Bar oil alternative

[Funky sawman]

Ok, with crap getting more expensive about everywhere, what would be a usable alternative to normal bar oil which is usually just sae30 wt with tack additive. Local bar oil prices have jumped, it's suddenly 17 dollars a gallon, for any brand except harvest king which that went up also to 23 dollars for 2.5 gal but is hard to find, always out of stock.

Times are getting tough, I finished up my commercial thinning job, it just needs some logs hauled off it after breakup. Now it's tree removal for residential folk and firewood for income, and with the competition, it's gonna be real cutthroat this year. To keep my head above water I need to address some of the consumables and find where I can cut cost.

 

[jakethesnake]

Dude I run the cheapest hydraulic fluid I can find 303 in the yellow bucket usually. It’s cheaper than bar oil by a fair amount. Not sure what the price is right now but I’ll bet it’s worth looking into. Usually gotta but a bucket to save anything but I’ve been doing it for years

 

[Stem]

since I ran out of white jug Husqy oil I've been running Bel Ray. $10 or so from my local dealer. But I am gonna snag up some cheaper CAM2 stuff from Rural King, thats around $6 just to stock up.

 

[davidwyby]

If cost was an issue for me, I’d run anything oily…for what it is, I don’t think it matters.

 

[Funky sawman]

I might have found a drum of 80/90 wt gear for cheap, it is lightly contaminated with water. What's the option of gear oil on saw chains?

 

[Woodslasher]

I might have found a drum of 80/90 wt gear for cheap, it is lightly contaminated with water. What's the option of gear oil on saw chains?

See if you can run a tank through a saw and see how it does, that'd be my preferred testing method.

 

[Wolverine]

That Bel-Ray bar oil is the chit! I'm hooked. Buy it by the case for a discount.
I tried non-specific oil before. Won't make the same mistake twice. YMMV

 

[Stevetheboatguy]

I might have found a drum of 80/90 wt gear for cheap, it is lightly contaminated with water. What's the option of gear oil on saw chains?

80/90 gear oil needs cut with diesel has been my experience. That and it smells horrible makes a mess. But it will work. I'd run it if I got it cheap enough. Better than drain oil.

But if your not running any fancy lightweight bars or special chain. It won't matter much. I've run water contaminated two cycle oil with old worn bars and chains. Worked fine. Doesn't get much thinner than that.


Steven

 

[jakethesnake]

As ^steve mentioned. Cut with diesel or kerosene. Whatever is cheaper. I used a *s-word ton of synthetic gear oil in my saws I scored from friends. Bout the same idea. It was contaminated with water. I let it sit. Dipped off the top. Cut it with diesel and used it till it was gone

 

[jakethesnake]

The smell didn’t really bother me. My saws sit out in shed…

 

[davidwyby]

I re-used squeeze top bottles from gear oil for bar oil. I did not like the smell!

 

[Lnk]

since I ran out of white jug Husqy oil I've been running Bel Ray. $10 or so from my local dealer. But I am gonna snag up some cheaper CAM2 stuff from Rural King, thats around $6 just to stock up.

I was going to suggest this. Price just dropped, and I am a hoarder/ prepper whatever. So I stocked up. Pretty sure any clean oil will do. Look for sales on any oil. Buy 5 gallon buckets, profit.

 

[Pincher]

Menards just had mystic bar oil on clearance and i stocked up. 4.99 a gallon. NAPERVILLE, IL still has some, sold out most other places.

 

[Tugg]

That harvest king is about as cheap of bar oil I have found. You could try cutting it with something. I don’t like the smell of new gear oil and used stuff is even worse. When oil prices got high in 2008 there was bar oil that was refined used oil. It wasn’t great it was cheaper.

Some bulk oil places might have 30wt oil in 5 gallon buckets.

Walmart use to carry poulan oil and it was decent.
I have never used hydraulic oil in a saw but it has a very different viscosity than bar oil. I always get it on me when working with tractors and implements and it is difficult to get it off you hands compared to other oil.
I have cut better oils with 30wt oil. I have always used better oils in summer and cheaper stuff in winter.
Considering most of the this years bar oil is probably already in jugs and on a pallet somewhere maybe it won’t get to crazy.

 

[davidwyby]

I would find an oil distributor and ask him if they have any oil that is left over, contaminated, mixed in properly, ordered wrong, return, etc.

 

[JimBear]

I might have found a drum of 80/90 wt gear for cheap, it is lightly contaminated with water. What's the option of gear oil on saw chains?

80-90 is pretty thick to using for bar oil, maybe you can dilute it down with diesel.

 

[JimBear]

Here are some characteristics of different types of bar/chain oil :



I was actually going to call today & check out the price at MFA but I forgot, hopefully they are having a spring oil sale. If it’s not crazy I may get some more.

I am hoping I have enough to get me thru the price hikes though :

 

[Funky sawman]

I can't even keep up, today I went to pick up some of the harvest king 2.5 gal, now it's 32.95 and normal gallon of bar oil is 24.95

 

[Woodslasher]

I can't even keep up, today I went to pick up some of the harvest king 2.5 gal, now it's 32.95 and normal gallon of bar oil is 24.95

Damn, it was ~$13 a gallon the last time I bought a case!

 

[jakethesnake]

Walmart has it for 10 a gallon. On the website. Usually free shipping if you spend a certain amount. Just a heads up.