OPE engine oils?

[440Magnum]

Originally Posted By: jeepman3071
Originally Posted By: tig1


But small engines don't need more zinc than SN oils have.


+1



+2

ZDDP hysteria is overblown. 99% of its reason for existence as an additive was flat-tappet cams with high contact pressures. It might help cylinder wall lubrication occasionally under near-abusive usage, but if it ever comes into play for bearings the engine has bigger problems to worry about....

 

[440Magnum]

Originally Posted By: LILGUY
So, what would all recommend for a 30 hp/ 20kw whole house genset that has to start at 15 below and run when it's above 90 in the summer. The manufacturer states 5/30 and service folks use Castrol 5/30 . The unit can be called on to run more than a week at times with oil level checks every 24-48 hours.


A 5w30 should be fine, then. Pick an HDEO 5w30 if it makes you feel better, and an HDEO 5w40 wouldn't hurt. OPE really doesn't have extreme lubrication needs other than ability to suspend particulates in engines without filters. Another good argument for HDEOs since that's part of their job description.

I use Rotella T6 because a) we never see temps below the high teens, and b) it reduces the oil types I have to buy. The SRT and old Mopars get M1 0w40, the Jeeps and OPE get 5w40. The Ram is the one oddball since it needs an Xw20.

 

[cronk]

If it were me, I'd probably run the Rotella t6 5w40.
Amsoil or Delo 5w40 would work great also.
I would be nervous running a 5w30 for extended periods of time in a small engine.

 

[tig1]

Originally Posted By: cronk
If it were me, I'd probably run the Rotella t6 5w40.
Amsoil or Delo 5w40 would work great also.
I would be nervous running a 5w30 for extended periods of time in a small engine.


Depends which 0-5-10-30 you use.

 

[kschachn]

It certainly does make a difference.

If cronk is nervous about at 5W-30 then he might have a heart attack about what is in my Generac standby generator

Originally Posted By: tig1
Originally Posted By: cronk
If it were me, I'd probably run the Rotella t6 5w40.
Amsoil or Delo 5w40 would work great also.
I would be nervous running a 5w30 for extended periods of time in a small engine.


Depends which 0-5-10-30 you use.

 

[Keith_Stone]

I needed a couple of things at Amsoil so I figured I'd try the ACD. Does the KV@100ºC of 10.6 suggest it's on the thinner side of the 30wt's? And with no VI's does it matter?

 

[MolaKule]

Amsoil ACD, HDD, or ASE 4-stroke are all good candidates.

Amsoil Four-Stroke Analysis

 

[Bror Jace]

"So, what would all recommend for a 30 hp, 20kw whole house genset that has to start at 15 below and run when it's above 90 in the summer. The unit can be called on to run more than a week at times with oil level checks every 24-48 hours."

I'd pick a 5W40 HDEO. Synthetics excel at the high and low temperature extremes you cited and the HDEO add pack is ideal for units stored for long periods of time between uses.

For winter use, I'd pick a 0W30 HDEO. For summer use, I'd go 15W40. But for BOTH environments, it's hard to beat a 5W40.

 

[Keith_Stone]

Originally Posted By: tig1
Originally Posted By: spasm3
Originally Posted By: Oil Changer
HM oils get no love on BITOG. M1 makes one of the best. You will not have gasket and seal issues. Just more BITOG paranoia.


If i were going to run mobil 1 in my ope , it would be m1 high mileage. Its sl rated with more zinc.


But small engines don't need more zinc than SN oils have.

I've often wondered about small engine teardowns and any oil related issues or comments from a tech.

 

[strat81]

Originally Posted By: Bror Jace
For winter use, I'd pick a 0W30 HDEO.


Such as?

 

[Bror Jace]

If you're in the northern parts of the US or Canada, there are a number to choose from. I knew that Chevron made one but it took me a decade to actually get a case ... which is why I call it "Yeti Blood."

My dealer delivered a case to my place of work a couple years ago. He had never seen it before I ordered it ... and figured he'd never sell another case.

http://i229.photobucket.com/albums/ee149/BrorJace/Oil Analysis/Chevron_Delo_0W-30_large.jpg

Others are Petro-Canada Durolon, Citgo Citgard Syndurance, Arctic Blue, Mobil Delvac Elite 222, Esso XC3, etc ...

You can try a Google search ... but many links will bring you right back here to BITOG.

 

[CSM746]

As Bror Jace mentions, Delo 0W30 is hard to find....I got a case from Michigan Petroleum in Port Huron, MI a while back. I have been using it for at least 3 years in snowblower and tractor. I run 15W40 Delvac in the tractor in warm months. Both oils are tough.

 

[jeepman3071]

Originally Posted By: Keith_Stone

I've often wondered about small engine teardowns and any oil related issues or comments from a tech.


I've torn down many Briggs and Tecumseh engines, as well as a few Kohlers. The only engines that showed significant wear were the ones low on oil or abused.

The engine that I saw with the nastiest wear was a single cylinder Kohler on a lawn tractor. The owner never changed the original oil fill, and basically ran it until it burned up all the oil.

If you keep oil in them they will run forever. The oil level in a splash lubricated engine is more important than the oil weight, especially on one that is not sitting level all the time. I just did a carb cleaning and head gasket on a 1970s Briggs rototiller engine that used to be my grandfather's. He never changed the oil, just added some (cheap gas station oil) when it was at the add mark. It still had the cross hatching in the bore with no scoring, and it starts on the 1st or 2nd pull.

 

[GaleHawkins]

It is almost mind boggling the abuse small gas engines can take. We bought a 'project' ATV for the son. It is a 2002 Polaris 325 Magnum that is air/oil cooled. The guy was riding in down a small paved road when the oil cooler line failed and he pumped all of the oil out of it. Wide open throttle (WOT) they will do about 40 MPH on pavement.

