stormpetrel
ArboristSite Member
Finally........it's here! I went down to the ferry and intercepted the UPS guy, saving hours of waiting (and him from having to drop it at my house). The only other Husky saws I have handled are my old 445 and a 55 rancher, the 550 looks tiny! Is it even as big as the 445? But then...soft music started playing, and my eyes misted.......:msp_wub: Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh! How lovely. (ahem.)
I got it right into the garage, got the muffler off, and commenced drilling. I worked my way up to 3/8" or so, then used a Dremel-borne burr to open up the rest, and to smooth the rough spots. I carefully lifted the metal away from the groove the screen fits in so I could put it back in. I did drill into it a little, and also into the overhang. The overhang got beat up a little from lifting it up to drill and then bending it back. But nothing a little sanding, grinding and repainting with engine paint didn't fix right up.
Next the new sprocket...I had been approaching this with some unease, I have never really done anything other than chain changing to a chainsaw. The hardest thing about it was getting the spark plug out.... the Swede who put that puppy in torqued it to about 50 foot pounds. Sheesh. The clutch removal tool I researched and carefully cross-referenced didn't fit :censored:
Turns out an 18mm wrench works perfectly well with a big-azz adjustable to turn it. I just wish that %$#@$%^!!!!!! spark plug was that easy.
(BTW I will be running 3/8 50 ga. chain, so I have the new-in-the-box 20" bar and OEM chain if anyone is interested) The Sugi Hara bar and a couple of loops of chain should get here tomorrow. She's ready to go. All I had to do was fire her up!! A little fresh 93 octane gas w/Husqvarna oils & Sea foam, a little bar oil on the other side. Pumped the bulb a few times, pulled the choke lever up..she fired up after the 4th pull. Ran sorta rough at idle. I warmed it up for a minute or two, shut it down, and without touching the choke lever, pulled the cord. She fired right up. Did it five or six times in quick succession. Same result. I guess this saw doesn't have that warm start issue some of 'em have..whew! I saw my wife drive in, spent 10 minutes up,at the house getting instructions and what-for:msp_rolleyes: went back to the garage, she fired right up. Nice. I let her loose after another minute of warming....yikes! Not just an angry beast....but a whole *herd* of angry beasts!!! YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEHAAAW!!!!!!!!
Anyhoo, can't wait for the rain to stop and get at a few trees that need cutting.:hmm3grin2orange:
I learned a great deal about chainsaws reading posts here, stuff I never even considered. There really is a wealth of knowledge here. There is also not too much of the juvenile arguing you can find on a lot of other sites. Some...but hardly any. It was all I read about the 550XP on this site that impelled me to buy one. I'm very glad I did, and I'lll report back with how she cuts. Oh...here's a few photos too. :msp_w00t::msp_w00t: (I don't get why they're so small! The last one is of the MM finished)
I got it right into the garage, got the muffler off, and commenced drilling. I worked my way up to 3/8" or so, then used a Dremel-borne burr to open up the rest, and to smooth the rough spots. I carefully lifted the metal away from the groove the screen fits in so I could put it back in. I did drill into it a little, and also into the overhang. The overhang got beat up a little from lifting it up to drill and then bending it back. But nothing a little sanding, grinding and repainting with engine paint didn't fix right up.
Next the new sprocket...I had been approaching this with some unease, I have never really done anything other than chain changing to a chainsaw. The hardest thing about it was getting the spark plug out.... the Swede who put that puppy in torqued it to about 50 foot pounds. Sheesh. The clutch removal tool I researched and carefully cross-referenced didn't fit :censored:
Turns out an 18mm wrench works perfectly well with a big-azz adjustable to turn it. I just wish that %$#@$%^!!!!!! spark plug was that easy.
(BTW I will be running 3/8 50 ga. chain, so I have the new-in-the-box 20" bar and OEM chain if anyone is interested) The Sugi Hara bar and a couple of loops of chain should get here tomorrow. She's ready to go. All I had to do was fire her up!! A little fresh 93 octane gas w/Husqvarna oils & Sea foam, a little bar oil on the other side. Pumped the bulb a few times, pulled the choke lever up..she fired up after the 4th pull. Ran sorta rough at idle. I warmed it up for a minute or two, shut it down, and without touching the choke lever, pulled the cord. She fired right up. Did it five or six times in quick succession. Same result. I guess this saw doesn't have that warm start issue some of 'em have..whew! I saw my wife drive in, spent 10 minutes up,at the house getting instructions and what-for:msp_rolleyes: went back to the garage, she fired right up. Nice. I let her loose after another minute of warming....yikes! Not just an angry beast....but a whole *herd* of angry beasts!!! YEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEHAAAW!!!!!!!!
Anyhoo, can't wait for the rain to stop and get at a few trees that need cutting.:hmm3grin2orange:
I learned a great deal about chainsaws reading posts here, stuff I never even considered. There really is a wealth of knowledge here. There is also not too much of the juvenile arguing you can find on a lot of other sites. Some...but hardly any. It was all I read about the 550XP on this site that impelled me to buy one. I'm very glad I did, and I'lll report back with how she cuts. Oh...here's a few photos too. :msp_w00t::msp_w00t: (I don't get why they're so small! The last one is of the MM finished)
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