Chain saw oils

[Nigel L]

Not sure if this has been raised before.

What are the virtues of chain saw 2 stroke oil / motorcycle 2 stroke oil the latter is much cheaper and don't really believe its not suitable. However manufactures blurb suggests its not.

Likewise is any form of motor oil suitable as chain saw oil, I do know that chain saw oil claims to have "anti fling" properties.

Looking forward to hearing others experiences / recommendations.

[RichardKing]

I believe than the main brands of chainsaw twostroke oil are a different formulation & only require half the concentration compared to motorcycle oil. bear this in mind when comparing price & pollution.

Traditional type chain oil does in fact have the same spec as gear oil. Other types include a "bio" vegetable based oil. This can have problems of oxidising to form deposits in the saw if left around for any time.

There is also a "soluble oil" which is a vegetable oil that is mixed with water to form an emulsion. Dont know how good it is. Its been used in the engineering industry on metal cutting machines for probably a hundred years or more, but they have circulating pumps that completely drench the cutting tips, very different to chainsaws.

[Rich]

I've been using veg oil in my saws and not really noticed any oxidisation. When you consider how much of the stuff you get through, I would rather have this spread around the woodland than mineral oil. It's also reccommended for use over or near water.

Rich

[treebloke]

Two stroke oil for chansaws is normally 50/1 whearas a lot of other two stroke oil is 25/1 so important to know which is which or you will have a very sick and costly saw.

Guide bar oil is anti fling for a good reason, it sticks to the chain and guide bar and therefore offers better lubrication, any other oil will result in premature wear and tear of the chain and guide bar and is potentially dangerous.

[happybonzo]

The so-called chainsaw oils have a manufacturers name on them so they are bound to recommend their own make of oil

2 strokes run on various different ratios ie 25/1 50/1 etc It is up to the user to mix accordingly. You can buy a small bottle. and I'm sure that most of us will have seen them at some time, that you pour petrol into first, up to the 1 litre mark. You then pour in the requisite amount of oil to the various marks. The good thing about this is that if you are an occasional saw, brushcutter user or whatever, you will not have litres and litres of fuel lying around going "off" Petrol does have a habit of going "off" Most problems with small engines come from varnishes forming in fuel lines due their lack of use.

If your saw needs 50/1 there is another alternative and it is Aspen 2T.

http://www.aaoil.co.uk/environment-Aspen-2T-alkylate-petrol

The best thing about this is that it has a shelf life of 25 years. No need to add anything, just pour it in and off you go. It appears to be expensive but if you factor in buying 2 stroke oil it is quite affordable. Another plus is that the fumes from it don't appear to be as unpleasant as normal petrol & oil mixes.

Regarding using Chain oil: A lot of the more recent oils seem to have been to placate the Bunny huggers in that they are biodegradable.

I have used waste oil in a Rancher 50 for many years and it doesn't seem to have done the bar or chains much harm - and it's very affordable

These remarks are a personal opinion so please don't come to me if your chainsaw falls to bits

[Stephen1]

I think it's a false economy to use vegetable oil for the chain. Centrifugal force throws it off the chain far too quickly compared to the "anti-fling" formulated generic chain oils- and the chain and bar will wear much more quickly. If you feel you do really want to use vegetable oil then use one that is mainly oil seed rape rather than sunflower or palm oil (surely no one is using olive oil?) Rape oil is the most viscous of the commonly available vegetable oils, and it gets less viscous as its temperature rises a little bit more slowly than the other commonly available vegetable oils.

I use sthil's biodegradable chain oil in sensitive areas - but I do sometimes use ordinary mineral oil when thinning in dense coniferous areas that are currently of low conservation value. These areas are probably more than a decade away from any attempts at serious ground flora restoration. This is more than enough time for biological activity to degrade the small amounts of mineral chain oil deposited over the areas involved. The range of lengths of hydrocarbon chains in 'mineral chain oil' are ones that Are biodegradable - but very slowly. They take years, rather than months (the vegetable oil based ones thinnly spread and in contact with warm soil can completely biodegrade in a season),when very thinnly spread in contact with a biologically active surface (like soil).

Obviously contanimation of wet habitats - ponds, ditches etc. with mineral oil is far more serious - but even vegetable oil causes problems forthese habitats.

[Rich]

Yeah I would have thought any oil film over water would prevent a miriad of creatures lavae breathing? I'm not really sure if my chainsaw's bars run drier or not on veg oil as I've always used it and don't really have much to compare with. I'm on my 3rd season with the same bar, though it is showing signs of wear.

Rich

[carlight]

personally i can't abide working on the same job as someone using veg oil - how am i suppose to concentrate on the job , when all i can think about is eating chips !

i do feel that genuine chain oil helps bars to last longer .

i always use quality 2 stroke oil at ~40;1

[MattB]

I dont know the chemistry of 2-stroke oil mixes, all i know is my warranty is void on my stihl kit if i dont use thier mix.

My main concerns with chain oil are what it may be doing to my health as I use it 5 days per week and i'm in regular contact. Sinthetic oils are much better for opperator health as they are sterile and not carcinogenic as many people believe. Bio-oils are capable of having some quite nasty things living in them potentially bad for the opperator. Obviously working arround rivers etc you arent going to want an oil slick though so I'd always use bio.

[tobyphair]

bio chainsaw oil is rubbish ruins the bar after alot of use i wouldnt use engine oil ever stick to chain oil two stroke oil on the other hand i wouldnt use motor bike oil for a chain saw as a chain saw is alot higher tuned than a two stroke motor bike and rember saws are a 50 to 1 ratio the amount of saws i have to fix because people used 25 to 1 is unbelivable. i hope that helps

toby