Summer vs Winter Bar Oil

Hi all, been a minute since I posted. I've been as busy as I can keep up with lately.

A thought came to mind whilst grabbing some bar oil from Tractor Supply the other day. I noticed my regular 1 gal jug of bar oil was $8 and a "winter" version was right next to it for $18.

I understand the basics of viscosity and additive packages and such. My question though is two fold. Being in Western KS, I see huge swings in temperature. It's 60 degrees right now and it was down in the 20s last week. Even bigger swings aren't out of the norm. At what point should I consider switching formulas? When do you personally make the switch? If I keep my saw inside before I go out to cut, can I get away with my normal oil (since it'll be starting at a higher temp and the saw maybe keeps it warm once I'm running)?

I'm down to spend the money if I need to. Oil is cheaper than engines, but I wanted some feedback from people that have been in the game longer than myself.

Thanks in advance.

 

I use all season bar oil. Its common to find here in Michigan. No more winter / summer bar oils for me. One oil year around. If you can find one of those, that's what Id switch to.

 

When it gets cold enough to worry about, just add a splash of saw gas to the bar oil. It’ll thin things down some so it flows good. No reason to waste money on double priced bar oil. The guys I do and have worked with that also do this we haven’t seen any negative effects on the saw, professional use hours down to -20’s. Just go easy and tailor it to the condition so it still sticks to the bar and doesn’t just sling right off the end.


Owl

 

My .02, skip that more expensive stuff. If it’s so cold the oil won’t flow, keep it inside the night before and then keep it in the truck while you’re cutting.

 

I only sell all weather bar oil at my shop (Kinetix extreme) most saws will flow any bar oil down to 20 degrees no problem most of the oil tanks are close to or part of the crankcase and warm up quickly if you can keep the oil inside before you are going out to cut it will help the only time you will have to worry is in extreme cold maybe" Cold Trigger Finger from Alaska" could give some insite on severe cold usage but once the engine warms up it usually warms the oil to flow easier JB

 

If I do some cutting in colder weather, I will mix some winter oil into my bottle of oil I regularly use. A gallon of winter oil lasts years for me.

 

I keep my oil and saw in my heated house and transfer to my heated truck, once on site the running saw can keep my regular oil working just fine. I'm in Virginia and it's not too cold here. so, no special winter blend for me. and when it is very cold I stay in the house.
as a side note gas never comes in the house, it's stored in a shed far from the house.

 

If you can get the oil in your saw you are good to go. Winter weight makes pouring easier.

 

This is the only reason I see why you would want winter oil
That and it’s probably more of a homeowner sales gimmick

 

Keep it warm and once the saw gets a little heat in it you will be fine. I bought 1 gallon of winter oil years ago and might have used a quart at best. Now it just sits on the shelf.
Besides if it is that cold, I am not cutting and will spend my time enjoying the fire and the benefits of the work put into it.

 

Agree!

 

In my opinion most of the bar oil anymore (unless buying the high dollar OEM stuff from the dealer maybe) is "all weather" and thin enough to use all the time (unless REALLY cold maybe) if anything I'd say some nice thick summer oil would be nice if cutting on a real hot summer day...but its probably still not something that makes sense financially, as all you'll do running "too thin" oil is use a lil more, but you can buy a lot of extra oil when the cheap stuff is less than half price of OEM. But it seems much of the summer oil really isn't that thick anymore either...

 

I use whatever I've bought regardless of season and never had a problem that I'm aware of.

I recall a well respected member here saying it didn't matter as the oil will heat up with the engine running.

 

The other day while filling the fluids before cutting I accidentally poured some mix into the bar oil and immediately realized it. Dumped it out real quick as it was just a small amount. Ran a few tanks of mix thru the saw that day.

 

You'll know when your bar oil system (oil/pump/passageways etc) is inadequate when you start burning up the bar.

When you notice heavy burs when you touch up your chain, discoloration on the bar, or the saw starts cutting curved, you're not getting adequate lube.
From personal experience, the oil is last. If the oil of the moment seems thick, I'll cut it with whatever is nearby. Sometimes that's diesel, gear lube, or motor oil.

Point bar at something and warm it up. If you get oil slinging off, let her rip.

Now, if you're running a chainsaw mill or bucking big logs one after another for hours on end, it might be advisable to be a little more conscious about your particular oil.

 

I like to have winter oil if I'm out below freezing. If the major's can justify having a summer/winter setting on the airbox I can justify the oil.

 

Summer/winter shutter is more for running in temps that cause carb icing...which is 30-35* F I think (depending on dewpoint too) not so much running at super low temps...but maybe the "winter mode" works better for that too? Seems many people never change the shutter position...

 

If it's really cold like below 20 I'll mix some winter oil or used motor oil in.

 

I kinda forgot and haven't changed it. My 361 has one which I discovered by accident. Cant say I notice any difference if I change it or not.

 

I have winter oil. I didn’t pay any more for it than I do for regular oil. I use it for when I cut after deer season until mid season. Don’t know if it is right or wrong, just what I do.