synthetic oil

[daljaz]

Does anyone use sythetic oil in their GL1200's. Several local shops said don't use it because the engines and clutches were made before synthetic oil and it will not be good to use it in an old motorcycle. Just wondering if anyone uses it and has its used caused any problems. Thanks

[David.Mac]

Don't use synthetic - your bike has a wet clutch (it runs in the oil), and synthetic oil will cause it to slip
David

[keithg64]

You can use Rotell T6 in the blue bottle and get it at walmart for about 20 dollars, it is full synthetic and is good for wet clutches. I used it in my 1100 and now use it in my 1500

[WingAdmin]

I look at it this way: I can probably spend more money and use synthetic oil in my bike. However, it's not going to make it run any better, and I still change the oil at the same interval. So instead, I just use regular dino oil, it works perfectly, and I save some money.

[dingdong]

I look at it this way: I can probably spend more money and use synthetic oil in my bike. However, it's not going to make it run any better, and I still change the oil at the same interval. So instead, I just use regular dino oil, it works perfectly, and I save some money.

+1

[ekcyclerepair]

Well, I always hesitate to comment on oil because it seems to be such a personal/opinionated topic, but here's my 2 cents . Synthetic is definitely the way to go. A good quality synthetic, such as Amsoil, has lots of benefits and no negatives. Without getting technical, it's more slippery, breaks down at a higher temperature, and has more "expensive goodies" in it that make it last longer. The benefits being less engine wear, slightly better fuel economy, a higher safety buffer in case of overheating, and longer change intervals. I've seen the positive difference it makes on various motorcycles.
Having said that.... the average motorcycle will probably live a long, happy life, using a good motorcycle grade petroleum based oil, changed on a regular basis.

[RoadRogue]

just made a big bowl of popcorn,anybody else want some?

[littlebeaver]

Is that with or without butter?

[OldSchool_IsCool]

Is that with or without butter?

Would margarine be considered synthetic butter??

[daveinozbikes]

Well....I used synthetic for 70,000 miles in my 1200 Ltd. The difference I found between it and dino oil is this: using dino oil the gears changed smoothly and I could find neutral easily for about 1000miles. After that it got increasingly "clunkier" and hard to find neutral. Apparently it is caused by the molecules getting smashed..read it somewhere.

With synthetic oil after 4000 miles the gears still changed smoothly and it was still easy to find neutral. Did not seem to matter which syn. I used.

With regards to the clutch slipping , for about 40,000 of those miles I pulled a camper trailer and the clutch never slipped once. With dino. beware of "friction improvers"..they will kill your clutch. Read the bottle (jug).......carefully.
All the above info. also relates to my 1998 GL1500 which I have owned for about 3 years.

[WA9FWT]

Good reading here.http://www.aircooled.net/gnrlsite/resou ... nthoil.htm

[78AzWing]

What the guys that run the antique CJ5's have found is that at first your oil consumption will go up.
For the first 1,000 to 1,500 miles, give or take a little. (actually I think it was discovered to be about three oil changes)
This is with a cast iron 4 cylinder engine.

Like was stated this stuff is really slippery, and will easily blow-by the 30 something rings install on your pistons.
After the initial period of use and changes, the oil consumption will drop back to nill, and the compression will come back to close to what it was when the engine was new.

Seems that the synthetic oil will work its magic on the rings and free them up along with clearing out all that gunk that was gumming them up in the first place.

So if you can live with your bike using more oil for 4 or 5 months, and smoking a little more during that time, then why not?

[Mooseman]

I use Shell Rottela T-6, 5w-40. I have always used synthetic oil in my MC's.
Oil is a lot like tires, everyone has a opinion and what they like best, goes for MC's too.
Here is a article on oil which is very informative.

http://www.calsci.com/motorcycleinfo/Oils1.html

Just stay away from the Engery conserving oils. That may/will cause wet cluth problems.
Plus Rotella meets all the letter codes for oil to be used in our MC's. Both USA and Japan.
I run my synthetic for 10k and then change along with filter. Plus when ever I pull a case cover it's always super clean on the inside. The book says 8k for dino oil.
Just my 2 cents.
Enjoy the Ride, Just some are better than others.
Mooseman

[ekcyclerepair]

Hey Mooseman & WA9FWT, thanks for the links . I try to read everything I can get my hands on, about oils, additives, etc.

