The 550XP and 562XP get their first real workout

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MarkEagleUSA

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Spent about 4 hours this morning helping a friend cut up some oaks that had come down in recent storms. Brought the new 550XP and 562 XP with me to see what they could really do. Unfortunately, the tree we worked on today was already dry as it blew over during Sandy last year. But it was a good size tree. The lower trunk measured almost 36" at the base and 24" at the first crotch about 10-12' up.

As I said the tree was already down... root ball pulled right out of the ground. One of the upper limbs was hung up in another tree but we were able to take care of that quick and easy (much to my surprise). I then set out to start limbing with the 550. Man, this is where I think the saw shines! I could actually hear and feel the RevBoost and we made short work of cleaning up the upper half of the tree.

It's too bad the tree was so dry because I really want to see what happens in green wood, but at least I have a point of comparison now. My buddy didn't want to waste time on anything smaller than 4-5", saying he's do that himself later. The main goal was to get the tree cut up. I started bucking and the 550 took everything I threw it at and still wanted more. Chips were flying and my friend and I were at times mesmerized by the speed and power, especially in 6-10" wood. Never once in almost 2 hrs of cutting did she bog down in the cut. Just kept pullin' and pullin'.

I purposely shut her down several times to make sure I wasn't plagued by warm start issues and can say I had zero problems on any restart except for the one immediately after the first fuel-up. It seemed to take forever to start drawing fuel and I must have pulled 10 or 12 times before she "popped". After that, smooth sailing. I ran the saw for roughly 2-1/2 hrs total and only refueled once (still half a tank left). And this saw isn't even broken in yet! Wow!

The one drawback to the stellar fuel consumption is that I ran out of chain oil long before fuel. Unfortunately I didn't realize it until she ran out of gas. Going to need to make a mental note to check the oil more often.

Working down the tree I got into some 16-18" wood that was taxing the 16" B/C. Still plenty of power, just not enough reach so I shut her down and reached for the 562-20". For everything the 550 did to impress me, the 562 matched it and more. The thing is an absolute beast. While not as well balanced as the 550, it was just a bit nose-heavy while the 550 seemed balanced at the upper handle. The biggest difference I noticed between the 2 saws was acceleration/RevBoost. The 550 was definitely quicker to spool up to full song. The 562 wasn't too far off but it was noticeable. However, when I got to that lower trunk, the 562 really showed it's worth. It powered right through each cut, each one seemingly stronger than the previous. In total she ran for about an hour and never ran out of fuel. The chain oil held up as well.

All in all, these 2 saws were just awesome to use. I think AutoTune is a great concept and Husqvarna seems to have it mostly figured out. Now I can't wait to try them out on some green wood. Unfortunately, my buddy has 2 more trees that need attention but they're also pretty dry, not to mention both are hung up in other trees pretty good. He did say his neighbor across the street has some Beech trees he wants to take down but nobody was home for us to go talk to.

For now, I am more than pleased with my decision to go with these 2 saws. While I love my 162SE to death, it can't hold a candle to either of these saws. The 550 may not have the power, but it compensates for that in other ways. The 562 has more power than the 162 by a large margin. It's also a heck of a lot easier to handle, and both XP's are really nice to look at!
 
I have the same 2 saws and couldn't have said it better. I read tons of great things about doing MM on them but it's kinda hard to understand how it could be any better than they are now.
 
Great report, repped! :cool2:

You may try to turn the oiling on the 550 down a notch, if the oil tank runs dry before the fuel tank. :msp_wink:
 
I read tons of great things about doing MM on them but it's kinda hard to understand how it could be any better than they are now.
I've also read about some of the MM improvements and might consider it if I can find some spare mufflers. I bought both saws with the pre-mixed fuel in order to take advantage of the 4-yr non-commercial warranty. For now I don't want to mess with that by doing any mods but may rethink that position after a while. :msp_sneaky:

You may try to turn the oiling on the 550 down a notch, if the oil tank runs dry before the fuel tank. :msp_wink:
I did dial it back a little at the first refueling. Since I was cutting dry wood and making a lot of small chips and dust, I was hesitant to reduce the flow too much. I'm going to have to run her some more to see where the sweet spot is.

Another observation regarding the weight/balance of the 562XP... when carrying the saw it feels nose-heavy. However, when she's running (purring is more like it ;) ) it's a very well-balanced feel. I can't describe it myself, and I've seen it said elsewhere, but something about revving the saw causes it to "flow" in your arms. It's a really neat feeling that I've never experienced in a saw before.

I'm also thinking of moving the 550XP up to an 18" bar. After going over what I did yesterday, I feel the extra 2" would give me the right mixture of power and capacity. Again, I need to get into some green wood before making any final decisions.

I've had my 162SE for 32 years and it's been an absolutely fantastic saw. If I can get half of that from either of these 2 new ones I'll be happy (and ready for retirement). :)
 
I have the same two saws, just getting the 562 last week.

Haven't touched my 562 yet but I MM'ed the 550. Glad I did.

Enjoy your saws:msp_thumbup:

John

Should add I have an 18" bar on my 550 and think it is perfect.
 
Definitely mod those muffs. Good power gains there. If warranty is a concern, just buy a spare should you need warranty service. You'll be surprised once again with the MM.
 
Definitely mod those muffs. Good power gains there. If warranty is a concern, just buy a spare should you need warranty service. You'll be surprised once again with the MM.

How much would a 562 modded muffler be?
 
Just buy a oem and send it one of the modders here on AS. They'll charge around 30-40 bucks. Stay away from modded flea-bay crap. Ck with Brad, Randy, Terry or Stumpy. I'm sure I left out a couple.
 
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...I'm also thinking of moving the 550XP up to an 18" bar. After going over what I did yesterday, I feel the extra 2" would give me the right mixture of power and capacity...

Suggest sticking with the 16" bar on the 550xp and adjusting the oiling rate so the fuel runs out before the oil. Also, a 16" bar handles better and faster and is easier to keep track of when limbing. These saws are great they way they are; just run 'em.
 
Suggest sticking with the 16" bar on the 550xp and adjusting the oiling rate so the fuel runs out before the oil. Also, a 16" bar handles better and faster and is easier to keep track of when limbing. These saws are great they way they are; just run 'em.

That's my choice also. If running .325 you may want to give a 8-pin rim a try. It'll scream with that pitch.
 
Great write up! You mentioned the balance on the 562. I have 18"X3/8 on mine and think it's just right. I don't like any nose heavy tendencies. If I pull the trigger on a 550, I will go 16". Thanks for the good story:rock:
 
If running .325 you may want to give a 8-pin rim a try. It'll scream with that pitch.
Someone needs to explain this to me... if the saw comes with a 7-pin, won't using an 8-pin slow down the chain? Or is it increased torque what makes the difference?
 
Someone needs to explain this to me... if the saw comes with a 7-pin, won't using an 8-pin slow down the chain? Or is it increased torque what makes the difference?


Think of a 10 speed bike or a mountain bike...... when you change to a larger front gear your speed can increase but your seem to lose torque.
 
Does changing the rim have an effect on the number of drive links in the chain or will my 66-linker still work?

It isn't an issue on my 346xp with 66dl, so I assume it isn't on the 550xp either. :msp_wink:

However, this is something that may happen, sogenerally there isn't a firm answer to the question.
 
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