Husqvarna 455 Rancher

[Trailtrimmer]

In my opinion if your going to be using a 24" bar you need to step it up and get the 365/372

I'm starting to lean towards 346 w20" or 365w 24".

Lean away from a 346 with a 20" bar, it works best with a 16" or 18".

Personally, I wouldn't even consider a 50cc saw if I were going out to fell trees and make money when all I have is a climbing/limbing saw. A 50CC will be worked beyond it's design when you have to buck up large trunks to earn your pay check. A 60CC running a 18" with optional 24" or a 70cc running a 20" with optional 28" would be my route of choice.

There are some smart folks on this board pushing you toward a 65/70CC saw for a reason.

 

[ethan1]

Fwiw

I had a 455 for about 29 days. I dropped and bucked about 4 cord of Ponderosa Pine with it. I returned it because I was not supremely happy with its performance. While a fine saw, I felt there were better alternatives for the same price or relatively little more. You can always do what I did, buy it, try it, if you don't like it... take it back (covered in saw dust and bar oil of course:wink2 If this saw that you plan to buy will be your workhorse for felling and bucking, I really think you would be better off (and happier) with a larger displacement higher quality unit. I ended up buying a used 555, and it is great, while only 4cc's greater displacement it is lighter and more powerful. I run it with a 20" B&C most of the time but have a 24" I can throw on if necessary.

 

[nmurph]

Lean away from a 346 with a 20" bar, it works best with a 16" or 18".

A muffler modded 346 will pull a 20" .325 bar/chain just fine. Think about it this way: it starts out at 3.7 hp and then adding even a 10% increase for the MM pushes it past 4 hp.

I modded the very first 346 I ever bought within 10 minutes of getting it out of the box. I then MM and ran it against a broken in 361 and they were dead-even. That saw wouldn't stand a chance against the muffler mods I'm doing now paired with reduced squish.

 

[rburg]

I have a 346 and a 365xt. On the 346 , I normally run an 18 and occassionally run a 20 nk combo on it. On the 365, I usually run a 24 with occassional use with a 20 or a 28. If you are cutting a lot of wood that is 20" or higher in diameter, I would get the 365. It is heavier than the 455 you are looking at, but in the larger wood you are cutting I believe you would enjoy the extra power.

 

[bull2five]

The 455 won't compare with a pro saw in the same cc class. And the 455 weighs a ton

Yeah I’m now seeing that the professional grade have more hp even though they might be around the same cc. I like to buy things that last and I was trying to find out if there was better quality in the pro series. Seems like your definitely getting more power but paying for it also. I tend to buy bigger and better than what I actually need but I’m going to get one of the professional grade saws.

Thanks again for all the help

 

[missedbass]

Agree with ethan1, buy the 455, run it and if you don't like it, bring it back. that's what big box stores are for.

 

[outdoortype]

HAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAA, THE 455 DID NOT REPLACE the 359, 357 and 353. whats the matter, couldnt pour piss out of a boot reading instructions off the heel????????????
Study up on your saws before posting bull!!!!!!!!!!!!!! PLEASE

Never said it replaced the 359 etc. You shouldn't make nasty remarks about what instructions I can read when you can't even read my post correctly.
You are the only person I've heard bost about replacing plastic handles on 455's or other saws for that matter.
If you wan't to talk about durability, how many 3xx series husky recalls have there been? Gee lets see, first it was the thin metal at the bottom edge of the crankcase 357,359(that sturdy mag crankcase the pro saws use). Oh and then there was the smart start auto decomp that failed and burned up so many 357's. And after that it was the plastic intake clamp on 346,353,357,359-that caused plenty of burned up top ends. And then came the zama carb update. All the while the plastic 290's were still chugging away. Has the 455 suffered these problems?
And yes the 455 did replace the 55. Just look on Ebay and you'll see scores of burned up 55 with that nice leaky impulse grommet/boot.

 

[albertj03]

I've been using a 450 for four years to cut firewood. I bought the 450 over the 455 because of the difference in weight. The 455 is heavy for a 55cc saw and I do a lot of cutting in the woods cutting up downed trees so it helps to have a lighter saw when I'm in the woods. The 450 has always started right up for me with just a couple pulls even after sitting all winter long and has never had a problem. My only complaint is that it leaks bar oil sometimes when it sits. I've found that since I've been getting into some larger wood the 450 is out matched so I'm upgrading very soon, and will most likely be buying the Husky 555 which you may want to check out. The 555 is slightly lighter than the 455 but is a 60cc saw with 4.3hp as opposed to 3.5hp in the 455. The 555 is also classified as a professional saw but has a 2 year warranty where the XP saws have only a 6 month warranty.

 

[funky sawman]

Never said it replaced the 359 etc. You shouldn't make nasty remarks about what instructions I can read when you can't even read my post correctly.
You are the only person I've heard bost about replacing plastic handles on 455's or other saws for that matter.
If you wan't to talk about durability, how many 3xx series husky recalls have there been? Gee lets see, first it was the thin metal at the bottom edge of the crankcase 357,359(that sturdy mag crankcase the pro saws use). Oh and then there was the smart start auto decomp that failed and burned up so many 357's. And after that it was the plastic intake clamp on 346,353,357,359-that caused plenty of burned up top ends. And then came the zama carb update. All the while the plastic 290's were still chugging away. Has the 455 suffered these problems?
And yes the 455 did replace the 55. Just look on Ebay and you'll see scores of burned up 55 with that nice leaky impulse grommet/boot.

