Bar not getting oil

[Bad Wolf]

Went out to cut some trees in back of the house and the chain seems very dry. Went up to a clean piece of wood and rev'ed it but it didn't seem to throw any oil out. Took the bar off and there is oil under the bar on the case but it doesn't seem to be getting to the little hole that lines up with the bar.
The oil hole is clear, I even put a new bar on that I had still nothing.

Anything I should try before I take it up to the dealer?

Its a Stihl 290, maybe 3-4 years old always worked fine up until now.

 

[Bigg_Redd]

Went out to cut some trees in back of the house and the chain seems very dry. Went up to a clean piece of wood and rev'ed it but it didn't seem to throw any oil out. Took the bar off and there is oil under the bar on the case but it doesn't seem to be getting to the little hole that lines up with the bar.
The oil hole is clear, I even put a new bar on that I had still nothing.

Anything I should try before I take it up to the dealer?

Its a Stihl 290, maybe 3-4 years old always worked fine up until now.

What makes you think your saw isn't oiling?

My 290 never threw oil, per se, but it would use half a tank of oil for every tank of gas. Is your 290 not doing this?

 

[Beer Belly]

Went out to cut some trees in back of the house and the chain seems very dry. Went up to a clean piece of wood and rev'ed it but it didn't seem to throw any oil out. Took the bar off and there is oil under the bar on the case but it doesn't seem to be getting to the little hole that lines up with the bar.
The oil hole is clear, I even put a new bar on that I had still nothing.

Anything I should try before I take it up to the dealer?

Its a Stihl 290, maybe 3-4 years old always worked fine up until now.

My 290 is in the shop for the same issue....we'll see what they say....I'm hoping it's warranty

 

[Bad Wolf]

The chain is bone dry and if I rev it up it doesn't throw any oil out. Normally if you place it near a piece of paper or something you can see oil splattering. The oil level is dropping but there seems to be a lot of oil on the case but not on the bar. I'll take it up to the shop and run it for them and see what they say.

Beer Belly, how long ago did you take it up? I'd like to hear what they say about yours. Where in CT are you?

 

[lazeedan]

Did you blow air through oil hole on the bar itself?

 

[Bad Wolf]

Did you blow air through oil hole on the bar itself?

Frist thing I looked at. Nice and clean and can see the bottom of the links going by. I even put a second bar on and the same thing. Tomorrow I'll try a different chain.

 

[shawn6596]

My 290 never threw oil, per se, but it would use half a tank of oil for every tank of gas. Is your 290 not doing this?

That seems light to me. My ECHO CS670 (24" bar) uses almost a full tank of bar oil to a tank of gas, and if I wind it up I can see a sling trail wherever I am pointing it. My PROMAC 850 (28" bar) is the same way. Keep in mind these are both larger saws,

 

[dougand3]

Worm gear replacement on MS 029.

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[aussiedog3]

The chain is bone dry and if I rev it up it doesn't throw any oil out. Normally if you place it near a piece of paper or something you can see oil splattering. The oil level is dropping but there seems to be a lot of oil on the case but not on the bar. I'll take it up to the shop and run it for them and see what they say.

Beer Belly, how long ago did you take it up? I'd like to hear what they say about yours. Where in CT are you?

Is the bar tight against the power head of the saw? I've had a small wood chip or something in there and the bar is not tight against the saw, the saw keeps pumping oil and kind of makes a mess.

 

[Bigg_Redd]

That seems light to me. My ECHO CS670 (24" bar) uses almost a full tank of bar oil to a tank of gas, and if I wind it up I can see a sling trail wherever I am pointing it. My PROMAC 850 (28" bar) is the same way. Keep in mind these are both larger saws,

This is a perfect illustration of the difference between what we think a saw needs, and how much it actually needs. . .

I've never touched the oiler on my 290 (nor I suppose has it's new owner) yet it retains it's original bar after 10+ years consuming 1/2 tank of bar oil for every tank of fuel. No flinging. Ever. Yes the bar does get warm.

The oiler on my 440 can be adjusted such that it uses 1:1 with fuel, or down to 1/2:1. And the bar still gets warm.

