Thread: Chainsaw Fuel & Oil Questions

Use full synthetic oil and 95 octane, bar oil can be almost any oil but the recommended bar chain oil is best as it is slightly thicker and sticks to the chain better

With the bar oil tending to be sticky it'll probably stay on the chain better than regular engine oil. Engine oil might be messy. Getting sprayed all over the place. Perhaps you could try both and let us know how you go.

Originally Posted by rwbuild

Use full synthetic oil and 95 octane, bar oil can be almost any oil but the recommended bar chain oil is best as it is slightly thicker and sticks to the chain better

I use the semi synthetic (Penrite) because it's a compromise between what I would like and what I can afford as a pensioner - but I will start using 95 petrol.
(The semi-synthetc is a step up, for years I used the basic Castrol oil.)
For bar oil I have a jug of Castrol Magnatec which I scored on special at Repco ($30 for 5L) and then found is wrong for my car.

You can use any oil provided the saw can pump out enough, which is usually the main problem with many (especially cheaper) chainsaws. And just don't let the oil tank run dry. You can even use canola oil if you use enough of it although it makes a real mess of the saw AND can gum up a chainsaw oil pump if left to sit in the saw in a hot shed for too long. To check if the saw is putting out enough oil, use the saw into cut dry wood a few times and then stop the saw and check if there is still a film of oil between the chain and the bar enough to just visibly wet a tissue. If not you need more oil or stickier oil. Chainsaw bar oil is usually mineral oil with Tackifiers added to it,. One well known product that contains some Tackier is SPT engine oil additive, but to get enough of an effect you need to use so much STP than you might as well buy the bar oil.

I'm surprised at the need for 95 octane fuel. In the US, 91 or 93 is often the maximum sold at stations and plenty of chainsaws are run on 87 with a stabilizer to deal with ethanol.

The station down the hill from me sells 92 and it's not ethanol free, but it's ethanol as the oxygenate only (so not much in it). I've never had an issue and have some gadgets with 3 year old gas in the tank.

Stihl and husky and others probably will never discuss anything other than proper two cycle oil, but when you get into cheap imported tools where some may be sold to poorer areas (like poor for real) where there's no 2 cycle oil, they give an alternate mix for new motor oil. I wouldn't want to do it, but was surprised to see it. It'd stink at the very least. Worse than 2 cycle oil.

Originally Posted by D.W.

I'm surprised at the need for 95 octane fuel. In the US, 91 or 93 is often the maximum sold at stations and plenty of chainsaws are run on 87 with a stabilizer to deal with ethanol.

Octane ratings are different in the US which uses an AKI rating which is a lower number than the Australian RON rating. RON is around "5" higher than AKI. So a 93 AKI is equivalent to 98 RON

I usually use 97 or 98 RON The Stihl recommends the higher octane rating fuels for its new saws. One reason is as soon as fuel leaves the gas station and starts to be exposed to air the octane rating starts to drop and then it sits around in half knotty fuel containers for months or years. So by the time you go to use it what started out as 95RON could be a lot less by the time it's used. I used to put old mix in my petrol carburettored Mitsubishi Van when the tank was near empty and top it up with of with fresh fuel but these days I have a diesel and an EV so I only buy what I'm going to use.

LOL, I use burson 2 stroke oil and 91 unleaded in the 2 stihl line trimmers (the new one is an absolute pos so don't buy one) and the bunnings noisy blower, and the 36 year old homelite chain saw.
As for bar oil I use old engine oil which I keep after servicing the cars.
Same oil goes in the oil can.

Works for me.

For bar oil I use engine oil and add some differential oil ( hypoid) to give it some stiction

Judging by the state of my work dacks after a day of chainsawing, there is a difference in "stickiness" between cheap bar oil and the more expensive stuff? I tried some cheap stuff from Aldi recently, and have to report that it doesn't stay on the chain very well !

Originally Posted by rambunctious

LOL, I use burson 2 stroke oil and 91 unleaded in the 2 stihl line trimmers (the new one is an absolute pos so don't buy one) and the bunnings noisy blower, and the 36 year old homelite chain saw.
As for bar oil I use old engine oil which I keep after servicing the cars.
Same oil goes in the oil can.

Used petrol engine oil is seriously carcinogenic and given bar oil goes all over the place including over the operator it should not be used on a chainsaw.
Those spatters of stuff on the log are chain oil - here I was using canola but I stopped using that when I started buying bar oil in bulk (20L drums)
Interestingly Diesel engine exhaust is carcinogenic but used diesel engine oils are not know to be carcinogenic, but still not good for the environment.

BarOil.jpg

Originally Posted by BobL

Used petrol engine oil is seriously carcinogenic and given bar oil goes all over the place including over the operator it should not be used on a chainsaw.
Those spatters of stuff on the log are chain oil - here I was using canola but I stopped using that when I started buying bar oil in bulk (20L drums)
Interestingly Diesel engine exhaust is carcinogenic but used diesel engine oils are not know to be carcinogenic, but still not good for the environment.

BarOil.jpg

Yea but it's all good cause before I start the chain saw I hug the tree and whisper to it
This is going to hurt me more than it hurts you, then
Down she goes