Rollomatic E Bar on my new MS250

[Tom123]

I recently picked up a new MS250 with an 18" Rollomatic E bar. I noticed there is no hole to grease the sprocket on it. Is this something new? Will the bearing wear prematurely? I really like the saw. It's done everything I've asked it to do. Is this one of the differences between pro and homeowner? The Oregon bar on my 14"Poulan has a grease hole.

 

[jotul?]

I was doing a side job once for a guy who told me that you should have a Stihl saw with an Oregon bar. I dismissed it because how would he know? Eight or ten years later, the show Axe Men started up, and I had a total recall moment when I saw all those guys using Stihl saws with Oregon bars.

 

[DodgyNomad]

I recently picked up a new MS250 with an 18" Rollomatic E bar. I noticed there is no hole to grease the sprocket on it. Is this something new? Will the bearing wear prematurely? I really like the saw. It's done everything I've asked it to do. Is this one of the differences between pro and homeowner? The Oregon bar on my 14"Poulan has a grease hole.

A LOT of the saws are this way. No worries, you'll never notice it and it will likely last as long or longer than the rest of the bar. I've had a several with the sealed sprocket, and the bars were worn down and needed replacing, but the sprocket was still fine.

Consider it one less thing you have to service.

 

[Tom123]

Now that I think about it, back in the day U joints, ball joints Tie Rod (an NFL quarterback) etc all had grease fittings and they wore out. Today's are sealed and they go over 100K miles.

 

[DodgyNomad]

Now that I think about it, back in the day U joints, ball joints Tie Rod (an NFL quarterback) etc all had grease fittings and they wore out. Today's are sealed and they go over 100K miles.

I think it's a complete non-issue on that saw. Considering it's a Stihl, they've thought it out. They last as long as the the rest of the bar, at least for me.

 

[Jags]

And don't discount the fact that bar oil lubes the roller as well...

 

[pma1123]

Same exact saw, same exact bar, I locked up the nose sprocket after quite a bit of cutting/flipping the bar a few times.
I know I didn't pinch the bar when it happened, nor was I out of oil. I let off after a cut and thought the brake was engaged when I went to make another cut.
New bar, running along happily again...they are a wear item after all...

 

[TreePointer]

Conventional wisdom is if you grease them, continue to grease them. If you don't grease them, just make sure you have good oil flow every time.

 

[Tom123]

As predicted the sprocket locked up today. I was cutting out in the woods and was only about half way through. I finished a cut and it seemed like the chain brake was on. I pulled the bar off and realized what happened. I ran the saw with the bar off and it oiled fine. I'm going to the dealer Monday. I doubt I've cut a full cord with the saw yet.

 

[TreePointer]

Sprocket bearings can fail on any bar. I've only had it happen once in the past 8 years with Stihl "E" bars.

I had been using regular weight bar oil in cold weather (20*F). I set the saw down for a while and the sawdust (somewhat dull chain) formed a slurry with the bar oil and actually solidified in the bar groove. When I subsequently went to cut, I threw a chain and later learned the sprocket didn't move freely.

 

[Tom123]

Thanks TreePointer. I have been using Poulan Pro bar oil from Walmart. My Stihl dealer said that was fine, and it was in the low 60's yesterday. Last night I soaked the tip of the bar with penetrating oil. This morning I put the bar in a vice and tapped on a sprocket tooth with a block of wood. I was able to free it up and I then went to mystery oil and it freed up nice. I then gave the bar a thorough cleaning, sharpened my chain, mounted it back on the powerhead and manually lubed everything. I went out and cut about a 1/3 cord of oak rounds and all was fine.

 

[jeff_t]

I've never greased a bar sprocket. But I've only had two E bars. The rest are Windsor and Oregon.

I've had them lock up, but only if they plugged up with chips if I didn't let it clear as I was pulling out of the cut. Sometimes I would have to take the chain off and work it the other way with a screwdriver, but usually hooking the cutters on the bark and pulling back on the saw would do it.