But somthing you forgot to mention is those mentioned saws with problems, Husqvarna HAS fixed those problems. They NEVER plan to fix those crappy plastic handle bars. If you want I can send you inventiory records of our shop selling stacks of those handle bars for the 455, also fuel tanks have been failing (operator error) but you just cannot replace the tank on these stupid saws, YOU HAVE TO REPLACE THE WHOLE CRANKCASE!!!!!Stihl 029 and 039, ms310 are way way better saws than 455/460's

 

[funky sawman]

Ohh we want to talk crap about 455 now do we?????????? How bout the clogging oiler pickup screen, faulty carbs, Leaking crankcase castings, pistons running too tight in the bore, leaky intake boots, and on and on and on........................................................................................!

 

[hamish]

They NEVER plan to fix those crappy plastic handle bars. If you want I can send you inventiory records of our shop selling stacks of those handle bars for the 455, also fuel tanks have been failing (operator error) but you just cannot replace the tank on these stupid saws, YOU HAVE TO REPLACE THE WHOLE CRANKCASE!!!!!Stihl 029 and 039, ms310 are way way better saws than 455/460's

Is you are selling stacks of those handle bars, you must be selling container loads of 455's or is it an issure like the fuels tanks you mentioned........operator error. I have never had to replace a single plastic handle on any Husqvarna saw under warranty in the past 7 years. A crankcase r&r on a 455 an easy task, and real shop time should be 30 minutes. Operator error has nothing to do with the design/manufacture of the saw it has to do with the monkey using it (then again most monkeys are smarter than many users it seems).

For the OP your origianl question has been lost it seems, howere I will state again the 455 is a great saw, much better than the 42cc Poulan you were comparing it too. The only downfall in the big picture is the power to weight ratio is not the greatest, but everything else is a A+

Cost is mute in the Us but it is still cost, here the cost between a 455 and a 346 is over $350 dollars........what do you think we sell more of.

 

[outdoortype]

No documentation from your store is necessary....

Ohh we want to talk crap about 455 now do we?????????? How bout the clogging oiler pickup screen, faulty carbs, Leaking crankcase castings, pistons running too tight in the bore, leaky intake boots, and on and on and on........................................................................................!

A faulty oiler isn't going to ruin a saw. And once again, you seem to be the only one posting about leaking crankcase castings,intake boots,etc. There are 2 other dealers on this website alone who never mentioned these problems(other than the oilers) during any other threads reguarding these saws. And it's a good thing you don't sell Stihl, you'd be buying handlebars by the truckload. Just about all of there saws use them.
My point was that having a metal crankcase doesn't impact the durability or reliabilty of the saw nearly as much as people often think.

 

[funky sawman]

A faulty oiler isn't going to ruin a saw. And once again, you seem to be the only one posting about leaking crankcase castings,intake boots,etc. There are 2 other dealers on this website alone who never mentioned these problems(other than the oilers) during any other threads reguarding these saws. And it's a good thing you don't sell Stihl, you'd be buying handlebars by the truckload. Just about all of there saws use them.
My point was that having a metal crankcase doesn't impact the durability or reliabilty of the saw nearly as much as people often think.

Yea, I seem to be the only one that finds faults with New saws, but I clarify my suggested faults with hausqarna by sending the saw back to NC at the tech shop. They agree with the problems but tell me "we never seen this before" I have sent truckloads of crap new saws back to them, And husqvarna aggreed that the product was at fault, not my jugement

 

[Trailtrimmer]

A muffler modded 346 will pull a 20" .325 bar/chain just fine. Think about it this way: it starts out at 3.7 hp and then adding even a 10% increase for the MM pushes it past 4 hp.

I modded the very first 346 I ever bought within 10 minutes of getting it out of the box. I then MM and ran it against a broken in 361 and they were dead-even. That saw wouldn't stand a chance against the muffler mods I'm doing now paired with reduced squish.

Stock for stock, I'd prefer a 60CC+ for a 20" bar. If you want to compare apples to apples, then put the modded 346 against a modded 361 or a 359.

People who are seeking advice on a 455 aren't typically the ones that immediately mod it when they get home. :msp_smile:

 

[funky sawman]

Did I mention that Im gonna need more beer, ohh wait, ALOT more beer to keep replying to this thread. The BS is over my head now. OHH I might as well pop up a bag of popcorn too, to enlighten me:msp_w00t:

 

[funky sawman]

AND we got it opcorn::chatter:

 

[hamish]

Yea, I seem to be the only one that finds faults with New saws, but I clarify my suggested faults with hausqarna by sending the saw back to NC at the tech shop. They agree with the problems but tell me "we never seen this before" I have sent truckloads of crap new saws back to them, And husqvarna aggreed that the product was at fault, not my jugement

Its sad to say but, them saying the products at fault is cheaper in the long run than actually looking at the saw, the past 6 months have been an eye opener in dealing with the NC tech guys...........ah the all mighty dollar.

Not to highjack the thread but how many saws do you sell per annum?

 

[funky sawman]

Sales been declining every year, last year we sold around 200 saws, previous year it was 350, and so on

 

[zogger]

Sales been declining every year, last year we sold around 200 saws, previous year it was 350, and so on

I wonder if it is bad news travelling fast around your local area? Having that many bummer "new" saws has to have increased the bad rep gossip in your area.

 

[funky sawman]

I wonder if it is bad news travelling fast around your local area? Having that many bummer "new" saws has to have increased the bad rep gossip in your area.

hahahhahahhahahhahahhah, BREATH HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHHAHAHAHAHAH. gulp. I dont really care anymore, Husqvarna can kiss my u know what. In two weeks I will be logging and not slaving for stupid husqvarna and their BS. I put up with alot of crap during my many years of faithfull service. I sure stihl has its fair sahre of problems too.
Words from the previous husqvarna western US leader David Zerfoss. "the 455 and 460 rancher are not that well built, they were made to just fill a gap in time so they can come out with somthing better"

EDIT, ohh yea I spilt my beer on that one HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAHa....................................!