recycling hydro oil

[deepsnow]

My NH dealer accepts used hydro fluid, oil & coolant. So getting rid of old fluids is no real problem. Couple days ago I was running low on chainsaw bar oil. Either a real stupid or semi-intelligent thought came up. Used hydro oil (~7.5gal/ change) looks real clean & seems oily. Why not use it for bar oil? Any opinions?

[Bird]

Compare some hydro oil and chainsaw oil sometime and look at the difference. The chain oil is "thicker and stickier"; made for that purpose. Like a lot of things, hydro oil would be better than no oil, but I sure wouldn't use it in my chainsaw.

[JATO_RaT]

Bird, you certainly are a cornucopia of information. I agree with you completely. Get a bar oil, it will stick much better and lubricate better. I have tried both methods and find the bar oil far superior to any other oil. Rat...

[Jeff396]

I had a guy from the city catch me when I was returning my used Rotella diesel motor oil at the recycle center. He was on a tree cutting crew and asked if he could take one of the gallons I was turning in to use in his saw. Not too sure I would do it but he said that's all he uses.

My local kubota dealer would not take my used UDT.....pretty much reinforces my opinion of my local tractor dealerships.

Jeff

[Bird]

I've never tried any "used" oil of any kind, but 30 years ago, I did use fresh new 30W motor oil. But the bar oil is so cheap, and I think better for the saw, too, that I wouldn't even do that now.

[Anonymous Poster]

The favorite oil for chainsaws among the arborist croud is Canola Oil. It's vegitable, it's heavy, and it's biodegradable.
Since all I've ever been interested in was lubricating the chain & bar, I've used recovered motor oil for over 30 years. Since it came out of an engine that costs a few thousand to replace, I figure it's more than good enough for bar oil on a chain saw.
Hydraulic oil might be a bit light for chain lubrication.

[StanInCalif]

There is tremendous stress on the the pins and bushings in a chain- it should have an extreme pressure lubricant, such as gear oil or bar oil. This stress, and subsequent wear is the reason a chain has to be adjusted periodically- the pins and bushings are wearing, not stretching. I'm not, however, advocating using gear oil, just illustrating a point. It stinks and usually costs more than bar oil.

[CTyler]

I ran out of bar oil recently and used some hydro fluid. Since its lighter it comes out faster with the auto oiler. Don't know if this compesates the for the difference in oil or not but it seemed to work ok.

[Chief]

When I perform the 50 hr. break-in service on my 4410 I plan to save the hydro oil and use it in my log splitter.