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Definatly.........
husqvarna 268 questions
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The 268 XP "Special" I have here is a strong runner. I've ran it side by side with a friend of mines 272XP and you can't tell any difference, matter of fact I think mines a tad stronger. I put a tach on it once after tuning it and it "four strokes" nicely at 13,700rpms and is stone stock everyplace.......Cliff
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I don't doubt that Cliff......the closed port 268XP saws were real strong out of the box....272 are too but the engineering is different. The 268 is just a more highly refined intake system ...as in porting. The 272 has transfer ports more like the old 266xp......as I said earlier the later 670 Super II/Champ and the 268 XP cyls are identical except for the impulse/intake method. Both real factory screamers.....and there's much more to get with a little work which makes them about 30-40% more powerful. I ported mine for torque so didn't pick up a ton of RPM and then I reduced the squish to 0.020", and man...it looses very little rpm in the cut......I run a 20" B&C and it'll do a ton of work in a short time!!!!
I have no want or need to port mine or to reduce "squish" distance. It's already a huge PITA to start (no compression release) as it has over 170psi cranking pressure. Had the muffler off once, P/C is mint condition. I haven't used the saw much in the past few years, bought an Echo CS-600P and CS-590 and beating them to death instead. The Echo's are better suited to the type of work I do here, cutting up tops left over from logging operations, although I've got scores of HUGE dead Ash trees to deal with this year. I was going to leave the Ash trees as they are pretty much standing firewood, but big limbs are starting to fall out of them and I don't want to be walking with my 3 year old grand daughter and the dogs and have one come down on us. Just the other day we were building a bridge across a creek to access the other side for firewood and the next morning when we returned to finish the job there was a HUGE Ash limb laying right across the bridge we'd been working on. That did it for me, took down a dozen Ash yesterday and going after the rest of them this weekend.
Anyhow, I'd add here that my 268XP is better suited for big work, as it is happiest with a 20" bar completely buried in hardwood. It has a someplace "narrow" power curve, absolutely LOVES to run at really high RPM's and you have to keep it up there as the power (torque) curve is concentrated in the upper mid-range and top end. It doesn't "grunt" all that well and not happy when the RPM's fall out of where it makes it's best power. Not trying to make a negative comment about it, but it's a "race horse" and loves to run, not really happy doing anything else........Cliff
Anyhow, I'd add here that my 268XP is better suited for big work, as it is happiest with a 20" bar completely buried in hardwood. It has a someplace "narrow" power curve, absolutely LOVES to run at really high RPM's and you have to keep it up there as the power (torque) curve is concentrated in the upper mid-range and top end. It doesn't "grunt" all that well and not happy when the RPM's fall out of where it makes it's best power. Not trying to make a negative comment about it, but it's a "race horse" and loves to run, not really happy doing anything else........Cliff
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Yes they do like to run!! As I said most of the work I did when I built mine was an effort to increase torque and spread it out in all rpm rather than to gain a lot of rpm at the very top end. Mine starts pretty easy....3-4 pulls cold so it doesn't bother me to much. I am used to starting my older Jonsereds like the 80 which is bone stock and carries 238 lbs of compression.....so my 61/268xp at around 200 is not a problem. I've got about 5 yrs on this saw since I built it.....runs the same as it ever did but I think before winter it'll be time to put a new kit in the carb......been acting a tad funny the last few times I warmed it up in good shape.
