Schaeffers 5w-40 in a 6.7 Powerstroke

[Wbyman22]

Thank You everyone for all your input by the way.
I’ve got a lot to learn on analysis, so all knowledge is welcome.
I’m not a big “brand” guy so I’ll try just about anything. I was put on to Schaeffers quite sometime ago by a friend that has a trucking company and he had got me in touch with a Rep that has been great to deal with and up to this point I’ve “seemed” to have great luck with it. Going through a Rep, it hasn’t really been that much more expensive then the Rotellas, Delvacs, etc, not that I wouldn’t spend more if it is indeed a great oil for what we spend on these trucks. I’ve been reading up on this site quite a bit on the HPL stuff and it definitely seems worthy, just the little bit I looked on their website it did look spendy, and I don’t really put all that many miles on in a yr, would guess I average 5-8K a yr, so I may just go with Rotella, Delvac, Valvoline Blue, etc on my next change.

What have you guys that are running HPL 5w-40 paying a gallon? I’m pretty sure this last batch of Schaeffers was $34 a gallon through a rep. Wouldn’t mind sticking with a 5w-40 just for the sake of some extreme cold I could encounter in the winter if I did go ice fishing/snowmobiling, etc. Although this last winter, the truck did sit for probably 3-4 months, never did need it this winter so I just kept it outa the Salt. Is it possible that the cylinders could have gotten some surface rust in that time and contributed to the higher Iron ppm? Seems like some pretty poor corrosion protection if so, though?

I did recently have an analysis pulled on my Ford Escape I use as my every day work/go getter, I’ll post in the actual UOA section I missed last time, and see what you guys think of that one.

Thanks Again, look forward to visiting more frequently.

 

[JustN89]

Thank You everyone for all your input by the way.
I’ve got a lot to learn on analysis, so all knowledge is welcome.
I’m not a big “brand” guy so I’ll try just about anything. I was put on to Schaeffers quite sometime ago by a friend that has a trucking company and he had got me in touch with a Rep that has been great to deal with and up to this point I’ve “seemed” to have great luck with it. Going through a Rep, it hasn’t really been that much more expensive then the Rotellas, Delvacs, etc, not that I wouldn’t spend more if it is indeed a great oil for what we spend on these trucks. I’ve been reading up on this site quite a bit on the HPL stuff and it definitely seems worthy, just the little bit I looked on their website it did look spendy, and I don’t really put all that many miles on in a yr, would guess I average 5-8K a yr, so I may just go with Rotella, Delvac, Valvoline Blue, etc on my next change.

What have you guys that are running HPL 5w-40 paying a gallon? I’m pretty sure this last batch of Schaeffers was $34 a gallon through a rep. Wouldn’t mind sticking with a 5w-40 just for the sake of some extreme cold I could encounter in the winter if I did go ice fishing/snowmobiling, etc. Although this last winter, the truck did sit for probably 3-4 months, never did need it this winter so I just kept it outa the Salt. Is it possible that the cylinders could have gotten some surface rust in that time and contributed to the higher Iron ppm? Seems like some pretty poor corrosion protection if so, though?

I did recently have an analysis pulled on my Ford Escape I use as my every day work/go getter, I’ll post in the actual UOA section I missed last time, and see what you guys think of that one.

Thanks Again, look forward to visiting more frequently.

HPL has three different offerings in HDEO, but one is specifically built for cold climate operations. The standard CK-4 HDEO can be had for $37.79 per gallon, plus shipping. However, that pricing is for four, 1 gallon jugs. The premium CK-4 comes out to roughly $42.72/gallon plus shipping when purchasing four, 1 gallon jugs.

You can look at it all, plus estimate shipping, at advlubrication.com. I won’t speak ill of Schaeffer’s, having used their products in the past, but HPL is tough to beat. There’s good evidence on here of how well this fluid has stood up over extreme use and long OCIs.

 

[Wbyman22]

Another question I have for you guys, I noticed reading through the forums here that a guy attributed some higher Iron levels to an additive he was running in his fuel, do you happen to know what additives have been mentioned that might contain Iron? I’ve ran a lot of Schaeffers Carbon Treat and Hot Shots Secret EDT, thinking I was doing a good deed for my truck. Just curious? I think I’ll stop for this oil change and see on my next sample if anything changes.

