Husqvarna 450 sits near the top of Husky’s mid-range saws for homeowners and landowners, but also for tree service crews and foresters. If you need a powerful saw for general maintenance and storm clean-up read on.
Pros & Cons
Pros
- Fuel-efficient X-Torq engine
- Excellent power for this class
- Very low vibration
- Inertia-activated chain brake
- Air-injected cleaning system removes dust and debris before reaching the filter
- Excellent power
- Good cutting ability
- Low vibration
- Easy to handle
- Solid construction
- Good features
Cons
- No major downsides
Design
Guide bar
The saw supports a range of bars from 13” (33 cm) to 20” (50 cm). By default there’s an option to choose between an 18” (45 cm) and 20” (50 cm) low kickback guide bar. You can change that of course.
Husqvarna bars are pretty durable and won’t bend under load.
Chain
The chain utilizes narrow kerf technology, so it requires less power to make cuts of the same length. The chain has a 0.325” pitch, 0.05” gauge and 72 drive links. Chain speed is around 17 m/s. Use a 3/16” file for sharpening.
Chain tensioning is on the right side of the saw and you’ll need a scrench to adjust it. It doesn’t have the chain tensioning wheel like other saws in this range.
Fuel tank
Along with the 445 and 450 its 0.95 US pint (0.45 liter) is biggest in this range. It’s also transparent so you see how much gas you’ve got left or don’t overspill when filling up.
Ergonomic rear handle
Rancher models have better ergonomic rear handles that reduce fatigue when cutting a lot of trees in one go. The classic 450 and 450E don’t have this.
Felling marks
Again, standard with all Huskys. Felling marks on the body are for lining up the bar to the cut. You line up the mark where you want the tree to fall with the felling marks and you do the top cut first.
Durability
Husqvarna chainsaws generally have long lives. Many people report still rocking 15 or 20-year old Husky. Talk about getting your money’s worth.
Anecdotally, my uncle has a 450 and as far as I know, he does little to no maintenance and it’s working like new. If you’ll take it more seriously than him and take proper care of your saw, I don’t see it breaking down on you any time soon.
Air Injection
The centrifugal air cleaning system prevents larger dust and debris particles from reaching the air filter. In return you get improved engine life and less maintenance cleaning the air filter. All Husqvarnas have this.
Three-piece crankshaft
This design with roller bearing provides greater reliability and reduced internal wear.
Ease of use
Despite it being a petrol chainsaw, it’s a breeze to start. As always, I’ve found a couple of people claiming otherwise, but if you follow the instructions provided with the chainsaw, you won’t have much trouble.
Flip-up tank cap
This feature makes it easier to refuel the chainsaw, as you have better grip when opening the filler even with a vacuum in the tank. The cap is designed to allow air in and replace the vacuum after turning it through ¼ turn and break the suction power.
Snap-lock cylinder cover
When you need to do maintenance on the air filter, you can remove the hard plastic cover easily by popping the snap-locks on each side. You don’t need any tools for that.
Air purge
Removes air from the system to help with start-up.
Smart Start
This is available on the 450, 450 Rancher and 450E. It reduces resistance by the coil by around 40%, which makes starting up the chainsaw a lot easier and with fewer cord pulls.
Starting up
To start a cold engine, you prime the air purge bulb (also called the fuel pump) until you can see fuel in it. Next you activate the choke and engage the chain brake by pushing the handle forward. Before you pull the handle of the cord to start the engine, you press the decompression valve.
Auto return stop switch
When you use the stop switch to kill the engine, it resets on the ON position, which enables the engine to start again. This is convenient, because you won’t forget to set it to “run” mode before you start the engine.
Safety
Operating chainsaws of any size is a dangerous endeavour, therefore you need as much protection as you can get.
Inertia activated chain brake
In case of kickback the inertia mechanism will stop the chain from running. This significantly reduces the risk of injury.
LowVib
The vibration dampening system called LowVib is present in all Husky chainsaws. Metal springs in the engine suspension reduce vibrations felt by the operator. This allows you to work longer without your hands getting exhausted and it also prevents developing medical conditions.
The front handle and hand guard are offset by 7° to provide more natural holding position.
Performance
If you don’t plan on cutting down any large trees, then there’s not much else the 450 isn’t able to do. It’s able to fell small to medium size trees and then cutting that wood is a breeze. The 50.2 cc engine offers maximum power output of 3.2 horsepower. It cuts right through any material like butter, no matter if it’s soft or hardwood.
X-Torq
This is probably the best thing about newer Husqvarna saws. The X-Torq technology reduces emissions by up to 60% and fuel consumption by up to 30%. You spend less on gas and breathe less fumes. It also makes the saw CARB compliant.
Warranty
Husqvarna offers 90 day warranty for commercial use and 2-year warranty for personal use. You can extend that to 5 years by buying a certain amount of their premade fuel mix with your chainsaw purchase. Then, you register it online (you’ll be asked for proof).
Amazon also offers additional protection of 2 or 3 years.
Conclusion
Husqvarna 450 offers everything the average property owner will ever need. It doesn’t have quite enough power for professionals, but it’ll handle big everyday jobs. On the other hand, if you’re looking for something to trim limbs, the 450 is quite heavy, so it’s easy to get tired. If you need to do firewood for winter, this chainsaw is everything you’ll need.
Husqvarna 450 Specs
| Cylinder displacement | 50.2 cm³ |
| Cylinder displacement | 3.06 cu.inch |
| Power output | 3.2 hp |
| Weight | 11.2 pounds (5.08 kg) |
| Maximum power speed | 9000 RPM |
| Fuel tank volume | 0.95 US pint (0.45 liter) |
| Fuel consumption | 504 g/kWh |
| Idling speed | 2700 RPM |
| Spark plug | |
| Electrode gap | 0.02” |
| Torque (max) | 2.6 Nm |
| Recommended bar length (min) | 13” (33 cm) |
| Recommended bar length (max) | 20” (50 cm) |
| Chain speed at max power | |
| Oil tank volume | 0.55 US pint (0.26 liter) |
| Oil pump type | Fixed flow |
| Oil pump capacity | |
| Sound | (LWA) 115 dB(A) |
| Equivalent vibration level (ahv, eq) front handle | 3.1 m/s2 |
| Equivalent vibration level (ahv, eq) rear handle | 4.9 m/s2 |
| Warranty | 2 years |
All features
- X-Torq
- Air Injection
- LowVib
- Smart Start
- Inertia activated chain brake
- Three-piece crankshaft
- Ergonomic rear handle
- Felling marks
- Quick-release air filter
- Snap-lock cylinder cover
- Auto return stop switch
- Flip-up tank cap
- Visible fuel level
- Air Purge
Other Husqvarna all-round saws
- Husqvarna 439
- Husqvarna 445
- Husqvarna 450 Rancher
- Husqvarna 455 Rancher
- Husqvarna 460 Rancher
- Husqvarna 445
- Husqvarna 440
- Husqvarna 435