A never-ending argument in the world of machinery: is engine oil good for chains? Chains often die a premature death. The problem is not always with the manufacturing of chains but inaccurate lubrication.
Of all parts of machinery and bikes, the chain receives the most dirt and muck due to its exposure and continuous motion. A chain’s lifetime depends primarily on its cleaning and lubricating schedule.
Today we will check if we can use motor oil on a chain.
Let’s Go!
Table of Contents
Why is it Necessary to Lubricate a Chain
For hundreds of years, we have been lubricating metal parts and chains to make them slippery and reduce friction.
Chain lubrication helps:
- Minimize wear between machinery components.
- Keep dirt away from the chain so it won’t jam.
- Carry away heat.
- Reduce chain stretch.
- Make a shield against rust (Any metal part which is not lubricated will rust).
- Extends the lifespan of the chain.
- When talking about bikes, chain lubrication reduces damage between sprocket and chain.
- Also, lube stops the bike seal from cracking.
A bike chain comes with X or O rings. A chain lube forms an additional barrier to ensuring that factory grease stays inside without a lube. Whether bicycle or machinery, a chain will attract dirt from the surroundings, which will create a grinding paste when wet. In turn, it will wear the chain.
When used, oil leaves a thin film on the outside of the chain. It keeps moisture away from internal parts of the chain.
Reasons Behind Malfunction of Chain
No, it is not always manufacturing faults that cause the chains to fail but inadequate lubrication, fatigue, and wear.
Sliding wear removes material from the metal surface and stimulates corrosion. It removes material to an extent where the chain stops working smoothly.
Besides, chains become overloaded with tension, which causes them to stretch badly and pull apart. This is called tensile fail.
Finally, when the chain is overloaded by tension with a weight lesser than yield strength to an extent where cracks start forming in it, making the chain break, it is called fatigue failure.
How to Clean and Lubricate a Chain?
Do you know that dirty chains can decrease a chain’s efficiency by up to 5 watts?
You need to clean and lubricate your chain regularly to help it work smoothly. Here is how you can wash and lube:
- Buy a good chain cleaner or degreaser and a good brush set.
Note: we should use degreasers only when the chain sticks to a lot of grit. Degreasers are strong; putting them directly on the chain may destroy the chains.
2. Start cleaning the chain with cleaner and brush (An old toothbrush will work too)
Alternative 1: You can also use a power wash to get rid of dirt.
Alternative 2: Cleaning with kerosene will work too.
3. Once thoroughly cleaned, respray the cleaner to rinse the remaining dirt.
4. Let the chain air-dry or clean it with a paper towel.
5. Lubricate the chain. Make sure you don’t put too much oil or too little oil. The lubricant used will depend on the type of chain.
The method above is the manual clean and lube method.
Methods of Lubrication
People use different methods to lubricate the chain. The methods of lubrication depend on the type of chain, speed, and accessibility. In general, one should apply oil above the link plate’s edges. Doing so helps carry oil into hard-to-reach locations.
Manual Lubrication
Here, one applies oil with a brush or spout can. It is added by hand into the gap between inner and outer link plates.
Although it costs low, it is less effective than other methods. As it is a manual method, the chances of human error are more, which reduces productivity.
Drip Lubrication
One immerses oil between link plate and sidebar edges with a drip oiler, needle oiler, or wick oiler in this method. The chain takes up around 5 to 20 drops of oil per minute.
It is the best method for instruments with spatial constraints. However, there are chances of oil leakage if the chain plug is not well secured.
Oil Bath Lubrication
Considered as the most effective method, oil bath lubrication starts with a section of chain rushing through the oil bath, which is neither too deep nor too shallow. This way, the whole chain is lubricated efficiently.
Oil Ring Lubrication
Initiated with a chain disk dipped in a lower oil level, the bike chain operates above it. Being more practical and economical sometimes, it is only effective at speeds greater than 300RPM.
Oil Stream Lubrication
Also known as force-feed lubrication, we regard this technique as the most costly but most efficient one. At first, oil is pumped into pressure and then sprayed to the chain’s lower span inside the loop.
Note that mistakenly, if one sprays oil outside the guard, it will leak.
Issues to Check for When Cleaning and Lubing your Chain
With a lack of lubrication, close links and chain stretch can occur.
If the chain links don’t bend evenly, it is due to dirt, rusting, improper pinning, or chain damage. These are called close links. To fix this, we should install poorly installed pins correctly, clean and lubricate to remove dust, or in worst situations, replace the chain.
When chain damage to such an extent that it becomes more prolonged than usual, it is called chain stretch. It is cheaper to replace.
Characteristics of an Ideal Lubricant for Chain
A good lube, either engine oil or chain oil, should be a suitable corrosion inhibitor. Chain exposure to water and dirt is common. A good lube protects the chain from rusting, hence improving its lifespan.
Tip: make sure you don’t use oil with impurities.
People often complain that chain oil is expensive to use, hence claiming engine oil is a better choice for chains. An ideal lubricant should be low cost as the chain needs to be oiled again and again.
Viscosity plays a crucial role in deciding which oil is suitable for a chain. The best oil should be viscous enough to spread to hard-to-reach locations in a chain evenly.
Oils usually attract dust and dirt, making the chain dirty and sticky. An excellent lube should be clean and should not let dust attack it.
