Thinning bar oil in cold weather?

[Stumper]

I think he meant $3.25 Canadian. Isn't that something like 12 and 1/2 cents U.S.?

 

[Tree Machine]

Here's a few questions to compliment Ironwood's non-field, though conclusive, freezing test of canola oil.

I don't have a Handbook of Chemistry and Physics anywhere near, so I can't use an exact figure on the freezing point of VO (veggie oil). We would first want to know the 'freezing point'. That's the temp where it changes from a liquid to a solid... but 'practically speaking', it doesn't change to a solid, not for a few more drop in degrees. It changes from liquid into a kind of gelacious slurry, but it will still flow through an oil pump. NO THINNING NECESSARY.

The oil temperature at which a human could no longer suck the frozen slurry up into a regular drinking straw, now THAT is what we practical field guys should consider the true freezing point of canola.

Let's try to rough guestimate this, based on nothing more than I've run VO as my bar lube for the last two Winters (as well as all the other seasons): Let's say VO slurries at 20 degrees, F. It becomes unsuckable at 15. This means, using VO, you're good-to-go as long as the temps are in the mid teens or better.

So what happens when you just gotta go do a tree when it's 5 degrees out? How bout firing the saw up and understand that the temperature of the oil only needs to rise a mere 10 degrees or so for the oil to reach a temp where it will flow. The question now becomes, "How long does it take for the internal parts of a chain saw to rise 10 degrees?". Pretty quick, I would speculate.

Another interesting fact about VO, is that the viscosity from summer temps, all the way down to its freezing point, there is very little change in the viscosity. Viscosity changes right at the freezing point, but it'll still flow.

Pouring it from a jug while frozen is the other issue. I use a gallon jug with a spout top from a gear oil bottle in place of the regular cap. Cut the cone spout so the opening is about as big as it can be. Invert and squeeze the bottle. Even though 'frozen' VO is not technically liquid, you can 'make' it flow down into the teens. As soon as it hits the inside of a warm saw, it's liquid.

Ironwood, thanks for the Freezer experiment. I imagine canola oil, at zero degrees F. would firm up like candle wax. Maybe instead of, Don't use Canola oil!!!! you could maybe say, "Don't use your saws outside when it's ZERO DEGREES!!!! The environment thanks you. -TM-

 

[ironwood]

Tree Machine...I guess the freezer test would be an extreme, but I wouldn't want to use canola oil. How about ATF trans. oil, since it isn't petroleum base and has a good low temp. viscosity? It used to be made out of whale blubber, but don't know what the properties are now. Newfie...will get some winter grade when I use up the 15 gal. of regular 30w B&R oil. The plastic jugs are starting to crack and leak, so transfering to other jugs. Bummer...

 

[Dobber]

winter bar oil

As others have said there is winter baroil out there, as for using engine oil or any other oil based fuels that have additives that might harm your oil pump I would try Vegitable or peanut oil, both are cheap as hell everyone has some in their kitchen and will not harm your saw.

 

[Blackcloud]

ironwood-I was thinking the same as you ... what about using tranny fluid?

 

[MAGDELANA]

My mech at Sthil recommends diesel.