16:1mix
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Some food for thought...
As I was reading a thread here concerning saw hp/lb I thought about the performance rating of modern saws in terms of hp/displacement. I'll use the Husqvarna 346xp for my example since it is a hot little saw for it's size. The Husky web site gives the 346xp a hp rating of 3.4 with a cylinder displacement of 2.7 cubic inches. That yields 1.26 hp per cubic inch. For contrast lets compare that performance level to that of some older machines. I fancy antique tractors, lets use a John Deere model "B" (circa 1942) for the first example. The "B" has 175 cubic inches of cylinder displacement and produces about 18 hp at 1000 RPM. This gives us .102 hp/cubic inch, a fraction of the performance of our little chain saw engine!
It took the auto industry until the mid 1950's to build an engine that would produce 1 hp/cubic inch. I believe it was the fuel injected Chevrolet Corvette with a 283 that cracked the record but I might be mistaken.Current passenger car and heavy truck engines that are in service today fall far below the level of performance that our favorite saws are operating at.
Sooooo, in conclusion....As a whole the chainsaw designers and engineers of all stripes have all done an excellent job in building high performance engines that have exceptional durability and light weight characteristics in a small, hand held package. If you fail to appreciate this then its time to run one of my vintage saws like the Mall or the David Bradley for a few hours! :greenchainsaw:
Enjoy!
opcorn:
dave
As I was reading a thread here concerning saw hp/lb I thought about the performance rating of modern saws in terms of hp/displacement. I'll use the Husqvarna 346xp for my example since it is a hot little saw for it's size. The Husky web site gives the 346xp a hp rating of 3.4 with a cylinder displacement of 2.7 cubic inches. That yields 1.26 hp per cubic inch. For contrast lets compare that performance level to that of some older machines. I fancy antique tractors, lets use a John Deere model "B" (circa 1942) for the first example. The "B" has 175 cubic inches of cylinder displacement and produces about 18 hp at 1000 RPM. This gives us .102 hp/cubic inch, a fraction of the performance of our little chain saw engine!
It took the auto industry until the mid 1950's to build an engine that would produce 1 hp/cubic inch. I believe it was the fuel injected Chevrolet Corvette with a 283 that cracked the record but I might be mistaken.Current passenger car and heavy truck engines that are in service today fall far below the level of performance that our favorite saws are operating at.
Sooooo, in conclusion....As a whole the chainsaw designers and engineers of all stripes have all done an excellent job in building high performance engines that have exceptional durability and light weight characteristics in a small, hand held package. If you fail to appreciate this then its time to run one of my vintage saws like the Mall or the David Bradley for a few hours! :greenchainsaw:
Enjoy!
opcorn:
dave
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