Topic: Oil oil oil....which bludy oil?

[Hush]

I'm all set to do an oil and filter change on my bike, got filter (last one in shop) then fruitless search through Supercheap, Warehouse, Repco.....they all have 10w-40 and 20w-50 but they are all modern oils with slippery additives, one reason I am changing oil is the clutch and gear change issues I am having.
The recommendation for our bikes is "Mineral oil" nothing on the shelves meets that criteria.
A Kiwi rider on this forum recommended ELF oil but that isn't available in my area.
I know it is considered a sin to start an oil thread on the forum but I am just sooo damn peed off with hunting for the right stuff!
No one seems to make good old fashioned oil any more, they are all full of super slippery additives!
There vent over, think I'll run straight Bourbon in the sump!

[Bob Wessner]

I know it is considered a sin to start an oil thread on the forum

Yes, and an unpardonable one at that.  Hard to say without knowing what sorts of oil, in general, are available in your part of the world.

[brandEn]

Shell Rotella

[Stev-o]

Italian olive oil!!

[m00ntan]

they are all modern oils with slippery additives,

I had this problem.  I used Advanceauto cheapest house brand oil in the red label and the clutch worked fine.

[MCRider]

I'm all set to do an oil and filter change on my bike, got filter (last one in shop) then fruitless search through Supercheap, Warehouse, Repco.....they all have 10w-40 and 20w-50 but they are all modern oils with slippery additives, one reason I am changing oil is the clutch and gear change issues I am having.
The recommendation for our bikes is "Mineral oil" nothing on the shelves meets that criteria.
A Kiwi rider on this forum recommended ELF oil but that isn't available in my area.
I know it is considered a sin to start an oil thread on the forum but I am just sooo damn peed off with hunting for the right stuff!
No one seems to make good old fashioned oil any more, they are all full of super slippery additives!
There vent over, think I'll run straight Bourbon in the sump!

You'll pay for it, but the dealerships, at least around here, carry their motorcycle brand oil like Yamalube or Hondalube, and it is the right stuff. Paying more at the dealer offsets the time and energy to find equivalent elsewhere, at least around here. I buy yamalube 20-40 by the case and use it in all bikes. I've even had a case shipped from an online discount store, which was cheaper than running down to the dealer and paying their price.

Don't know what it would cost to ship to the nether regions though.

[Hush]

As a start-up oil (my motor had been out of the bike a few years by the look of it) I used Castrol Activ 4T Motorcycle oil it is 15W-50 according to the bottles, it's about the only readily available specifically advertised oil for 4 stroke motorbikes here in New Zealand.
This has done the job of cleaning out the motor and the thin ink like stuff I am taking out of the sump is the result.

[m00ntan]

I used this last time with no clutch issues, mostly because it's open on Sundays:
http://www.autozone.com/autozone/accessories/Valvoline-1-qt-SAE-20W-50-motorcycle-oil/_/N-25ie?counter=7&itemIdentifier=365427_0_0_

So your in New Zealand, sorry about that, I'll be glad to ship that to you.

[Hush]

Yep Moonman but it is precisely that statement on their site "contains advanced additive technology" that worries me.
Surely I should be using something Fred Flinstone was more in tune with as my bike is 30 years old and when she was built there was no such thing as "advanced additive technology" so they used something more akin to thick treacle or diff grease in the sumps.

[camelman]

I use Mobil Delvac.  It is a heavy truck diesel engine formula, and works well in our engines.  The greatest benefit is that it has higher ZDDP levels than most engine oils out there.

ZDDP (Zinc dialkyldithiophosphate) was more common, and was used in higher concentrations, in oils in the past than we find now.  ZDDP helps to fill slight scratches in load surfaces, and effectively repairs those small scratches.  This can increase the longevity of items such as cam lobes, although I don't know what effect it has on aluminum such as cam journals.  Unfortunately, ZDDP is not the greatest for catalytic converters, so concentrations have been decreased over the years to minimize adverse affects on catalytic converters.

Here's a brief writeup on it at wiki.  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zinc_dithiophosphate

Our old engines weren't made to the levels of accuracy that today's engines are made to, so we have higher likelihood of surface irregularities that can cause minor scratches.  ZDDP can help reduce the impact of those scratches.

