My first Husqvarna--445 w/ 16" bar

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gee_dubya75

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Well I bought my first Husqvarna and it arrived today. I already had a HD Makita 6401 and an MS 361 (muff modded) and I wanted something around 10 pounds for limbing and cutting smaller stuff. I considered the MS 260 pro but didn't want to spend that much right now. I know you get what you pay for but I don't even burn wood :dizzy:

I just love cutting and splitting wood so I help a buddy of mine who is getting older and having a hard time keeping up with the wood cutting. He has a Husqvara 141 and liked the feel of that and I just wanted a Husky this time.

Well I started looking around and reading reviews and felt that the 445 fit the bill. Well now I had to find the best deal and I think I did ok. I ended up paying $222.39 (tax and shipping included). It just so happens that Sears.com was running a special ($50 off the normal price), and extended their employee 10% discount to everyone, and I found a coupon code for $5 off shipping. That brought the total down to around $264 if I remember correctly. I placed the order didn't ship and didn't ship and basically I was given the run around until one day when I received an email saying that the order was 'stuck' and would be cancelled.

So I called and asked what's the deal, the customer service rep was very helpful (this time) and could see every time I called and recognized that the issue was not handled very well so she gave me an additional 10% off and free shipping :clap:

Here are some pictures:

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A new saw needs to run a little rich

I agree with Mike F, a saw need to burble/4 stroke WOT out of cut & then make max power in the cut.
I bought a 435 after last years ice storm, it was set a little lean.
There is a tool for the splined jet screw adjustment, and other methods will
work too.
 
Thanks for the suggestion about adjusting the carb settings. I know about the splined carb tool and my local saw shop said that he would order one for me, but suggested I wait until he had a full order so I don't have to pay for shipping that item alone.

I might try to use a piece of rubber tubing to richen up the H jet before I run it. Someone mentioned in one of the threads that you can force the right size tubing over the 'screw' and get it to turn.

Does the 445 have a cat muffler? Also, what size allen wrench does it take to get the muffler off?
 
Oh man !! i wish i had known...
i sold one this mornin..
three tanks thru it,NON strato.,,muff modded,carb limiters gone and tuned.. $175..

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Muffler mod

When you get the muffler off you will see it is just a can muffler with no baffles. The mounting bolts go to the bottom of the two tubes that run through the muffler - those tubes make a great 'stealth' muffler mod.

Position a drill in line with the tube and drill a small hole on each side, just behind the seam of the muffler. Sharpen a nail and punch a starting point for a small drill, then open up the side of the tube (a Dremel bit works well) so that the area is larger than the opening in the front of the muffler. Shine a light down the inside of the tube to see how your going. Braze shut, or put a patch, over the hole on the outside of the muffler body - you won't be able to see the mod when the muffler is on the saw.

By putting the hole in the tube on the side opposite to the exhaust port the sonic wave can't go directly into the tube and make the muffler overly loud.

You can also open up the deflector a bit and drill out the back of the area inside the deflector. The combination will open up the muffler quite well without making it loud. You can put the spark screen on and it looks stock.
 
445

I hope that you enjoy your 445. I know that I do.Your local Husky dealer will order you the carburetor tool.$3.58 is what it cost me.I did not use the saw for any length of time as it was way to lean on the high side.I also tossed out the stock chain and ordered a new .58 gauge bar. The reason for this is my other Husky's have this gauge. I put on a arbor pro 325 pitch, .058 gauge 16 BC. and this saw thinks it is on steroids.I would not go over 16 inches on the bar. I would not do a muffler mod as this will send your warranty down the Lou.
 
A couple points from one new Husky owner to another:

1. I made my own carb adjustment tool by getting some small diameter copper tubing. I heated the end up until it began to discolor, then gently pressed it over the splined screw head. It works perfectly!

2. The stock chain on mine was very "jumpy". A quick touch up with a file did wonders for cutting efficiency.

Congrats on the new saw!
 
Shifty eyed,

Do you recall what diameter copper tube you used?

I'd like to start running this saw a lot but won't until I have the carb tuned properly. So either I have to wait until my dealer gets me the splined tool or make my own.

Also, how difficult is it to remove the limiter tabs on this saw? Do you have to remove the carb to get at them?
 
Shifty eyed,

Do you recall what diameter copper tube you used?

I'd like to start running this saw a lot but won't until I have the carb tuned properly. So either I have to wait until my dealer gets me the splined tool or make my own.

I believe it was 1/8", but I'm not 100% certain.

Now that I think about it, I'm not sure you can readily get copper tubing much smaller.
 
I just called my repair guy and my splined carb tool is in. Unfortunately I'll be out of town for the next couple of days so I'll have to wait until Thursday to run the saw again.

Does the 445 have carb limiter caps or does Husqvarna rely on the splined screws to keep people from adjusting them?
 
I just called my repair guy and my splined carb tool is in. Unfortunately I'll be out of town for the next couple of days so I'll have to wait until Thursday to run the saw again.

Does the 445 have carb limiter caps or does Husqvarna rely on the splined screws to keep people from adjusting them?

The Husky 445 has splined L and H screws with no limiter caps. Check the max RPM with a tach when tuning the carb. It might have to be richened up as it is broken in.

I really like my 445. A mild muff mod really woke that saw up. I removed the muffler screen. I spread the deflector opening wider, inserted a dremel cutter thru the widened deflector opening, reamed the small hole underneath the muffler screen into a bigger hole and reinstalled the muffler screen. A muff mod will require a richer carb setting.
 
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I'm planning on performing a muffler mod on this saw at some point and was wondering if anyone has done any timed testing before and after the muffler mod. If not, I might give it a go--I'll try to shoot some video and post it in this thread after I have a chance to properly break it in.

Can you open up the area under the spark arrestor screen enough to make a difference on this muffler or do you have to add another hole somewhere?
 
I'm planning on performing a muffler mod on this saw at some point and was wondering if anyone has done any timed testing before and after the muffler mod. If not, I might give it a go--I'll try to shoot some video and post it in this thread after I have a chance to properly break it in.

Can you open up the area under the spark arrestor screen enough to make a difference on this muffler or do you have to add another hole somewhere?

The modified 445 that I saw was opened up along the indentations of the top of the muffler. Like this:

101_2302.jpg
 
Oh man !! i wish i had known...
i sold one this mornin..
three tanks thru it,NON strato.,,muff modded,carb limiters gone and tuned.. $175..

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HUH????

There are no non-strato 445s - that model is a strato design from the outset!
 
I'm planning on performing a muffler mod on this saw at some point and was wondering if anyone has done any timed testing before and after the muffler mod. If not, I might give it a go--I'll try to shoot some video and post it in this thread after I have a chance to properly break it in.

Can you open up the area under the spark arrestor screen enough to make a difference on this muffler or do you have to add another hole somewhere?

Heck ya!!!! The tiny hole below the screen can be widened almost as big as the muffler screen. This hole widened to 1/2 to 5/8 inch in diameter gave an increase of 1,000 RPM.

There is a point of diminishing returns for such a small engine.

More holes than the above will bypass the muffler screen. Fire Protection may outlaw you from cutting outdoors without a muffler screen. You will be billed for the full cost of fighting the wildfire caused by your lack of a muffler screen. You might also be fined and prosecuted. Are you willing to play Russian Roulette?
 

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