Car oil in a riding mower?

[kcfx4]

Originally Posted By: JTK
kcfx4, in your ~35yrs of OPE dealership experience, have you seen engine failures on maintained engines that were using viscosity ranges other than what was recommended by the engine manufacturer? For instance; 15w40 or 20w50?

Joel, no i have not. My point was, what the OEM recommends, that turned into how to read a manual, which turned into, which manual to read. Just as a Ford has 5w20 written on its oil filler. If briggs had that (or knew for sure the engine were mounted on a mower) it would say sae30, just as it does in the manual.

 

[kcfx4]

point taken panzerman, but keep in mind nearly all OPE is air cooled, working in extremely dusty/dirty conditions. and i agree for the most part about mower wearing out b4 engines, except true commercial mowers, and the old guys w/the r.e.r snappers, sold plenty of engines for them.

 

[daman]

Originally Posted By: Panzerman
Amazing four pages about arguments of what oil to put in the simplest engine known to mankind that has the easiest workload.

Ahhh this is a site about oil what else should be discussed?

and easiest workload??? most these engines see high oil temps,air cooled,lives in dirt dust conditions,oil changes neglected, thats a hard life style if you ask me far from "easiest".

 

[kcfx4]

Originally Posted By: daman
Originally Posted By: Panzerman
Amazing four pages about arguments of what oil to put in the simplest engine known to mankind that has the easiest workload.

Ahhh this is a site about oil what else should be discussed?

and easiest workload??? most these engines see high oil temps,air cooled,lives in dirt dust conditions,oil changes neglected, thats a hard life style if you ask me far from "easiest".

+1!!! Not to mention hold a measley 1.9qt of oil at best

 

[kcfx4]

and folks, not everybody will just buy whatevers on sale at walmart/lowes/sears, there are ppl who buy $6k+ mowers(not just commercial ppl) and take serious pride in their equipment, and some of those ppl wouldnt dream of putting 15w40 nor anything else that isnt recommended. To some, their JD means as much to them as their 'vette.

 

[boraticus]

Originally Posted By: JTK
kcfx4, in your ~35yrs of OPE dealership experience, have you seen engine failures on maintained engines that were using viscosity ranges other than what was recommended by the engine manufacturer? For instance; 15w40 or 20w50?

"Joel, no i have not."

That pretty much sums this discussion up I'd say.

Very good point Joel.

 

[willix]

Originally Posted By: willix
Originally Posted By: daman
Originally Posted By: willix

Use any oil want.

So a 0w20 would work?

For longer than you think.
I returned the B&S filter for $11 and got a QS 3600 filter for %1.99 at Menards & I'll go with 10w30 because its there. UOA's are for wussies...

 

[kcfx4]

Originally Posted By: boraticus
Originally Posted By: JTK
kcfx4, in your ~35yrs of OPE dealership experience, have you seen engine failures on maintained engines that were using viscosity ranges other than what was recommended by the engine manufacturer? For instance; 15w40 or 20w50?

"Joel, no i have not."

That pretty much sums this discussion up I'd say.

Very good point Joel.

Sure glad we have your permission to end this conversation, prehaps tomorrow you can oversee the proper reuse of an oil filter sir borticus. Pride isnt in your vocabulary, thus penny pinching certaily is. Next time i hear "rollback" i know who will come to mind. Send me your address, and i'll send my used filters to ya, it'll be like Christmas.

 

[boraticus]

"Sure glad we have your permission to end this conversation, prehaps tomorrow you can oversee the proper reuse of an oil filter sir borticus. Pride isnt in your vocabulary, thus penny pinching certaily is. Next time i hear "rollback" i know who will come to mind."

No one said you couldn't carry on with the discussion. Please do.

I'm enjoying the entertainment. And it's FREE!!!!!

