Chainsaws are among the most reliable petrol-powered tools that the average homeowner can buy and use with a minimum of practice. At least, in most cases, this is true. However, lubricating our chainsaws is not as easy as starting a machine. In fact, choosing the wrong chainsaw bar oil can damage or destroy even the hardiest chainsaws.
So, can I use 10w40 for chainsaw bar oil? Let’s fire up our engines and start the article to learn about the best chainsaw lid oil replacements!
- What do you need to know before using 10w40 chain saw oil?
- What can I use for chain saw oil?
- Can I use regular oil for chainsaw bar oil?
- Can I use gear oil as a bar oil?
- Can I use 10w30 chain saw oil?
- Step 1: Increased stickiness when heated
- Step 2: Chain dry
- Step 3. Performance degradation
- Step 4: Not sustainable
- What is an SAE rating for lubricants?
- Can I use canola oil for chainsaw lids?
- FAQ
- Can 2-stroke chainsaw bar oil be used?
- What viscosity is chainsaw bar oil?
- What can I use instead of chainsaw oil?
- Why is chainsaw bar oil different to motor oil?
- Conclusion
What do you need to know before using 10w40 chain saw oil?
The chainsaw and its other parts are actually made of durable materials, such as stainless steel. That’s why when you use it, the parts of the chain keep moving and creating friction. This friction can damage the chain and other parts of the chainsaw.
That is why lubrication is necessary to avoid breakage of the chainsaw and its other parts. For this, we need motor oil. Well, there can be problems with both the chainsaw and the bandsaw motor.
Find out how to Substitute Chainsaw Bar Oil in our new article.
What can I use for chain saw oil?
Like other machines, the chainsaw lid also requires motor oil to lubricate. The chainsaw is mainly used for sawing wood, but also for other purposes. In all these processes, the chainsaw has to deal with a huge amount of friction.
To minimize friction and protect the chainsaw oil from damage, lubricate all parts of the chainsaw that need to be lubricated. The chainsaw bar and chainsaw chain are the main areas that need to be properly lubricated.
Now you have a question, what kind of bar oil can be used for a chainsaw lid? So, the best option is vegetable oil or rapeseed bar oil for lubrication.
Vegetable oil is made up of triglycerides and is therefore more suitable for lubrication than petroleum-based oils. However, never use used oils for lubrication or any other purpose, fresh bar oil is always a good option.
Can I use regular oil for chainsaw bar oil?
As mentioned earlier, yes, you can use regular vegetable oils as a chainsaw bar lubricant. In fact, there is a research paper that compares various chainsaw lid lubricants. During this study, three different types of lubricants were tested for chainsaw lids.
To find the correlation between wear, friction, and temperature, the average guide bar temperature was used to measure performance. These lubricants were petroleum-based chain bar oil, biodegradable oil, and petroleum-based motor oils.
It follows that a wide range of vegetable oils is suitable for chainsaw bar lids.
Now that you have a rough idea of using regular chainsaw bar lid oils, let’s take a look at some other important things.
Can I use gear oil as a bar oil?
Unless you are using your chainsaw in hot conditions, gear oil is not recommended alternative bar oil. Why? Most synthetic motor oils are at least three times more viscous than traditional motor oil and thicker than conventional chain oil lubricants.
Gear bar oil will likely get your chain oil running, but you will likely void your manufacturer’s warranty with prolonged use.
Another reason to avoid gear oil is its price. If you don’t have a stock of gear oil in case your bar and chain oil runs out of oil, buying gear oil as a fallback isn’t a smart economic decision. Instead, use environmentally friendly canola oils or plain SAE10/30 engine oil.
Can I use 10w30 chain saw oil?
Although, it is not ideal for winter use. 10w30 oil is an all-purpose oil, which means it will perform well in both cold and hot weather. However, 10w30 motor oil will be very sticky and viscous once the bar and chain oil are warm and running.
Now let’s find out the reasons why you shouldn’t use 10w40 oil as your chainsaw bar lid oil in winter. Here we have described them all.
Step 1: Increased stickiness when heated
As you already know, stickiness is a very important characteristic of bar and chain lid oil. The stickiness of the oil should not be too high and should not be less. It should always be somewhere in between.
In fact, the oil becomes sticky due to its increased viscosity and stickiness. You can find out the viscosity level of oil by its SAE viscosity grades. The greater the viscosity and stickiness, the stickier the oil will be, and the SAE rating will also increase.
In winter, to keep the bar and chain lubricated, the viscosity of the lid oil should be lower. And the oil should be less sticky. At first, when you fill-up the oil, the SAE oil rating is 10. This rating is actually ideal for chainsaw oil. But when the engine or motor heats up, the viscosity of the oil increases. The heat makes the oil quite sticky. As a result, the oil becomes very sticky.
Due to this increased stickiness, the oil sticks to a certain place. The oil will not lubricate the chain, instead, it will become so sticky and immobile for this reason. Thus, it can end up damaging chainsaw parts and chains.
