I have a '55 John Deere 60 gas. The manual calls for S.A.E. 20-20w for temps between 32 and 90 degrees F and S.A.E. 30 above that. This tractor is used only occasionally, and never in the winter. The only pulling it ever sees are hay wagons and a hay rake.
Should I run 10w30,30w,or an HDEO like Rotela T in 30w or 15w40? It holds 2 gal. Any other suggestions? TIA
Oil weight reccomendation for JD 2-cyl.
- Thread starter dlfishel
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does it have an oil pressure gauge? I'd probably use sae 30, 10w30 if you need to use it below 40F and 15w40 if the 30wt doesnt give good oil pressure.
Offtopic I use 15w40 in the 2 beat 300 series JD's I take care of. The one has been going fine for 10 years now.(it got 20w50 before that)
I think any of those would be ok , might want to look into an oil with higher additives ie diesel oil vs standard api sn/sm
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It does have a gauge. Not sure how accurate it is, or if it works. It is mostly used to give my kids and my nephews rides. It was purchased new by my grandfather and has lived with me since he passed. Mostly a family heirloom that has many memories attached to it. It earned it's keep, and is now out to pasture.
My thinking was that 10w30 might be a good compramise for the obsolete 20-20w and that since it doesn't get up to temprature and stay there very often that a 30w might not be so great. It is old however, and having never been rebuilt, i'm sure the tolerances aren't really tight. Maybe a 30w or an even heavier 15w40 HDEO would work. I have engines that call for 30W, 15w40, 5w30, and 20w50, so some streamlining to buy in gallons would be good. Prices aren't all that much diferent from what I can tell, so that isn't much of a concern. This tractor doesn't see enough hours to require changing that often either.
I'd just put 15w40 in it since you don't drive it in the cold.
I have a 1941 B. I plan on running a 10W-30 HDEO in it. JD is big on flow vs pressure on these engines. They are a high volume, low pressure (15 psi) design. Stick with a oils on the lighter side.
The oil pumps on the 2 cylinder engines have an adjustable pressure regulator. The oil pressure gauge is used to set the proper pressure as much as tell you what you have.
Ed
Shell Rotella and Chevron Delo 400 are both available in 10W-30. Walmart carries the Rotella T5 Synthetic Blend 10W-30 for $16 a gallon. The Rotella Triple Protection and Delo (both group II+ oils) are a bit harder to find and may require a trip to a local distributor.
Ed
If you are near a Menards, they have the regular Rotella Triple Protection 10w30 in gallons (at least in Michigan).
Very good tractor. I like to use 10/30 Rotella T HDEO, available at Menards, or a 15/40 HDEO. Have you considered Super Tech 15/40 from Walmart? It is a far cry better than anything available when your 60 was new.
I'll likely pick up some Rotella T 10w30. The oil won't need changed often since it isn't used much. I like the Rotella T 15w40 I use in my MF 135 diesel. I've also thought about buying it in 30wt. and using it in my OPE instead of introducing another weight to have to keep on hand.
I would run the 10w-30. I use one to pull logs out of my friends woods. he runs carquest 10w-30. I like the rotella option very much.
Ken
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