It got so hot it chewed up the crank and rod which was like black 2/3 the way up to piston.

Just for the son to get some wrenching experience we pulled the rod from top side through the jug hole and put in new inserts in a used connecting rod after we worked on getting some of the insert material off the crankshaft. Had just learned about hexagonal boron nitride to add a ceramic bearing coating to the moving parts so we tested it but have not opened up the engine yet for an eval after over 11 hours of run time mostly at a fast idle.

Now it is hammering pretty good when you race it up.

The point it seemed very strong and when hot even with the rope started a small pull would restart it.

Now this was an engine ran totally out of oil at a high RPM. While the rod and crank are toast the top end (piston, wrist pin, cam, valves and timing chain all measured it spec. There was some visual change in the cylinder wall from the piston skirt contact but nothing that I could feel with my finger tips or nails.

When the deep freeze leaves for a few days we will try to get the engine apart again and pull the rod. Due to the top end running fine for the 11+ hours we may reuse it on used crankcase with the crank and connecting rod still in the OEM case.

This single cylinder over head cam engine is very easy to work on and see what is going on so it is a great teaching tool. How the top end after 11 hours of post patch job on the crank can still make good power and hit high RPM's is amazing to me. It was used daily in a chicken farm business all of these years but I expect it was not abused like many ATV's 12 years old.

On top of that for the project we have bought off of eBay a complete used head with cam, valves, etc, used cylinder is piston that looked like new and the the very tight lower end mentioned above. I have not history on any of these parts but they looked good and measured within new part specs.

I agree keep clean oil or most any oil in a small engine and it will run for a long time with next to no wear of moving internal engine parts.

 

[Bror Jace]

The discussion here mirrors the other active thread about synthetic oil in OPE.

If you've dealt with OPE for years, you know engines that have survived neglect, abuse, even torture.

However, engines that blow blue smoke, chug oil and are notoriously hard-to-start are more common. Additionally, I used to have a neighbor that would regularly blow up lawn tractors. I have no idea what he did wrong ... but he went through at least 2 in three years. Perhaps he ran it out of oil? I'm not sure but I personally heard one uncork while he was doing yard work one summer.

He always struck me as a kind of clueless/ham-fisted guy ... and these events didn't improve his standing in my eyes.

For that reason, I and others carefully choose oil and are sure to change it regularly. Given the amount of oil these machines require, and how easy it is to change (most machines), it's cheap insurance.

As for high-levels of anti-wear adds such as moly, boron and ZDDP, I like the added insurance when you are mowing on a hill or doing something else that can produce momentary oil starvation.

 

[Dean85]

As already mentioned, keeping the oil at the proper level is the most important thing with OPE. Syn vs dino is a personal preference. I prefer syn, so that is what I use. T6 in all my OPE.

 

[The motor guy]

Do you have to worry about shearing when using a 5w40? I have several Ope engines and would like to use 15w40 in all of them just to use one oil. It doesn't get any lower than 40 degrees down here, not sure if that's too cold for a 15w40. Most engines call for a 10w30.

 

[Atesz792]

15w40 is good down to -15°C, so it will serve you well at 40°F and below. Use with confidence.

 

[bubbatime]

Originally Posted By: motor_oil_madman
Do you have to worry about shearing when using a 5w40?


Current 5W40 oils do shear quite a bit. If you change your oil on schedule and dont drag the oil changes out, than it wont be a problem. I also thought I remember reading that there was a new spec being implemented around December 2016 that would make 5W40 oils more shear stable.

 

[SOHCman]

Originally Posted By: GaleHawkins
It is almost mind boggling the abuse small gas engines can take. We bought a 'project' ATV for the son. It is a 2002 Polaris 325 Magnum that is air/oil cooled. The guy was riding in down a small paved road when the oil cooler line failed and he pumped all of the oil out of it. Wide open throttle (WOT) they will do about 40 MPH on pavement.

It got so hot it chewed up the crank and rod which was like black 2/3 the way up to piston.

Just for the son to get some wrenching experience we pulled the rod from top side through the jug hole and put in new inserts in a used connecting rod after we worked on getting some of the insert material off the crankshaft. Had just learned about hexagonal boron nitride to add a ceramic bearing coating to the moving parts so we tested it but have not opened up the engine yet for an eval after over 11 hours of run time mostly at a fast idle.

Now it is hammering pretty good when you race it up.

The point it seemed very strong and when hot even with the rope started a small pull would restart it.

Now this was an engine ran totally out of oil at a high RPM. While the rod and crank are toast the top end (piston, wrist pin, cam, valves and timing chain all measured it spec. There was some visual change in the cylinder wall from the piston skirt contact but nothing that I could feel with my finger tips or nails.

When the deep freeze leaves for a few days we will try to get the engine apart again and pull the rod. Due to the top end running fine for the 11+ hours we may reuse it on used crankcase with the crank and connecting rod still in the OEM case.

This single cylinder over head cam engine is very easy to work on and see what is going on so it is a great teaching tool. How the top end after 11 hours of post patch job on the crank can still make good power and hit high RPM's is amazing to me. It was used daily in a chicken farm business all of these years but I expect it was not abused like many ATV's 12 years old.

On top of that for the project we have bought off of eBay a complete used head with cam, valves, etc, used cylinder is piston that looked like new and the the very tight lower end mentioned above. I have not history on any of these parts but they looked good and measured within new part specs.

I agree keep clean oil or most any oil in a small engine and it will run for a long time with next to no wear of moving internal engine parts.


What a great idea! Teach your kid to wrench while instilling the value of good maintenance at a young age.

Seriously, the world needs more parents like you...