Is Motor Oil Suitable for Chains?
Many people are concerned about finding a cheaper alternative to chain oil or something readily available. Let’s see if engine oil is a good alternative for chains or not.
Is Engine Oil Good for Chainsaw Chains?
I was pondering if engine oil is good for chainsaw chains. Of course, why increase expenses when you can use a cheaper alternative?
Motor oil works excellent for chainsaw chains in some conditions, while in the long run, we don’t recommend you to use it. A proper chainsaw and bar oil is comparatively thicker than engine oil; thus, engine oil offers faster flow and spread throughout the chain.
However, the chainsaw and bar oil has additives that stick to the chain, ensuring a smooth workout. We can’t find these additives in motor oil. Engine oil will work great at first but will damage the tank’s interior. Also, breathing engine oil can be dangerous to human health.
Considering used motor oil for chainsaw chain can be an even worse decision than using new motor oil. Not only it is highly flammable and have lost their viscosity but are also harmful to the environment.
You will have to replace used oil more frequently. As chainsaw splatters oil everywhere, engine oil spills will result in black hands, clothes, and everything around.
Chainsaw manufacturers suggest you use a chainsaw and bar oil. Chainsaw oil will increase the lifespan of the chainsaw chain.
If you still want to use engine oil, use SAE 30 for summers and SAE 10 for winters.
Is Engine Oil Good for Machinery Chains?
Chains found in machinery are known as roller chains. We can discover roller chains in any industry, including construction, textile mills, mining, and paper factory.
It is a challenging task to find a cheaper alternative to machinery chain lubes. Let’s see if engine oil is good for machinery chains.
Specifically designed roller chain oils are comparatively thinner, thus collect less dust. On the other hand, engine oils have higher viscosity and will immediately attract grit.
Manufacturers recommend using chain oil, which attracts minimal grit; thus, engine oil is not a good choice.
Is Engine Oil Good for Bike chains?
Bikes chains are constantly in motion and exposed to grit. Besides, water washes lubricants out during the journey.
Before choosing a good oil for bike chains, we should consider the harsh weather conditions we drive bikes in; note that more minor parts of chains are harder to reach and that oils readily attract dirt and dust from the road.
Bike chain oil should be thin, clean, and super effective towards rust. A good oil is resistant to wash off by water. This way, we won’t have to lubricate it over-and-over again.
Engine oil is viscous. We can’t say it won’t spread evenly into the chain, but it will take too long or may even leave some parts ungreased. Also, the thicker the oil, the more it will attract dirt. This grit will wear out the chain’s interiors.
Engine oil solidifies when the temperature drops, making room for other dirt to attract. Also, due to its thickness, it will resist weak chain cleaners. In turn, you will have to buy a solvent separately to remove it.
In addition to this, engine oils have additives dissolved that won’t help in chain oiling but will add further friction.
However, engine oil is widely available. You can get it from any petrol station costing significantly lower as compared to chain oil.
We recommend using bike chain oil as its advantages outweigh the low cost and availability of engine oil.
FAQs – Is Engine Oil Good for Chains?
These frequently asked questions will help you understand better if engine oil is good for chains or not.
How Often Should You Oil Your Chain?
Well, that depends. There are many factors taken into notice before you decide how often to oil a bike’s chain. These factors include how often you have ridden it, the weather you were riding in and how many hours you were riding continuously.
If you drive your bike rarely, it is better to clean and lube it once a month. If you move 8000 meters every week, clean it once a month; if you run 50,000 meters every week, clean and lube it once every two weeks. If you drive more than it, you better clean it after every ride.
Note that we recommend the above clean-and-lube schedule for good weather conditions only.
If you ride for one hour in harsh weather, you should clean and lube it there and then.
For an electric chainsaw chain, we recommend you keep checking its oil tank and refill as needed. If you are using a gas chainsaw, fill oil every time you fill the gas.
We recommend you oil a roller chain after 50 hours at first and then after every 500 hours of usage.
Why Engine Oil Makes the Chain Black?
With a viscosity far higher than other oils, engine oil readily attracts grit and dust. These contaminants mix with engine oil to make a sticky black semi-liquid. Other times, adding fresh lube lifts the old dirt stuck in the chain, which shows black color.
To avoid this, you better use thinner oil, avoid over-applying oil or let the dry chain overnight before lubing once you clean it.
How to Check if a Chain is Accurately Lubricated?
While cleaning, make sure to use brushes to brush off excess dirt. Make use of degreasers or cleaning solvents; they can help lift previous grit.
Also, wipe off excess lubricant, if any. It is better to use appropriate lubricating methods instead of oiling it manually.
Why Do Chains Require Low Viscosity Oil?
The thinner the oil, the less dirt it will attract. High-viscosity oils attract more muck forming a sticky liquid causing the bike or roller chain to jam.
Besides, the thinner liquid is more likely to spread evenly through the inner parts of the chain. If they spread evenly, chances of wear of chain will reduce to a large extent.
Conclusion
Coming back to the question; is engine oil good for chains? Keeping in mind its viscosity, penetration ability, dirt-attracting nature, engine oil is not considered ideal for lubing a chain.
It may work in the short run but would cause severe damage to the chain if used continuously. However, if you still want to consider a low-cost option, make sure to choose a less dense oil and high quality.
Happy Driving!