Vent: My dad swore by using motor oil on chainsaw chains, cost me a new bar

My dad told me last summer that regular motor oil worked fine for chainsaw chains, said it was basically the same as bar oil. I figured he knew what he was talking about since he's been cutting wood for 30 years. After about four uses on my Stihl 251, the bar started smoking and warping from the heat. Took it to a small engine shop in Boise and the guy showed me how the oil was too thin to stick, it just flew off at high RPMs. Has anyone else gotten bad machine advice from a family member that ended up costing real money?

2 comments

2 Comments

ross.sean5d ago

Did you let the saw warm up first? That stuff is thicker cold.

john_murphy5d ago

My buddy tried cutting through some cold linseed oil putty once without warming the saw up first. Thing bogged down right in the middle and just started smoking. Took him twenty minutes to clean the blade.