Questions regarding Husqvarna 350

[Allar]

Hello my friends!
i bought a husqvarna 350, it's a pre epa, no primer bulb, walbro carb, plastic intake clamp and it has the less desirable 44mm p/c.

1. Is the carb upgrade to zama a straight bolt on, or do i need to change something else.

2. If i delete the base gasget and do a muffler mod with what saw would be it be comparable to in stock
configuration ( 353?) (545)?

3. Can i upgrade to a rim sprocket?

I'm undecided if i should keep it or not but if the mentioned mods will give me a a good strong saw then i might..

 

[cus_deluxe]

what zama are you talking about?
base gasket delete (assuming squish clearance allows for it) and a muff mod make a noticeable improvement on these saws. gotta replace that plastic intake clamp.
yes you can get a rim sprocket setup im quite sure, but i cant remember which one it is, pretty sure its not the same kit that works on the mag case saws but i could be wrong.
edit: a quick ebay search shows that the oregon part number for the rim style drum is 108215.
best performance upgrade for these is putting a 346 top end on it. pretty much a bolt on with just a couple slight modifications.

 

[grizz55chev]

The best firewood saw out there, bar none. I’m a Stihl guy but the 350 husky is my favorite for small to medium jobs, cheap readily available parts, easy to work on, millions of them and their variants out there, what’s not to like?

 

[cuinrearview]

Never heard the zama was an upgrade. To me they're interchangable.

 

[9050lx]

I have had (4) 350's pre primer bulb that came with the Zama. I would take it down and reseal the bottom end.Really should pressure test it before running.The 44 open transfer cylinder with a flat top piston runs pretty good I think.I can't tell much difference between it and the 45mm muffler vibrator cylinder.

 

[SawTroll]

Never heard the zama was an upgrade. To me they're interchangable.

Most people are likely to agree with you, including myself.

The attached document contains what Husky said on the matter back then - but I suspect that it mainly was about reducing the cost, in reality.

 

[grizz55chev]

I have had (4) 350's pre primer bulb that came with the Zama. I would take it down and reseal the bottom end.Really should pressure test it before running.The 44 open transfer cylinder with a flat top piston runs pretty good I think.I can't tell much difference between it and the 45mm muffler vibrator cylinder.

Pop a flat top piston in the 45 mm, just short of the 346 in performance.

 

[Allar]

what zama are you talking about?
base gasket delete (assuming squish clearance allows for it) and a muff mod make a noticeable improvement on these saws. gotta replace that plastic intake clamp.
yes you can get a rim sprocket setup im quite sure, but i cant remember which one it is, pretty sure its not the same kit that works on the mag case saws but i could be wrong.
edit: a quick ebay search shows that the oregon part number for the rim style drum is 108215.
best performance upgrade for these is putting a 346 top end on it. pretty much a bolt on with just a couple slight modifications.

The best firewood saw out there, bar none. I’m a Stihl guy but the 350 husky is my favorite for small to medium jobs, cheap readily available parts, easy to work on, millions of them and their variants out there, what’s not to like?

Never heard the zama was an upgrade. To me they're interchangable.

I have had (4) 350's pre primer bulb that came with the Zama. I would take it down and reseal the bottom end.Really should pressure test it before running.The 44 open transfer cylinder with a flat top piston runs pretty good I think.I can't tell much difference between it and the 45mm muffler vibrator cylinder.

Yeah i will replace the plastic clamp and since i have to pull the jug i'll delete the base gasget aswell if there's enough clearance.
so basicly 346xp drum should work but what about the oil pump warm gear?

Well according to husqvarna zama was an upgrade... and walbro had issues with the accelerator pump, so i tought it makes sense to get zama.
But if you're saying that's really not the case then i'll stick with walbro, just need a rebuild kit, not sure which one thought.

Yeah i'm planing to take it apart and reseal bottom end, ordered a tube of Threebond 1184 from Usa, couldn't not find it around here. I'm glad to hear that you can't tell much of a difference between 45mm cylinder.

I think it's a 2003 model, hopefully SawTroll can confirm that.
967 01 11-00
03 5104993

 

[Huskybill]

I changed my 350 that had spur sprockets to rim and drums. Rollerize that saw. That’s the first change I make on every saw.

