# husqvarna carb adjustment



## wolfman (Mar 12, 2003)

Can anyone tell me how to tweak the carb of my saw so that it will run at peak performance? The manual explains how to do it but I am still unsure about it. I just changed the bar from a 16" to a 18" and the saw seems to be running a little sluggish. The 16" was a roller tip and the 18" is not a roller tip--I don't know if this has anything to do with the perfomance of the saw or not, although I would suspect it does. I think I need to adjust the H-jet but all of the adjustments may need to be tweaked. Any help would be appreciated.


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## treeclimber165 (Mar 12, 2003)

From what you told us, I assume this is one of Husky's lil homeowner saws. And a solid tip bar will cost you about 10%-20% in performance. Not the best choice except for some special conditions and your saw has more than enough power to pull it.

Here's the carb adjustment link. (Dang, this is so much easier than typing it out every time!)  
http://www.madsens1.com/sawtune.htm


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## wolfman (Mar 12, 2003)

The saw is a 55. The saw came with the solid tip bar because the shop I got it from was out of the roller tip bars. I was told the bar was what the commercial cutters used and was more expensive, so I said OK. I like the 16" bar with the roller tip better, but I need the 18" bar to take down some of the trees. I will check out the link you provided. Thanks.


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## Newfie (Mar 12, 2003)

Wolfman,

After you get your saw adjusted and running good, you might want to find a new Husky shop to deal with. Out of roller tip bars?, that is such a basic item to have in stock, always. I don't know any commercial cutters around here that use solid tip bars. My dealer caters to loggers and doesn't carry solid tip bars. 

Maybe my situation is unique.

Additionally, any tree that you can take down with an 18" bar can probably come down with a 16.


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## treeclimber165 (Mar 12, 2003)

Sorry if I came across as harsh, Wolf. It wasn't intended. Mike covered my butt well, though.  

I can just hear the guys at the shop after you left- "Hey Joe, I just got rid of that old solid tip bar we've had hanging here for 3 years! Got full retail for it, too! I'm buying lunch today!"


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## HUSKYMAN (Mar 12, 2003)

Newfie took the words out of my mouth. A 16" bar can cut down any tree that an 18" bar can. You just need to try a different technique than simply cutting through. 

I use a 16" bar on my 55 at all times now, with Oregon 21lp and 34lg chain. 

On that short of a bar roller tip or non roll should make little difference. 

Check out www.husqvarna.com, as well as www.madsens1.com for more cutting techniques. Also read this board, there are many different types of cuts that have been discussed here


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## wolfman (Mar 12, 2003)

so should I toss the 18" non-roller tip or just use it? Will it "hurt" anything to run that bar? Is it more dangerous or will it wear the chain faster? Or is it just old-school technology that will decrease the performance of the saw?


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## treeclimber165 (Mar 12, 2003)

Don't junk it. You have it, might as well use it. 
Solid tips have more friction than a roller tip. That equals more resistence and heat for the chain. Your chains may stretch a tad faster and like I said earlier you will lose about 10% in available power for cutting.

Solid tips used to be popular for big slower- revving saws used in dirty conditions. Bucking up firewood that has been on the ground, making low stump cuts, etc. 20-30 years ago the roller tips weren't as good and wouldn't hold up to those conditions/ dirt. Solid tips lasted longer. Today's roller tips are much better designed and built, can't remember the last roller that died on me before the bar was worn out.


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## WOLF_RIVER_MIKE (Mar 12, 2003)

Wolfman, if your going to run that hard nose bar, run your chain a little bit looser than you normally would. Make sure your getting plenty of oil to the bar. I wouldn't toss it. You can always grind it into a boomerang or something.  Here's a pretty good link on cutting technique somebody posted awhile back.

http://international.husqvarna.com/node51.asp


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## brncreeper (Mar 12, 2003)

Getting back to the carb adjusting, I just went through that with my 335. According to my dealer the starting point for the H and L screws are as follows: H is 3 ½ turns out, and the L is 1 ¾ turns out. Then from there the saw should be able to be dialed in within a half turn each way.


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## glens (Mar 12, 2003)

WRM,

You should try that link you gave (hint: it's old and outdated).

