B&S Gives Tips for Snowblower Replacement Engine

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Tag on my new engine.

Synthetic oil recommended below 32 degrees F.
Change oil after first 5 hours, every 50 hours thereafter.

and "DO NOT OVERFILL"

My take. It's a no brainer to use synthetic oil in winter.

They claim it's 20 oz oil capacity, yet on my old engine after a complete empty and re-fill with 20 oz. it was over fill mark. Easier to fill from top thru dipstick hole, then thru bottom oil fill where they claim to fill to overflow. Read another gent had same problem and he put 16oz in. Did the same and gets it between full/add. Added a touch more 1/2 oz-? to get a little higher but below the Full mark.

Why they give a wrong oil capacity is a loss to me.
 
Using 0w30 here as well although I may switch to amsoil 10w30 motorcycle oil next time cause its loaded with lots of the good stuff For an air cooled engine..
 
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Originally Posted By: Bandito440
I've got 0w-30 in mine. I can't think of a good reason to use anything else.

Same here. The owners manual says I can use SAE 30 if the temprature is above 32F, which just confuses me
confused.gif
 
Perhaps the confusion is that the manual was written for the engine before knowing whether it would be used in a snowblower, tiller, or lawnmower.

Or in some places, like Colorado or Tahoe, it can sometimes dump a foot of snow, then reach 60 degrees the next day.
 
Almost all of the small B+S engines have a 20 0z. c/case "book" capacity, but Briggs puts the oil up in 18 oz containers. And sometimes that slightly overfills them. I figure that unless you tip the engine several different ways possibly all the oil doesn't come out? Anyway, I personally (for the last 45 years of professionally repairing OPE) have not been to concerned with being a LITTLE overfull. Actually on my own equipment I usually try to have it about 1/16 to 1/8 inch ABOVE the full mark. When Briggs says DO NOT OVERFILL, they really mean don't dump a whole quart in...Also, some people think " oh, it is on the add mark, so my car takes a quart to fill it from the add to full, so that is what I will add" and then they wonder why it blows oil out all over
 
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Originally Posted By: Kestas
Perhaps the confusion is that the manual was written for the engine before knowing whether it would be used in a snowblower, tiller, or lawnmower.

This is my take on it too.
 
0W/30 in mine as well. And it took about 16oz to fill. I have replaced yearly, but have an hour meter. I doubt I will ever get over 25 hours in a season.

I use T6 5W/40 in my other small motors, which can run when it is over 90F.
 
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I still have the 5w30 in mine. I'll change it out when I change the oil in it. put about 20 hours on it since I got it about a week ago. po had just changed it so I can wait a bit. I'm not too concerned about having 5w30 and not 0w cause I only cold start it once a day. I leave it running when transporting.
 
Originally Posted By: Merkava_4
I don't look at the dipstick. I look at the owners manual and if it says 20 ounces, I put in 20 ounces.


I do it the other way. Never had a problem yet but I'm sure you havnt either. I know some race car guys that only put 250ml in their engines for more power. They rebuild them way more than we ever would want to but they still don't have engine failures from oil. Over filing though on the other hand is not good!
 
Originally Posted By: abycat
I do it the other way. Never had a problem yet but I'm sure you havnt either. I know some race car guys that only put 250ml in their engines for more power. They rebuild them way more than we ever would want to but they still don't have engine failures from oil. Over filing though on the other hand is not good!


I don't like straining my eyes to see the brand new clear oil on the dipstick. I put in the required amount and leave at that. I may check the dipstick later on when the oil's gotten dark enough to see.
 
Make sure you are checking the oil level while the engine is level. I know that with my snow blower, even when the snow blower is on a level surface the engine is tilted slightly forward because of the way it is mounted on the machine.
 
Originally Posted By: Smcatub
Originally Posted By: Bandito440
I've got 0w-30 in mine. I can't think of a good reason to use anything else.

Same here. The owners manual says I can use SAE 30 if the temprature is above 32F, which just confuses me
confused.gif



I remember being amused by a similar temperature recommendation on my Tecumseh Snow King engine, considering its intended use!

Then one snowy day I took it out of the heated basement storage area and started it and realized "OH, I really don't need to run synthetic," (not that it really NEEDS synthetic, any multi-grade conventional would do). The outside air might be 20F but the engine was still close to 68F as I started it.

I could see a good case being made for SAE30/HD30 for a snow thrower that gets run all day long, like on a campus with endless sidewalks. Technically the duty cycle of any small engine is one tankful, and you're supposed to let the engine completely cool down before refueling and going at it again. Really, that's what the manuals say. But we know how that goes, if the job's not done!
 
Originally Posted By: HangFire

Then one snowy day I took it out of the heated basement storage area and started it and realized "OH, I really don't need to run synthetic," (not that it really NEEDS synthetic, any multi-grade conventional would do). The outside air might be 20F but the engine was still close to 68F as I started it.


Same here, my snow blower and generator are in a semi heated garage. The temp is usually in the mid to upper 50's even in the coldest outdoor temps. The furnace is in the garage and the garage is small. The colder it is outdoors the more the furnace runs. I don't need synthetic for starting ease. In 25-35 hour or seasonal OCI's would synthetic protect the engine any better than a conventional oil?

Whimsey
 
I don't think you could notice much difference in protection in syn vs. dino in you ope.

Synthetic does generally pump/flow/splash better when cold so for cold starting a snow blower I would pick syn every time.

But syn oil does often break down less, so if you run the blower hard and actually reach 25 hours or more in a winter, you could have a case for syn too.

The only ope I ever ran till it's death was a 12 hp tecumseh on a canadiana snow blower. It worked veeery hard on that 36" blower and we had a large yard at the farm and 500ft entry road and an ice skate rink. No syn, we used 10w30 and after like 15 years it spew out smoke and oil. Taking it apart, we found that most of its internals was scored and shot. But that was many hours under maaax load and all cold starts.
That said, for a heavy residential snowblower I'd use synthetic....
 
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