Waste motor oil as bar oil

[OM617YOTA]

What product works fine as a stand in for two stroke oil?
Kash

Think he was poking fun, either at used engine oil, or at my veggie oil comment, being a stand in for 2 stroke oil.

 

[GeorgiaVol]

How much bar oil do yall use in a month?

 

[Philbert]

Free bar oil on the beach in California, if you scroungers want to strain it.

Philbert

 

[Bob Hedgecutter]

How much bar oil do yall use in a month?

Varies from month to month- not much in the middle of Winter- but this time of year (Spring for us) I average around 10-12 litres a month, which nuts out to about roughly 2 1/2-3 US gallons.
Sometimes it will be twice that, sometimes just half of that- but that is a good average and all of it is new chain bar oil that has not done 5-15,000 miles already.

 

[Redgap]

I pay a lot extra to put non-oxy premium gas in my saws, why in the world would I use waste motor oil as bar oil?? And not that $8 for a gallon of bar oil is gonna break the bank, but I run across jugs of bar oil (and the atf I mix in when it’s cold out) all the time at garage/estate sales for pennies on the dollar.

 

[sean donato]

How much bar oil do yall use in a month?

Just got 14 gallons in last month, expect it to last me till next year... cutting season will be in full swing here now it's getting cooler out. Have a job next weekend and I picked up a fence row removal as a winter project. (Lots of black locust in it ) still have 2 full gallons and a partial from last year. I didn't cut near as much this year so far as last. Been too busy and have plenty on hand. Lumber prices caused a halt to expanding the wood shed, so I've left a lot of wood in log form.

 

[Philbert]

I assume that some company has tried Teflon coated bars over the years?

Wouldn’t lube the chain, but might reduce other bar oiling needs?

Philbert

 

[Pioneer]

Two good examples of why you should not put used motor oil in your chainsaw. A Husqvarna 570 and a 51 have been subjected to it and they are a filthy mess. The oil is actually hard and crusty under the clutch cover of the 570, not looking forward to working on these things.

 

[motorhead99999]

You can buy wax additive to put in used oil to help with the tacky ness like bar oil. Most of the municipalities around me do this.

 

[North by Northwest]

hi mwg - over all, a pretty good thread! i even told the QB about it... she had a good
better than a good cup a with donuts...



ok, only close....

Better with a medium rare backstrap & Miller Tex !

 

[North by Northwest]

But are they all really faster? We've had high speeds for quite a long time. The 346xp has been a 14 to 15k rpm saw for years and even the bigger saws have been over the 10k mark for quite some time.

Seriously its about better tacifiers (shear strength) & lubricity . The new synthetic bar oils simply out class the old mineral oil specifications on all counts & for that you pay a elevated price unfortunately . As far as used engine oil give your head a shake , environmental concerns aside , why the hell do I want a know carcinagin contaminated oil sprayed all over everything !

 

[North by Northwest]

I've used Walmart Supertech for years with no negative results. It's cheap too.
Use oil is dirty, a known human carcinogen, doesn't work all that well, and contains acidic by products which my cause problems.
Same thing with guys that use gear oil. That stuff stinks to high heaven and costs more than proper bar oil.

Why not just use waste hypoid gear lube & market it as the new extreme summer grade bar oil , with that sweet old school aroma !

 

[North by Northwest]

And they dodged a hazardous waste disposal fee.
Have you ever heard of PCB's....worse than used motor oil.

Yeah , the new glow in the dark bar oil !

 

[North by Northwest]

Just my opinion but I think it is a far greater danger to eat the meat fruit and vegetables laden with man made chemicals from your local grocery store than it is to worry about a small amount of used oil in a chain saw.
I would sooner cover my body with used motor oil than having to spend a day in a major city now there is a chemical hell hole where no sane human being should ever be.
I used to be a good speller until I started using used oil in my chain saw.
Kash

Perhaps caused by that used oil contaminated organic sheep manure fertilizer that you spread on the vegetable garden last spring !

 

[North by Northwest]

Eating saturated fat like lard actually has nothing to do with blocked arteries. Quite the opposite, really. Its a complete myth that fat causes heart disease. I know, its against the paradigm of 'modern' medicine these days, and many doctors still do not agree, but a growing number of doctors (particularly kidney specialists) are realizing this after many years of research. The so called modern diet of low fat and high sugar and refined carbs has led to high rates of insulin resistance, which causes obesity, heart disease, diabetes, kidney disease, and even dementia. Yeah, I can hear you all screaming already. But its an emerging paradigm that is replacing the old one. I flipped to a high fat low carb diet (with a lot of bacon, lard, butter, cheese, etc) and I lost 20 pounds in less than 2 months. I do not snack or crave carbs any more. I have kept the weight off since changing over to a low carb, high fat diet. I do not eat the candy, soda pop, cake or pie any more. I eat a lot of eggs. Yes, they are supposed to be bad, but in fact they are good.

There is an old saying in Russia that you need to eat fat to lose fat. Which is actually correct. When you eat sugar and refined carbs (which you rapidly convert to sugar) your body responds by producing insulin. When you have high insulin levels, you cannot (yes, CANNOT) burn fat. Insulin not only prevents you from burning fat, it forces you to store fat and make you even fatter. After eating lots of carbs and sugar, your body becomes more resistant to insulin. Then you start craving more food, particularly carbs and sugar, and you gain more weight because you cannot burn the fat off. It becomes a viscous cycle. People are literally starving while they stuff their faces with carbs and sugar and they get fatter and fatter. When you eat a low carb diet, your insulin levels remain low, and when insulin levels are low, you can burn off fat.

