High Quality Chainsaw Bars Husqvarna Toys Hockfire Saws

Ok to add motor oil to bar chain oil?

Woodsman

OPE Member
Local time
8:31 AM
User ID
28832
Joined
Mar 30, 2024
Messages
33
Reaction score
26
Location
The woods
Country flag

In the video above, Project Farm compared different chain bar oils and the Harvest King came out on top overall. In one category HK finished second behind the Mobil Delvac motor oil with the second smallest metal scar. Mobil Delvac had the smallest wear scar size. Is it ok to add and combine a little Mobil motor oil to the Harvest King chain bar oil for added metal protection or will it cause malfunctions/damage to the saw? Have any of you done that as an experiment to see or is there another superior lubricant you can add to chain bar oil for added protection against metal wear?
 
Last edited:

Loony661

Stock chainsaws suck.
Yearly GoldMember
Local time
7:31 AM
User ID
2584
Joined
Feb 4, 2017
Messages
5,863
Reaction score
37,792
Location
Winona County, MN
Country flag

In the video above, Project Farm compared different chain bar oils and the Harvest King came out on top overall. In one category HK finished second behind the Mobil Delvac motor oil with the second smallest metal scar. Mobil Delvac had the smallest wear scar size. Is it ok to add and combine a little Mobil motor oil to the Harvest King chain bar oil for added metal protection or will it cause malfunctions/damage to the saw? Have any of you done that as an experiment to see or is there another superior lubricant you can add to chain bar oil for added protection against metal wear?
You won’t damage the saw running different oils. The oil pump doesn’t really care what you put through it - except used engine oil. The sulfuric acid in used engine oil eats away at it… You may experience a difference in bar and chain wear, however. Play around, have fun.
 

WI_Hedgehog

Super OPE Member
Local time
7:31 AM
User ID
27428
Joined
Sep 8, 2023
Messages
348
Reaction score
894
Location
Milwaukee, Wisconsin, U.S.A.
Country flag
I'm not sure how people decided they are smarter than Engineers without actually doing any engineering (with numbers and equations and such), but I think that's where this whole corn-gas thing came from. If corn-gas was so great farmers would use it to run their tractors and come out ahead, but that's not the case. Bar oil is similar.

Years back saws used straight 30 weight in both the oil tank and mixed in with the fuel at a 32:1 ratio. The muffler, as an aside, was mostly a straight path through a tiny bulb where the output was about 80% of the input size, which needless to say was loud, though not nearly as loud as not having this little device. Ya didn't have to worry about mosquitos due to the blue haze, and back then we didn't know about cancer.

We're now about 100 years past that and things have improved concerning oil (and mufflers). We no longer have to worry about the blue haze killing us, (or breast implants), though genetically modified food and refined sugar have easily taken the place. Some of the best advice I read here is: Use the cheapest bar oil you can find--and a lot of it. As long as the bar oil is "pretty tacky" and "pretty slippery" then turning the oiler up all the way not only rust-proofs your saw, it also helps flush crap out of the nose sprocket and extend bar life in general by keeping it cool and clean-ish. I just proved that to myself again this weekend when cutting wood that was dirtier than I thought and the nose sprocket bound up with grit; I turned the oiler all the way up--problem solved.
 

jblnut

Flabs of Stihl
Yearly GoldMember
Local time
7:31 AM
User ID
28381
Joined
Jan 26, 2024
Messages
336
Reaction score
2,020
Location
Central Mn
Country flag
I'm not sure how people decided they are smarter than Engineers without actually doing any engineering (with numbers and equations and such), but I think that's where this whole corn-gas thing came from. If corn-gas was so great farmers would use it to run their tractors and come out ahead, but that's not the case. Bar oil is similar.

Years back saws used straight 30 weight in both the oil tank and mixed in with the fuel at a 32:1 ratio. The muffler, as an aside, was mostly a straight path through a tiny bulb where the output was about 80% of the input size, which needless to say was loud, though not nearly as loud as not having this little device. Ya didn't have to worry about mosquitos due to the blue haze, and back then we didn't know about cancer.

