SawTroll
Information Collector
It is an old "homeowner class" design, with a power-band than is not good at all, by pro-saw standards of today - pure POS....:monkey: :monkey:
My new Husqvarna 346 XP NE arrived. Now I have questions...............
- Thread starter Frostbite
- Start date
Help Support Arborist Forum:
It is an old "homeowner class" design, with a power-band than is not good at all, by pro-saw standards of today - pure POS....:monkey: :monkey:
Sawtroll
as much as I respect and admire your knowledge and opinions about saws on this site. I must respectfully disagree on the 20" bar on the 346ne. Even though I've never run one my 353 woods ported husky runs great with a 20 incher with nk chain, and the 346ne stock would probably keep up with it.
I've come to love the nk chains for the smaller saws and even with the 20" bar they don't seem to cut much slower than the 16"
Thanks greg
as much as I respect and admire your knowledge and opinions about saws on this site. I must respectfully disagree on the 20" bar on the 346ne. Even though I've never run one my 353 woods ported husky runs great with a 20 incher with nk chain, and the 346ne stock would probably keep up with it.
I've come to love the nk chains for the smaller saws and even with the 20" bar they don't seem to cut much slower than the 16"
Thanks greg
SawTroll
Information Collector
I am sure it will run very well with a 20" bar and a .325x7/NK chain setup - but that is hardly the point with that saw.........
Last edited:
NYH1
Tacticle Chainsaw Operator.
Frostbite, congrats on your NE 346XP. I bought mine with a 16" bar and .325/.058 21LP (H21) chain. This combo just flat out rips. There are a lot of good 2 cycle oils out there. I've ran Husky XP, Amsoil Saber and now use Stihl HP Ultra oil. Bar oil, I use Stihl or Husky. 
Sawtroll
I guess I'm just older and dislike bending over anymore than necessary. True a 16" is more adept at limbing but the back will thank you for purchasing that 20 incher after a couple of hours.
Thanks greg
I guess I'm just older and dislike bending over anymore than necessary. True a 16" is more adept at limbing but the back will thank you for purchasing that 20 incher after a couple of hours.
Thanks greg
SawTroll
Information Collector
Not at all!!!!!
I am sure I have one of the worst backs on here, with several (5) disfigured joints in the lower back- but I rest the left elbo on the left knee/thigh - and suddenly there is no problem......:greenchainsaw:
aandabooks
Addicted to ArboristSite
SawTroll,
Wouldn't that posture leave you more prone to a kickback accident to the head because your not able to straighten the left arm? The only position my left elbow is in when cutting is locked out in front of me so I'm more ready to deal with kickback.
Just wondering as when I just tried it here in front of the computer, it seems like a very odd position.
Wouldn't that posture leave you more prone to a kickback accident to the head because your not able to straighten the left arm? The only position my left elbow is in when cutting is locked out in front of me so I'm more ready to deal with kickback.
Just wondering as when I just tried it here in front of the computer, it seems like a very odd position.
You want one too?
Only if I dont have to pay the Husky/Jred tax.... and buy an extra muffler....
GASoline71
Mr. Nice Guy
Where you live the 20" bar will be just fine... My Stihl 028 has a 20" bar and it works just fine...
I live on the West side of WA... where you at in Eastern WA...
Sawtroll cuts 10 inch trees and lives in a barbie townhouse somewhere in Norway... so his take on bar length and saw balance are a little "off"...
Gary
I live on the West side of WA... where you at in Eastern WA...
Sawtroll cuts 10 inch trees and lives in a barbie townhouse somewhere in Norway... so his take on bar length and saw balance are a little "off"...
Gary
Only if I dont have to pay the Husky/Jred tax.... and buy an extra muffler....
So the answer is yes, Ultra wants a NE346XP!
......
.......
......
