Unexpected benefit/drawback of bio chain oil

[Big J]

I might well be alone in this, but has anyone found that running a saw on bio oil makes you hungry? Smells like a chip shop! I'm already on 16 slices of bread per working day - I'm going to have to get shares in Hovis if I eat any more!

 

Seriously though, has anyone found there to be any significant drawbacks to running bio? I ask as it's the same price through Clarks, and if given the choice, I'll always err on the side of the environment if I can.

 

So far I've put about 10 tanks through my MS260 with no ill effects......

 

Jonathan

[felixthelogchopper]

I used to have the same problem when I was running my wagon on WVO

[Theocus]

Thats awesome, i am going to buy some as an experiment and see what happens to the team!!!!! Just be cakes and hovis everywhere|!!!!

[screwie]

bloody hell shep you dont need bio chain oil to make you want to go to a cake shop or burger van

[iainarkle]

BigJ only eats so much so he can have loads of breaks :-) He got me to smell his saw the other day and couldn't smell a thing!!!

[Tony Croft aka hamadryad]

one major drawback in these bio oils is the detritus build up within the saw, mineral oils seem to be much cleaner. when a saw has been used exclusivley on bio and left standing for a long time it is a horrible job to change parts or do a thorough clean of the saw.

 

I would reccomend anyone using bio oil regulary to keep the fins on the cylinder housing clean as this oil sticks all the detritus to them and the saw becomes prone to over heating.

[Highland Forestry]

You need to be a bit careful with bio oils as well, as I was told by a dealer that they are not pasturised and if you have any cuts, scratches etc on your hands and you get the oil into them then they can cause infections and even septacemia in some cases.

 

Bio oils are good for the environment, but not so good for the operator or the saw!

[morten]

one major drawback in these bio oils is the detritus build up within the saw, mineral oils seem to be much cleaner. when a saw has been used exclusivley on bio and left standing for a long time it is a horrible job to change parts or do a thorough clean of the saw.

 

I would reccomend anyone using bio oil regulary to keep the fins on the cylinder housing clean as this oil sticks all the detritus to them and the saw becomes prone to over heating.

 

I seem to have heard that different bio-oils are refined (typically from rape seed oil) to different levels, and contain different additives to:

• Change the viscosity, to make the oil "stick" to the chain
  
• Prevent the bio-oil from "hardening" through oxydation, generating a resin-like substance.
  

 

So, I don't think you can make general conclusions about bio-chain oils. While they may share some properties they are clearly different. I have run exclusively on bio chain oils (different brands) for the past 5 years and have never had any problems. But some brands get too viscous at very low temperatures (-10 C).

 

I know several professional arborists and forestry workers that use plain cooking oil (rape seed) for their saws. It is a little low-viscosity (thin) and it oxydises easily, so they don't leave it in their saws for prolonged periods. But the cooking oil is cheaper than bio oil when purchased in "catering" quantities.

[the crafty weasel]

I had to stop using bio oil because my dog kept on scoffing sawdust and throwing up.