Hello I'm looking for advise on an oil to run in my built 400 small block chevy I just finished up. I just broke the motor in on brad penn break in oil but have yet to put in in my truck. It's built with a flat tappet cam with moderate spring pressures and makes 507 hp at 6200 rpm and it will be driven hard. According to the machine shop I should run a 30 or 40 weight oil for the bearing clearances in my engine. I was thinking of going with a full synthetic oil and I do have plenty of gc 0w30 in my stash but was unsure if it will provide adequate protection for the flat tappet cam ?? Any advise is appreciated.
400 small block oil
- Thread starter Indiana79
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my advise is to tear it back down and put a roller cam in it. then you dont have to worry about losing a cam and your engine.
might consider one of the 15w40's?
might consider one of the 15w40's?
The GC will be more than enough for that. It's API SL with plenty of anti wear additives. Another choice would be Rotella T6 or Mobil 1 0w40.
Stick with the brad penn! They've got you covered in what you need as well.
Originally Posted By: 67lemans
Why not just stick with brad penn?
Because he has a stash of GC.
Originally Posted By: Chris142
my advise is to tear it back down and put a roller cam in it. then you dont have to worry about losing a cam and your engine.
might consider one of the 15w40's?
Really? Tear it down and put $1200 worth of cam and lifters in? Retrofit rollers have their problems too.
Why not just stick with brad penn?
Because he has a stash of GC.
Originally Posted By: Chris142
my advise is to tear it back down and put a roller cam in it. then you dont have to worry about losing a cam and your engine.
might consider one of the 15w40's?
Really? Tear it down and put $1200 worth of cam and lifters in? Retrofit rollers have their problems too.
I would consider sticking with brad penn but I had to order the oil because it isn't available at any stores in my area and had to have it shipped. Also just recently I read on some older posts here that the uoa 's done on there oil showed it to not have the advertised zppd it claimed to have. I wish I would have put a roller cam in it but the budget got tight and that's where I skimped.
Yes it would have been an extra $1000+ to go with a roller cam. I did however get the cam nitrated and used lifters with the oil holes in the bottom to help with cam wear. Thanks for everyone's advise so far.
Originally Posted By: Indiana79
I would consider sticking with brad penn but I had to order the oil because it isn't available at any stores in my area and had to have it shipped. Also just recently I read on some older posts here that the uoa 's done on there oil showed it to not have the advertised zppd it claimed to have. I wish I would have put a roller cam in it but the budget got tight and that's where I skimped.
Yeah,I hear you about the ordering deal. All I can tell you is,we've got alot of racers who use Brad Penn with excellent results in high horsepower motors such as yours.
They do have dealer locator,not sure if you checked into that yet or not.
http://locator.penngrade1.com/
I would consider sticking with brad penn but I had to order the oil because it isn't available at any stores in my area and had to have it shipped. Also just recently I read on some older posts here that the uoa 's done on there oil showed it to not have the advertised zppd it claimed to have. I wish I would have put a roller cam in it but the budget got tight and that's where I skimped.
Yeah,I hear you about the ordering deal. All I can tell you is,we've got alot of racers who use Brad Penn with excellent results in high horsepower motors such as yours.
They do have dealer locator,not sure if you checked into that yet or not.
http://locator.penngrade1.com/
If it were mine, I'd be running some kind of conventional 20W-50.
20w50 might be a little thick for my bearing clearances thee mains are 19 thousandths clearance which is a little tight. The rods were at 23 thousandths
Originally Posted By: Indiana79
20w50 might be a little thick for my bearing clearances thee mains are 19 thousandths clearance which is a little tight. The rods were at 23 thousandths
1.9 and 2.3 maybe?
20w50 might be a little thick for my bearing clearances thee mains are 19 thousandths clearance which is a little tight. The rods were at 23 thousandths
1.9 and 2.3 maybe?
I'm thinking of your camshaft; 20W-50 plus a zinc additive stands a better chance of saving it.
What levels of zinc and phosphorous do you recommend for adequate protection? My machinist said to run a 10w30 at least for 2500 miles because he felt the main bearings were a little tight (but ok) when he put it together. I can easily get rotella t5 or other 10w30 diesel oils at my local Walmart but wasn't sure on how that oil holds up during high rpm situations since it's primarily a diesel oil.
1000 ppm.
Originally Posted By: Indiana79
What levels of zinc and phosphorous do you recommend for adequate protection? My machinist said to run a 10w30 at least for 2500 miles because he felt the main bearings were a little tight (but ok) when he put it together. I can easily get rotella t5 or other 10w30 diesel oils at my local Walmart but wasn't sure on how that oil holds up during high rpm situations since it's primarily a diesel oil.
The only other oil I'd choose besides Brad Penn would be:
VR1 Racing Oil (VR1)
The #1 selling racing motor oil. High zinc provides race-level protection for any vehicle.
High zinc/phosphorus provides extreme wear protection, including flat tappet applications
Additional friction modfiers to help deliver maximum horsepower
Enhanced anti-foam system protects engine during extreme stress
Compatible with gasoline or alcohol fuels
Available through leading auto parts retailers
What levels of zinc and phosphorous do you recommend for adequate protection? My machinist said to run a 10w30 at least for 2500 miles because he felt the main bearings were a little tight (but ok) when he put it together. I can easily get rotella t5 or other 10w30 diesel oils at my local Walmart but wasn't sure on how that oil holds up during high rpm situations since it's primarily a diesel oil.
The only other oil I'd choose besides Brad Penn would be:
VR1 Racing Oil (VR1)
The #1 selling racing motor oil. High zinc provides race-level protection for any vehicle.
High zinc/phosphorus provides extreme wear protection, including flat tappet applications
Additional friction modfiers to help deliver maximum horsepower
Enhanced anti-foam system protects engine during extreme stress
Compatible with gasoline or alcohol fuels
Available through leading auto parts retailers
You're gonna wipe that cam out if you try to run low zinc passenger car oil in it. These newer low zinc oils are not suitable for flat tappet cams. You should run the break-in oil for 300 miles and then switch to Joe Gibbs 20W-50. I know a real good machinist and that's what he'd say.
QS defy?
yes it's a HM oil, but isn't it loaded up with lots of zinc? or is my brain gone squidgy.....(it is 4am)
yes it's a HM oil, but isn't it loaded up with lots of zinc? or is my brain gone squidgy.....(it is 4am)
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Originally Posted By: earlyre
QS defy?
yes it's a HM oil, but isn't it loaded up with lots of zinc? or is my brain gone squidgy.....(it is 4am)
10W40 Defy has 1200 PPM Zinc-that's what I would use.
QS defy?
yes it's a HM oil, but isn't it loaded up with lots of zinc? or is my brain gone squidgy.....(it is 4am)
10W40 Defy has 1200 PPM Zinc-that's what I would use.
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