Motorcycle oil(again)

I use either Mobil 1 15-50w or Motul sythentic. The Motul is more expensive than the Mobil. Both work well. For break-in on new/rebuilt engines we use Castrol GTX 20-50w. It really performs well for mineral based oil. We run the castrol for about 500 miles, then switch to synthetic. The only problem we have seen with synthetics is in high HP bikes with a weak clutch setup. It will allow the clutch to slip. Red line is supposed to be very good also, we haven't tried it yet.
 
Got golden spectro in one busa now...going to synthetic on next change...I like at least 1500 miles on dino oil to seat rings completely. Other busa getting engine facelift...will use dino oil at first...anyone with dino oil recommendations?
 
Have anyone used Golden Spectro oil,I've used it on my 1989 GSXR-1100 and my Hayabusa,has anyone else used it or is it just a WestCoast thing?Make my shifting alot smoother.
 
I've used BelRay's mineral variant on my Busa.
Haven't seen the inside yet, so can't really say anything useful about it, other than that it didn't use a drop of oil in 5000 miles.
 
Mega-cycle used to recommend Kendall GT-1...but with all the new oil specs that came out a few years ago who knows what is good anymore. I have tried the new mobil motorcycle oil in one of my cbx`s..it worked fine and clutch did not slip.Several years ago I tried car mobil 1 and had clutch trouble...I`m going to mobil1 motorcycle oil on 1500 mile oil change on busa.
 
Check out ...http://tempest.ecu.uiuc.edu/~cburian/mc/oil..there was one article that I was really impressed with where they took many brands of oil and actually tested them on the street(real world).They ran the oil in a Vulcan I think and tested it at various mileage for viscosity breakdown,solids,and metal content(wear) but I cant seem to find it now :(.I`m still looking if I find it I`ll post it.Also if your board some day just punch in ..Motorcycle&oil on your search engine and you can read for days...

[This message has been edited by gsx1300rguy (edited 09 December 1999).]
 
CBXChris, Valvoline used to claim better anti-scuff protection than any other dino oils, remember the Joe Pisano ad? I'm not sure if it is actually better, but I usually use Valvoline 10w40 dino to break in my engines. I have also used Castrol (dino) 10w40, but after reading some of the above I'm not sure if I will again.
 
GSX1300...A couple of years back Motorcycle Consumer News ran a story about bike oils. Engineer in Ca. tested them in a V65 Sabre for viscosity breakdown. Tests were done @ 800 and 1500 miles. Oils tested were Mobil 1, Castrol Syntech, Castrol GTX, Spectro reg, and Honda Proline. This is to the best of my memory. The results were suprising in that the 'bike' oils performed the worst. Mobil 1 retained 92+ % viscosity if I remember correctly. Syntech little less (90), followed by GTX(~87), then Honda and Spectro(~70). Again don't quote me on the numbers. I have worked at bike shops for years and still run a business building performance bike engines. I can remember the Spectro rep coming in telling us how much better their oil was. Maybe back in the early 80's, but as car motors became more like bikes the oils changed to handle the RPM's. Of course there is the clutch/tranny argument also. BOTTOM LINE.... the only 'dino' oil I use to break in customers or MY bike engines is Castrol, Valvoline especially has broken down too quick in my opinion. As far as the synthetics go they are ALL good, it's personal preference, except in the case of Megacycle Cams, they believe Mobil 1 eats cams. I DON'T. Sorry for the long post but we could debate this forever!!!! And yes we have gained 2-3hp going from 'dino oil' to Mobil 1 on the dyno in back to back runs. Usually on the smaller motors with a higher redline( less reciprocating friction)...

Dave
 
Thats the test Dave! Rotts4u is in process of doing a test on oils now.I personally think that you "have to use" convention oil for break in ,I know some auto companys are going to synthetic straight from day one.I think dino is the way to go for the first 3k miles then switch to a brand name synthetic ,I use Mobil1 motorcycle oil just for convienence.There are many other good ones out there ,Amsoil,Belray,Redline.

[This message has been edited by gsx1300rguy (edited 09 December 1999).]
 
The article in '94 from MCN mentioned above can be seen in this website: http://virtualbiker.com/valkyrie/mcnoil94.html. Does anybody know what is the difference between mobil1 for cars and bikes? I can readily get the ones for cars. Living in an area (El Paso, TX) of 100º summers and 50º winters, dealers recommend 20w/50 and 10w/40 respectively. Manuals recommend 10w/40 only. What should I use and why?
 
I have tested both the mobil car and bike oils in spectrographic analysis. Despite what some will tell you there IS a difference. Mainly in the addivite package. The bike oil has mose zinc and calcium and phosphorus. These are the main anti wear additives and acid reducers in the engine. Usually the bike oil has between 25-40% more. If anyone wants the full microsoft excell spreadsheet with the exact numbers of many of the common oils email me at rotts4u@AOL.com and I will email the info to you.

Don
RoadDog
 
Thanks Don you have verified what I have known all the time...local Mobil distributor (Rex Oil) got me the specs several months ago...just didn`t want to argue with someone about car oil versus bike oil. Did you notice all the as I will call them slick agents in car oils not present in bike oil...that`s why car oils cause clutch trouble.
 
I will post this again... I researched this on the internet and several studies from universities and other institutions placed mobil 1 at the top consistently. I don't have all address's anymore but I am sure you can find these studies just as I did. I also spoke to several 'Oil' companies and Mobil was the most knowlegable one.
They told me that they had just come out with motorcycle specific oils (synthetic) and that Mobil 1 15w-50 was the only other one (in regards to their brand) besides the motorcycle specific oils (that will work). This one does not cause slip in my 'Busa. By the way in all these studies, Castrol was rated at or near THE BOTTOM (mediocre).
Just look up the studies on motor oils and you can see the proof for yourself. Mobil 1 is the best if not one of the best. At only $3.88 a quart at Wal-Mart, you can't beat that price with any other brand!




[This message has been edited by asubayah (edited 12 December 1999).]
 
Will always put Mobil 15-50 "Car" in my bike,,No prob's at all. for the price at my Shop-Rite of $3.95 Qt,,why pay 8-$9.00 Bills for the bike stuff,,at a Bike Shop ?

As the Parts Boy see's you walk away,,he says "SUCKER"

161 ®
 
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