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oil


darren7116

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Hi guys,

I would like to get some opinions on what oil to use.

I resently baught a repower motor kit for my 7117from

Small Engine Warehouse in the spring.

I was told to use regular oil 10w30 to beak in the motor like rings to seat. then switch over to a synthedic 5w30.I would like to know about how long should I run the regular 10w30 befor i drain and use a synthedic 5w30? i didn't start using the tractor right away since i had other isues to iron out so i really started using it from about June till now. also i would like to get some input on what brand would be good, i was using shell rotella 10w30 in my old kt17.but now i cannot find 5w30 synthedic in the shell rotella oil, only see 5w40. so which others would be good? i was thinking maby castral edge or Amsoil?

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For a new engine, I drain the first oil at 2 to 3 hours. Then a normal oil change interval after that. Some say using a synthetic oil to some will stop the break in process. Some new cars come filled with synthetic, so who do you believe???

I guess to be safe, 40 hours would be OK IMO to switch to synthetic. In the summer time I use 15W40 Delo 400 (conventional)in my small engines. So far so good with that oil. I'm not a synthetic kind of guy.

Ken

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An article I have from the University of TN Ag Extension on synthetic oil states: break in engines with petroleum oil, 6000 miles for auto engines & min. 50 hours for small engines before switching to synthetic and use the same viscosity and change interval recommended by engine manufacturer. I use Mobil 1 10W30 and am considering using Amsoil small engine oil because it states it is formulated for high temps whereas Mobil 1 is an auto oil formulated for gas mileage.

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Synthetic oil in general is a "high temp" oil. Or at least it doesn't break down as readily as conventional oil. Scams....er Amsoil is using some marketing ploys here I suspect.

One thing I would recommend is to use a "diesel" engine oil. They have a bit more of the good things our engines can use to prevent wear of camshafts and lifters. They also hold more soot in suspension. IMO our old flat heads put more crap in the oil because of less efficient combustion which amounts to soot.

I was involved selling Chevron products for a short time and had a good talk about oil with one of the formulators at a conference. I had my eyes opened about after market additives. The short story is DON'T USE THEM. They can seriously mess up the balance of additives the original MFG used in the oil formulation. It costs an oil company about $100,000 to have an oil certified by the API. If it fails the test the oil gets reformulated and another $100,000 test is performed.

Bill, the modern oils intended for auto use,at least in my opinion, seriously lacks the additives needed to support long life in our engines. I would use a synthetic diesel engine oil if you want to use a synthetic.

Ken

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http://www.amsoil.com/shop/by-product/motor-oil/4-stroke/formula-4-stroke-10w-30-sae-30-small-engine-oil/?code=ASEQT-EA

I have used the Amsoil small engine oil with great success in both of my Sovereigns for several years. Use it year around in both my newer Sovereign with the 18 hp Command and my older one with the 16 hp cast iron Briggs. Seems to work very well in both engines. I always say though that asking a forum which oil to use is like asking which church you should attend.

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Thanks guys sorry it took awhile to respond back since I have no internet at home.i think I'll use shell rosella 10w30 for awhile longer many over the winter and drain it out in spring then change over to synthedic 5w30 I would really like to stick with the shell rosella oil but I cannot find the full synthetic blend in 5w30 anywhere all I see is 5w40 or 15w40. I am a bit concerned throw after hearing that I should of only used the first oil change for a few hours at first then go from there. Since I didn't. Have anyone to tell me that from the beginning I'm going on quite a few hours now since about end of June till now! I really hope all is ok with my motor? But I'm changeling it right now for sure.

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I use Rotella Full Synthetic 5w40 in all my tractors year around, old ci Briggs and Kohler K, KT and Magnum engines. No failures and no high oil usage issues. I change once per year. My Kubota I change every 50 hours.

I have been doing this since 1995 when I bought the Kubota new. Using the same oil in all 4 stroke engines keeps things simple...

And keeping things simple I use the same oil and mix for all of my 2 stroke engines, with no failures.

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