School me on Husqvarna 200 series saws...

[ballisticdoughnut]

So I'm looking for a 60cc saw and I've been really interested in the older 200 series Husqvarna stuff. I'd also take a Dolmar 6400 since I have a almost new P&C for one. Anyway would a 266 or 268 be a viable platform going forward? Hows the AV? I believe some parts are still available. I've got a mint used OEM cylinder for a 268 so I'm already kinda setting myself up for owning one.

 

[Jasent]

268 is a sweet saw IMO fw side seal leaks are common with the plastic seal holder set up. Not a huge fan of the intake design, also prone to leaks.
just finished a 268 build

 

[Karrl]

Good old saws, I have a 266 with 268 top end and it’s a good cutting firewood saw. Antivibe ranges from ok to bad depending on the condition of the rubber. There’s lots of parts that cross over between the 61, 266, 268, and 272 and also plenty that don’t. Not to mention J Red 630 670 and others I’m blanking on. Parts are generally available oem or aftermarket, 266 coarse thread clutch being an exception.

A 6400 will have better antivibe and might be more powerful but if you’re into old school saws you should definitely find a 26~ series. Or do what jasent did and find a 61 for your 268 top. Tinman on YouTube has been going over these saws in a video series, definitely worth checking out.

 

[muad]

Check out the Tinman on YouTube. He's doing a series of videos on the 200 series Hooskies (61,266,268,272,etc.).



From what he has shared, that chassis really is a tank. They're very reliable hard-working saws, and with some porting they really wake up and make for a great firewood saw. I would love to snag a 268xp or 272xp.

Edit: speak text fixes lol

 

[82F100SWB]

They aren't 200 series Huskies, they are 162 chassis Huskies... The 200 series includes 5 different saw chassis that have very little interchange outside of each chassis or family; you aren't taking parts off of a 234se and putting them on a 298xp outside of the bar nuts...
Just a pet peeve of mine, and yes, I have tried to correct Tinman [emoji1787]

I quite literally have a shelf of 162 chassis saws. There are many who will tell you the 162 or the 266 are the best saws Husky ever built. But anything on that chassis deserves the same kind of recognition. Simple, easy to work on, and generally all around good saws, and if you are staying orange and not red, there is decent parts availability for the most part. The early coarse thread clutches and parts for the early Swede-O-Matic brake are the only real sticking points. But, I'd you are going 268, or 85 and later in general you won't have a clutch problem, and you can always switch to the plastic flag inertia operated chain brake.

 

[KASH]

The 266s with the metal brake handle were a lot better than the plastic they were always getting melt damage from the exhaust.The 162 is the original grand father and a wonderful saw to use I probably have had over 80 saws in my life and the only one I ever bought Brand new was a 162 in 1979 I still have it and two other 162s I use them more than any other.They start good run great and have good speed and are built well.What is not to like about the 162?
Kash

 

[ballisticdoughnut]

There's a pretty decent looking 266 at my shop that I'm probably gonna snag up. Pulls over hard so there's something going on. Don't know the history on it so could be a number of things. It's a metal flag unit so I think It's got the coarse thread clutch. I'll have to look it over better. I'm still going to keep an eye out for a later model 266/268 though. I vaguely remember hearing about some of these saws had open port cylinders and some had closed? Does that sound right? The cylinder I have is a Mahle closed port.

 

[82F100SWB]

It seems Husky dropped the ball on many of the North American market saws when it came to not melting the brake flag with the exhaust, it wasn't just on this chassis, my 254, 246 and 242 all have melted handles.
Most other markets got the jungle style muffler, which completely eliminates the issue.

The 162 definitely is a very nice saw to run. I have one currently, and 6 630 Jonsereds, most of them 82 and 83, which for all intents and purposes are 162's in a red dress.


The Swede-O-Matic stayed around for a good 4-5 years after they went to the fine thread clutch. Easy way to tell, when you look at the clutch, the end of the coarse thread clutch is closed, fine is open and you can see the end of the crank with the clutch in place.