 

[mattd]

I use hot shots EDT and LX4 every fill up, and no issues with mine

 

[Wbyman22]

I use hot shots EDT and LX4 every fill up, and no issues with mine

Good to know, maybe I’ll just stop the Schaeffers Carbon Treat/Diesel Treat for a while then and keep using the EDT.

 

[tnt_motorsports]

@Wbyman22 you can't go off 1 UOA, you need a couple to form a pattern.

FWIW, I had the same issues with my Cummins on Mobil ESP 5w40 though. It sheared and my wear metals were elevated. I switched to Mobil Delvac 15w40 and it brought them closer in. Not sure if the motor was wearing in, or if the oil made a difference. The shearing stopped with the 15w4 though. My rule of thumb is don't drive my truck if it is below 5F during the day. It is a garage kept vehicle so mornings aren't the issue, it is the day time. When I am done with my current load of Mystik JT8 15w40, I might give Mystik 10w40 a try to see if that does any better.

Just my $0.02

 

[Redhawk454]

I know the OP did a 5k mile OCI but this is why I dont do the 10k-15k OCI thing..

 

[Redhawk454]

Aren’t these oils supposed to be good for 10k+ miles? Even when hauling?

 

[fantastic]

Aren’t these oils supposed to be good for 10k+ miles? Even when hauling?

Yes, Some vehicles along with these oils do very well with 10k.

 

[Wbyman22]

just a thought,i know a guy with a power stroke engine like yours ,he uses Cenex enviro-edge Maxtron ,5w-40 with stellar results.,has a 4.0 hths ,ccs 5930 @-30,,working well for him,,,,,lives in central wis.

Thank you, this might just be what I try next. I’ve pondered using Cenex oils for quite sometime but have been basically using Schaeffers in everything. May just give this a try. I see it is also on Fords “appproved” list for the 6.7L Powerstroke.

 

[facility1]

you maybe pleasantly impressed with Cenex oils,check on their web site where to buy,just got some pcmo for my inventory,,interestingly they make their own lubricants,as refining,though additives are from other manufactures,,,,

 

[relentless044]

Well, far from an oil expert here, but to my untrained eye this oil looks like despite the hefty price its no better than plain j t6, was thinking of running this in my 6.7 since I heard it had a decent chunk of moly but apparently not, I already have an amsoil prefered membership so maybe I'll try their offering, or just plain jane t6 since my truck sits for months at a time

 

[Wbyman22]

Well, not sure what I have going on, perhaps my Engine is just shedding some Iron right now or perhaps it is just from towing my 5th Wheel RV around, but a switch to Amsoil 5w-40 definitely did not help my high Iron compared to the Schaeffers 5w-40, actually a bit worse in terms of ppm per mile, my previous Schaeffers test had 73ppm of Iron over 5,200mi and now this Amsoil 5w-40 had 57ppm at just over 3,029mi, I did not change this, just sampled with a bit over 3K miles on oil, 61K on truck. Thoughts? Maybe I’ll try a regular old 15w-40 and see what happens.

Any of you guys running 10w-30 in your 6.7’s? A mechanic with a lot of 6.7L Ford experience tells me to try a good 10w-30, said it seems weird, being thinner, but these 6.7’s do extremely well on it.

 

[kschachn]

An inexpensive spectrographic analysis isn’t how you tell if an oil creates less wear compared to another oil.

 

[mbacfp]

Hello All,
Just recently changed oil on my 17’ 6.7L Powerstroke, had 5,200 mi on oil, approx 56,000mi on truck. I would honestly say 85-90% of the 5,200 miles are towing a 5th Wheel Camper around, curious on what you think of the Analysis results? Iron seems a little high compared to the gassers I’ve tested, but Schaeffer says normal? Thoughts?

Thanks in advance!View attachment 158968View attachment 158969

I have a class C motorhome on the F550 6.7 powerstroke chassis. Always under load and also flat towing a Dodge Durango. My iron was 68 ppm

 

[fantastic]

Well, not sure what I have going on, perhaps my Engine is just shedding some Iron right now or perhaps it is just from towing my 5th Wheel RV around, but a switch to Amsoil 5w-40 definitely did not help my high Iron compared to the Schaeffers 5w-40, actually a bit worse in terms of ppm per mile, my previous Schaeffers test had 73ppm of Iron over 5,200mi and now this Amsoil 5w-40 had 57ppm at just over 3,029mi, I did not change this, just sampled with a bit over 3K miles on oil, 61K on truck. Thoughts? Maybe I’ll try a regular old 15w-40 and see what happens.