Last edited:
Your chain is a .325 pitch Narrow Kerf chain, or as Husqvarna refers to it: a Pixel chain. Oregon 95VP is the same chain, it's actually Oregon that manufactures the H30 for Husqvarna. Don't change this unless you go for a shorter bar.
A NK chain is less wide than a traditional .325 pitch chain and since it takes narrower bites in the wood it requires less power from the saw to pull it. They are mostly used on smaller saws that are not that powerfull. An alternative setup is to use NK chains on bars that are at or beyond what the saw actually can handle (here's where you're at).
The reason for the raising of eyebrows is that the 346 is a speed racer for fast cuts in small dimension wood, and if your permanent need was a 20" bar, you should have considered getting a 357. Now, since you use NK chain it'll probably be fine, just not awesome&fantastic.
If you want to change chain you need to match the following:
First: The drive sprocket (spur sprocket or rim) on your clutch drum must match the pitch of your chains, as must the sprocket tip of your bar, unless it is a hard nose that has no nose sprocket. Pitches you might find is 3/8 low profile, .325 and 3/8. There's also 1/4, .404 and 1/2, but they are for special applications, or at least not considered common for chain saws today.
Notice that .325 and .325NK should be considered incompatible even though they might mix - leave for the experienced operator to test - and that 3/8 low profile and 3/8 really are incompatible.
Second: The gauge of your chain must match the gauge on your bar. Common gauges are: .043, .050, .058 and .063. Stihl uses all of them, Husqvarna does not use the smallest. No gauge is better or worse, they are just different because of culture and habits in different areas and countries. Also note that even if all Husqvarna/Oregon NK chains/bars is .050 gauge, not all .050 gauge is NK!
The drive and nose sprockets does not care what gauge you use, change as you please.
Now, if you want 3/8 chain on your 346 you will have to change drive sprocket, bar and of course chain, and I don't think even the most die-hard-long-bar-users will say that 3/8 will work well on a 346 with a 20", so the bar would have to be shorter.
Last edited:
Is this just because of the width (nk bar not supporting wide chain as well, or full width bar getting pinched with nk chain), or is there another issue?
What's incompatible besides the fact that a LP chaincatcher might not leave room for full 3/8? I thought that both 3/8 and LP were .368-.369 pitch.
Mitch.
it might rabbit, it might.
<object width="425" height="344"><param name="movie" value="http://www.youtube.com/v/_6KUyxCfxY0&hl=en&fs=1"></param><param name="allowFullScreen" value="true"></param><embed src="http://www.youtube.com/v/_6KUyxCfxY0&hl=en&fs=1" type="application/x-shockwave-flash" allowfullscreen="true" width="425" height="344"></embed></object>
that only works if you knee is 12" off the ground or less.
:censored:
:greenchainsaw:
oops. sooorry, dont know how that one snuck in there.
:hmm3grin2orange:
So the answer is yes, Ultra wants a NE346XP!
......
Nope....Mine would have to be red and black.........Them orange ones dont look good after sitting in the sun......Husky has a big problem with there saws looking like a burnt orange,.,,,,I do have a few like that and it sucks...
ps......I was going to get one when they came out ...just still cant justify the extra cost for a limbing saw......I cut firewood and the 5100's are great at that......I still own my Zebra and its a high/breed 2149/346............
Last edited:
Yes, first options, no other issues:
My opinion is that the NK chain does not cut a kerf wide enough for a non-NK bar, and that the non-NK chain might not get good enough support with a NK bar. While it might work, at least for a while when the stuff are new, I don't think it's worth it. Buy and use things that are made to work together. If you're seasoned user, sure go ahead and try, but if you're new to saws just consider them incompatible.
As you know 3/8 is the distance between three contiguous rivets on the chain divided by 2. This measure is the same between standard 3/8 and low profile 3/8.
But the difference lies in that the chassis of the two are different; the low profile is all around smaller, except for the length. Say that you form two perfect circles, one from a standard, and one from a low profile 3/8 chain, each with identical drive link count. Then measure the inner and outer diameter of the two circles on the chassis. However little, there will be a difference between the two chains.
