Waste motor oil as bar oil

[blades]

don't know about that , for ever couple pennies i save doing something -something else is gobbling them up ,plus
Just got my compact tractor back from repair shop, so on my way in stopped in to settle up- didn't have the bill ready- more like they didn't want me to have a heart attack in their shop.

 

[sean donato]

Perhaps that is a common saying, but I have never heard it.
I understand if people cut corners on maintenance in one way, they probably will in others. This is true with a lot of machinery, but I don't think farmers are the only ones who do this.
Cutting corners on bar oil may help them save enough money to lower your grocery bill also.

Doubtful. Should be more worried about using to heat their shop then dumping it in a saw.

 

[Farmer_Nate]

Doubtful. Should be more worried about using to heat their shop then dumping it in a safe.

Yes, if inflation continues we can heat with bills, not wood.

 

[Cantdog]

Perhaps that is a common saying, but I have never heard it.
I understand if people cut corners on maintenance in one way, they probably will in others. This is true with a lot of machinery, but I don't think farmers are the only ones who do this.
Cutting corners on bar oil may help them save enough money to lower your grocery bill also.

Well...farmers are stereotypically frugal and commercial fishermen are the same....not every one mind you.... but certainly enough to form or fit the stereotype. Commercial fishermen are simply ocean farmers. Both generally have access to sizable amounts of used diesel lubricants. I don't know if it's a common statement or not but in my experience with chainsaw work I can say in confidence that 95% of saws I've seen with that ailment can be directly attributed to one or the other of these occupations. I can't think of a single pro wood cutter in my area that uses used oil in their saws as they depend on them daily and recognize the theory of the old saying of " a dime fXXXing up a dollar"

As far as farmers saving enough to help with my grocery bill.......I think you missed what I was saying....there is little savings if you ever have to have your saw worked by someone else or have to replace it because no one will work on it.

 

[OM617YOTA]

Yes, if inflation continues we can heat with bills, not wood.

I heard about a guy who was wheeling home his weekly pay, a wheelbarrow load of his country's devalued currency in paper bills. Robbers set upon him and stole the wheelbarrow.

 

[Cantdog]

I heard about a guy who was wheeling home his weekly pay, a wheelbarrow load of his country's devalued currency in paper bills. Robbers set upon him and stole the wheelbarrow.

HaHaHa!!! That's like a friend of mine had a surplus of cucumbers from his garden......he set a dozen or so on an old wooden chair out by the road with a FREE sign when he went to work one day. When he got home that afternoon there was a pile of cucumbers and a FREE sign sitting on the shoulder........and no chair to be seen!!!!

 

[Farmer_Nate]

I can see the saw being very gummed up with used oil over time. The gum is darker.
I work on my own saws, so I'll deal with it.

I would still rather save hundreds of dollars with used oil than put in clean oil to not "mess up" good parts.
I can buy more other stuff, like more saws, with what I save.

I don't saw for a living. I don't put that many hours on them.
My saws are 30-40-years old and still going strong, used oil or not.

 

[Okie294life]

I wouldn’t use anything that had spent it’s life in an engine, too much grit and metal particles that will mess up your pump or bar over time.

 

[Cantdog]

I can see the saw being very gummed up with used oil over time. The gum is darker.
I work on my own saws, so I'll deal with it.

I would still rather save hundreds of dollars with used oil than put in clean oil to not "mess up" good parts.
I can buy more other stuff, like more saws, with what I save.

I don't saw for a living. I don't put that many hours on them.
My saws are 30-40-years old and still going strong, used oil or not.

Well good for you Farmer Nate! Glad you do your own saw work!!
However.......I fail to see how you plan on saving hundreds of dollars on bar oil if you don't put that many hours on your saws.........but whatever....they are your saws and you are certainly welcome to do what ever you want with them. I suggest wearing nitrile gloves when you are, in fact working on them though.

 

[Farmer_Nate]

I wouldn’t use anything that had spent it’s life in an engine, too much grit and metal particles that will mess up your pump or bar over time.

It would have to be particles too small for the vehicle's oil filter I think.

Are clearances tighter than that on saw parts?

I wouldn't put that used oil in your engine, it could have too much grit and metal particles. Oh, wait...

I do understand there may be some dissolved acids or other chemicals in the used oil. Now we may be getting somewhere. Although when the oil went in the vehicle it had "additives" and "detergents". Hmm.

 

[North by Northwest]

Im not so sure breathing that exhaust with any mix of fuel is healthy. I know Diesel exhaust is a real rough to breath when working around any machine or truck that is powered by it.

Diesel fuel emissions are a recognized human carcinogen . Actually were a recognized possible carcinogen back in 1988 . Route of entry , inhalation & lung cancer is the most prevalent , although Injestion & absorbtion & gastrointestinal inflammation & liver damage are recognized concerns of continuous exposure to diesel fumes & vapours today . Actually any exposure to any form of poly aromatic hydro carbon is a cause of concern !

 

[Woodslasher]

Stihl wants $21.49 a gallon for their bar oil, for that price I've begun experimenting with a few different types of cheaper new oils.

