Take the bar off before you store the saw.

Yes, you should remove the guide bar and clean the oil ports and groove. A heavy coating of oil over the bar nose won’t do much for the rest of the bar.

The nose sprocket is just the tip. Chain oil gets to it through the groove and out the tiny oil ports along the bar. If you leave the bar on and just oil the nose, that oil doesn’t reach the groove or the ports. Sawdust mixed with bar oil can turn into a hard gunk that blocks oil flow, and the next time you use the saw, the chain runs dry and the bar gets cooked.

Taking the bar off also lets you clean out the groove properly — a putty knife or a bar groove cleaner works — and wipe the rails down. That’s the real storage protection. Then put a light coat of oil on the rails and ports before putting it back on or hanging it up. That’s rust prevention and it keeps things moving.

While it’s off, check for burrs, a bent bar, or a worn nose sprocket. It takes two minutes and basically costs nothing.

Ten minutes now beats buying a new bar in the spring.