Husqvarna 268XP Special Questions

[bushwacked]

Hello All,
I’ve had a Husqvarna 268XP Special for several years now, which I purchased from the widow of the original owner a while back. The saw didn’t run when I got it, but after replacing the carb and some other odds and ends (fuel filter, fuel line, spark plug, air filter, etc.) it ran well for many seasons. Fast forward to yesterday and it will not start now. I should add that I drained the fuel out and ran it dry at the end of last season. Anyway, I can’t get the thing to start for the life of me. I tried cleaning the aftermarket knockoff carb to no avail. I am now going to replace that with a new OEM Tillotson. Hopefully that does it. My question is about the saw’s worth. I’m not sure if the year, but the serial# is 0350236. I assume that it means the saw is a late 2003 model. The compression is 135 psi. I’m convinced that something is problematic with the aftermarket carb and that I’ll have it purring once the new Tillotson HS260A arrives. Assuming I do, what’s this machine worth? Thanks in advance for any insight!

 

[cscltd]

Aftermarket saw carbs rarely work imo
I think it is a 1990 model made in week 35 going by ser#
I don’t think 268 were made up to 2000 year?

 

[bushwacked]

Aftermarket saw carbs rarely work imo
I think it is a 1990 model made in week 35 going by ser#
I don’t think 268 were made up to 2000 year?

You’re probably correct about the manufacture date and the carb issue. I should also ask what fuel I should be using. I’ve always run the Husqvarna premixed 50:1 fuel, but maybe that isn’t the right stuff for this old saw.

 

[bushwacked]

Update: the fuel vent plug was completely blocked causing the excessive fuel tank pressure to flood the cylinder. This explains why the spark plug was always soaked with fuel each time I checked it. The beast is back to running strong. Now I can go to sleep. It’s small engine issues like this that somehow cause me to lose sleep! I would still live to know what you fellas think it’s worth. It has a 24” husky bar on it.

 

[cscltd]

I have not seen a problem with premixed fuel in the old girls.

 

[J D]

The tank vent is there to allow air back into the tank as fuel is used. Unless for some reason tank pressure was getting up over about 15psi the flooding problem was carb related (probably the needle valve)

 

[Cliff R]

You are lucky it ran for a few minutes let alone a few seasons with one of those POS aftermarket Tillotson clone carburetors on it.

I have the same saw and still using the original Tillotson carb on it. It's got some wear on the bore where the needle sits so requires a float setting pretty far off what is recommended to work well.

Original carbs are difficult to find and a tad expensive but I was able to locate one about a year ago and put it on the shelf for when the original finally takes a dump.

135psi is a tad "low" for compression. Mine is closer to 170psi and most of the ones I've worked on over the years were up there pretty high as well........

 

[ray benson]

Aftermarket saw carbs rarely work imo
I think it is a 1990 model made in week 35 going by ser#
I don’t think 268 were made up to 2000 year?

You’re probably correct about the manufacture date and the carb issue. I should also ask what fuel I should be using. I’ve always run the Husqvarna premixed 50:1 fuel, but maybe that isn’t the right stuff for this old saw.

Barretts chainsaws has a great selection of Husqvarna ipls and lists the 268 as:
First production year: 1987
Last production year: 1997

 

[bushwacked]

Thanks for all the info fellas. I got the new Tillotson carb yesterday, but will wait to install it till after the aftermarket one fails. What should I do about the low compression?

 

[Cliff R]

I wouldn't do much more than to pull the muffler and inspect the exhaust side of the piston/rings. Your compression is OK, just low for one of those models with the Closed Port P/C.

Don't rule out the tester, some don't work as well as others and can show low readings.

Anyhow, if it looks good there no reason to go any further with it. If it shows any damage, scored piston, aluminum smeared over the rings, etc, it would be worthwhile to pull the P/C and clean it up and see how that goes. You may get away with just a ring replacement at that point. Not sure if any OEM P/C's are available for them these days. I'm NOT a big fan of any of the aftermarket stuff and avoid it whenever possible........

 

[jakethesnake]

As clean as that saw is it might not even be broken in yet. It hasn’t done much work


I could be wrong but I can’t run a couple seasons and keep a saw that clean. It’s worth quite a bit for a collector. High end 5-600$

I wouldn’t pay that much because I have a fleet of 272xp. But 400 would sell pretty quick