Oil

[jordan_muirhead]

what is ya'lls opinions on oil? gunna change mine again in the next week or two, and was just wondering what ya'lls opinion is on synthetic? and regular oils

[TatTooL23]

Fabiodriven can help u out here. lol.

by the way i use synthetic.

u talking about 4-stoke? or what u mix with gas in a 2-stroke?

[jordan_muirhead]

my bad, yea, 4 stroke, guess i shoulda specified, i been using the mobil 1 synthetic for motorcycles, i was just wondering what yalls thoughts and opinions were on different oils

[bkm]

Fabiodriven can help u out here. lol.



Damn you beat me to it!:lol:

[Tuff]

depends on the age of the machine IMO. I won't put synthetic in my 83 200e. I run conventional Valvoline 20w50 ATC OR motorcycle oil. its formulated for the wet clutch. I get it at Advance auto parts for $4.99 per quart. most guys with ATC's around here, run SAE30 weight car oil, but I think more highly of my new Vesrah clutch discs than that. also the car oil is not designed to protect and lubricate at the RPM range these bikes run.

[jordan_muirhead]

what weight do yall run? i guess thats another thing i need to look at

[TatTooL23]

yeah tuff is right that supposedly some synthetics aren't good for certain wet clutches to perform the way they were supposed to when there wasn't a synthetic oil.

[jordan_muirhead]

the stuff i use if the synthetic motorcycle oil, mobil 1, supposed to be for wet clutches also i beleive

[jordan_muirhead]

i think it was $9.99 a quart when i got it last time

[pcollins]

Really??? This isn't a $300,000 sports car. Just throw some walmart 10w-40 in there and ride it. If the oil has the SAE and API tag on it, its all pretty much the same. Synthetics are not good for wet clutches.

[fabiodriven]

The search feature works wonders. If I had a penny for every time this has been asked....

Dcreel likes two stroke oil that smells good and has grape two stroke additive.

Xpress uses multi-purpose Valvoline.

:mad::mad::mad::mad::mad:

[fabiodriven]

Really??? This isn't a $300,000 sports car. Just throw some walmart 10w-40 in there and ride it. If the oil has the SAE and API tag on it, its all pretty much the same. Synthetics are not good for wet clutches.

Wrong, wrong, wrong.

These little engines get hotter than and work harder than your average car engine and are routinely subjected to higher RPM's than a car. There is no better place for synthetic oils than in smaller engines.

The right synthetic oil is fine for wet clutches.

[jordan_muirhead]

i know it definitely ain't worth a ton of money, but i figure since its always ran good, doesn't smoke and such......you can make it smell good like grapes?

[rdlsz24]

The search feature works wonders. If I had a penny for every time this has been asked....

Dcreel likes two stroke oil that smells good and has grape two stroke additive.

Xpress uses multi-purpose Valvoline.

:mad::mad::mad::mad::mad:

Don't forget that BGP runs Klotz at 32~34:1 because it almost smells better than a pretty woman's hair

[jordan_muirhead]

i believe it was also for wet clutches, it was motorcycle oil, i know its a little expensive...but why not try to make it last longer than having to go rebuild it, it aint got a ton of hours on it, so i wanna take care of it, see if i can keep this one goin for another 27 years

[fabiodriven]

Don't forget that BGP runs Klotz at 32~34:1 because it almost smells better than a pretty woman's hair

:lol: That's right! :lol:

[swampthang]

I've always strongly believed that an oil formulated for wet clutches is the way to go. It puts my mind at ease to use it in my atvs, thats what they call for and I figure thats prolly what they need to function at 100% and last the longest. Be that as it may I have friends that run Walmart Super Tech 10w30 in there atvs and there still around and kicking fine.:wondering

[Jason Hall]

Do you change your oil In your 4 stroke? Or do you leave It for Years and forget It? If you change It when needed you wont need to waist your money on the synthetic. I would recommend Honda GN4 10/40 or GN4 20/50 depending on how hard you run It. I like 10/40 In the winter, and 20/50 In the summer. 10/40 will make starting LOTS easier In the winter. IMHO after long run time In a brutal environment synthetic oil breaks down pretty fast. Once synthetic breaks down, IMO It does more damage In that condition than a conventional oil :wondering :lol: The clutch will live also with GN4 In the Red and Black jug.

