What Brand of Oil are we all using?

[HondaBoy 24]

Hi guys, oil, we all need it! But what velocity and brand of oil do YOU use? 🤔 Discuss…

[Andy m 23,543]

Yay, oil thread 👹

 

I favour beef dripping , gives the fish batter a crisp outer and slightly soft inner and nicely darkens the chips. 

 

Motor Oil? Anything at the right grade with brand I've heard of. They all come from the same refineries and go through the same quality process. 

 

Andy 

[DaveM59 1,605]

If only oil did add velocity!

I know you mean viscosity and especially with DCT it is important as the gear shift quality depends on it being factory spec. Normally you can go a step up or down with manual gearbox but generally it's best to put in what Honda says it should be. Not all bikes tolerate incorrect viscosity but some don't seem to be affected by small differences either way.

Brand is irrelevant and any carrying 'supermarket' names will be exactly the same as whoever bottles it for them so really buy on best value. I would never buy Honda (or any other major manufacturers) oil as it's way over priced. If an oil carries the correct API number and viscosity then regardless of the name on the can, it will be fine.

Just avoid using car oils as these have additives which can badly affect motorcycle wet clutches. Most scooters will use car oils as they don't have a clutch and the additives could be a benefit on engine life.

[Grumpy old man 4,681]

I use Motul 5100 on my manual 10/40 and sometimes Castrol Power I ( not the racing) 10/40 , the castrol seems to make the gears a bit slicker but that might be my imagination. 

Edited April 27, 2022 by Grumpy old man

[Xactly 5,419]

Sunflower oil, though it's getting a bit difficult to buy these days now that my secret is out.....

[Andy m 23,543]

12 minutes ago, Xactly said:

.. now that my secret is out.....

No one wants to know about that. 

 

Try raspberry sauce though, the stuff they put on ice-cream. Nice flavour, similar lubrication qualities and only a little care required to make sure there are no seeds. 

 

Andy 

[steelhorseuk 1,690]

2 hours ago, Grumpy old man said:

The Castrol seems to make the gears a bit slicker but that might be my imagination. 

 

I am glad you said that as I thought it was just me!!!

Castrol Power One 10W-30 4T is also what I use.

    

[poldark 1,512]

Westway 10W30 semi-synth (£25/5ltrs)

[outrunner 4,457]

I use Silkolene 10/30 for no other reason that that's what the local bike shop sells.

 

 

Andy.

[Skidt 1,306]

Castrol Power 1 10W30. Just serviced mine on Monday, oil/filter and DCT filter. DCT reset, new fork seals and oil, cleaned lubed & adjusted chain. Just need to do the valve clearances now. 👍

[HondaBoy 24]

8 hours ago, DaveM59 said:

If only oil did add velocity!

I know you mean viscosity and especially with DCT it is important as the gear shift quality depends on it being factory spec. Normally you can go a step up or down with manual gearbox but generally it's best to put in what Honda says it should be. Not all bikes tolerate incorrect viscosity but some don't seem to be affected by small differences either way.

Brand is irrelevant and any carrying 'supermarket' names will be exactly the same as whoever bottles it for them so really buy on best value. I would never buy Honda (or any other major manufacturers) oil as it's way over priced. If an oil carries the correct API number and viscosity then regardless of the name on the can, it will be fine.

Just avoid using car oils as these have additives which can badly affect motorcycle wet clutches. Most scooters will use car oils as they don't have a clutch and the additives could be a benefit on engine life.

Thanks Dave! 🤣🤣 Damn predictive text!! Now edited! 🤣🤣

[Jamesc 3,655]

20w50 in my NC and 2 stroke boat oil in the scooter

[shiggsy 529]

[dave 966]

Silkolene 10/30

it works, no engine problems for many years

[Andy m 23,543]

I work with a bloke who smokes 20+ Benson and Hedges a day. Never had a single heart attack or cancerous lung in 60 years. I doubt switching to Marlborough extra filters will make any difference. 

 

Modern engines last well over 100000 miles with nothing except routine maintenance, it's just a factor of better materials brought in from the 1980's on, modern CNC (1990's on) and tighter tolerances. If you analyse the oil you can typically double the manufacturers recommend intervals. Going towards the bottom of the ISO standard on lubricants might result in only making it to 99999 miles on the original bearings, in which case the 32nd owner sometime next century may thank you for using the good stuff. 

 

If you believe New Castrol GTXxxxxRrrR with added Pzazz for a whiter than white wash as used by Rossi to pull Italian super models is any different, marketing managers everywhere will thank you now. 

 

Find a battery that lasts 5 years and a product that stops road salt attacking wiring and silver paint and then we'll improve reliability. 

 

Andy 

[Ozzieflyer 15]

I use Castrol Power One 10w30.4T as well.

I also think my gear changes sound slicker with this oil.

