What oil for first oil change on snowblower

[luca]

I just bought a new Troy Bilt 2690XP that has a 208cc motor. I have to do an oil change after the initial 5 hours of use. On the engine it suggests to use 5w30, does any plain old automotive engine oil work fine? I was planning on switching it over to synthetic (probably M1EP), would this be a problem for a small 4 stroke motor used in a snow thrower?

 

[Quattro Pete]

Synthetic should be great. I run GC (0w-30) in my 190cc Honda snowblower.

 

[boraticus]

If you'll be changing your oil every year, there's no need for expensive synthetic oil. It will do nothing better than conventional 5W30 if not used for extended periods of time. You'll be better off using a regular oil of correct viscosity of your choice.

Any leading brand name 5W30 oil will provide all of the lubrication needs of your engine.

 

[steveh]

My 305cc Briggs manual says 5w30 synthetic for all temps. 10w30 dino for above 0F.

 

[troyb43]

I would change it after the first hour to get a lot of that initial engine wear out of the oil. I used synthetic Super Tech 5W-30 the first change in mine, then I saw wax in the remainder of the quart bottle. Then put in Amsoil 0W-30. Starts easily, and actually runs almost 45 minutes longer on a tank of fuel. I got similar results in my other OPE's. If you have your machine in a heated space, you might get by with a little heavier oil than if it were stored in an unheated shed or garage.

 

[johnachak]

I went with regular 5w 30 for the first 2 oil changes. I did the first at 5 hrs. I didnt like what the oil looked like so I did it again 2 hrs later. I used Advance Auto full syn 5w30. It was on sale for 3.49 qt. Runs nice and quiet now.

 

[Bill in Utah]

My new Briggs powered Snow blower/thrower says to change it after 2 hours which I'm about 30 minutes shy of.

I'll put another 30-60 minutes on it, change it and then change it depending on how much use it gets next season. We are close to the end here I think... (if it snows, just use a shovel for the driveway and let the rest sit for a few days)

Bill

 

[JimPghPA]

If you want a realy good oil for a winter air cooled engine go with GC.

A close second would be M1 0W-40 ,or Shell Rotella 6T 5W-40.

 

[Eddie]

Go with the manufactures suggested weight. Once a season with a std engine oil like PYB, STD mobil, QS etc.

 

[JimPghPA]

Originally Posted By: Eddie
Go with the manufactures suggested weight. Once a season with a std engine oil like PYB, STD mobil, QS etc.


0W oils are much easier to pull start, and 5W oils are a close second. GC will hold up when the engine gets hot inside, and so will M1 0W-40 , or Shell Rotella 6T 5W-40.

 

[Trav]

I put GC in after the first hour and change it every season.
Starts first pull (12HP) with no need for the electric.
Over 5yrs and 50 hrs on the engine now and the valves are still in spec,meaning no seat recession or valve train wear.I do put a single cap full of Redline Sl-1 in every tank.

 

[bepperb]

Synthetic 5-30 is great. M1EP is massive overkill but it's what, less than a quart sump, who cares.

 

[webfors]

I used Rotella T5 10w30 for my new 208cc LCT engine. It's garage stored so 10w30 works all winter long, first pull and starts right up. I'll probably continue to use T5 for the next couple of changes and eventually dip into my large stash of 5w30 conventional such as PYB, VWB or QSGB.

 

[Jeepster_nut]

I'm running Rotella straight 30w. However my snowblower is in a heated (45 degree) garage. I wouldn't run straight 30w if you store it outside in below freezing temps though.

 

[Bror Jace]

luca, as others hinted above, is this in a heated garage or not?

I would use a conventional 5W-30 for the next two oil changes .... and drain the oil after just 2-3 hours each time so you can flush out the glitter as this engine breaks in. Don't waste $$$ on synthetics at this point.

You might also want to use a top-oil product every other tankful or so during this period ... Marvel Mystery Oil (MMO), Lucas UCL or even some 2-stroke oil at 200+:1.

After this break-in period, it all depends on wear this machine is stored. Synthetics offer better cold-weather starting so the synthetic 10W-30s or 5W-40s are ideal. Otherwise, you could stick with conventional oils and change every 20-25 hours and your engine will easily outlast the rest of the machine.