Ashful
Minister of Fire
Umm... for the record, I was agreeing with you, and never discussed this with my dealer. I think you quoted the wrong guy.
Winter weight bar and chain oil?
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Umm... for the record, I was agreeing with you, and never discussed this with my dealer. I think you quoted the wrong guy.
Ashful
Minister of Fire
Wow... only $38 for four gallons? I think the Stihl stuff goes for $19/gallon at our local Ace.
I had noticed myself ripping thru WAY more gas than usual in the 064 this weekend. I thought it was my imagination, but perhaps it was the standard bar oil I was running. I topped off with winter grade when I filled my gas tank, noticing the saw had not used it's usual amount of bar oil on the prior tank of gas.
HDRock
Minister of Fire
Below 30you can have problems with summer weight oil. To get around that, I leave my saw and bar oil in the mud room at night if I am going to cut in below freezing weather the next day. Once the saw gets warm the oil tank at the front of the saw near the muffler will keep the oil warm enough to flow well, and having room temp oil in the jug when you go out will usually stay warm enough for the day of cutting.
So how long does it take for the saw to get to operating temp ? I would think not long
The saws do not take long to warm up, but oil at freezing temps can take a while to warm up in the tank.
It's not just about the pump. The metal bar can cool very quickly. I've had regular Husqvarna and TSC bar oil mix with sawdust and freeze in a 20" bar groove at 17. Material in the bar goove makes for thrown chains, which happened in this instance.
Those of you who say winter weight bar oil is useless, have you ever cut below 20, set your saw down for a while, and then go back to cutting? The entire system can cool quickly.
. Material in the bar goove makes for thrown chains, which happened in this instance.Those of you who say winter weight bar oil is useless, have you ever cut below 20
, set your saw down for a while, and then go back to cutting? The entire system can cool quickly.
HDRock
Minister of Fire
I never thought about it before cuz, I never ran a saw in winter, but when putting oil in at 20 I did think of it, cuz it just makes sense you need something different, so this thread is answering what I would have asked in my own .
Not only that my husky 61 has a plug to remove to increase temps to carb, so I guess, I should pull the plug also, ??
I did think of it, cuz it just makes sense you need something different, so this thread is answering what I would have asked in my own .Not only that my husky 61 has a plug to remove to increase temps to carb, so I guess, I should pull the plug also, ??
Especially since we all are big fans of our Magnesium cased saws over plastic.
Set one of them down in the snow and it'll cool off almost instantly.Only if you have trouble with the carburetor icing. The saw will rev up ok and then seem to bog down/lose power pretty rapidly. Then I'd try pulling the carb heat shutter.
Stihl's Arctic models have heated handlebars and electric carburetor heat. Glad I don't have to cut in that kind of cold.
HDRock
Minister of Fire
Most Stihl saws also have Winter/Summer flip tabs around the spark plug and air filter. That allows more warm air to get into the intake and help prevent carb icing. Problem with winter mode is that more sawdust also gets into the air filter area.
HDRock
Minister of Fire
Cleaning the filter a little more often is better than a saw you can't run 'cause it bogs out every time you hit the throttle. The first time you experience Carb Icing you'll get mad, and then be all "WTF?!". Then it hits you. "Ohhhhhh...."
HDRock
Minister of Fire
I noticed tonight that my 034 was a tad rich up high, last time I tuned, it was in the 50's-60's. Prob in the high 20's tonight. I noticed I had to lean on 'er a bit to get it to quit four-stroking. I'll check the air filter and sharpen the chain I guess. 
I only re-tune in the field if something doesn't sound right to me. I'll check each saw from time to time with a tach to make sure I'm not exceeding the "redline" at WOT no-load. I do that just about every time they get a thorough cleaning.
I only re-tune in the field if something doesn't sound right to me. I'll check each saw from time to time with a tach to make sure I'm not exceeding the "redline" at WOT no-load. I do that just about every time they get a thorough cleaning.