Then try http://international.husqvarna.com/node1445.asp

They've changed the site around (again) for no good reason.&nbsp; The "guide" isn't as good as it was.&nbsp; I've got a copy of the old one which is "browseable" when expanded to a local directory on one's computer.&nbsp; Holler if anyone's interested (it's a 1.8 MB tar.gz file).

Glen


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## Oregon_Rob (Mar 12, 2003)

does screwing in = more lean or more rich?


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## woodsjunkie (Mar 12, 2003)

lean


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## wolfman (Mar 12, 2003)

brncreeper,
will those settings also work for the 55? After all I have been reading I am afraid to run the saw too lean and cause problems. I guess running it while adjusting it won't hurt it--right? I had to mess with the high speed adjustment when I first fired up the saw because it was doggy and wasn't running at peak performance. I had it close but since I changed to the 18" bar it isn't "quite right".


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## brncreeper (Mar 12, 2003)

I would double check with your dealer, but I would think they would be close (remember it’s a starting point). Use the Madsen’s link that Treeclimber165 provided to finish the tuning procedure.

The 55 has a larger cc engine than the 335, so my H and L settings will be too lean for your thirstier 55.


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## wolfman (Mar 12, 2003)

thanks for the info--I will attempt to tune my saw tomorrow. Hopefully the solid nose bar won't cause me any problems. Apparently I should start saving to buy an 18" sprocket-nose bar--anyone know who sells them cheap?


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## treeclimber165 (Mar 12, 2003)

> _Originally posted by brncreeper _
> *The 55 has a larger cc engine than the 335, so my H and L settings will be too lean for your thirstier 55. *


Unless they both use the same carb (highly doubtful), this would be an untrue assumption. Every Stihl I've ever seen used a starting point of one turn out on each jet regardless of saw size. Poulans were usually 1.25 turns out and so are Echo two cycle stuff.
Until you mentioned it, I've never heard of a saw carb adjustment starting at 3+ turns out.

Wolf- call CCD in upstate NY for your bar.
www.commercialcutters.com


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## tony marks (Mar 13, 2003)

i think its good to learn these adjustment procedures.
if i have adjusted a saw and am not sure whether its too lean ,
it will be checked by a good saw mechanic tho.
id be interested to know how many would admit to adjusting there saw so it runs good . only to have it disentegrate when they run into a hard cut. aint a good feelin.
what ive learned is that a saw will run and sound great with home adjustments. but u gonna run into a hard cut sooner or later. u dont need a surprise,at that time.a tach will help ,but id still have a mechanic check it out before really callin on the saw to put out.a valuable saw is worth making sure . jmho
some o these guys been doing it for yrs. and dont even realize
how much more they know than most.again jmo


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## Tony Snyder (Mar 14, 2003)

You were screwed on the solid tip bar. Solid tip bars are a pain in modern high speed saws.

The dealer had a piece of dead stock he was probably very happy to get rid of.

The 10% loss in power mentioned is turned into heat and destroys your chain and bar. It will also be harder to keep your chain tensioned properly, and properly on a hard nose is not the sam as properly on a sprocket nose.

Go back to the dealer and demand he straighten things out. If that don't work, ask for the distributor and the manufacturers customers service number.


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## wolfman (Mar 14, 2003)

Tony,
thanks for the info--are the solid tipped bars ok to run or are they essentially useless or dangerous? Will they hurt the saw or just rob power? I was told that they were ok and were what "commercial" guys used.   I don't like being taken advantage of and it really aggravates me. Guess I will just take my beating and order a new bar from baileys or CCD. I will run the bar for a while just to beat it up a little and see how it cuts. I need to tweak the carb a little to get it to run at peak performance. Tomorrow is another day. THanks again.


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## Newfie (Mar 14, 2003)

*"I need to tweak the carb a little to get it to run at peak performance."* 

Another thing the dealer should have done for you before the saw went out the door. CCD has got great bar prices and reasonable shipping and the brown truck will be at your door in 2, 3 days at the most. Get a couple loops of chain while you are at it. Happy cutting.


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## jokers (Mar 15, 2003)

I`ll second what some of you good fellows have said about CCD, can`t go wrong. 