From what I've seen with my own eyes, there are certain oils that I swear by and others that you couldn't pay me to use.
Anybody else have any experiences (good or bad) with certain oils or additives?
Has anyone tried Optimol or heard anything from people who have used it? I've seen plenty of technical data and comparison tests on all the popular motorcycle oils but have never seen a test that includes Optimol. A local shop sells it and loves the stuff (of course). I haven't been into many engines that have been run with it, so haven't really formed an opinion yet.

[WingAdmin]

What the guys that run the antique CJ5's have found is that at first your oil consumption will go up.
For the first 1,000 to 1,500 miles, give or take a little. (actually I think it was discovered to be about three oil changes)
This is with a cast iron 4 cylinder engine.

Like was stated this stuff is really slippery, and will easily blow-by the 30 something rings install on your pistons.
After the initial period of use and changes, the oil consumption will drop back to nill, and the compression will come back to close to what it was when the engine was new.

That's very interesting. I switched my (2003) truck over to synthetic this year, and noticed I was having to add a quart during the 3500-mile period between oil changes this summer. I was thinking "this is not good"....but then it stopped, and now I don't have to add oil between changes at all. That behavior would be explained by this.

[goanders]

I just don't understand what you gain by putting in expensive oil. How many miles do you need to get out of the engine? I have seen bikes with 400- km on it with the mimiun required by the manufacturer. because it cost more does not mean it will give better resultsMost bikes are retired with perfectly good engines.

[daveinozbikes]

What you gain from more "expensive" oil is smoother gear changes which is enough for me to keep using it. I"m sure that if you read back thro" the previous posts on this subject you will glean other reasons too...why don"t they use "cheap" oil in racing cars?? Because the engines will explode in short order. Short lived viscosity molecules at work..

[goanders]

I don't race my wing, Race cars also have sponsers and special built engines, but if that oil works foe ya . that is good. My last two wings had 200,000 on them when I sold them and still had good engines.

[WingAdmin]

Racing cars wring every bit of performance possible out of their engines and drivetrains. For that reason, they are designed to run very close to their tolerances and limits. If a crankshaft bearing has to be replaced because it is worn after a few races (maybe 200 miles), then that's pretty decent longevity. If your motorcycle had to have its crankshaft bearings replaced every 200 miles, you'd be looking to sue the manufacturer. The racing car I used to crew on would go through a set of valve springs every other race, and that was looked on as normal wear and tear.

Comparing the lubrication requirements of racing cars to those of motorcycles designed to run hundreds of thousands of miles with the same engine components is ludicrous.

Incidentally, this is me (inside the car) running up the racing car I crewed on, before a race (probably at Mosport):

[WA9FWT]

Racing cars wring every bit of performance possible out of their engines and drivetrains. For that reason, they are designed to run very close to their tolerances and limits. If a crankshaft bearing has to be replaced because it is worn after a few races (maybe 200 miles), then that's pretty decent longevity. If your motorcycle had to have its crankshaft bearings replaced every 200 miles, you'd be looking to sue the manufacturer. The racing car I used to crew on would go through a set of valve springs every other race, and that was looked on as normal wear and tear.

Comparing the lubrication requirements of racing cars to those of motorcycles designed to run hundreds of thousands of miles with the same engine components is ludicrous.

Incidentally, this is me (inside the car) running up the racing car I crewed on, before a race (probably at Mosport):

Nice looking car, what other dark secrets do you have up your sleeve. Can't get away from engines " hey "

WA9FWT Phil

[chrisgl1800]

Here is some info on the oil I use...AMSOIL http://www.amsoil.com/lit/databulletins/g2089.pdf
I use AMSOIL in all my engines. I switched over to AMSOIL at 500 miles on the Goldwing, and the shifting is now just a "click" when you shift. [fast or slow shifts] I feel it does matter which oil you use, but like
ekcyclerepair said...it is a very personal affair on choice.
Drive safe!

[daveinozbikes]

I"ve been going to Goldwing forums for 13 years and they call these posts " THE OIL WARS".!!!! It is a personal choice (until you feel how smooth that gearbox can be.....)
Treat all others on the road as an idiot...you might survive......

[littlebeaver]

Ok, so what you guys are saying is it's generally a personal choice, they both work , so the only real way to know is to try one then the other... So what weight is best in the summer months.?

[daveinozbikes]

I use 5w40 or 5w50 or 15w40....depends what"s on special. The idea of multigrade is so that you can use them all year round.

[rusteeb]

Moble1 Racing4T is a synsthetic oil made especially for all metric Motorcycles and is designed for wet clutches I have used it for 2 years with no problem Ps: mobile1 RacingAT is designed for V-Twins If interested