saw oil

[grandprix98]

I want to know the best oil for rock saws
Bill

[dr00bie]

I am a novice at slabbing, so take that into consideration...

I bought some mineral oil from a farm supply store in my area... the other oils are too hard for me to find, and are really expensive.

Drew

[di66er]

Hi Bill,

I use mineral oil in my saw too, it is about a dollar a quart and it is non-toxic.

[ken]

Mineral oil. But it is sluggish when cold. Have to warm it up to get the pump to pump it. If you have a blade bath type, no problem. Runs about $12-16 gallon at farm supply stores.
Ken

[Doug]

DEFINITELY go with the mineral oil!!!! I am finishing off my Rotella and when it is gone I plan to clean up all my oil bath saws and nothing but mineral oil form then on! It does not stink, it is non-toxic, it does not stink, it is readily available, IT DOES A GREAT JOB, and it DOES NOT STINK!! You will still hear from dinsoaurs about kerosene, transmission fluid antifreeze and other collant/lubes-BUT DO NOT BELIEVE THEM! In this area you can get it at Tractor Supply where it is sold as a cattle lubricant-read laxitive. Did it mention it does not stink?

[toryr]

Speaking of rock saws what do you guys think is the best working most affordable and smallest saw thats best for carrying to and from digs sites?

[arappaho]

I use mineral oil, too. Mainly because it is easy to dispose of. And I hear those petroleum
products STINK.
Can't help much on the portable saw question. Even my 10" with motor is a two man job to move altogether.

[colorshapetexture]

I do know: That the petrol based stuff STINKS. I know the best stuff to use is mineral oil.

I don't know: If a bear farts in the woods, weather it Stinks.

My guess is one of those $83 WorkForce table tile saws from Home Depot. Not much more than a hand saw with a table and will take a beating.
Uses water for a coolant. CAUSE USING OIL STINKS!

[brent]

I used to use the mineral oil when I strted in the hobby about 30 years ago. That's when I was 13 and prone to actually following instructions...lol. I dug out my 10" saw before xmas to cut a small geode. I have been making bio-diesel for a few years and know the high lubricating qualities of canola oil, so, I dumped in some used cooking oil and it worked great.

Nice thing is, when it gets dirty, I can make fuel out of it.

As for a field saw, I have a diamond blade on an angle grinder that I use when I install tile. I even cut light guage steal with it. If you can find a cordless model, I imagine it would work great.

[Doug]

Be leary of the vegetable oil!! I had a buddy try this and it gummed up over itme and he ended up spending 2 weeks taking his saw apart and hand scraping each piece and soaking it in alcohol to remove the crud. If it has been converted to biodiesel it may work better, not sure though.

[jpolk123]

i use mineral oil too. like doug says,them petro based oils stinks.

[chet]

I think if you are cutting something hard and solid (like an agate geode, or some type of solid rough), then any oil or mineral oil will do fine. Most of what I cut are crystal specimens on a matrix, and the matrix rock typically is porous. For such a purpose, a non-smelly mineral oil would be better than a smelly cutting oil, but in both cases the oil will remain in the rock for a very long time, and potentially make a mess when the specimen is displayed. On the other hand, something like ethylene glycol (anti-freeze) evaporates quickly, even from a porous rock, which is an advantage. Anti-freeze needs to be used with a covered saw to prevent the anti-freeze from getting into the atmosphere where it is harmful to breathe. Other than that, is there a problem with it? What do you recommend for cutting porous rocks? Chet

[mark7]

HI. I am very new at all this. I bought a old Highland Park M-3 14" slab saw for a song. It stunk BAD! I Believe I want to use Mineral oil after getting it all torn down and cleand up. With that said I see you state porous rock will hold the oil, will soaking them in water with dish soap help to remove it all, will mineral oil come off other rock easy? Is the mineral oil yen's use the laxative mineral oil used for farm aniamals that is sold at tractor supply.How much oil do I need to put in the saw? One last thing for now, The saw has a plastic type hood and needs replaced is there anywhere I can find one.Tring to go as cheap as I can for I only paid $100.00 for the saw.Thank you. I am sure I will have many more Questions over time.