Man Tools Help

This section on my page deals with general tools and tasks you may need information about that are part of man life.

Chainsaws – I have an old chainsaw that I’m refurbishing and I could not find basic information about it nor about the chain that fits it so I’ll include it here for anyone who may be having the same problem. It’s a yellow electric chainsaw. The model is a McCulloch Electramac EM300s and it has a 16″ chainbar (the flat piece of metal that the blade rides along). I counted 55 drive links on the chain which was not on the machine, but beside it and seems to fit fine. The chain worn so I can’t read the markings all that well but it appears to say BL on some of the links and Mini 370 on the other links. Which appears to be listed on this chart…

http://www.premiumsawchain.co.uk/pages/Chain_Number_Conversion_Chart/

as a 3/8ths inch pitch, 0.050″ (1.3mm) gauge.

The equivalent types are a : Type 91 Oregon chain, or an N1 Carlton, or an M370 McCulloch, or a 63PM Stihl, or a 50R Windsor, or an H35 and H36 Husqvarna, or an S36 EM, or a 92 Dolmar. So there should be plenty of choices.

The label on the machine says replace with a 16″ chainbar and a 218097 chain from McCulloch (which is probably the M370), but from what I can tell it’s no longer sold so I have to find a replacement.

While I still have the old chain it’s got surface rust, no pitting luckily, and it needed lots of oil and working with pliers, hammers, and a vice to get it freed up again, but I think it will still function, but I’ll probably want to replace it in any sooner or later so I did some research and found a replacement which is available.

From sears – Chainsaw Chain, 16 inch, part number 218097-33 for $29.55. It’s a manufacturer substitution as that exact model number is no longer produced. It’s also numbered by the manufacturer as #91PX055G. The link to purchase it is below…

http://www.searspartsdirect.com/mc-culloch-chainsaw-parts/218097-33/0071/989/model-ELECTRAMACEM300S16/0684/1503210.html

Also getting the http://www.planopower.com/reference_materials/saw_chain_info.shtml 3/8″ Picco with 55 chain drive links in the 16″ length would work apparently.

But both those options look more expensive than I wanted to source so I kept looking and the cheapest source I found was Home Depot.

The price of the exact one I think I’d need was $23.65 considering this one

http://www.homedepot.com/p/PowerSharp-55-DL-16-in-Chainsaw-Chain-and-Stone-PS55/202532212

I have no idea about the self sharpening aspect of that kit, that aspect may only fit the Stihl saws, but I am figuring the chain in the set would work nonetheless and I’d have a stone I could use I suppose (not that I need any more options there since I have plenty of files and stones).

If I wanted to try 56 links as some of the charts suggested that may also work I could go a little cheaper and look at this option which is only $18.97

http://www.homedepot.com/p/Oregon-S56-16-in-Chainsaw-Chain-S56/203369884

If I needed a chain bar too it looks like this is the way to go…

http://www.homedepot.com/p/PowerSharp-55-DL-16-in-Chainsaw-Chain-and-Bar-Starter-Kit-541655/202532154

Now another thing I will need is oil to keep in the oil reservoir while running it or the motor would probably burn up. The oil recommended is no longer made, but I did a little research (http://homeguides.sfgate.com/type-oil-mcculloch-chain-saws-101925.html) and any modern chainsaw oil will probably work but older models should and newer models may use SAE 30 non-additive motor oil or SAE 10 if the it’s cold outside (below 40 degrees Fahrenheit) as it won’t freeze as easily.

Apparently the change of oil types was over so-called concern over the environment, not so much for individual use, but in forests as the oil ends up there. So they switched over to a vegetable base instead of petroleum for regular “Chain and Bar oil” which is what commercially produced chainsaw oil is called. In theory any moderately sticky oil would work to lubricate the chainsaw, but if too sticky it wouldn’t flow out of the reservoir and if not sticky enough it would just fly off the chain and into the air and you’d inhale a lot of it. Some people highly recommend the commercial chain and bar oils saying they are perfect for the job. It used to be and still is the case for gas chainsaws that people mixed gasoline and oil in a 50/50 mixture to get the right flow.

I’m cheap and I like products that serve multiple purposes and are readily available nearby so I’ll could just get SAE 30 motor oil and try that. It’s probably the easiest option but not necessarily the best. But it would be if I want versatility as the commercial oils for chainsaw blades and bars have sticky additives that make them useless for other applications like inside of engines.

I could go to pepboys and go with https://www.pepboys.com/product/details/117119/00683. It looks like it has the least amount of additives as it is called conventional motor oil which means it is less refined and non-synthetic… Part #550022816 for $4.99.

They also have some chain and bar oil at pepboys but only in one gallon size for $9.99 https://www.pepboys.com/product/details/928298/00683. Of course that’s half price and I’ve got some tasks ahead to handle so that would be better, but the price isn’t so great. I have a feeling this is the lightweight stuff they are now using so I don’t think it would work for me all that well.

But the cheapest option for commercial bar oil is walmart at and 7.97 a gallon & it comes in the 30 weight explicitly but a reviewer says it contains red dye and that is not cool at all. That would stain wood and end up in your lungs. https://www.walmart.com/ip/Super-Tech-Bar-and-Chain-Oil-1-Gallon/16795133

Man Tip: SAE is the Society of Automotive Engineers, a standardizing body, and 30 is the weight and if you see it listed as W10-30 or something like that the letter W followed by the number just means it’s good for winter use and the first number is the viscosity from low to high as you would expect. The second number is the actual weight. https://www.quora.com/What-is-SAE-30-oil

Anyway, I hope this information help you.