550xpg

[Breezeblock]

ok chaps time for a new saw going to go for a new 550xpg the last one we had a couple of years back was a pile of crap are the new ones any better

[MattyF]

Dunno mate but picked one up yesterday at a bargain price because it was end of season and they had sold out of none xpg's.... Started snowing on the way home and today there is a harsh frost so maybe it was not a bad choice already

[Joe Newton]

I bought on a month or so ago. Depends what you want of it. Up to 15" it's the best all round ground saw for me (I'm running 13" .325 on an 8t sprocket). I doubt it'd be outstanding on an 18".

 

With my setup it's nothing short of beastly

[Hodge]

I have had mine for a year now and touch wood have had no problems with it. It runs a 15" bar superbly and the power is spot on. The heated handle was great on the cold days.

[SteveA]

Been using my 550xpg (2013) today with the heated handle switched on - (which is the first time I've had it switched on).... was very nice to be working with warmer hands.

 

Apart from being a bugger to start when it was brand new it seems to have settled in nicely.

Now running it on Aspen.

Apparently the early 550xp's had teething problems.

[JaySmith]

I've had mine for a few months, run it on a 15inch bar but wouldn't go any bigger than that. Very light, flickable saw and good power to weight

[normandylumberjack]

I got one about a month ago, its a great saw imo. I have been doing a lot of softwood felling in the woods lately and its a real nice saw to sned with, although not sure if it flicks aswell as my late 346xpg? But that is probably just nostalgia

 

I have it on a 13" with 8t and its soooooo quick. I do nurse my saws so cant really comment on durability but other than a brake band no probs. I broke it in on aspen but soon changed over to normal mix with no ill effects.

[JimM]

My 2012 550xpg has just grumbled to a halt. Sounds like someone has poured a bag of nails in the engine. It was an early one and had starting issues. Done a load of work with it in 3 years

But no second thoughts. New one ordered already. Wish I had it for today's job. The 560 is a bit heavy for a long day of snedding.

[njm]

ok chaps time for a new saw going to go for a new 550xpg the last one we had a couple of years back was a pile of crap are the new ones any better

 

Make sure its a new model with the revised cylinder

[Davie Mac]

Let me tell the tale of the 550xp. I bought a new one on 11th Feb this year. Fantastic powerful light wee saw I thought. My plan was to use the 550 as an everyday/thinning saw for the 10-12" spruce thinning job etc. I also have a 372xp with 24" bar for bigger stuff. Perfect pair of saws, you would think. After a few trees dropped, sned and crosscut, it was clear the 550xp had issues. When picking the saw up after stacking the timber, from idle, there was zero throttle response. The saw bogged down and wouldn't take throttle. If you held the trigger in, it would sort itself out and pick up after 5 or 6 seconds. Almost like it was flooded. Bit smelly too. I put the saw into some big timber as per the manual to "tune" the autotune but no better. Back to dealer for diagnostics. New (upgraded) carb fitted and saw returned to me. Nope, still the same. Took it to another dealer for a fresh look. No faults found. Dealers/workshops can't replicate felling trees. They couldn't get the saw to fault. Sent back to original dealer who promptly sent it to Husqvarna UK. Came back with new piston and cylinder fitted under warranty as "there was scoring to the cylinder unrelated to fuel/oil mixture." Still no better. My dealer, who was most helpful throughout, replaced the 550 with another new model. Fault exactly the same. Very poor throttle response from tickover. I was offered a 560xp in it's place and what a saw that is! Fantastic. No issues whatsoever. So, ask me about a 550xp and I will tell you to skip over it and get a 560xp. Slightly heavier but not by much and gets a much better report all round.