Anyway, it has worked well in my 350F for some miles now, and HondaMan recommended it to me also... which is pretty much an endorsement from a higher being.  ;-)

Camelman

[Hush]

Cheers Camelman, I couldn't ask for a higher recommendation than our own Hondaman, now to find out if we have that stuff in New Zealand.

[m00ntan]

It's the second bullet "wet clutch"  that solves the problem.  Advance additive technology is a marketing term for detergent.  Just change it out when you get designer oil. 

[Hush]

So just to cloud the issue further I went to the Castrol site (www.castrol.com) and there surprise surprise I couldn't find my bike, the closest they had was either the CB750KZ 79-83 or the CB750F2 92-99 so I plumbed for the 79 as it's at least in the same era as mine.
But alas they have missed the point altogether, check out the advert from their site.

ENGINE
 CASTROL POWER 1 GPS
An outstanding synthetic enhanced multigrade (SAE 10W-40) 4 Stroke lubricant specially formulated for the latest generation of single and multivalve motorcycle engines. Provides excellent low temperature fluidity / cold starting performance and high performance in both wet clutch and transmission systems. Castrol Power 1 GPS exceeds the requirements of API SJ and is recommended for use in all four-stroke motorcycles where the manufacturer approves the use of multigrades, including those engaged in motorsports and high performance use.
 or CASTROL POWER 1 RACING
A full synthetic four-stroke SAE 5W-40 engine oil suitable for use in high performance and competition four-stroke, Japanese and European motorcycle engines, including all high performance multi-cylinder, multi-valve, V-Twin, air or water-cooled sports or race replica models. Castrol Power 1 Racing has a race proven formula that demonstrates outstanding clutch friction control, gear wear control, engine wear protection and cleanliness in competition applications. Exceeds JASO MA, MA2 and API SJ.

[Anti-Johnny]

I was expecting that Mobil Delvac to be expensive, but its not at all.

I was under the impression that we needed to use motorcycle specific oil. 

[thehammer]

honda gn4 10w40 or 20w50. isnt there a honda dealership somewhere close by? otherwise get it online.

[dave500]

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[Hush]

And there it is you see, while Governments around the world believe that the likes of Gadafi and Hussein would start the oil wars.......they were wrong!!! it starts on the SOHC4 site!

[bryanj]

Hush, most places will sell an oil suitable for Diesel engines in the 10w40 range look at those, and the Later Honda's had different clutch material to allow for Synthetic oils, just like the big Yamahas.

Oil names that come to mind are

Shell Rotella
Mobil Delvac
Silkolene Transfleet (Sorry dont know what Fuchs now call it)
Tesco own brand

In fact most supermarkets in the UK now carry motor oil and there own brand diesel oil is rarely synthetic to keep the cost down so try those

[Hush]

Thanks Bryan, have noted those names down and will do a shop this week for some.
No Tesco here yet.

[Markcb750]

I use a different type of oil every time I change, always 10w 40, except in summer when I run 15 w 40, unless I cannot find it, then I run 20w 50.

Unless I have some 10w 40 around the shop, then I just use it, even if it is not a "different" type of oil.

So, I guess my original statement was more of a general concept, not a personal commitment.





BTW:

I re-polish my oil filter housing every time I change the oil.


I add a little Sea-Foam to the oil about 100 miles before I change it, unless I forget, or the mood to wrench & polish hits me and I just change the oil.

[Hush]

This Seafoam you guys talk about, I don't think I have ever seen it here in New Zealand?
A lot of the stuff esp the USA forum members mention just isn't available to us Colonials hence the many questions about oil.
There's heaps of 10w-40 on the shelves and 15w-50 20w-50 but all state "for the modern motorcycle" and how modern do they mean? does 1979 figure as a modern bike?
Plus most have "additives to make them super slippery" which we of course don't need as our wet clutches require some stickiness to operate properly.

[Stev-o]

Seafoam, a lot of guys swear by it:

http://www.seafoamsales.com/motor-treatment.html

[Kong]

My bike is hellaciously fast, I prefer to use oil rendered from the crushed skulls of third-world-country babies, first-born males only.  Mmmmm, hot baby-oil, slippery, slippery .....

[Deltarider]

As long as it is shaken, not stirred.

[MCRider]

My bike is hellaciously fast, I prefer to use oil rendered from the crushed skulls of third-world-country babies, first-born males only.  Mmmmm, hot baby-oil, slippery, slippery .....

Baby Seals goo is faster...