Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Hunter's Campfire Chain saw oil

I'm an occasional chain saw user.

I need some chain oil and I was looking at the old empty bottle, which doesn't have an SAE number on the label, and wondering if it wasn't really 30-weight motor oil with a higher price tag.

Can anybody tell me? Winter's a-coming. Thanks.

- Tom

I can tell ya my Pop has used straight 30W oil in place of actual bar oil for over 40 yrs with no problems.

Bar oil is stickier so if it is 30W it has additives I'm sure.

I am editing my original post. I completely missed that you were asking about chain oil. Sorry about that. 30 wt might work, but good bar oils will contain tackifiers that will hold the oil on the chain and bar better.

I have been using old used auto oil, 5-30 or what ever for many years. I have worn several chain saws out, but never the engine.
I have used vacuum motor oil, and rigt now I am using vegetable oil in one to cut big hay bales in half ( 3' x 3' x 8'). If I am cutting a lot of fresh geen pine, that has a lot of sap. I mix a little kerosene or diesel fuel in with the oil to cut the sap.
I'm sure thr pros use some special new stuff,but if you are an occasional user as you said, you just need to make sure the oil gets to the chain and it isn't too thick.

if you are cutting in very cold temps (sub zero) like we often get up here then I know a lot of guys that will run the lighter oil, that bar oil is so heavy & in very cold temps it's just a little to thick & sticky. lighter stuff like 10 to 30 wt would be good in the cold. hard to beat bar oil when it's hot out though, that's when your lighter oils will just run through too fast.

There was a time when we used leftover bottles/cans of motor oil for bar oil--it's not a good idea. Bars and chains last MUCH longer with bar oil.

Bar oil is "stickier" than motor oil, stays on the bar better, pumps through the oiler better( unless you're running in frigid conditions--where it's better to go with 30w or 20w).

Go to WallyWorld and buy some bar oil--for an occasional user, two quarts of bar oil will last a looong time.

Of course, the chain saw afficionados are kinda' like gun nuts--they'll tell you to buy the best synthetic bar and two cycle oil, blah, blah.

I run my vintage Mac muscle saws with regular bar oil and regular 2 cycle oil for decades now. I have a 1971 vintage Mac Super Pro 60 that has been in the family since new, and it still out-cuts our newer Husky's and Stihl's in the same engine class--especially at altitude........(that outta' light up the Stihl and Husky guys)

Casey

I'm with northerdave on this one. Usually when I'm using a chain saw it is in winter. But I was cutting wood last weekend and burned through the bar oil pretty fast in the warmer temps.

Normally I would need to fill the bar oil resivoir with every gas fill in winter. On Sunday, I was loading wood into the trailer and checked the oil on a whim, the oil res. was darn near empty but had a half tank of gas left.

I alway use bar oil, I guess it's cheap enough that I didn't think twice about it.

Using straight 30 in the winter may be a good thing.

Thanks everybody for the quick replies. I'm hoping to do what cutting I need before full winter - and when I say I'm an occasional user, that means I'm not burning through cords and cords of wood.

I didn't know about the "tackiness" additives. Guess when it comes down to it, I'm not going to go broke buying actual bar oil, so I suppose I'll just add that to my Home Depot list this weekend.

- Tom

Stihl makes a summer & a winter grade. Noticable difference in the viscosity. Those two oils have always treated me well.

Twisted

You're right--I forgot about that. Is it synthetic?



Casey

Worst case you are out a bar and chain(s). I use bar oil but will use regular oil in a bind.

Jeff

Always use good bar oil and 2 stroke mix. It's cheap insurance.

Real bar oil, summer weight, is much thicker and tackier than standard oil. You can watch it and see how it clings to the bar and chain. I've run used motor oil myself, and turned my bar from silver to blue. in some very dense beech wood. It pays to buy the real stuff. As long as it says "high tack", or something similar on it. I use what ever the local store has in stock, that is actual tacky bar oil. In winter straight, non-detergent oil will work.
As far as two stroke oils go, I've bought some real junk before, the saws, weed-eater, etc, barely ran, and were much under powered. Name brand only for me from then on. I like the new stuff, universal mixture ratio. 32-1, 48-1, 72-1, all mixed the same. My saws like it, and still last longer than the outside parts like chain brakes and vibration dampeners. Actually, I've never burned up a 2-stroke engine. My sister blew out a dirt bike engine once, but that was because I told her not to try shifting and to watch the tach. She watched the speedo.

Also, keep an eye on your chain tension. New chains loosen up real fast while breaking in. Tightening once or twice per tank of gas for awhile isn't unusual. If the chain comes off, it can bur the chain where it runs in the blade, ans then you get to spend a hour filing the burs down so it'll slide freely. It can also wreak havoc with your drive sprocket, and some are harder than others to replace. If you ever do replace on. Get a two piece one from a dealer. Most cheaper saws cross over to a more expensive brand. Puolon crosses over to Huskevarna's lower priced saws for a lot of parts. It just takes some internet browsing to find a cross over list to make the dealer admit such things are possible.

For me, I gotta use the castor oil 2 stroke mix.

Nothing like the sound of a rippin' chain saw and the smell of castor oil in the air...

well on farm we always used the used oil from tractors and cars that we put in barrel and never had a problem now that i don't cut as much i buy both the winter mix and summer oil

I've run a couple saws now for over 22 years and always used bar oil, because the manuals made that suggestion. I have a newer high end saw now, and it will get the same treatment.

Yes, I know folks that run used motor oil too, but I'm not that cheap. No reason to risk screwing up good equipment just to save a buck.

bar oil is STP thinned. mix 30 wt in summer and 20 wt in winter or just vary the STP with which oil you use to get the thickness you want, the thicker the better . pure STP in summer worked for me.

And for lots of pitch, thin with kerosene.

Here's a website I stumbled on to while doing research prior to buying a saw. Just as there are 'Rifle Loonies', so are there 'chainsaw loonies'. Lot's of good advice has already been given, but if you want even more info/opinions, try:

http://www.arboristsite.com/forumdisplay.php?s=98dbe88acab308c09308d4a0fbf8b410&f=9