Petrol chainsaw question

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Hi,

I've recently bought a cheap petrol chainsaw to get some trees cut down, etc. I haven't used a petrol one in over 15 years, only having used electric from then to now.

I don't know what mechanism the petrol ones use for automatic oil application to the chain because the old petrol one I used to use had a manual pump you had to remember to press to squirt some oil over the blade. This one I've bought is auto-oil, and after laying it on its side to fill with chain oil, I noticed some of the oil had run out around the chain guard area on the opposite side facing the ground.

I then had to put it on its side again to fill with fuel, and even more oil leaked out all over the front of the chainsaw body. Since this is the position for cutting through a trunk (saw on its side), should it be leaking oil out like that, presumably through the chain oil hole? I'd lose lots when cutting with saw on its side.

I'd have assumed that whatever mechanism is used, the oil shouldn't be able to flow out unless the pump makes it? The oil is Makita chain oil, tacky stuff to resist fling.
 
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It shouldn't leak as dramatically as that...most chainsaws have a gear driven pump that only works when the chain is revolving.
An easy way of stopping it is to lay the saw with the chain bar uppermost....if you want to go and investigate further at sometime, I guess that the pipe from the oil tank to the pump has split.
John :)
 
Every one I've used has been gear driven - it's a little worm drive.

However - you say cheap, I'm wondering if it's such a cheap saw it just oozes through a hole? Might be worth reading the manual or googling for more info - it might be doing that by design.
 
I've recently bought a cheap petrol chainsaw
There’s ya problem bud but it might last long enough to finish cutting those trees. Having previously gone the same route, the cheap Chinese import stuff is crap & my lube system never worked at all from day 1; I had squirt it with an oil can every few minutes but soldiered on until the motor finally gave out this year (2 years medium use).

Now got a McCulloch; not top flight but 1000 times better the chinky! ;)
 
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this is the only junk i would buy from china
 
I've read through the manual and it mentions that the oil is pumped to the blade. There is an adjustment screw to reduce or increase oil to the blade, but without taking it apart, I don't know how it achieves that adjustment. I could accept a tiny dribble of oil when it's on its side, but it was enough to warrant the tissue paper it's now sat on to absorb the remnants that are slowly coming out of all the crevices on that side.

Richard C, you're probably right. I'm getting a little tired of Chinese stuff that's not fit for purpose, but sometimes when finances are tight and you want to get a job done, the appeal of the cheap is too much. I decided that the use from my trees, plus family who want to get rid of some, made it cheaper to buy this thing than rent one.

Perhaps I'm expecting too much from a cheap machine. At least when I started it and gave it a dry run, the chain had a nice coating of oil all over and seeping into the links. When I cut through the trunks, the chain will get even more oil so other than my oil costs going up, could be worse. I just hope these cheap ones have been checked to comply with safety regulations...
 
I don't think you are expecting too much 9 according to consumer legislation )


A chain-saw should obviously be capable of cutting numerous trunks of wood without failing so you are not expecting too much from this machine ( the price is irrelevant unless advertised as " cheap **** that fails after 10 minutes " )
 
The cheap stuff will still satisfy consumer legislation, safety standards & will certainly last long enough to satisfy the warranty period. It should certainly cut OK, the question is for how long; mine lasted 2 years becoming increasingly difficult to start, will now only tick over & dies as soon as you hit the throttle but am going to have it in bits when I have spare time to see if I can coax it back to life. I also have a pole saw with chainsaw & hedge cutter attachments strimmer etc bought at the same time. It doesn’t get anywhere near as much use (10 days a year) but already the plastic chain cover on the chain saw attachment is broken, it pumps more oil to the chain than a nodding donkey & the hedge cutter attachment gearbox casing has a lump missing (no idea how) & is lashed up with Gaffa tape to stop debris getting in. That lot will eventually be replaced with Stihl but they are rather pricy.

The McCulloch I’ve just bought was 3x the price of the chinky but is a completely different beast; easy to start, responsive, far more power, quality castings, lighter & has advanced safety features; a friend of mine has had two of them for 10 years.

For safety, it’s worth checking the origin of the chain bar/chain on your chinky but most of them fit Oregon now; & remember to keep yourself safe, no undercutting!
 
Jenny, yes the vast majority of chainsaws are 2-stroke, however please don't hijack posts, if you have a question start a new topic, it saves confusion...
 
I've used a couple of chainsaws over the years and I've just bought a cheap 14" one for light firewood work, yes, I'll say it, it's a Ryobi. Guess this is Chinese? (I've also got a Ryobi cordless drill and it has given me eight years of good service.) I have no concerns about the chainsaw, it does the job, starts well and copes with the bigger pieces manfully for 33ccs.

The lubrication is quite clever - a worm drive pushes oil out of a slot on the face where the bar bolts on. The oil finds its way through an internal gallery to a hole at the end of the bar where it ooozes out and dribbles onto the chain. It is prevented from escaping from the uncovered portion of the slot (wherever the bar is set for chain tension) by a steel plate that is clamped onto the bar by the two main bolts. Works fine and looks foolproof.
 

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