New here first post, I found this site looking for info on this problem.
Over the summer I bought a new in the box MS250 to keep as a back up saw around the house. It came with an 16" bar and runs .325 chain. I've run the saw before but only to try it out. I had bought it at a going out of business sale.
Yesterday I got it out to cut up some downed maple tree branches from a recent storm and to cut some 8x8" pressure treated wood I bought to use as edging along one garden here.
The saw did fine cutting up the small stuff but when I went to cut the 8x8's it struggled bad, I got lots of bar smoke, and it turned the bar edges blue, fast.
The saw is new, its full of Stihl Platinum bar lube. I can see oil slinging off the chain, and the chain is noticeably sticky with oil. The chain is properly adjusted, not too tight. Its throwing good size chips, so its not dull, and it does cut the wood, but its slow. I have to push hard to progress through the wood. (It ripped through the 4" downed limbs with ease). Frustrated, I got out my cheap Remington electric saw and finished the job. It ripped through the timbers like butter. I took the saw over to a local saw shop, the guy looked at it and said the bar didn't look like its was getting oiled. He took off the bar, ran it with the bar off and oil ran from the oil passage just fine. I bought a new bar and chain, which he put on and adjusted. And I
went home to give it a try, again, it struggled to cut the pressure treated 8x8's and quickly started to heat up the bar. I went out back and took the saw to some larger oak limbs and it cut but it struggled badly and heated up the bar discoloring the paint pretty quickly.
The bar is slinging oil, the chain is brand new, yet it has trouble cutting an 8" piece of pine.
Its not the wood, the electric saw proved that.
The saw doesn't bog or seem to be straining to cut, the bar just gets hot fast and smokes. I can smell the sharp smell of oil burning real quick. The bar is too hot to touch almost right away.
The chain moves freely in the bar, I can pull it around by hand with little resistance, so its not a matter of it being tight in the bar. The chain is .325- x .063 Stihl Oilmatic chain, p/n 3639 005 0062, and the bar is marked 3005-000-4713 and is marked on the side for this chain. Both are the same as what came on the saw new.
I realize this is only a homeowner saw but I can't imagine it not being able to make a couple cuts in 8" wood without overheating the bar.
At first I just thought the smoke was the oil burning or paint wearing off but it went from smoke to no paint and a blue bar in 2" of cutting. I wasn't putting a lot of pressure on it either, but I did have to push down a bit to make it cut. The chips were just that, big chips about 3/16" in size or so.
The bar doesn't seem to make heat when just free running and not cutting, but as soon as it hits the wood it starts heating up and smoking. I even tried dumping more oil on it but that must made more smoke.
And yes, the chain is on in the right direction.
I took a straight edge and laid it across all the cutters and there's about 1/16" or so between the straight edge and the rakers.
The chain is obviously oil covered, but the bar seems dry.
The oil holes are clear in the bar as well.
The chain is the same type as what is on my neighbor's MS290, which I borrowed for comparison.
The MS290 cut through the 8x8's like butter. The chain looks identical, the bar measures the same width and such.
Its as if the oil isn't getting into the rail of the bar, only on the outside of the chain?
I can't see how its possible for the chain to be so wet with oil and the rail is still dry and 'dusty' with fine powder like metal dust.
With as much oil as is on the chain, and the fact that the oil does go down in the tank, there's no doubt its pumping oil, and I watched it run out the oil slot when the bar and chain were off. It didn't spray or squire out, but it certainly was moving oil out at what I'd say would be enough to lube the bar. I can also see oil slinging off the chain at times. The chain is wearing into the bar laterally, not side to side, its wallowing out the groove. In less than 3 minutes of use it's turned the paint on the bar to a burnt amber color and left dark blue discoloration all along the sides near the chain.
So far its cooked two $65 bars. It don't seem to be damaging the chain, its not discolored and even the first chain is still very sharp to the touch.
Any ideas?
Over the summer I bought a new in the box MS250 to keep as a back up saw around the house. It came with an 16" bar and runs .325 chain. I've run the saw before but only to try it out. I had bought it at a going out of business sale.
Yesterday I got it out to cut up some downed maple tree branches from a recent storm and to cut some 8x8" pressure treated wood I bought to use as edging along one garden here.
The saw did fine cutting up the small stuff but when I went to cut the 8x8's it struggled bad, I got lots of bar smoke, and it turned the bar edges blue, fast.
The saw is new, its full of Stihl Platinum bar lube. I can see oil slinging off the chain, and the chain is noticeably sticky with oil. The chain is properly adjusted, not too tight. Its throwing good size chips, so its not dull, and it does cut the wood, but its slow. I have to push hard to progress through the wood. (It ripped through the 4" downed limbs with ease). Frustrated, I got out my cheap Remington electric saw and finished the job. It ripped through the timbers like butter. I took the saw over to a local saw shop, the guy looked at it and said the bar didn't look like its was getting oiled. He took off the bar, ran it with the bar off and oil ran from the oil passage just fine. I bought a new bar and chain, which he put on and adjusted. And I
went home to give it a try, again, it struggled to cut the pressure treated 8x8's and quickly started to heat up the bar. I went out back and took the saw to some larger oak limbs and it cut but it struggled badly and heated up the bar discoloring the paint pretty quickly.
The bar is slinging oil, the chain is brand new, yet it has trouble cutting an 8" piece of pine.
Its not the wood, the electric saw proved that.
The saw doesn't bog or seem to be straining to cut, the bar just gets hot fast and smokes. I can smell the sharp smell of oil burning real quick. The bar is too hot to touch almost right away.
The chain moves freely in the bar, I can pull it around by hand with little resistance, so its not a matter of it being tight in the bar. The chain is .325- x .063 Stihl Oilmatic chain, p/n 3639 005 0062, and the bar is marked 3005-000-4713 and is marked on the side for this chain. Both are the same as what came on the saw new.
I realize this is only a homeowner saw but I can't imagine it not being able to make a couple cuts in 8" wood without overheating the bar.
At first I just thought the smoke was the oil burning or paint wearing off but it went from smoke to no paint and a blue bar in 2" of cutting. I wasn't putting a lot of pressure on it either, but I did have to push down a bit to make it cut. The chips were just that, big chips about 3/16" in size or so.
The bar doesn't seem to make heat when just free running and not cutting, but as soon as it hits the wood it starts heating up and smoking. I even tried dumping more oil on it but that must made more smoke.
And yes, the chain is on in the right direction.
I took a straight edge and laid it across all the cutters and there's about 1/16" or so between the straight edge and the rakers.
The chain is obviously oil covered, but the bar seems dry.
The oil holes are clear in the bar as well.
The chain is the same type as what is on my neighbor's MS290, which I borrowed for comparison.
The MS290 cut through the 8x8's like butter. The chain looks identical, the bar measures the same width and such.
Its as if the oil isn't getting into the rail of the bar, only on the outside of the chain?
I can't see how its possible for the chain to be so wet with oil and the rail is still dry and 'dusty' with fine powder like metal dust.
With as much oil as is on the chain, and the fact that the oil does go down in the tank, there's no doubt its pumping oil, and I watched it run out the oil slot when the bar and chain were off. It didn't spray or squire out, but it certainly was moving oil out at what I'd say would be enough to lube the bar. I can also see oil slinging off the chain at times. The chain is wearing into the bar laterally, not side to side, its wallowing out the groove. In less than 3 minutes of use it's turned the paint on the bar to a burnt amber color and left dark blue discoloration all along the sides near the chain.
So far its cooked two $65 bars. It don't seem to be damaging the chain, its not discolored and even the first chain is still very sharp to the touch.
Any ideas?