All 266's were closed. There was a later 268 non XP which used the 66 open port 50mm cylinder. .

 

[KASH]

82f Do you notice any performance differences between the single ring and the dual ring setups on the 630s?I find my single ring pulls a little better and seems to rev a little higher.
Kash

 

[82F100SWB]

The later single ring saws run a full window piston, so it's much like putting a 268 piston in a 266. Bit more power and a bit more rpm with no other changes. Less reciprocating mass and it feeds the lower transfers better.
Been a while since I had a single ring saw.

 

[KASH]

I prefer the 162 over the 630 because I detest the choke set up and it seems that every 630 I ever got had the studs that hold the black top cover on either stripped or snapped of in the saw body my single ring is a 1984.
Kash

 

[82F100SWB]

For me, it always seems to only have one nut left holding the filter cover.
Definitely would be interesting to know the history on your '84 saw. The single ring piston doesn't show up on the IPL'S until 1988. My 86 saw is still a dual thin ring unit.
Those thing rings have been obsolete for a very long time, so it's not surprising to see a single ring in an earlier saw.

 

[KASH]

That is what I find also.The 630 in question I bought in 1985 there was a fellow from Nova Scotia doing cut and skid the saw was bought new by a local kid who quit after a couple of weeks.Shane bought the saw for 250.00 and a couple days later he sold it to me the saw had a broken flag and was already down to one carb cover nut.I took the saw home and found it was real low on compression Shane delivered a new piston and single ring and installed it saw runs great cut a couple thousand cords with it over the years.
Kash

 

[82F100SWB]

I remember when I first moved out here and a local asked if I had my cut and skid liscence. I had never heard of such a thing.
At least in my part of NS it had been all forwarders, with limbing and bucking done where it falls, by the faller; for longer than I have been around. The 254 and 242 and their siblings were the saws of choice in the era when the 162 chassis was king out here, less weight and more rpm for limbing, power for falling and bucking were entirely secondary. Even the 262 wasn't that common, running a 15" in .325, a 254 is very much just as fast, and a bit neater handling as it is slightly smaller.

 

[FamilyTradition]

Great informative thread here. Max.

 

[KASH]

Back in 79 when I bought my 162 from Noro Saw in ThunderBay they were the largest Husqvarna dealer in North America.My older brother had a lot more cut and skid experience than me I was looking at I believe a L65 he said you dont want that heavy club get the 162 like me the couple extra pounds will kill you by the end of the day I guess he learned his lesson using the Jonsered 80 he bought in 74 my brother is a big logging contractor and still says the 162 and 266 were the best saws.
Not trying to turn this into an oil thread but when we bought the two saws we got extra chains and a case of Castroll two stroke oil thrown in the little stocky swede said mix your gas 24 to 1 when I pointed out that the owners manual said 50to1 if using Husky oil he and his partner chuckled and said go ahead I dont mind selling you another new saw in a couple weeks.We
were skidding with a 1964 C4 gas Tree Farmer skidder built in ThunderBay running 15 chokers you could haul some big loads but you had fall your trees nice and angled for the machine to winch in.Cutting in the spruce swamp we would average 15 cord a day lots of double and triple on the chokers.In 20 below and colder weather you did very little limbing just pull the skid threw a couple of ringer trees but you still had to buck up on the landing .
Good memories Kash
82 interestingly enough a guy just gave me a L65 you wouldnt have a clutch drum in reasonable shape you would sell.I have lots of buddies in Dryden and have worked there many times at the paper mill.My sprocket is toast other wise the saw is really good I like the sound of it running its got kinda old time power sound not the whine of the new saws.

 

[82F100SWB]

I will have to take a look, I have a 160S on the shelf that is mostly parts that may have something useable on it.
However, I do believe that I recently saw aftermarket availability, possibly sawparts.ca.