 1,094	Great story.

April 5, 2016	#14
kameronth Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Feb 2016 Location: North Dakota Posts: 111	Great story and nice saw! We don't have many trees up here in ND so I don't have a motorized saw. The saying is, "A beautiful girl is hidden behind every tree in North Dakota". I do have a Toro snow blower from the early 80's though!