[HondaBoy 24]

17 hours ago, shiggsy said:

You joke - But the amount of ‘hOmE mEcHaNiCs’ I see who don’t understand the concept of checking their oil weekly (regardless of how new their bike is) or using the incorrect viscosity - Then wonder why they have EnGiNe tRoUbLe, But it’s ok because they know how to strip an engine though… 🙄🤣

Edited April 28, 2022 by HondaBoy

[Andy m 23,543]

What sort of engine trouble? 

 

Must be a pretty worn engine to burn any noticeable amount of oil in a week unless you are dispatching or running something really old school. Stuff that leaks out is easy enough to spot. 

 

Last bike I had that burnt any was a 1991 XT600e. Wasn't designed to cruise at 85 with a months worth of camping gear etc. I found it was low in the perfect spot, 30 miles from Kaliningrad where no one over 10 had heard anyone speak English since 1919. This old boy sold me something he called "tractor oil" for 5 roubles. It was probably heating oil or something a canal boat might burn. Did no harm what so ever. Changed most of it on the pavement outside a hotel in Hannover and again back in the UK. The riskiest bit was convincing passers by I wasn't going to tip the used stuff down the drain. 

 

Andy 

[Steve Case 955]

Ah but would you return to kaliningrad...

I use 10w40 fully synth in the belief it would make the engine quieter...

I really ought to know better!

The main reason for the fully synth is i used to use part synth in the r1100gs and it used to get noisier after 6000 miles.

The engines long stroke wet liner car tech and i can't believe the oil choice will affect it unduly, but then i don't get why honda only list one oil grade in the manual, normally i'd expect a chart of ambient temp against oil grade.

[Andy m 23,543]

9 hours ago, Steve Case said:

Ah but would you return to kaliningrad....... then i don't get why honda only list one oil grade in the manual, normally i'd expect a chart of ambient temp against oil grade.

Not this week. Last century it had a sort of post-Soviet buzz, not like East Berlin but something. I imagine last year it was just a sort of seaside shopping centre barely distinguishable from any other. Next Year, who knows. The population were imported from Russia and feel isolated amongst the Balts and Poles, so likely very much a majority of Putin fan boys. It was a sort of Soviet Belfast on that level, so not a spot for tourists just now. All Russian authorities seem to have two speeds, drunk/lazy and mental/baton wielding. 

 

Honda will only list one grade to avoid confusion and keep stock down . Given it probably doesn't matter within reason, why give the punters a stick to beat you with when they decide because they said they'd ride in the summer the dealer should have known to use a marginally different grade. 

 

Andy 

[Xactly 5,419]

11 hours ago, Steve Case said:

The main reason for the fully synth is i used to use part synth in the r1100gs and it used to get noisier after 6000 miles.

I used to use semi synthetic 20/50 oil in my oilheads. IMHO they didn’t need bike-specific oil because they had dry clutches and separate gearboxes. In my experience some bikes sound mechanically louder on fully synthetic oil. IIRC the oil change interval was 6,000, by which time it would need changing. 

[Steve Case 955]

I'm not overly bothered about mechanical noise as its a mechanical device, it was the change in tone i used to notice. 

I have used 20w50 but i always saw it as winter oil as the bm felt slightly less revvy. However this is probably all in my head.

I use 10w40 fully synth as it works in the daytona as well and i struggle to believe any of these engines are so advanced with clearances so tight they can only run a lighter oil.

On Kaliningrad, i remember a time when people just visited these far flung places to have a look. Indeed i had a geography teacher who drove an escort mexico thru the middle east including afganistan where the locals took pot shots at him (probably out of boredom)with huge smooth bore rifles. Some of them even hit the car!

[DCTPaul 629]

DCT so Castrol 10w30 Fully Syn 'Power 1 Racing'... Otherwise it would get Halfords 5w40 Fully Synth like the scoot... As I have a Halfords Trade Card.

Edited April 30, 2022 by DCTPaul

[DaveStewart 267]

Well I am gonna change my oil and filter soon.I have looked at the vids, even me,two short planks, should manage it.I have two litres of 10w:40 semi and will get another 2 lts. I think 3.7 is the amount req?  I have a 2018 NC750X.  Any probs foreseen folks? Will the semi suffice or not. I did 1200 miles since last MOT yesterday.Any advice very grateful   

Please forgive my possible ignorance,as I am neither a biker or a mechanic.

Edited April 30, 2022 by DaveStewart

[Grumpy old man 4,681]

13 minutes ago, DaveStewart said:

Well I am gonna change my oil and filter soon.I have looked at the vids, even me,two short planks, should manage it.I have two litres of 10w:40 semi and will get another 2 lts. I think 3.7 is the amount req?  I have a 2018 NC750X.  Any probs foreseen folks? Will the semi suffice or not. I did 1200 miles since last MOT yesterday.Any advice very grateful   

Please forgive my possible ignorance,as I am neither a biker or a mechanic.

Is it a Dct?  Apparently they work best on the reccomend 10-30. I'd be tempted to stick to that but if it's a manual then 10-40 works fine for mine.