We're now about 100 years past that and things have improved concerning oil (and mufflers). We no longer have to worry about the blue haze killing us, (or breast implants), though genetically modified food and refined sugar have easily taken the place. Some of the best advice I read here is: Use the cheapest bar oil you can find--and a lot of it. As long as the bar oil is "pretty tacky" and "pretty slippery" then turning the oiler up all the way not only rust-proofs your saw, it also helps flush crap out of the nose sprocket and extend bar life in general by keeping it cool and clean-ish. I just proved that to myself again this weekend when cutting wood that was dirtier than I thought and the nose sprocket bound up with grit; I turned the oiler all the way up--problem solved.
My diesel tractors and farm equipment run on bio-diesel and the gas tractors all run E15. The saws usually get E15 as well.

I run whatever I have around for oil in my saws and haven’t noticed one lick of difference as far as actual cutting performance or longevity of components. Currently in my gallon jug of “bar oil” is a mix of 80w, old 2-stroke oil, some royal purple 5w-30, canola oil and some Fleet Farm brand bar oil. I’m no logger but I’m far from a guy that cuts a few branches off each year. I burn through 25-30gal of saw gas/yr and probably 18-20gal of “bar oil”. Although it’s a wild mix all the time I only run new stuff and it’s dictated by what I have on hand to get rid of.

When it’s cooler than 30ish F outside I’ll toss straight 15w40 in the saws. Seems to fly out nicely and below 0f I’ll put straight 5w30 in to keep the oil flowing. I get cases of oil from the local NAPA and AutoValue that have been discontinued or shelved for a long time and they don’t want to sell it anymore.

Any oil in there is better than no oil.
 

hacskaroly

Super OPE Member
Local time
5:31 AM
User ID
27954
Joined
Nov 24, 2023
Messages
662
Reaction score
1,877
Location
Northern Idaho
Country flag
Harvest King came out on top overall.
I use Harvest King....really good price, $17.00 for 2 gallons. Thinning out the bar oil with motor oil or just using motor oil will just cause more of it to fling off as the chain spins. They put stickifiers in it for a reason, but you do what works for you!
 

TheWizard

Well-Known OPE Member
Local time
1:31 PM
User ID
27730
Joined
Oct 20, 2023
Messages
39
Reaction score
116
Location
Wales UK
Country flag
I'm sure i posted this before, a local chainsaw dealer who supplied a lot to forestry sold their own bar oil. I was there once when a delivery turned up. I used his oil by the gallon and never any problem and so did hundreds of others. it was a big drum of ep90 and much cheaper than other dedicated bar oil, plus a farmer friend who has been supplying firewood for over 40 years swears by new engine oil so I would say Delvac would work just fine but the dedicated bar oils have a tackifier as we all know. It all works, some better than others. More important is a sharp chain and I mean sharp, I have met plenty of people who think their chain is when it wouldnt cut butter
 

Czed

Aluminium Member
GoldMember
Local time
8:31 AM
User ID
568
Joined
Jan 17, 2016
Messages
32,977
Reaction score
187,746
Location
Wv
Country flag
My 1980s 266s are still oiling great after a unknown number of gallons 50/50 mixed
Bar oil and used motor oil
Strained it first.
 

Skiptooth Fred

Super OPE Member
Local time
11:31 PM
User ID
24302
Joined
Jul 16, 2022
Messages
177
Reaction score
492
Location
Australia
Country flag