Any of you guys running 10w-30 in your 6.7’s? A mechanic with a lot of 6.7L Ford experience tells me to try a good 10w-30, said it seems weird, being thinner, but these 6.7’s do extremely well on it.

View attachment 220604

Just to be clear this sample you've used no oil additives right? Al & Fe are a bit high but seem to be trending somewhat along the same as it did previously. I don't think going to a 10w-30 or different brand are going to be much better. Towing heavy you want to stick with a 40 IMO. Mechanics's say all sort's of things. Look at what the manual/OEM suggests. That elevated wear may just be the nature of the beast for this engine. But it's not great wear. No reason to do much of anything different other than run it & I'd recommend you changing the oil at 3-5k mark. Keep sampling it as you are to just watch for any major worsening signs. Keep comparing to previous samples & Keep using it as you intend. This truck is not tuned & you're not driving it like you stole it hooked up to the camper right?

 

[Wbyman22]

An inexpensive spectrographic analysis isn’t how you tell if an oil creates less wear compared to another oil.

There was just a few comments along the way that made it seem as though the Schaeffers was at fault for the high Iron in my previous UOA and that they would run away from it, more or less was just showing that it is indeed not because of the Schaeffers and that it posted similar, even higher Iron levels with a different brand.

With that said, if a engine does trend with roughly the same Iron/Aluminum numbers for several UOA’s and then suddenly drops or raises drastically, by switching oils/weights, would that not somewhat indicate a change in wear specifically due to the oil? Really am curious, certainly not trying to argue!

 

[Wbyman22]

Just to be clear this sample you've used no oil additives right? Al & Fe are a bit high but seem to be trending somewhat along the same as it did previously. I don't think going to a 10w-30 or different brand are going to be much better. Towing heavy you want to stick with a 40 IMO. Mechanics's say all sort's of things. Look at what the manual/OEM suggests. That elevated wear may just be the nature of the beast for this engine. But it's not great wear. No reason to do much of anything different other than run it & I'd recommend you changing the oil at 3-5k mark. Keep sampling it as you are to just watch for any major worsening signs. Keep comparing to previous samples & Keep using it as you intend. This truck is not tuned & you're not driving it like you stole it hooked up to the camper right?

No additives, completely stock. May get hammering down the interstate a bit faster then I should at times in a hurry, but for the majority of it, try taking it fairly easy.
Truck is equipped with a 3:31 rear, where most have 3:55 or lower ratio, so I suppose the engine has to grunt a bit more then if it were lower, but sure doesn’t seem to be struggling, ever.
The first 30,000mi or so were pretty much dealer oil changes with the 10w-30, then when it started getting used primarily for towing, I’ve switched to a 40w of sort, changing it myself, but only have UOA’s of the last couple.
Will just have to keep going and testing, hoping it doesn’t get worse. May try a 15w-40 on my next change just to see if anything happens to improve at all.

 

[fantastic]

No additives, completely stock. May get hammering down the interstate a bit faster then I should at times in a hurry, but for the majority of it, try taking it fairly easy.
Truck is equipped with a 3:31 rear, where most have 3:55 or lower ratio, so I suppose the engine has to grunt a bit more then if it were lower, but sure doesn’t seem to be struggling, ever.
The first 30,000mi or so were pretty much dealer oil changes with the 10w-30, then when it started getting used primarily for towing, I’ve switched to a 40w of sort, changing it myself, but only have UOA’s of the last couple.
Will just have to keep going and testing, hoping it doesn’t get worse. May try a 15w-40 on my next change just to see if anything happens to improve at all.

I did recently test 15w-40 Super Tech Full Synthetic HDEO that I posted on here in the VOA forum. If you can find some at your local WM you'll already have a VOA starting point but there are others in the Diesel VOA list on here too. You bring up an interesting point about the rear gearing. I found an interesting bicycle analogy HERE.

 

[Donald]

Why is there no fuel or glycol dilution percentages? Those are important.