I have this old faithful Makita 520. I've toyed with getting a new saw a million times but this hasn't let me down in a serious way. Its just been a good saw for 15+ years. Well its always had a bit of bar oil weeping. Recently I went to check on the saw after sitting for a long time and it has leaked a lot. I bought the saw used - so I don't know if this is nature of the beast or if there is a repair that can be done.
Bar Oil Leaking!!! Makita 520 Chainsaw
- Thread starter NoPaint
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Jon1270
Minister of Fire
It's probably fixable, but you'll need to figure out what needs fixing. I'd remove the clutch cover and cutting equipment, clean the whole area thoroughly and leave it sit for a while, in hopes of being able to see where it's leaking from.
Every chain saw I ever owned has leaked some bar oil. Just be careful where you lay them down on the floor and don't worry about it.
I'd love to repair whatever I can to get it leaking less. I am looking at a diagram and honestly it looks like theres a oil pump repair kit, a suction hose, and a pressure hose. I could just get all three of those but I was hoping someone else had tackled this first.
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Jon1270
Minister of Fire
If you are trying to avoid buying unnecessary parts then you really need to figure out exactly where it's leaking from. Have you cleaned up the area and then waited to see where the seepage seems to be appearing?
A conservative strategy would be to first check to make sure the relevant parts are still available, then remove the clutch, pull the pump and inspect it and the hoses. Assuming the case isn't cracked and the case gasket is ok, there aren't that many possible places for the oil to be coming from. The suction and/or pressure lines might be cracked or otherwise degraded, the pump housing might be cracked, or the pump might have a bad internal o-ring/seal.
Removing the clutch is probably the trickiest part of the job if you don't have a clutch tool, and even that shouldn't be too difficult.
You might try asking your question at the chainsaw forum over at arborist site, but I suspect they'll tell you pretty much the same thing.
A conservative strategy would be to first check to make sure the relevant parts are still available, then remove the clutch, pull the pump and inspect it and the hoses. Assuming the case isn't cracked and the case gasket is ok, there aren't that many possible places for the oil to be coming from. The suction and/or pressure lines might be cracked or otherwise degraded, the pump housing might be cracked, or the pump might have a bad internal o-ring/seal.
Removing the clutch is probably the trickiest part of the job if you don't have a clutch tool, and even that shouldn't be too difficult.
You might try asking your question at the chainsaw forum over at arborist site, but I suspect they'll tell you pretty much the same thing.
Jon1270
Minister of Fire
I just checked, and yep, the parts are all available. If you don't need to use the saw for the next week or so, then you might as well pull that clutch and get this figured out!
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