Tony, Tachs are nice but are not the ultimate answer to the tuning issue. Some saws are leaving alot of money on the table so to speak when tuned at factory max rpm. This goes both ways. Some saws will produce max power a few hundred rpm lower than what the factory max is and then there are others like the Husky 371/372 that are really groovin' at about 300 rpm over factory spec. Timed cuts at different tunings are good and then listen to what the engine sounds like. It shouldn`t rev out too clean or scream and you definitely don`t want it whistling, BTW, these sounds are with the bar out of the cut. Check it out in the cut, it should rev cleanly without any, or minimal 4 cycling. If you think the engine is tuned just right, throw in a new plug and run it a little then check it out to see what it looks like. Tuning for max power is a little bit of an art but not black magic. Russ


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## theoldfarmer (Mar 22, 2008)

*"I second the commotion"*



jokers said:


> I`ll second what some of you good fellows have said about CCD, can`t go wrong.
> 
> Tony, Tachs are nice but are not the ultimate answer to the tuning issue. Some saws are leaving alot of money on the table so to speak when tuned at factory max rpm. This goes both ways. Some saws will produce max power a few hundred rpm lower than what the factory max is and then there are others like the Husky 371/372 that are really groovin' at about 300 rpm over factory spec. Timed cuts at different tunings are good and then listen to what the engine sounds like. It shouldn`t rev out too clean or scream and you definitely don`t want it whistling, BTW, these sounds are with the bar out of the cut. Check it out in the cut, it should rev cleanly without any, or minimal 4 cycling. If you think the engine is tuned just right, throw in a new plug and run it a little then check it out to see what it looks like. Tuning for max power is a little bit of an art but not black magic. Russ




Playing hookey from outside work and enjoying reading this thread. As always, lots of good experienced advice. You said it well in your post, I am just visiting and also seconding the "commotion" (motion).

For me the benefit of a tachometer is to guard against over revving the saw. The maximum recommended RPM is a good starting high speed mixture point which guards against lean mixture induced overheating.

When new, we ran our 372 Husquvara leaving the factory limiter cap in place a day for break-in, even though the saw was so rich that it smoked a bit. So much for factory settings. 

After removing the limitor cap and bringing the RPM up to normal, the saw naturally ran stronger with no smoking. At age 81 it is SUCH A PLEASURE to run the always dependable Husky 372 day in and day out. Bars are 20", 24" and 28" in Oak, Eucalyputus and when in large diameter Olive.

Also run a Husky 142 (had Husky 61, 262 and 136 stolen from a locked garage 2006 but insurance covered well).

Bottom line: I set high speed with Tach and do not mind dropping the high RPM a wee bit on the 142 by enriching but not on the 372 which is happy at full RPM. Then I set the low speed mixture for good acceration from idle. 

"Keep 'em sharp and the chips flying"

theoldfarmer

"tired but not retired"


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## Cliff R (Mar 22, 2008)

Setting the L and H screws on the 55. From the "basic" factory settings, set the L screw first, for the highest possible and cleanest idle, then go every so slightly in the rich direction till the engine slows just a tad. Test the throttle response. Being just a tad rich acts like an accellerator pump for best throttle response and rpm rise off idle. Set the H screw for maximum possible rpm's, then go richer until it just starts to miss, or 4 stroke. Do some test cuts, the engine should immediately smooth out and speed up when it sees load. Anytime you remove the load at WOT, the engine should just barely start to 4 stroke, or miss slightly. 

The missing that you hear at WOT and little to no load will not allow the engine to run away, lean out and melt the piston over the ring(s). You can sneak in the lean direction from this point, to squeeze out the optimum power from the saw, but it should ALWAYS miss some when the load is removed. 

When in doubt on the H setting(s), er on the rich side instead of the lean side, better for the saw and your wallet!

The Husky 55 is more than capable with an 18" bar, we call ours the "little beast". I ran it today for a couple of hours hacking away at some old oak chunks to make them easier to split. It is a very powerful and fast cutting for a 50cc saw......Cliff


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## billyjoejr (Mar 22, 2008)

Before anyone else replies, check the date of the original thread. :greenchainsaw:


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## hydro2 (Mar 22, 2008)

Yea I would say he got er figured out by now. Maybe even worn out.


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