As far as 2 strokes, this Is my story on that ;)

I once ran a 85 250r so hot, that It meted the rubber seal where the wires go through the stator cover. It eventually lost all compression and shut off. When I pulled the engine apart It had a nickel sized hole In the piston crown. The engine was spark knocking BADLY for close to 30 minutes during a Very muddy Ohio team hare scramble. If I opened the throttle any farther than about a quarter of the way, It would rattle like I was dragging a 25 foot log chain. It was pre Igniting because the cylinder temp was Insane! The head gasket was bad causing the compession to push all the coolant out. I was filling It every 3 laps just to try and finish the race. All It took was one wack wide open and the piston melted In the center. Both skirts looked Great, and I'm sure If I would have babied It It would have made It the distance. HP-2 synthetic oil mixed at 44to1. I know there are other 2 stroke oils that smell better, and maybe not attract moisture as fast, but HP-2 Is hands down the best oil I have seen In a 2 stroke!

[jordan_muirhead]

ive changed it twice in ths past 6 months , most of ths time it never gets out of first gear cuz my ittle. boy likes me to ride him around the yard but I still ride it down the road some, and the ocasional scope out on somecoon huntin land

[jordan_muirhead]

what weight would be best suited that engine?

[brd812]

20/50 in summer 10/30 in winter, I run rotella 15/40 all season in the old girls

[jensenracing77]

pre EPA getting involved.... i would run car oil and change it after every weekend of racing. now that EPA screwed stuff up i would spend the money on a good motorcycle oil. your oil selection can be more difficult than many think. it is a matter of what you have, how you are going to ride it, what conditions are you going to ride it in.....i have a 400EX that will smoke most 450s and i could still get away with running car oil if i wanted to change it often. as far as that goes i even change the motorcycle oil after about 6 to 8 hours of riding. i also have ran cams in the 400EX that have a much faster ramp speed and if you were to run car oils in them the cam would be gone in a short amount of time. also, i have a guy that i do work for that will not change his oil for 6 to 8 years at a time. he has a stock 85 big red he got new and never gets out of 2nd gear. rides it very regular and the engine runs like new and has never been rebuilt. still uses the cheapest car oil he can find with no problems. for the most part i do recommend using motorcycle oil now days.

[jeswinehart]

I didn't know "OIL" threads was allowed anymore ,,,, hmmm

[jordan_muirhead]

so is the oil I use ok? its motorcycle oil thats synthetic and suppksed to be ok with wet clutch

[jordan_muirhead]

well jason, thats quite a story lol, ive never rode a 2 stroke, I might get one next.....or a big red...not sure yet

[jordan_muirhead]

jensinracing77, I been using ths motorcycle oil, but I might try thag oil Jason was telling me about, ill probably change it in a week or two when I put a new coil wire on, I dont like to go without changing it for nore than 3-4 months

[malibulvr]

I had 20w50 Valvoline sitting on the shelf and dumped a quart in my TRX125, I was thinking that later on I can switch to something that is good for wet clutches. What does the EPA have to do with what oil I put in my ATC?

[jordan_muirhead]

I have no idea, beats me, but, I guess they have a law for everything nowdays

[jensenracing77]

What does the EPA have to do with what oil I put in my ATC?
the EPA made oil manufactures take much of the zinc and phosphorus out of regular car oil. all modern cars have roller lifters and cams so the oil don't need to have as much protection under extreme pressure like what is found on a flat tappet cam. none of our engines have roller cams in them so the regular car oil don't protect our engines like the older oil did. if you follow the older cars and hotrodders you will see that after the EPA made this change the cam failure rate went way up. this is simplified info but is the basics of the problem.

[jordan_muirhead]

ol, that makes sense, I understand now, well, I learn more and more every day

[Tuff]

Its why I run Valvoline ATV or Motorcycle oil. costs me 10 bucks to do a oil change and that is cheap peace of mind.

