Yet another use for Automatic Transmission Fluid???

People here in the forums use ATF for a lot of things...as penetrating oil, to loosen up rings on an old engine, etc.

I've had decent luck with it to penetrate/loosen fasteners. I still keep spray bottles of Liquid Wrench...or whatever...around; but I also have a couple of small syringes that I use to apply ATF; if I don't want to spray oil all over.

Anyway, I have two chain saws: a Poulan and a Husqvarna. One common problem that I've had with them over the years is the chain auto-oiler gumming up after a while. About once every year or two; I drop one of them off at the small engine shop; they do something vague; my oiler works again; and I give them 50 bucks.

A couple of months ago, I thought, "What if that thick bar and chain oil is just gumming up the works?"

So...I've taken to the habit of using ATF in the oiler maybe once every five or ten loads of oil.

I have to say, My oiler seems to be running cleaner and at a higher volume.

Time will tell; but I was wondering if anybody else tried a trick like this or had some logic as to why or why not this would be a good idea.

Supposedly ATF and acetone mixed together makes a super-duper penetrating fluid.

I've used it to soak bad rusted and stuck bits and pieces...the main issue with ATF/acetone mix is that the acetone evaporates out of the mixture so you about need a sealed and acetone proof container...like a 7.62mm NATO or .50 caliber steel ammo box to keep it in. I really couldn't claim any fantastic results for the ATF/acetone mix but it did work ok

More than a few big-rig truckers will dump a quart into the fuel tank and claim numerous benefits....but I am not so sure how friendly that may be to newer tier IV engines with particulate filters and catalysts!!

I have seen folks use ATF to 'pickle' engines too and it seems to work well enough. They will pour it into a running engine until it really smokes them chug a bunch in and kill it. Main issue with that is it ends up in the motor oil after a long period of sitting.

Have had other mechanics claim feeding an auto engine ATF down the carb will clean the carbon off the valves. Never tried that myself....

I have used ATF as bar oil myself...but usually as a simple stop-gap/substitute because I was out of my usual chainsaw bar oil which is cheap 10w-30w motor oil. Worked well enough.

I've never tried it, but make sense it would help clean it up.

I suspect the thick bar oil is not the cleanest to begin with.

They need to have the fine sawdust cleaned away from the outside of the outlet periodically too.

You will not see any trucker with half a brain put a red color anything in a road truck fuel tank. The fine runs into the thousands for red fuel.

As STRANGE as this may sound, on several occasions, I have actually dumped a quart or two of ATF in an automatic transmission. While I am well aware this is an "off label" use, THANKFULLY, I've gotten by with it with ZERO issues. YAMMV.

(quoted from post at 18:42:08 08/15/17) You will not see any trucker with half a brain put a red color anything in a road truck fuel tank. The fine runs into the thousands for red fuel.

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Not sure what the fine fine is?...But they do fine a dollar per gallon...however for a farmer that includes fuel storage capacity...so if you have a 4000 gallon storage tank you going to get raped!

They used to have traffic stop/road blocks around Oklahoma...and would probe the diesel vehicles fuel tanks and nailed my cousin for running off-road fuel.

I went through one of the gestapo style traffic stops in a Mercedes 240D...and the trooper had just probed an nasty/dirty oil field truck..and got dirt on his probe! Trooper was going to stuff it in my Mercedes fuel tank dirt and all and I put a big whoa to that! Didn't get shot or arrested either but I did show the officer my recent fuel receipts and he relented and let me thru without a good dirty probing... :shock:

Better not let it sit long with ATF on the chain and bar/bow. The detergents will ruin it with rust. Ask me how I know. I mixed some ATF with oil on my bow saw. A year later the chain and bow were both solid rust and ruined.