Just managed to snipe a new Husky 555 with 18" bar for a good price. I currently have a 450 rancher with 20" bar. Should be a nice little upgrade. As I don't have the saw just yet, question is can I swap the 20" bar to the new incoming 555 and put the new 18" bar on the rancher to offload that then?

If it uses a 3/8 pitch .050 gauge, then yes.

Nice snag. Is it new? With the drop in Quality of the new Stihl's I would buy a new Husky myself just to try one. I have several Stihl saw's and a couple littler husky's. Both are good. But the new Stihl has lost a lot of its Luster. Too bad to see such a great tool be cheapened to a home owner line of equipment. They were such a great "make a living" piece of equipment for decades.

you should be able to download the owners manual and I assume the manual will tell you the minimum and maximum length bar for that model.

Looks like a nice saw.
Should handle a 20" bar, no problem...
https://www.husqvarna.com/us/p...nsaws/555/966451904/

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If it uses a 3/8 pitch .050 gauge, then yes.

Yeah... As long as the gears match.

Good point. I just purchased a new chain for the 450 rancher and it's .325 pitch. I doubt it has the ass to pull the 3/8.

The 555 will have no problem with a 20" bar. I just needed to find out if the 20" bar I had would work. Looks like I'll have to purchase a separate 20" bar now and just put up the rancher on Craigslist as is.

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Originally posted by old rugged cross:
Nice snag. Is it new? With the drop in Quality of the new Stihl's I would buy a new Husky myself just to try one. I have several Stihl saw's and a couple littler husky's. Both are good. But the new Stihl has lost a lot of its Luster. Too bad to see such a great tool be cheapened to a home owner line of equipment. They were such a great "make a living" piece of equipment for decades.

Stihl's older stuff is bar-nun awesome. I still have a 025 with a pico chain with a 16" bar that is great for limbing. Their newer stuff is not worth the price. I've run John Deere, Stihl, Husq and Echo. I like Echo for homeowner and low level professional, and Husq for professional use. Echo's inability to interchange bars is an effing mess. Last time I looked, they have seven different bar offerings (in 18") that cover 11 different saws.

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Too bad to see such a great tool be cheapened to a home owner line of equipment. They were such a great "make a living" piece of equipment for decades.

Just buy from the "Professional" line. You'll be aiiight.

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Originally posted by steelcityfishanddive:
Good point. I just purchased a new chain for the 450 rancher and it's .325 pitch. I doubt it has the ass to pull the 3/8.

The 555 will have no problem with a 20" bar. I just needed to find out if the 20" bar I had would work. Looks like I'll have to purchase a separate 20" bar now and just put up the rancher on Craigslist as is.

The 450 could theoretically pull a 3/8, as it has a 50cc engine, but the 555 will be 60cc, and will feel a bunch easier. I think Oregon offers a skip chain for the 450.

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Originally posted by old rugged cross:
With the drop in Quality of the new Stihl's ...

Since when? I bought a brand-new Stihl powered pole saw two summers ago. Seems as robust as my over-25-year-old 025.

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Originally posted by ensigmatic:

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Originally posted by old rugged cross:
With the drop in Quality of the new Stihl's ...

Since when? I bought a brand-new Stihl powered pole saw two summers ago. Seems as robust as my over-25-year-old 025.

Their pistons are part of the problem. Nowhere near as durable as they used to be. I had a 1 year warranty on my 362, and the piston went bad within 20 hours of use. Even the dealer has told me they are having more issuers. Stihl did ultimately stand behind the warranty.

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I had a 1 year warranty on my 362, and the piston went bad within 20 hours of use.

How old is it?
I have a Stihl MS362 and I love it. It's a beast compared to the MS290 I used to have. But it's at least 5 years old now.

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Originally posted by chellim1:

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I had a 1 year warranty on my 362, and the piston went bad within 20 hours of use.

How old is it?
I have a Stihl MS362 and I love it. It's a beast compared to the MS290 I used to have. But it's at least 5 years old now.

I bought it in December 2019, and by late January 2020 it was back in the shop. I ran it fine on Friday night, and Saturday I went to start it, and it bound. I took it apart thinking it was the recoil rope, but it ended up bending the piston head. Engine was toast.

I had a tree down, and the dealer did not offer an interim solution, so I bought a smaller Echo 450P to tender the tree. IT took Stihl three months to tell the dealer to refund my money because it was under warranty.

For what it is worth, a friend of mine has a 361 (previous generation) and it has been rock solid for him. A neighbor has a Husq 365 that is a beast. I think it has a 75cc engine.

For anybody considering a chainsaw, it should be mandatory that, like a safe, figure what you like, and always more up one rung. IF you think the 270 is right, go up. My neighbor has been outside cutting a tree that fell down for 4 hours now with a Stihl 170. I may go out at lunch with my 450p and help just to get some peace and quiet.

I have an 026, an MS261, and a MS 194 T. The MS 261 is by far and away my favorite. I cut roughly 7 chords per year, and have had nary an issue. The MS 261 is such an improvement over the 026. The decompression button and anti vibration features alone make a huge difference when cutting for a few hours.

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Originally posted by Rev. A. J. Forsyth:
I have an 026, an MS261, and a MS 194 T.

Are you a pro with a 194? The only guys I know that run those are professional arborists.

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Are you a pro with a 194? The only guys I know that run those are professional arborists.

I worked at a cemetery for a while helping out a friend. There were 120 acres of large trees to take care of. They had the saw in their inventory. I liked it so much I bought one utilizing their 20% off MSRP and no tax deal. It's so handy to have when bucking logs or climbing to remove branches. I am not a pro arborist, but refuse to pay for firewood.

Nice. What brand of chain is good for it? I've only used your basic Oregon brand.

I like the Stihl 011 and 012 due to their light weight and cutting power. You can get parts from DIYS shop wholesale in England.

https://www.diyspareparts.com/parts/stihl/

Huskies are great saws and I should spend more time with ours. I just always have a fight starting them, having a hard time telling when to take the choke off.

All our Stihl saws are no brainers - full choke, pull one to three times ‘til you get the obvious pop, lift the choke up one notch, pull and you’re off to the races. That said, my son was doing some sawing the other day and managed to flood both MS250s. I didn’t think it was possible to flood a Stihl.

Guys who speak the Huskies’ lingo probably feel the same way about them. Oh well, one more thing I need to practice more and suck less at. (Nods to hrhawk.)

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Originally posted by Oz_Shadow:
Nice. What brand of chain is good for it? I've only used your basic Oregon brand.

Generally speaking, as there are many different chain types, yes Oregon chain is GTG.

I've been using these guys for a long while. Excellent service: Frawley's Saw Shop