How do you store a chainsaw so it will not leak bar oil.

Redneck in training · Sep 7, 2015

My wife bought battery operated limb saw with about 8" bar. It looks like a flimsy toy but I was surprised at the power. It will cut 8" limb about as fast as my Husky.

Steave · Sep 7, 2015

I bought one of the Harbour Freight cheapies and it works great. I was really surprised. My dad has a Remington and its appears to be a lot better built than mine but I've been using it for 3 years now and it still runs strong. The Harbour Freight saw doesn't have a chain brake on it not sure how they get away with that nowadays with all the crazy lawsuits. Wouldn't be afraid to buy another one when this one dies. Its a 14" and yea it leaks oil if not hung up so I guess that means it's working right and oiling when it suppose to.

davesl708 · Sep 7, 2015

My saw leaks very little oil. I keep a shop towel in the bottom of the case. As long as the oil is coming out of the right hole I don't worry about it.

PhysAssist · Sep 8, 2015

Redneck in training said:
I have Husqvarna, Echo, McCulloch and Remington electric. All leak bar oil.

Buy a Stihl, I did, and it's the only saw I ever had that didn't/doesn't leak oil or gas.

That's all I got, except there are some good points about putting it up empty too, though I don't knowchow to choreograph that for mine.

Steave · Sep 8, 2015

I miss the old saws with the pump just pump the oil you need. Never have liked or trusted the auto oilers but i guess they're here to stay.. Gotta change with the times.

dfkrug · Sep 8, 2015

Steave said:
I miss the old saws with the pump just pump the oil you need. Never have liked or
trusted the auto oilers but i guess they're here to stay.. Gotta change with the times.

My favorite saws are from the 80s, and they sometimes have BOTH.

Anyway, many of the older saws have plain oil tank vents, rather than newer ones with
check valves (often so-called duckbill valves) to allow air into the tank, not out. That
could cause a pressure buildup in the tank, but that may be due to temperature
variations. Using the saw would not allow pressure buildup.

If you DO get pressure buildup, you can certainly cause a leak. Just seasonal
barometric changes in your shed can cause this buildup, too. Cracking open
the oil cap is one solution.

Steave · Sep 9, 2015

dfkrug said:
My favorite saws are from the 80s, and they sometimes have BOTH.

Anyway, many of the older saws have plain oil tank vents, rather than newer ones with
check valves (often so-called duckbill valves) to allow air into the tank, not out. That
could cause a pressure buildup in the tank, but that may be due to temperature
variations. Using the saw would not allow pressure buildup.

If you DO get pressure buildup, you can certainly cause a leak. Just seasonal
barometric changes in your shed can cause this buildup, too. Cracking open
the oil cap is one solution.

Never thought about it maybe building up pressure and forcing the oil out. I'll crack the cap a little next time and try it. It's not really a big deal anyway but a few drops of oil goes a long way in the bedliner of my pickup.

pat32rf · Sep 11, 2015

All of my Stihl caps have had vent holes in them. Dealer says to run them out of oil/gas or they will leak, but I carry one on my tractor and find an empty chainsaw is about as good as an empty gun.....

toddol1971 · Sep 12, 2015

yeah, what do you do if your done cutting and still have half a tank?

dfkrug · Sep 12, 2015

pat32rf said:
All of my Stihl caps have had vent holes in them. Dealer says to run them
out of oil/gas or they will leak, but I carry one on my tractor and find an empty chainsaw is about as
good as an empty gun.....

Well-put, Pat.

The same dealer will say, "buy another chainsaw".

If you like the guey kind of oil, try draining that out. Yuck. I don't use that, and
rarely even run one dry.