As for the OP - he thinks his saw isn't properly oiling, but based on what? I'm guessing his saw is oiling just fine.

 

[Holiday]

I just got a 250 which seems about 3/4 oil to one fuel. If you idle it with no bar you should see the oil slowly pumping out of the small hole. Like aussie says, make sure the bar is tight against the saw.

 

[Beer Belly]

Beer Belly, how long ago did you take it up? I'd like to hear what they say about yours. Where in CT are you?

Bethel (lower South West).....close to the NY border. Dropped it off Friday morning when I went to pick up my splitter

 

[TreePointer]

My 290 would use at over 3/4 of the oil in the tank with a full fuel tank. That is with the oil flow adjustment screw (bottom of saw) fully opened. Have you tried turning this screw?

 

[maple1]

What do you see when you run it without the bar on?

 

[pen]

According to the manual, it should throw oil off the bar.

Page 31 http://www.stihlusa.com/WebContent/CMSFileLibrary/instructionmanuals/MS290_310_390_Manual.pdf

The chain must always throw off a small amount of oil

Since the guy has owned the saw for 3 or 4 years, and says there is something different now, it's worth investigating.

 

[TreePointer]

What type of oil is in the tank? What type do you normally use? How long has the saw gone without use?

 

[Ram 1500 with an axe...]

Yeah my echo 18" throws oil, purple oil, I would be. Concerned if I stopped seeing it...

 

[Bad Wolf]

Used the saw a week ago didn't notice anything then, summer weight Stihl bar oil. I noticed the perceived lack of oil when I changed chains.

After watching a u-tube on replacing the oil pump I went back out to take another look at it. Decided to try cleaning it once more before opening anything.
Poked a wire down the oil hole and cleaned everything up. Ran it without the bar in place and saw some oil starting to come out of the hole.
I'll go out today when I get home and try it again and see if it throws oil.

 

[BKInsert]

Used the saw a week ago didn't notice anything then, summer weight Stihl bar oil. I noticed the perceived lack of oil when I changed chains.

After watching a u-tube on replacing the oil pump I went back out to take another look at it. Decided to try cleaning it once more before opening anything.
Poked a wire down the oil hole and cleaned everything up. Ran it without the bar in place and saw some oil starting to come out of the hole.
I'll go out today when I get home and try it again and see if it throws oil.

When you rev it without the bar you should see a lot of oil coming out, if it doesn't then you have a problem with the worm gear or pump. Either way not too difficult to fix.

 

[Sprinter]

This is just FWIW because I'm no mechanic, but when I bought my saw, the dealer told me to be careful about keeping the area around the filler clean because debris can clog passages or something.

 

[Beer Belly]

Just got mine back....the saw is one year old, I've taken it apart, and cleaned it with a brush every other use....guess I missed the Oiler Hole....$50 for the shop to clear it. Personally, if it were my shop, simple fix, do it for no charge, and give the customer a lesson on how to properly clean it and earn a return customer.....maybe I'm old school, but when I was in the auto repair industry, we would do this....it's like changing a customers headlight bulb, or windshield wipers.

 

[Holiday]

I agree, Dodge dealer here wanted 120 to read a code off my truck which takes 1 minute. I probably would have bought the part I needed on the spot from them but I made a point of going elsewhere after that.

 

[geoff1969]

had same problem with old mcculloch would gum up block up regaurdless of what brand of oil used so about every 12th tank of oil would mix approx 50 mil of oil with 100 mil of degreser and run that through to flush the sytem = never had the problem ever again after that , all ways threw good oil off end of bar and bar grove and sprocket was all ways good ,

 

[mecreature]

my 290 throws oil. I am right about+ 3/4 to a tank of fuel.

 

[BKInsert]

Just got mine back....the saw is one year old, I've taken it apart, and cleaned it with a brush every other use....guess I missed the Oiler Hole....$50 for the shop to clear it. Personally, if it were my shop, simple fix, do it for no charge, and give the customer a lesson on how to properly clean it and earn a return customer.....maybe I'm old school, but when I was in the auto repair industry, we would do this....it's like changing a customers headlight bulb, or windshield wipers.

Nice , I agree, if it was my shop I would not charge for the simple cleanup, guarantee to a returned customer!