 

[kcfx4]

free it is. just sure seems joel and i were in a debate, and you wanted to play principal. any oil(for the most part) will work my friend, but few are OEM recommended. And I pointed out the OEM grades, not to sound childish here, but there for I'm right(giving correct/OEM backed recommendations) as usual I must say. saying what "works" is good advice, but having OEM backing(yrs of r&d) combined with years upon years of experience is the "correct"(GREAT) advice. Mine is industry backed, yours is mere mom and pop shop trial and error, my friend, thus making yours merely an opinion, mine is FACTUAL/OEM backed. For those w/pride, there is a difference.

 

[kcfx4]

im even going to take this to the next level, im going to forward this to B&S, and if in their next publication i see 15w40, 5w40, 20w50, 5w20 mentioned, i'll say Joel and Borticus you guys were right. Or just maybe it'll say....it all works, so just get whatevers cheapest at walmart, or on clearence.

 

[boraticus]

Sounds good.

See you on aisle 72!

 

[360kid]

Even though many of you recommend using a 30 wt or even heavier, I'm still going with a synthetic in either a 5w30 or a 10w30. I live in an area where the summers rarely get above the 80's and I mow in the cool spring and fall. I mowed this past weekend (May), and it was in the 40's and it even started to spit snow. I think the 30 wt or even heavier will cause hards starts for the mower. The owner's manual even says that with 30 wt, expect hard starts.

I'm definetely using a synthetic multi weight. Now, if I lived down south, I would used 30 wt. But I don't. I live North where spring and fall are cold and the summers aren't really all that hot.

I just wanted to know if I could put car oil in a mower, now I know I can and most people do. Thanks.

 

[odie]

weather is the same here . I've been using SHELL or PENNZOIL 5w-30 synthetic for past 6 years for a B&S 5 H.P. push mower with good luck thus far . As for the 4 H.P. Tecumseh I'll put in a mix of leftover syns ( SHELL , PLAT , SYNPOWER ) , syn-blend , and conventionals ( PYB , VALVOLINE , SHELL 10w or 5w or both ) without a hitch . Last change was a stew of PLAT. , P.Y.B. , and SHELL full synthetic . Think all were 5w-30 . That EAGER 1 mower is amazing . May try out PENN ULTRA 10w-30 or 5w-30 for the heck of it . It deserves a good meal . Only live once .

 

[daman]

Originally Posted By: 360kid

I'm definetely using a synthetic multi weight. Now, if I lived down south, I would used 30 wt. But I don't. I live North where spring and fall are cold and the summers aren't really all that hot.

I just wanted to know if I could put car oil in a mower, now I know I can and most people do. Thanks.

Yes you can,, and like i think i mentioned already go with M1 10w30HM formula it's SL rated will shear less and built well with lots of adds.

 

[360kid]

I put in Mobil 1 5w30 this morning. I remembered that I had quite a lot of it since it is what I put in my wife's car. I didn't even have to run to the store.

 

[willix]

Originally Posted By: daman
Originally Posted By: willix
Originally Posted By: daman
Originally Posted By: willix

Use any oil want.

So a 0w20 would work?

For longer than you think.

So you have experience with this you could post up some UOAs showing how well it worked or din't work?
I have experience with a 70's era 19" Toro w/b&s 4hp rescued from salavge.
I replaced the sparkplug & tank/carb gasket & ran it 14 seasons on transmission drain oil specifically Dextron & TranSynd.
I drained the oil in the beginning and have had to top off 2-3 times a season. It was still running well and left it in the garage when I sold the house in 07"
My yard is 3500 sq.ft.

 

[addyguy]

Originally Posted By: 360kid
I am a stickler for following the manuals for everything. So, I think I am going to go with Mobil 1 5w30. The B&S manual doesn't say it's the best choice, but does "imply" it is the best oil to use simply because of what it says about all of the other choices.

Besides. Mobil 1 doesn't come is a straight 30 wt. Alright, thanks for the help. Done deal, Mobil 1 5w30, mind is made up, can't change it now.


Many here 'suspect' that M1 10W-30 is actually a 'straight 30' synthetic that also meets the criteria for 10W-30; in that there are no VII's in it.

 

[bubbatime]

For residential use, any 20-40 wt oil will work fine as long as you keep it topped off and change it when required. For commercial use, the engine would theoretically last a bit longer with an HDEO.