[Iprefer3]

I run valvoline straight 30. I've always run it in all my bikes. Never had a problem

[just ben]

pre EPA getting involved.... i would run car oil and change it after every weekend of racing. now that EPA screwed stuff up i would spend the money on a good motorcycle oil. your oil selection can be more difficult than many think. it is a matter of what you have, how you are going to ride it, what conditions are you going to ride it in.....i have a 400EX that will smoke most 450s and i could still get away with running car oil if i wanted to change it often. as far as that goes i even change the motorcycle oil after about 6 to 8 hours of riding. i also have ran cams in the 400EX that have a much faster ramp speed and if you were to run car oils in them the cam would be gone in a short amount of time. also, i have a guy that i do work for that will not change his oil for 6 to 8 years at a time. he has a stock 85 big red he got new and never gets out of 2nd gear. rides it very regular and the engine runs like new and has never been rebuilt. still uses the cheapest car oil he can find with no problems. for the most part i do recommend using motorcycle oil now days.

true that the zinc has been removed from the oils. though the cam failure is due to people not reading the directions on a new cam or having the sense to look the info up. zinc in the oil is needed for proper cam break in and there are many substitutes available but its not a cheap additive. all the cases of cam failure I have heard of since removing the zinc from oil were all new cams. it wasnt an epa issue that it was removed (well kinda) it plugs up catalytic converters thats why rotella still had it for a while but since diesels went to cats they took out of that too. also there is an edit button no need to re post on the same thing as thoughts come to you

[jensenracing77]

also there is an edit button no need to re post on the same thing as thoughts come to you

the guy ask a question. if i edited he would not see the response.

[rhino1957]

how's the mobil 10w-40 for a honda 110 in hot weather?

[just ben]

the guy ask a question. if i edited he would not see the response.

I was really refering to jordan. and just letting him know before someone really tears into him for it. NBD

[jordan_muirhead]

sorry, i didn't know, thanks, whats nbd?

[just ben]

sorry, i didn't know, thanks, whats nbd?

no big deal. was being lazy

[muthey]

I actually spent 25$ on a gallon of yamalube at my local shop and have been able to do three oil changes with it. It seems to work better in my 225dx than car oil ever did. My .02 is run the proper oil why try and go cheap, what's 25$ every 4-6 months or sooner depending on how much you ride and don't forget the oil filter and drain screen. Another plus is too clean and or change air filter often as well, plus check on your valves every so often and a spark plug change every six months can't hurt either just common maintenance. Either way why not run the oil made by the manufacturer of your trike, kinda figure they know whats best.

[jordan_muirhead]

oh, ok, lol......yea...wheres my oil filter at on my 185s?

[muthey]

well actually there is an oil filter cover you are supposed to clean it is located behind the right crankcase over the wet clutches, and then there's the screen behind the drain plug. Check out the repair manual it will show you right where it is. Talk about a pain compared to the yamaha's which have an actual replaceable filter.

[jordan_muirhead]

oops...my badness.., well im gonna hurry up and change it this week then, and clean it, i didn't know i had one, thought it was just the little screen where the oil drains out

[Nubbinz]

10w40 oil from honda dealer, designed for wet clutch. unless your engine has recently been rebuilt with new gaskets i would not do synthetic, it will leak pretty bad. conventional oil dries up gaskets and causes leaks but its thick enough it sort of plugs it up. my 83 trike had oil sweats where you would see oil on it but it never mattered, with synthetic it dripped on it burned and caused smoke, and within two hours of riding would be on the low end of the dipstick. i never had to add conventional, altho i checked its level every few days to be safe

[jordan_muirhead]

oh, mine doesnt leak or burn any, been the same level 4 months

[muthey]

there's no shame jordan I wasn't mad or being rude my first post about the filter was more referring to the Yamaha's but when you asked I figured I better double check on the Honda's, as it made no sense with just the screen for a filter, and remembered seeing an actual filter for them at some point which turns out to be just a cover over the wet clutches

[beets442]

Belray gear saver 80W

[yooperman]

Belray gear saver

that is the same oil i run in my tecate and i run amsoil in my 350x and my 200x, they are pricey oils compared to average oils. But i dont mind paying the extra money for better stuff to put in my machines, because i have lots of money tied up into my machines to run cheap quality oil because like everything else you get what you pay for.

[jordan_muirhead]

there's no shame jordan I wasn't mad or being rude my first post about the filter was more referring to the Yamaha's but when you asked I figured I better double check on the Honda's, as it made no sense with just the screen for a filter, and remembered seeing an actual filter for them at some point which turns out to be just a cover over the wet clutches

Its all good, thanks for letting me know about that filter too....wish i had a replaceable filter...

[jordan_muirhead]

true, i just wanna run good oil, i know its just a 185s, but it runs excellent, doesn't smoke or burn any oil, and i wanna make it last