>>>>>
EDIT:
Typing fast, thinking fast, not having intracommunication between activities activated though...
Not diameter, circumreference is what I meant. While the diameter also should differ, if ever so little, it's with the circumreference that the incompatibilities gets explained the best.
<<<<<
Now, If you're using a rim setup, then the chain rides the rim on the chassis and you will experience strange behavior, like noise and wear. With a spur sprocket the chain rides on the drive tangs, and that those are different can be easily spotted if you just take a look at them side by side. This have been tried by people over in the milling forum, so the theory is backed up by real world tests.
To bad, it would have been great to be able to use low profile for milling without having to change set-up.
Last edited:
Frostbite
ArboristSite Lurker
Admittedly it doesn't take much, but you guys are quickly getting over my head in the great chain debate.:newbie:
Maybe I'm not a newbie but, more of an occassional saw user now that I switched to burning wood pellets for heat (other than my shop) vs. logs now. I bought my first saw (my Rancher 61) in September of 1983 and it still runs strong so I must have done something right?
My main question is: I plan to buy several replacement chains for the saw. Should I stick with the stock Husqvarna H30/Oregon 95VP 325 .050"/1.3mm or move to another type of chain with perhaps better performance?
What about this .325 / .058" 21 LP H21 chain?
or
The .325 X 7?
I live west of Spokane (Cheney/Medical Lake area) of eastern Washington (near northern Idaho) and cut almost exclusively softwood. Ponderosa pine, white fir, western larch (tamarack), cedar, aspen, etc. There may be the odd birch once in a great while but that's about as hard of a wood as this new saw will get to sink its teeth into. Is there a chain more appropriately suited for softwoods? Can I get away with a little more agressive chain since I will be cutting softwoods only?
I clear a lot of trails and I will rarely need the full length on my 20" bar but, when I will need it, I must have it. So other than carrying two saws (which is not an option) I need a light saw capable of cutting up the occasional large tree. Most of the stuff I cut will be smaller (tailor made for this saw) but occasionally the bar end won't be seeing the light of day.
Thanks again
Frosty
Maybe I'm not a newbie but, more of an occassional saw user now that I switched to burning wood pellets for heat (other than my shop) vs. logs now. I bought my first saw (my Rancher 61) in September of 1983 and it still runs strong so I must have done something right?
My main question is: I plan to buy several replacement chains for the saw. Should I stick with the stock Husqvarna H30/Oregon 95VP 325 .050"/1.3mm or move to another type of chain with perhaps better performance?
What about this .325 / .058" 21 LP H21 chain?
or
The .325 X 7?
I live west of Spokane (Cheney/Medical Lake area) of eastern Washington (near northern Idaho) and cut almost exclusively softwood. Ponderosa pine, white fir, western larch (tamarack), cedar, aspen, etc. There may be the odd birch once in a great while but that's about as hard of a wood as this new saw will get to sink its teeth into. Is there a chain more appropriately suited for softwoods? Can I get away with a little more agressive chain since I will be cutting softwoods only?
I clear a lot of trails and I will rarely need the full length on my 20" bar but, when I will need it, I must have it. So other than carrying two saws (which is not an option) I need a light saw capable of cutting up the occasional large tree. Most of the stuff I cut will be smaller (tailor made for this saw) but occasionally the bar end won't be seeing the light of day.
Thanks again
Frosty
excess650
Addicted to ArboristSite
Nice dolls from your collection, wanab. Have you and SlowP ever gotten together to compare?
opcorn:
Last edited:
parrisw
Tree Freak
Thats the excact chain I use on my 345 with 18" bar, and it cuts awesome. I know Sawtroll wouldn't approve of a 18" bar on a 345, but trust me it has no trouble pulling it at all, even with the bar burried, you just cant dawg it in too heavy. Keep it sharp. The 21LP is a nice chain.
