lasmacgod
ArboristSite Operative
I have been lurking around here for a while, soaking up the knowledge. My grandfather and father ran a Stihl dealership years ago, so it goes without saying that I come from a Stihl family. My dad is still running his old 026, which was one of the first ones he got in when they first came out. I started out with a well worn 024, and upgraded to a 260 pro. A couple weeks ago, I got the itch for something new and based on everything I read here, I chose to give Husqvarna a try in the form of the legendary 346xp NE. I finally got time to run it this weekend, and must say I was a bit underwhelmed.
I mostly cut hedge (osage orange), mostly live but sometimes dead, cleaning up and side trimming hedge rows around fields. This weekend I chose to start breaking in the Husqvarna cleaning up trees in my father-in-law's pastures. The tree he pointed me to first was a still-standing dead tree, trunk about 20" diameter. We could not positively identify the tree, but it was definitely not as hard as hedge. My favorite chain for these cutting conditions is Stihl semi chisel non-safety chain, and I had the dealer make me three loops for for the Oregon Pro-Lite 16" bar. The chain is .325 pitch .050 gauge. I now have 5 tanks of fuel through the saw, felling, limbing, and bucking this tree. My 260 handled these conditions with no problem, even when new. Not as fast as a bigger saw maybe, but I never felt the need to buy a bigger saw for no more than I buck trees this size.
When running the 346, it ran great in wood up to 10" or so. Anything bigger, and it felt like the chain was perhaps too aggressive, as it felt like it was running great, keeping the revs up, when it felt like the chain would grab and stop the saw. Even the mere weight of the saw in the cut was too much, forcing me to bear part of the weight of the saw when bucking.
The chains were brand new, I had not touched them. I do not run dull chains - the second I stop getting good chips, I stop and swap chains. The chain is getting plenty of oil. The carburetor seems adjusted just a touch rich, but it mostly smooths out in the cut. The bucking was done on the last half of the 4th tank of fuel and the 5th tank.
Will the 346 get that much stronger with more run time, or am I just expecting too much? It easily outruns the 260 on the smaller stuff, but the 260 bucks handles the bigger stuff better. Should I instead look at a 555 or 562xp? I would like to keep the 346 and buy a 70cc saw, but that is just not an option for me. Sacrilege, I know. I know my cutting conditions are harsh, but because of that I could be accused of being overly meticulous about maintenance. I did sell the 260 already.
Oh, and please, no brand warfare. Thanks in advance for everybody's help!
I mostly cut hedge (osage orange), mostly live but sometimes dead, cleaning up and side trimming hedge rows around fields. This weekend I chose to start breaking in the Husqvarna cleaning up trees in my father-in-law's pastures. The tree he pointed me to first was a still-standing dead tree, trunk about 20" diameter. We could not positively identify the tree, but it was definitely not as hard as hedge. My favorite chain for these cutting conditions is Stihl semi chisel non-safety chain, and I had the dealer make me three loops for for the Oregon Pro-Lite 16" bar. The chain is .325 pitch .050 gauge. I now have 5 tanks of fuel through the saw, felling, limbing, and bucking this tree. My 260 handled these conditions with no problem, even when new. Not as fast as a bigger saw maybe, but I never felt the need to buy a bigger saw for no more than I buck trees this size.
When running the 346, it ran great in wood up to 10" or so. Anything bigger, and it felt like the chain was perhaps too aggressive, as it felt like it was running great, keeping the revs up, when it felt like the chain would grab and stop the saw. Even the mere weight of the saw in the cut was too much, forcing me to bear part of the weight of the saw when bucking.
The chains were brand new, I had not touched them. I do not run dull chains - the second I stop getting good chips, I stop and swap chains. The chain is getting plenty of oil. The carburetor seems adjusted just a touch rich, but it mostly smooths out in the cut. The bucking was done on the last half of the 4th tank of fuel and the 5th tank.
Will the 346 get that much stronger with more run time, or am I just expecting too much? It easily outruns the 260 on the smaller stuff, but the 260 bucks handles the bigger stuff better. Should I instead look at a 555 or 562xp? I would like to keep the 346 and buy a 70cc saw, but that is just not an option for me. Sacrilege, I know. I know my cutting conditions are harsh, but because of that I could be accused of being overly meticulous about maintenance. I did sell the 260 already.
Oh, and please, no brand warfare. Thanks in advance for everybody's help!
