Red stuff is probably locktite? or outside chance high temp RTV? Yes you occassionally have to tighten up loose mounting hardware After you get all the air out of the fuel system it will probably run like new?. Those are easy to work on and you have plenty of spare parts if you look out at the curve for discarded ones. Usually thats all they need good going over. I got several I pulled out of the trash, cleaned them up and sold them at garage sales. Got few more hanging around. I like the red ones, but several brands are the same.

1. "Should I use a gasket sealant on them or is this red stuff just a pre-applied sealer". My 1st guess would be a Hi-Heat Silicone/RTV, 2nd, Loctite if close to threads.

2. Will torque be a concern? I doubt you will strip the threads with a med ratchet snuging pattern. I tried a quick search of inch lb torque to compare your torque to with no luck.

A Good Project & Good Luck!! loger

Thanks for the input. Yes, that's exactly what it looks like, about an 1/8th inch wide bead of silicone around the openings. Torque specs are anywhere from 4 ft/lbs and up to 10 ft/lbs on the cyllinder head. Fortunately the parts diagrams I downloaded off the Homelite part supplier's website give the torque values for the items that need specific torque. Now I just have to go buy a few Torx head sockets to use on my torque wrench. I would have sworn I had a set of them, but all I can find are my standard sockets and Allen head sockets.

Please share the link to the torque specs. I would have guessed the small torques would have been given in inch lbs vs ft lbs.

Examples in your torque specs and my mid 70s Poulan S25 chainsaw major torques:

1. The only ft lbs torques = flywheel nut 13-15, spark plug 18-22, clutch hub 13-51.

2. Some inch lbs as crank case 55-60, connector rod 55-60, highest carb housing 80-90.

3. All others = low in lbs 20-30. 1/4" drive recommended for in lbs and 3/8" for ft lbs torque.

I thought these were interesting comparisons. VWs engines taught me to respect torque specs after rebuilding VWs about 15 yrs. I also made some good torque experiments as torquing a 26 ft lb head bolt before it stripped at about 75 ft lbs. Plus, I was not lucky on some "Real Life" snugging on some aluminum where "O" rings vs gaskets were involved. loger

Loger I was way off on my torque specs. I should know better than to rely on my memory for such things. Crankcase to cylinder assy. is 55-65 in/lbs, muffler is 50-60 in/lbs, etc. Here's the link to the parts supplier Homelite's website directs you to. Click the links on the right for Carburetor - fuel tank, Engine internal, etc for exploded diagrams with torque specs.

http://hcpi.arinet.com/scripts/EmpartISAPI.dll?MF

Hmmm, the link won't work. Well, here's the link to the main Homelite parts website.

http://www.homelite.com/service_support/order_parts

Spects are good and I hope that was a good catch. BUT! A good natural feel means a lot if you have some mechanical skills. When itâÂÂs tight itâÂÂs tight. Except compressing a gasket or crush washer vs an âÂÂOâ ring in a grove (a light seat of the metal "to-metal). Take Care! Loger

PS. If you d/n peek at the cyl through the mufflerâÂÂs exhaust port, I hope you find it in good condition.

Is been a long time since I've done much engine work of any kind, so whatever "feel" I had is long gone I'm afraid. Yes I did take a peek inside the cylinder, it looks fine.