 

[jakethesnake]

Stihl wants $21.49 a gallon for their bar oil, for that price I've begun experimenting with a few different types of cheaper new oils.

I used to use the cheap yellow bucket hydraulic
Oil. You can get them under 50$ now so not a huge saving.

I switched to canola a while back. I’ve had good luck with it. I was a canola hater until I actually tried it.

This started when there was no bar oil around here (Covid times)

Regular oil had gotten stupid expensive

I’ve ran it up to 32” bar. No issues. Pure canola doesn’t gum saws up either. Or rot in the bar oil tank on the saw. I left mine in the saw tank over the summer Was in the 90s most of the summer. My fleet is all working good. I’ll stick with it as I’m not using buckets worth of bar oil these days.

 

[KostasVolos]

Three years old son really likes to play with saw chips.He's loading his toy truck with,use his toy excavator to dig in and all sorts of
stuff a toddler can do with the small hills of saw chips .
Canola oil is non-toxic and does
a really fine job as bar & chain lube.

Can't even think about used motor oils .

 

[ken morgan]

Check out Babington burners ... thinking of making one eventually. They allow you to burn waste oil in a jet but without the need to filter (and all the problems that go along with that) ... basically, you don't even have to fish the french fries out of the oil, because they just bounce off the burner...

i just learned something new... thanks to @HansFranz and the other posters here. it turns out, I have a bootleg version of a Babington burner already installed in my hot tub. it normally burns kerosene, but a few mods and it could burn waste oil. (i was looking into this already).

The idea i had was to offer a contract to the local military base to get rid of their waste motor oil, on a cheaper than other local entities and use it to heat a 12 Kl (4k gal) tank of water to heat my cabin through the winter. (think outdoor water boiler without the wood.) don't get me wrong i love my wood burner, that's what brought me to this forum originally.

If i can build a larger version of the Babington burner that (edit: currently heats my) heats my outdoor bath, IE size it up to the 4K gal tank then i could conceivably only cut wood and burn wood for aesthetics.. relying upon the 4k gal tank of hot water to heat the house through the winter... originally i had thought of solar power into a hot water diversion scheme, but this seems to be more advantageous.

I can charge the local base say 70% of the going rate, and make money while receiving free fuel. if I get too much, i can stockpile for next winter and after a winter or two i can see what actual usage is. Then, if i have to much I can pay a seperate entity to dispose of the excess balancing cost per contract against any recycling fees (if needed).

if the unit is running 24/7 in the winter and I have too much excess, then expand and heat shop as well... that will really use some oil there.

and if all else fails, filter the best out, use it as bar oil and fuel for my 7.3 and then pay for removal of sludge.

brains a burning right now...

 

[ken morgan]

Well...well...well....It is Febuary I guess, as I'm so bored I have read another oil thread. Not only an oil thread but a USED oil tread at that.
It seems that there is a missing contingency in this discussion......that would be those that work on others saws for money. Whether using used motor oil is or is not a good thing for the folks that partake in such cost savings I have just one thing to add to your cost savings. You bring a saw into my shop to be worked on that has been subjected to a used motor oil diet for a year or so...... and you get same day service....yep...you can take it with you right then....and DO NOT set it down on anything in the shop. Now that's verifiable savings right there!!!!

drama queen overreacts does she?

 

[ken morgan]

anybody here like sushi? just curious, as the incidence of stomach cancer in Japan has been directly attributed to the amount of seaweed they eat... especially the type used in sushi... and you are worried about what cancers?

everything cause's cancer and nothing causes cancer. everything is bad in large amounts.. living your life in fear of cancer is a futile effort... live long enough you will get cancer. it might not kill you, but you will get it. My advise stop listening to California and west coast politicians who are nothing more than fear mongers and realize that our bodies were not meant to last more than about 5 decades at best. hence the prevalence of cancers in folks of that age and older.

you might stretch your life out another 3 or even 4 decades past the better than by date.. does not mean you will enjoy it.

 

[The Shooters Apprentice]

I can see the saw being very gummed up with used oil over time. The gum is darker.
I work on my own saws, so I'll deal with it.

I would still rather save hundreds of dollars with used oil than put in clean oil to not "mess up" good parts.
I can buy more other stuff, like more saws, with what I save.

I don't saw for a living. I don't put that many hours on them.
My saws are 30-40-years old and still going strong, used oil or not.

I find used motor oil to be much easier to clean up than bar oil, especially if the saw sits awhile. Almost no gumming.

It doesn't gum up sitting in a engine, why would it in a saw?

 

[muddy42]

I can see why you might use an alternative (unused) oil than bar oil for cost reasons in a chainsaw. Particularly if you have a variable oiler, you can just turn up the flow and hope some of it makes it round the tip. I use any kind of oil in the auxilliary oiler in my chainsaw mill.

But why use stale used motor oil that has cycled millions of times through the engine and may contain tiny bits of metal (that will grind the bar, chain and sprocket) bits of rubber, water and all kinds of harmful chemicals?

 

[lohan808]

Heat the shop with the used stuff. You'll be getting more bang for your bucks. Buy the Echo bar oil. Not too expensive, gets it done as well as the top shelf goo. Win win