Yes, the commercial food industry has everyone convinced that consuming Coca Cola, Twinkies, Mars bars, pies, fruit loops, pizza, pasta, and bread are all great stuff. The FDA and USDA have their food pyramids with low fat and high carbs, and most grocery isles are full of high carbs and sugar laden foods. Its similar to the days when the tobacco industry convinced people that smoking cigarettes was good for you, and 4 out of 5 doctors recommended smoking Winstons. But they are simply wrong. Get off the sugar and high carb diet and you will do yourself a great favor. I can tell you that it is not easy though. Sugar is very addictive and it is a drug like no other. Another way to reduce your insulin resistance without giving up carbs is to only eat in a 8-10 hour window every other day. That will force you to burn up your carb and sugar stores (glycogen) and lower your insulin levels for 6-8 hours a day and then you will burn the fat off. Eating all the time causes your insulin levels to remain high. The idea of 4th meal (or 5th and 6th meals) and snaking all the time just causes you to want to eat more and gain more weight. Another vicious cycle.

There is much misinformation out there designed to keep you on a high carb diet. But there is emerging evidence that a higher fat lower carb diet is the key to a better life. As there is about not constantly snacking. If youwant to know more about low carb and time restricted diets, I would recommend that you watch anything by Jason Fung MD (a kidney specialist) like this one:

Add a few ounces of used , non detergent 30 on your chefs salid and your blood sugar & electrolytes levels decrease & your hair will have a natural Sheen !

 

[North by Northwest]

I assume that some company has tried Teflon coated bars over the years?

Wouldn’t lube the chain, but might reduce other bar oiling needs?

Philbert

Teflon coatings will not stand up to the abrasive nature / heat cycles of a chain & bar applications !

 

[Joisey]

My stepson used to ride me about buying bar and chain oil when "used motor oil is basically free and works just as well" until I pointed out that he went thru bars and chains three times faster than I did.

 

[TonyCH]

In Finland we have a strong forest industry. The whole country is basically either forests or lakes. 75% of the forests (outside Lapland) are privately owned and a great part of that is production forests (ie. grown for sale). Roughly half of the people own a summer cottage. So, I would estimate (out of my hat) that 20+% of Finnish males own a chainsaw - or several of them.

So, we use a lot of bar oil. Most of commercially available bar oils in Finland are recycled oil. I think there is one recycling plant which prepare and bottle all the domestic bar oils per their customers specs. The oils might start as motor oils, rear end oils or even hydraulic oils. They filter used oil and maybe add a chemical which increases its tackiness (also a Finnish product). Might add some other additives too, don't know. I think even some/most bio oils are recycled of some kind.

We can also get imported oils. I have no way of knowing if they are actually "new" oil which was made as bar oil from the start. Maybe, maybe not. Would seem waste of good oil if it was.

During decades of use I have not seen or heard of any obvious adverse effects of using recycled oils. The saws are not any more worn or dirty than from using "new" oil. I guess good cleaning of the oil before using is the key. Also from health point of view. Pour it into your saw directly from your car and yes, you might see or feel problems sooner or later.

We have more technical problems with bio oils. Some don't work properly in cold climate. Some turn to resin and gum things up.

 

[North by Northwest]

In Finland we have a strong forest industry. The whole country is basically either forests or lakes. 75% of the forests (outside Lapland) are privately owned and a great part of that is production forests (ie. grown for sale). Roughly half of the people own a summer cottage. So, I would estimate (out of my hat) that 20+% of Finnish males own a chainsaw - or several of them.

So, we use a lot of bar oil. Most of commercially available bar oils in Finland are recycled oil. I think there is one recycling plant which prepare and bottle all the domestic bar oils per their customers specs. The oils might start as motor oils, rear end oils or even hydraulic oils. They filter used oil and maybe add a chemical which increases its tackiness (also a Finnish product). Might add some other additives too, don't know. I think even some/most bio oils are recycled of some kind.

We can also get imported oils. I have no way of knowing if they are actually "new" oil which was made as bar oil from the start. Maybe, maybe not. Would seem waste of good oil if it was.

During decades of use I have not seen or heard of any obvious adverse effects of using recycled oils. The saws are not any more worn or dirty than from using "new" oil. I guess good cleaning of the oil before using is the key. Also from health point of view. Pour it into your saw directly from your car and yes, you might see or feel problems sooner or later.

We have more technical problems with bio oils. Some don't work properly in cold climate. Some turn to resin and gum things up.

Not comparing apples to apples Tony . The inherent environmental & health risk of using recycled oil vs waste oil are vastly different . I have no concern of properly recycled (refined) oil used as bar oil . Actually once the oil is cracked during the recycling process the impurities & carcinogenic elements are greatly reduced if not removed entirely . The addition of tacifiers most likely makes it an effective alternate to what you have indicated as a waste of a valuable base oil for an inferior final oil product useage .

 

[TonyCH]

Yes, I realize using old oil directly from your tractor vs. recycled oil is very different. From lubrication point of view once used oil is still very good but impurities are not helpful and can indeed cause health issues.

One should however remember that oil recycling plants are not generally getting rid of old oil (dumping etc. it). They are making new products from it. And there is huge quantity of used oil to be recycled every year. So, even without realizing it one might be using "used" oil in various less than critical applications such as a bar oil. Not just in Finland but in other countries too. Read the small print on the bottle. And if the can is not transparent, look into the container for stuff that has settled to the bottom of it. Not all recycling or filtering processes are equal.