In the video above, Project Farm compared different chain bar oils and the Harvest King came out on top overall. In one category HK finished second behind the Mobil Delvac motor oil with the second smallest metal scar. Mobil Delvac had the smallest wear scar size. Is it ok to add and combine a little Mobil motor oil to the Harvest King chain bar oil for added metal protection or will it cause malfunctions/damage to the saw? Have any of you done that as an experiment to see or is there another superior lubricant you can add to chain bar oil for added protection against metal wear?
Oils ain’t oils as the old advert went!
This is long grab a cuppa!!!
One of the biggest arguments around engines etc all kinds, revolves around oils quite often🤦🏻 Anyway, my experience is this that follows, take it with a bag of salt or not its up to you. In writing this here i also refer to always having ‘sharp chains’ not blunt stuff.
The bar oil is there to lubricate the bar, chain & sprocket tip if it has one, in low horsepower saws high quality bar oil is not as much of an issue due to less torque and ability to cut at high speeds. In high horsepower saws, i will use my 592 for eg here, one must use good quality bar oil or severe wear on bar rails and sprocket tips occurs. Why? Because friction causes heat and heating steel causes it to soften, the other factor is this saw has the power to accept high pressure at the uses handles and still cut without dying or slowing much in the rev department. I disappointingly and surprisingly found this out the hard way. The bar oil i used for decades was my mix of purchased chain and bar oil mixed fifty fifty with 85/140 gear oil, i would be given or purchase cheap in unused containers, or at times if it were clean direct from a differential it would be filtered. I had very very little bar wear in fact i have work bars thirty years old i still use, dress them, run sharp chains, oil them well, replace a tip when required and they last. Heres my catch- i next ran the new gulf western bar oil upon release it was excellent stuff, and then the 592 is bought, all of a sudden a new hot running cannon duralite😡but couldn’t work out why? Hot to me is a bar you cant hold after cutting, also bar wear😡👎one bar for the price of two plus in Au’. I had refilled the combi can but when i got to the last of the oil i noticed the oil colour change and viscosity in its pour and thats when the penny dropped🤦🏻the viscosity/oil thickness had been changed! I had noticed the blue colour as opposed to yellow prior but didn’t read the label. The new oil is 150 in its weight, the older batches were 220 weight oil! The two oils had stayed separated and the last full tank was the old 220, no heat its gone! I rang the tech department and found out that yes they had changed the viscosity from a 220 to a thinner 150 grade, apparently to suit manufactures requirements! Now back to mixing oils- any 150 viscosity oil mixed with a 85w140 gear oil will give you a 220 grade.
I now but Atlantic Oils 220 chain and bar oil, as GW are not at this stage reproducing there 220. Bar wear is back to not being noticed and they run warm not hot, expensive lesson to learn when one considers bar prices and imho i have not found any bar as good as the cannon. The brand new fitted husky xtough lite was blued and showed wear on its first tank of fuel being lightly used👎😡its hung on the wall ever since, yes husky bar oil is a 150 grade here in Au’ i imagine the same elsewhere. Now here’s a bit if trivia, the stihl 660 magnum i have will not drive a blunt chain anywhere close to the 592, i just dont go there with it even if its just the last few blocks to cut, and it does not therefor put the pressure on the rails anywhere near as much, but dont friends take that as a cheap excuse to not use quality oil, learn to understand when your equipment is happy. Now back on powerhead wear as some ask does this happen?- Over general wear imo it all comes from dull chains and excessive force, and clogged air-filters, maintain your gear and it lasts for years, if it ain’t cutting well then sort it out, if you cant hand file on the spot then put another chain on or learn, i am still running a 1994 61 orange-top over new stuff as a go to saw beside the 592 & 562, yes with its original 20” oregon bar that now uses an .063 chain and not .058 its been a work saw and weekend saw all its life and has given no trouble nil, other than a failed ngk plug, keep them sharp friends and turn that oil screw up to max run them tank for tank. And does the so called thicker oil affect the oil pump? (Remember its been a 220 for a long time GW and AO and few even knew) in my forty years of swinging off saws, No, not even in the minus degrees C. And the Trivia is- when i mixed the old 150 bar oil with 85/140 i never knew i had brewed a 220 weight oil! But i knew i had very low wear and cool running bars!! Go with your gut when things are working well, take note and smile
 

Woodsman

OPE Member
Local time
8:31 AM
User ID
28832
Joined
Mar 30, 2024
Messages
33
Reaction score
26
Location
The woods
Country flag
I'm sure i posted this before, a local chainsaw dealer who supplied a lot to forestry sold their own bar oil. I was there once when a delivery turned up. I used his oil by the gallon and never any problem and so did hundreds of others. it was a big drum of ep90 and much cheaper than other dedicated bar oil, plus a farmer friend who has been supplying firewood for over 40 years swears by new engine oil so I would say Delvac would work just fine but the dedicated bar oils have a tackifier as we all know. It all works, some better than others. More important is a sharp chain and I mean sharp, I have met plenty of people who think their chain is when it wouldnt cut butter
Are there any chain sharpeners you prefer that work better than others? Also, have you tried the STIHL 2 in 1 Easy File?...
 