I was comparing the Zama carb to the 191 Walbro. The 191 I fear is way to big Venturi wise for a stock non ported saw. I’d like to do the 357/359 airfilter upgrade on the stock carb first to see if a stock saw would have a noticeable improvement.

I have a selection of these smaller husky saws, I have most of them in multiples. In the mail I have the big Kahuni coming. The 359.

 

[Huskitoter]

Yeah i will replace the plastic clamp and since i have to pull the jug i'll delete the base gasget aswell if there's enough clearance.
so basicly 346xp drum should work but what about the oil pump warm gear?

Well according to husqvarna zama was an upgrade... and walbro had issues with the accelerator pump, so i tought it makes sense to get zama.
But if you're saying that's really not the case then i'll stick with walbro, just need a rebuild kit, not sure which one thought.

Yeah i'm planing to take it apart and reseal bottom end, ordered a tube of Threebond 1184 from Usa, couldn't not find it around here. I'm glad to hear that you can't tell much of a difference between 45mm cylinder.

I think it's a 2003 model, hopefully SawTroll can confirm that.
967 01 11-00
03 5104993

The 346 worm gear fits the 346 drum better, but the stock worm gear works fine.

Lots of carb options. No guarantee with a knockoff zama, but the same holds for rebuilding an old carb.

It's a good idea to face the bearing cup since it will be out. Throw a sheet of sandpaper on a table and sand down any high spots. Then dry fit to check squish.

 

[grizz55chev]

Well according to husqvarna zama was an upgrade... and walbro had issues with the accelerator pump, so i tought it makes sense to get zama.

As far as I know, there is no accelerator pump.

 

[Spring1898]

The 350 is a great truck and small saw since it doesn't have the magnesium to rot.

I wouldn't be worried about a carburetor upgrade unless you plan on upgrading the cylinder down the line to take advantage of it.

OEM 346NE cylinders may or may not need to trim some of the vertical plastic reinforcements on the clutch side of the case to fit. 'Big Bore' Hyway and Meteor 346NE cylinders almost definitely need trimming, as they are wider, but run about $40 cheaper in the US. Not sure about Estonia.

I agree with resealing the bottom end since you will have most of it apart. It is cheap insurance and plastic flexes more than magnesium.

If you want to save a couple dollars you can use the 1184 to seal the intake boot and keep the plastic clamp. I have also seen people put a small bolt and nut through the ears of the plastic clamp and tighten it down.
As far as the 44mm vs 45mm top end, vibration aside, I believe the 44mm actually had slightly more hp since it didn't have any restrictions in the muffler compared to the 45mm which had the cat. 45mm still wins on torque.

 

[Allar]

Well at this point i just wanna use the p/c that's on the saw, so no 346xp conversion.
Essentially the 350 will replace my 545, would muff mod and base gasget delete get me anywhere near to the 545's stock performance?

The nut and polt through plastic clamp sounds interesting, might try it myself

 

[cuinrearview]

It would probably be close. This 350 has those mods and the intake and exhaust widened a little.

 

[Allar]

Sounds strong. Btw do you need to shorten cylinder screws when deleting base gasget?

 

[Huskitoter]

You shouldn't need to shorten the cylinder bolts, but it's easy enough to check. Bottom out the bolts on the riser when it's out and hold it up to the cylinder base to compare.

 

[cuinrearview]

Sounds strong. Btw do you need to shorten cylinder screws when deleting base gasget?

I've never needed too for just a BGD.

 

[Huskitoter]

It would probably be close. This 350 has those mods and the intake and exhaust widened a little.

That one looks pretty stout. 44mm?

 

[cuinrearview]

That one looks pretty stout. 44mm?

No it's an OEM 45. I did some work on the bearing cup too including shaving some off the top to optimize squish.

 

[Allar]

I measured the squish and got a reading of ~ 0.030 with a base gasget, which is fairly tight imo. I would of wanted to end up 0.025 without the gasget since it's going to be a work saw and not a cookie cutter.
Not sure what i'm going to do at this point.

Oh and there seems to be a nick on the middle of the piston, perhaps someone used too long of a spark plug?