Motorcycle Oils

Hello All,
I was looking for a thread that might have some data(or opinions) on what engine oil to use.
Has anyone heard of Blendzall or Silkolene. I used to use these in my speedway bikes but, they were really high rpm race engines. Any suggestions? ( I know I just opened a can of worms, but I couldn't find the thread)

Unless you know the bikes history or it was recently rebuilt I personally would just find some oil you can get easily and keep it and the filter changed regularly

wireman wrote: Unless you know the bikes history or it was recently rebuilt I personally would just find some oil you can get easily and keep it and the filter changed regularly

X2

You could post pictures of speedway bikes. We like pictures.

enjoy.

i just use Valvoline 4 stroke motorcycle oil on mine

You will get tons of different opinions on this, but consider the following. In the good ole days cars oils worked great; I was a big fan of Castrol GTX. However, over the years the formulas for car oils has changed. ZDDP (Zinc DialkylDithiophosphates) which deposit a sacrificial layer on parts that sustain high pressure to protect them (such as cams in KZ engines) has been removed (by law) from automotive oils. The reason it was removed is that ZDDP is not good for catalytic convertors, and all cars now have them. In its place a variety of "friction modifiers" have been added to car oils. These work great for cars. However, unlike cars, KZ's have wet clutches that are bathed in the engine oil. These new friction modifiers have been known to reduce the friction needed for a wet clutch to operate properly, so they are not good for KZ clutches. The latest oil standard for motorcycles with wet clutches is JASO MA. Oils that are marked as meeting this standard work fine in KZ engines. Synthetic or dino oils work in our engines as long as they meet the JASO MA (not MB) standard. Car oils do not meet this standard. Just look for the JASO-MA designation on the oil container before buying. I prefer synthetic and use Mobil Racing 4T, but there are other very good JASO-MA rated oils out there.

Shell Rotella-T 15W-40 has the JASO MA rating. It is a heavy duty oil marketed for diesel engine use & has about the same amount of zinc-phosphate as motorcycle oils. Chevron Delo & Valvoline Premium Blue are a couple of others. They may not be suitable for cold weather, though - not sure.

Another fan of Shell Rotella T . Old skool air cooled gurus have been having excellent sucess over the past 2 decades using R/T , it's the elevated levels of zinc that are favorable in our air cooled relics. Ask on any vintage air cooled forum, and you will hear the same favorable opinions on Shell. It's available all day long at Wal Mart, and is priced very reasonable. I just scored a 5 gallon pail of Rotella T for $61 (I have 3 bikes, a snowblower, generator, and a lawn tractor that all take The Rotella. Keeps things simple for me !

Put Brad Penn in it and make the cams live forever.

I run Lucas synthetic motorcycle oil I have read several oil comparisons more than I should've and more than anyone needs

seems every independent lab that does the testing is being paid by the over all winner lol
lucus is an Indiana sponsor/company is why I use it compasred to 78 when my bike was made there aint no bad oil to say it with propper reference

9.80 a quart is what I pay most of those independendent tests have it listed mid grade or near the bottom

I use less leak less ans smoke less since switching including the old head seapage is no longer a problem. I am surew they are all good dsont use cooking oil to season a shotgun and don use car ouil in your bike opretty easy

APE Jay wrote: Put Brad Penn in it and make the cams live forever.

But won't he object to being stuffed in a motorcycle crankcase?
Be a bit painful I'd think :woohoo:

Shell Rotella-T 15W-40 non-sync is what I use.....