Step 2: Chain dry
How can oil make a chain dry? Is it even possible? Let’s know it! We already know that lid oil must be thin enough to penetrate all parts of the chain and keep it lubricated. And as you already know, in winter the viscosity of 10w40 oil increases greatly. Therefore, the oil becomes very sticky. And the density of the oil increases too much.
When the oil becomes very thick and sticky, it does not move. Sticks to the same spot. Moreover, due to the increased thickness, the oil cannot reach all the chain links. As a result, the chain is not lubricated with oil. And due to the lack of oil, it becomes very dry and friction also increases. Then the chainsaws also sparked. And it can also damage all parts of the chain.
Step 3. Performance degradation
What is the drop in performance? While using the chainsaw, it suddenly stops working. This is called performance degradation.
But how does it relate to this oil? Now we already know how and why 10w40 oil becomes very thick and very sticky in winter when the engine warms up. Because of this, the oil becomes very thick and cannot reach the parts of the chain.
That’s why friction happens more. After a while, due to more friction, the engine or motor stops working. This can happen in the middle of using the chainsaw. The result is a drop in performance.
Sometimes the chainsaw will not start due to a lack of gasoline. Therefore, you should also check why the performance drop occurs.
Step 4: Not sustainable
The oil is not environmentally friendly. Only vegetable oil is environmentally friendly oil. But 10w40 oil does not contain vegetable oil ingredients.
Moreover, while working and passing through the chains, the oil scatters over the squares and falls on the landscape and trees. It can also fall on your clothes and ruin them. And leave stains on clothes.
Here we have brought you an oil stain remover. I hope they are useful to you. It’s all. Now you know all the advantages and disadvantages of oil. If you want to use this oil, then use this oil in the engine, only in summer. Otherwise, you should only use it when you have no options for using it.
What is an SAE rating for lubricants?
The SAE (Society of Automotive Engineers) is hard at work on standardized tests for all types of motor oils such as automotive engine oils, hydraulic fluids, gear lubricants, etc. However, it did not include its standards for chainsaws until 1986.
Since then, they have updated their standards several times. Currently, when discussing oils for your chainsaw, there are two requirements to pay attention to:
- Category J – For use at temperatures up to 200 °F or 93 °C. The minimum pour point must be 40 °F and the maximum flash point must be 325 °F.
- Category K – For use at temperatures above 200 °F or 93 °C. The minimum viscosity index must be 70. The minimum pour point and the maximum flash point must be 45 °F.
Can I use canola oil for chainsaw lids?
We recommend turning to canola oil as the best chainsaw bar oil substitute on our list. Many people around the world use canola oil as a lubricant over bar oil. It is cheap, biodegradable, and has a low odor.
However, you will need to refill your bar more often, as canola oil is relatively thin and not as sticky as motor oil. In many parts of the country, rapeseed oil is half the price of Stihl bar oil recommended by the manufacturer.
However, canola oil is one of the thinnest oils on our list. What does it mean? It will quickly come off the chainsaw lid, especially in summer. Be prepared to fuel your chainsaw twice as often.
However, canola oil is good for the environment, keeps the chainsaw shiny and lubricated, and can be easily washed out of clothing. However, there is one downside: canola oil can rot, so check the expiration date before use.
FAQ
Can 2-stroke chainsaw bar oil be used?
There is two-stroke oil for air-cooled engines and two-stroke oil for water-cooled engines. Water-cooled two-stroke engine oil is not designed to handle the higher temperatures of an air-cooled engine such as a chainsaw engine.
What viscosity is chainsaw bar oil?
The viscosity of chainsaw bar oil can vary depending on the formula, but 30W is the standard. In cold weather, a thin 10W chainsaw bar oil may be beneficial, while in very hot temperatures a much thicker 40W or 50W formula may be needed.
What can I use instead of chainsaw oil?
Use canola oil – canola oil is currently the most common environmentally compatible chain-and-bar lubricant. Canola-based chain and bar oil have been extensively tested in the world.
Why is chainsaw bar oil different to motor oil?
Bar and chain oil is stickier than regular motor oil, so it stays on the chain longer. Motor oil flings off the chain more quickly, so if you try our tip, be prepared to refill the motor oil on your chain saw more quickly than with regular bar and chain oil.
Conclusion
Hope you now have the perfect answer to your question, can I use 10w40 for chainsaw bar oil? From our expert advice, you know the right answer, as well as some facts to consider before using 10w40 chainsaw bar oil.
Read more about Chainsaw Bar Oil Alternative here.
The purchase of the first saw is usually followed by the purchase of the second one. When I realized that I am getting too interested in this topic, I started working as a salesman in this store. I learned a lot of new information every day.
That is how my first and only Blog about saws - Sawcentre.org got created.
I really hope you like it and share my articles with your friends, colleagues, and other people.
Leave any comments below, I really enjoy reading them. Thank you for stopping by and please come back soon!
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