10w30 in ninja 250 track bike

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I'm looking for some feedback. I have some red line 30wt racing (no VIs) in my 250 track bike. Thinking it would decrease parasitic drag. I haven't noticed any different shifting or any other issues. Am I okay in my thinking? It recommends a 10w40.
 
Should be OK since Redline makes their products on the high end of the viscosity range and since it has no VII it won't shear.

Is this the current Formula or an older bottle of red line?

The current Formula has an HTHS viscosity of 3.5 cSt which should be good enough.
 
Might see some more startup wear on some engine parts as the 30wt will take longer to pump through the engine while cold. I would do a UOA to see what wear metals look like on it.
 
It is their current formula. And while they market it as 30wt it meets viscosity requirements for 10w30. Sort of coincidentally. So I'm not thinking it will be that thick at startup. I have noticed that when oil is hot, the oil light takes what seems like 5 seconds go go off after startup. I assume it has enough flow but the lighter viscosity makes the light stay on longer.
 
Oh and the bike doesn't have gauges or an hour meter so I don't know how much a UOA will tell me without any frame of reference
 
Originally Posted By: Robenstein
Might see some more startup wear on some engine parts as the 30wt will take longer to pump through the engine while cold. I would do a UOA to see what wear metals look like on it.


This is bad information, considering the bike specs 10w40 and the 10w30 should be lighter at all temperatures including startup.
 
Originally Posted By: 901Memphis
Originally Posted By: Robenstein
Might see some more startup wear on some engine parts as the 30wt will take longer to pump through the engine while cold. I would do a UOA to see what wear metals look like on it.


This is bad information, considering the bike specs 10w40 and the 10w30 should be lighter at all temperatures including startup.


He said in his original post that it is 30wt not 10w30. I take that as saying it is a straight 30. And given the bike is a shared sump system, most 10w40's will shear down to a 30 weight at operating temperatures, especially non synthetics. So a straight 30 will be much thicker at starup than a 10w30, and there are lots of ninja 250's running sheared 10w40 oil for years without blowing up. Why I said to run a UOA is because he is racing it and I would worry about fuel dilution or how well that oil holds its 30wt viscosity.
 
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But if it is a 10w30 I would not run it...because it would shear down to a 20wt and that would likely really be pushing it.

Your oil light probably comes on at a very very ridiculously low PSI. I would fit a pressure gauge on the bike if you are going to take the gamble on running thin oil. Lots of people do run thin oil for more HP, but you can prematurely kill an engine doing so.
 
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I wanted to put a pressure gage on, but it was very complicated to do so. Am I wrong in thinking that the engine will reach its bypass oil pressure on both 30 and 40wt, just at different RPMs?
 
Originally Posted By: quarterliter
I wanted to put a pressure gage on, but it was very complicated to do so. Am I wrong in thinking that the engine will reach its bypass oil pressure on both 30 and 40wt, just at different RPMs?


I installed a pressure gauge on MrRC45 to test that theory and I found its true...
running Mobil 1 0w30 I build 10 psi for every 1,000 rpms which is ideal whereas running
Mobil 10W40 its more like 12 to 13 psi for every 1,000 rpms which is not ideal because
the flow would be escaping the bypass sooner which means the engine would be building
pressure at the expense of flow and flow is what really lubricates our engines...

I would not recommend a straight weight oil because there is no advantage over
multigarde... hit the starter on a 104º day at the track and the straight 30wt viscosity
is 98 which too thick to flow properly... if you warm up the oil to 212ºF the straight 30
thins out to a viscosity of 10 which is ideal... I recommend Mobil 1 0W30 for it starts
up with a viscosity of 56 but matches the straight weights viscosity of 10 at 212ºF

Technically speaking a 0W30 5W30 and 10W30 30wt are essential the same
viscosity at operating temps... its just the 0W30 and the 5W30
thickens less when you turn your key off... this is real progress in
our oils because now there is less wear during start up before warmup
like Robenstein pointed out...

Oil Type......Viscosity @ 104° F....Viscosity @ 212° F

Straight 30.....................98.................10

10W-30..........................62.................10

5W-30............................56.................10

0W-30...........................56.................10


Mr.RC45 digital Oil Press Gauge
RC45Coolant203FOil10.jpg


MrRC45Oil85Psi.jpg


RC45 Oil System
RC45OilSystem.jpg


Mobil 1 0W-30
MrRC45MobilOne0w30.jpg
 
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Not to hijack this thread....but...how does oil viscosity play out in low pressure systems ? My KZ1000 runs @2.8-3 PSI oil pressure, any advantage for certain viscosity in these situations ?

@quarterliter, hows that 250 on the track ?
 
@FastGame Absolutely great once you get suspension figured out and some good tires on it! I think it's much more fun than my SV650!
 
One thing to remember, some racing oils, especially straight weights may not have many cleaning agents in them. Meaning they arent designed for a normal lengthy change interval.

Just something to insure, or something to check before running it a year or 2 all find out you have build up deposits.
 
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I spoke with I believe Dave from red line and decided to change the oil every other event. Oils cheap compared to fuel and tires! But general concensus is that a 10w30 will be alright, without any noticeable increase in wear?
 
I would do a UOA after the oil change interval suggested by redline. That will tell you how much wear you have. It will also show if there is any fuel dilution. It is the only way to know for sure how well it is protecting the engine.
 
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