HDRock
Minister of Fire
Seems to me, if U want your saws running peak, U need the type of tach I have seen in vids,but don't know aboutI noticed tonight that my 034 was a tad rich up high, last time I tuned, it was in the 50's-60's. Prob in the high 20's tonight. I noticed I had to lean on 'er a bit to get it to quit four-stroking. I'll check the air filter and sharpen the chain I guess.
I only re-tune in the field if something doesn't sound right to me. I'll check each saw from time to time with a tach to make sure I'm not exceeding the "redline" at WOT no-load. I do that just about every time they get a thorough cleaning.
Stihl EDT 7 is a great one, not too awful on the wallet either. (I don't remember the specifics but I remember being pleasantly surprised.) It really depends on how much you trust your ears. Me? I got da' tach.
Ashful
Minister of Fire
MasterMech, do you set your H screw by the tach? Make sure it's four-stroking at some percentage of max rated RPM? Or just tune by ear, then verify max RPM on the tach?
For you guys adding in some kero to make your own winter blend, how much do you generally add to a 1/2 gallon of standard bar/chain oil? A cup? A pint?
Ashful
Minister of Fire
I've mixed lighter oils with bar oil to thin it, and although I've never added diesel, I'm sure the theory is the same. I just add a bit at a time, until the bar oil flows nice. You know how your bar oil pours in warmer weather, so on a cold day, add some 5 weight, mineral oil, or diesel until it pours the same.
In cold temps I have been using an old gear lube squeeze type bottle to fill the bar oil.
well in warm temps too.
of course filled with bar lube.
well in warm temps too.
of course filled with bar lube.
I set it by ear, check it with the tach and adjust from there to control max RPM. A little rich to control RPM is OK as long as it doesn't four-stroke in the wood. If the max-RPM is way high (over 1000 rpm) then I will allow it to rev somewhat high rather than setting it super-rich. I don't hold the saw at WOT no-load for extended periods anyway.
So !! what about tuning for the temp
Tuning for temp? The main way to get a saw to run hotter is to tune the carb lean, but then you risk scoring the P&C. Not a good idea. Carb icing is from cold air coming into the carb and getting even colder from the venturi effect (lower pressure in the carb throat). Hence carb icing can happen well above freezing. One way around it on many Stihl saws is by setting them to 'winter mode' by opening air ports and/or flipping baffles that allow warm air from the engine to keep the carb from icing up. Stihl also has Arctic saw models with heated handles and carbs that are powered by a small magneto that they add on top of the flywheel. They are usually designated by a W and they have a toggle switch on the right side of the handle to activate the heaters. If/when they come out with fuel injection on chainsaws this will resolve the carb icing issue.
I have a Tech Tac TT 20k. Wireless (but has a wired option), you only need to get the tach a few inches from the saw engine and it reads out the RMP digitally. They are about $90 with shipping (click in this link to see it/order one: Edge and Engine). I retune my saws when I change bar lengths or do any work on them, or if I change oil or gas type. Fast-Tach is another similar tach made by the same company. Tiny Tach is another tach that is similar.
And my usual disclaimer: No, I do not work for Edge and Engine, or Stihl or Husqvarna, or any oil company, or DTI Industries or any tachometer company, nor do I get any financial payments, kickbacks or discounts from any of them for my posting here or anywhere else. Edge and Engine is the cheapest place to buy a DTI Tech Tach 20k that I have found, and that is where I got mine several years ago.
Yah, opening the winter vents allows more saw dust into the air filter area. For that reason I do not use winter mode much, unless the carbs are icing up. It is rather arbitrary as well (setting to summer/winter mode on Stihl saws). Some places Stihl says to use winger mode in temps below 50 degrees, but other places they say to set to summer mode at temps above 70 degrees. That leaves a 20 degree gap! If I do set any of my saws to winter mode, I usually only do it below 40. But keeping the saw inside the night before cutting helps prevent carb icing as well as the summer oil to flow better.
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