[QUOTE]Originally posted by TallPaul:
[QB] -*-*-*
Virgin Maxlife blot is very large and light, but can be seen without holding up to the light. That brings up a point. It would be good to have control over (or consistency with) the amount of oil placed on the card as then blot size would be more meaningful.
-*-*
A:
I just let it dribble on the card at normal gravity. I get a drop I quit! I guess you can go to those sample eye-droppers, you can buy Like a 1000 for fairly cheap.
--**--**
"Mine usually just slightly darkens all over
and keeps darkening," That is the case with the Aerostar on Durablend. "then the fall-out later on, a little here and there" Will keep an eye out for that.
-
A: well mine will tend to keep a loght outer ring.. then maybe darken evenly until a ring appears... Adding additives and mixing oils will change the result of the test. To see the way a specific oil reacts, make sure it is the only oil there, and better for a couple OCI's
Then when you know what to look out for, if you want then start adding additives.
Color is not always the thing.
Supposed - "FALL-out" is not either
If you want, I can send you a compared oil with 7994 miles to one with 200 miles, and MOST people will say the 200 MILE one needs to be changed... not so.
Just compare the images you see to your UOA, and have fun!
"this ring you can see through? kinda like a light cloud?" I can see through the middle, it is grey, but the ring is dark and thin and then the oil is tan to brownish outside the ring.
Then there is the motorhome's 460 V8 in which I must have cooked the polymers in its Durablend when it idled for over an hour last July in 90s temps. Water temp gauge was at upper end of NORMAL zone. When I drained that oil it looked pretty bad. Now it has Maxlife and the black ring is there already at 250 miles.
--
Maybe you need to change the Thermostat... they are a bigger cause of failure than oil...I don't think there ever had been an oil related failure.