Cleaning sap from a saw

[Madman Mark]

Just a quick question, what's good for cleaning sap off of an old saw ( instead of gas and a rag) ?
I've heard that oven cleaner works good on the cylinder once it warms up.

 

[rahtreelimbs]

Welcome to the site, Madman.

Oven cleaner will eat away at the alloy on the saw. I have found the best thing for sap is plain old hot water, the hotter the better. On hard woods ist cuts thru real fast, on evergreen it needs to soak a while. Give it a try.

 

[Stumper]

Waterless handcleaner works well. So does WD40 and a paper towel. Vegetable oil will cut the sap but unless you use soap or detergent afterward it will gather dust like mad.

 

[MasterBlaster]

When the groundies refuel my saw, all the spillage from their deft touches usually washes all the sap off, eventually.

 

[Sylvatica]

Castrol Super Clean with a brush & hot water works pretty well. But if the sap is old and solidified, maybe you'd have to throw in more elbow grease.

I was warned by a guy that it took the shine off a highly polished intake manifold on his car, so I wouldn't let it soak too long on alloy castings.

Wear gloves too, it feels like your finger prints are melting if it gets on your skin.

 

[stihltech]

sap

Stihl came out with a cleaner/degreaser that works better than anything else I have tried. I get some trade ins from christmas tree farms, completely covered with sap. cut my cleanup time in half.

 

[SilverBlue]

Simple green or automotive bug and tar remover works. Super Clean does too but do it outside with a respirator or hold your breath!

 

[Marky Mark]

Brian You are a showman.

 

[Tony Snyder]

Pine-Sol in hot water works well and is inexpensive. I use it to soak the sap of of chains, then use an automotive parts cleaning brush. Blow dry, of course.

 

[bass_on_tap]

Give this stuff a try. I use it on new saws and after cleaning up my used saws really good. It seems to keep my saws looking good for a longer time. Also, the sap cleans up easily once it does accumulate. You can get a free sample at that site also.
Dave

303 aerospace protectent

more info here to make it "chainsaw" related!

STIHL TimberSports Competitors

They also make a cleaner/degreaser, however I have never tried it.

303 aerospace cleaner

 

[JETRO]

Isopropel alcahol works!!!

Rubbing alcahol works great to remove sap without hurting the plastic. Even better is dry gas ( iso. type not methanol.) because it is more concentrated (90%) VS. rubbing alcahol (70%) alcahol. Go figure huh???