huskihl

Muh fingers look really big
GoldMember
Local time
8:31 AM
User ID
360
Joined
Dec 31, 2015
Messages
22,759
Reaction score
145,144
Location
East Jordan, MI
Country flag

Philbert

Chainsaw Enthusiast
Local time
7:31 AM
User ID
737
Joined
Jan 30, 2016
Messages
4,549
Reaction score
18,571
Location
East Dakota
Country flag
The bar and chain oil is not just for the bar rails: it has to work its way up to the rivets, where they pass through the drive links.

Each rivet is hardened in the middle and functions as a bearing.
Chain Rivet and Drive Link.png

Poor lube leads to ‘chain stretch’.

In cold weather, I thin my bar oil up to 25% with clean kerosene. Especially, with corded electric, and battery powered saws, that have no internal combustion to heat / thin the bar and chain oil.

Philbert
 

thompsoncustom

Super OPE Member
Local time
7:31 AM
User ID
26079
Joined
Feb 8, 2023
Messages
230
Reaction score
312
Location
iowa
Country flag
people run used filtered motor oil in diesel engines so there's no reason you can't run it as bar oil but man does it make a mess, that alone is not worth it to me and I just run the cheapest bar oil I can find.
 

stihl livin

Do the Dallas
Local time
7:31 AM
User ID
18
Joined
Dec 4, 2015
Messages
5,050
Reaction score
26,110
Location
At the farm
Country flag
I'm not sure how people decided they are smarter than Engineers without actually doing any engineering (with numbers and equations and such), but I think that's where this whole corn-gas thing came from. If corn-gas was so great farmers would use it to run their tractors and come out ahead, but that's not the case. Bar oil is similar.

Years back saws used straight 30 weight in both the oil tank and mixed in with the fuel at a 32:1 ratio. The muffler, as an aside, was mostly a straight path through a tiny bulb where the output was about 80% of the input size, which needless to say was loud, though not nearly as loud as not having this little device. Ya didn't have to worry about mosquitos due to the blue haze, and back then we didn't know about cancer.

We're now about 100 years past that and things have improved concerning oil (and mufflers). We no longer have to worry about the blue haze killing us, (or breast implants), though genetically modified food and refined sugar have easily taken the place. Some of the best advice I read here is: Use the cheapest bar oil you can find--and a lot of it. As long as the bar oil is "pretty tacky" and "pretty slippery" then turning the oiler up all the way not only rust-proofs your saw, it also helps flush crap out of the nose sprocket and extend bar life in general by keeping it cool and clean-ish. I just proved that to myself again this weekend when cutting wood that was dirtier than I thought and the nose sprocket bound up with grit; I turned the oiler all the way up--problem solved.
Pot kettle?
 

hacskaroly

Super OPE Member
Local time
5:31 AM
User ID
27954
Joined
Nov 24, 2023
Messages
662
Reaction score
1,877
Location
Northern Idaho
Country flag
I have added a little new Trans fluid and new motor oil to bar oil several times over the years.
I hate working on saws where people use transmission fluid instead of bar and chain oil, the stuff is a mess and it stinks. I have a coworker who gave me a couple of saws to work on and they used transmission fluid for bar and chain oil. Testing the saw after doing carb work and the transmission fluid was flying everywhere and drooled out the bottom...what a mess.
Are there any chain sharpeners you prefer that work better than others? Also, have you tried the STIHL 2 in 1 Easy File?
I bought one of these, since I was selling saws and chains I figured I would give it a try so I could rate it for customers that ask. Basically, I feel it is good for those who don't understand sharpening, don't pay attention to level and angle or those too lazy to learn to hand file (that being said, it may be good for those who have physical limitations that make it difficult to use a round file). I find that practicing with a round file on a junk chain worked best for me to get the hang of it. I use a Husqvarna file handle which is angled on the front, one side for 25 degrees and the other 30 degrees. If you keep the file level and the degree side you choose ends up flat against the bar, you have it nailed.
 
Top