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Engine painted! Questions on Oil?

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Fred, thanks for elaborating. This has been a controversial topic for a while now. It is confusing and hard to know since most oils aren't labeled with the specifics. I had to call the Tech Support line to determine ZDDP in Delo. Anyway, I'm with you, better to err on the side of caution.
:cheers:
 
The VR1 I use is the 20w50. My thoughts are this: It's got what's needed for my flat tappets, fluid enough that it works well in the winter when I don't drive the car and provides enough viscosity to keep my oil pressure in the 50 psi range when warm in the summer
grin.gif
. I work on my car as a hobby and want a good product, but I will not wear the engine out in my lifetime. Under normal driving conditions I doubt I will ever have an oil related failure unless it all leaks out the rear!
 
Fred, my advice not to use synthetic oil to break in a motor is directly expereinced based, the idiots at Redline Oil told me I could break the motor in on their synthetic oil, I ended taking the motor back apart after one weekend and cleaing the bores and rings and reinstalling and then breaking it in on dino based oil, and I seen this happen to other guys at the race track as well. I have no idea what the new cars are using for rings and bore finish and for sure they are not using cast iron rings, so in short, you could hold a gun to my head and I still would not break a new British engine in on synthetic oil, for me it not a opinion based on something I read, it's a real life experience, one I'll never try again.
 
TulsaFred said:
BTW, some believe the issue with ZDDP and flat tappet wear may be overblown for mildly run street cruisers. If you don't stress the cam/lifters with high rpm, high lift, high spring rates, etc. it may not be that important.
Click to expand...

I used just cheap no name Advance crap ( which is Havoline) cause it was cheap. I didn't know at the time about the ZDDP issue. When I torn my motor down, two or three lifters were flaking on the bottom from galling. That's the stuff that screwwed my crank up as it circulated through the sytem.

When I "rebuilt" this engine, I put those same lifters back thinking I would tear the motor back down in 5K anyway when I built it right. Well, we're at 12K now and the valves haven't needed an adjustment yet and it runs perfect. From what I saw in mine ZDDP did/does make a difference on the street.

This is just what I've seen so far, YMMV.
 
Rut,
The 20W-50 VR1 is fine for flat tappet wear issues and zddp levels. The issue, if any would be the startup viscosity. It is very thick and will not lubricate well until the motor is warm, and based on most wear occurring at startup I have some concern about 20W oils. Remember, oil pressure is only a surrogate for lubrication. Lubrication = Flow, not pressure. We can't measure flow with a gauge, so we use pressure as a substitute, but it is not a perfect indicator and does not always equate to lubrication. If you have a very thick oil with very little flow it will give a very high oil pressure until it thins with temp. However, there will be no or little flow despite the high pressure when cold, and therefore little or no lubrication or bearing separation when cold. That's why the oil pressure is high at startup and comes down after warm up. The pressure builds as the pump tries to move the thick oil and has limited success until it thins. Here's some info:
https://www.ferrarichat.com/forum/faq.php?faq=haas_articles

Hap,
I agree with personal experience over reading any day, keeping in mind that experience if incorrectly interpreted can sometimes lead to wrong conclusions. Until I know different, I'll stick with conventional oil for break in.

Kellysguy,
Most authorities would say the the cheap brands, if they carry API service category ratings are just as good as brand names. They have to pass the API test suite which is very rigorous. You can't necessarily assume the off brand oil caused your lifter galling. Don't blame you though for avoiding them after a bad experience, though.
 
Fred, I think your concerns about 20W oils are probably groundless. Back when these cars were new, 20W wasn't perceived as a heavyweight at all! What surprised me when I first came to the USA was how much straight 30 weight was being used, like multi-grades hadn't been invented.
What made 20/50 so different from what we were used to back in time was the 50 summer rating! 20/30 or maybe 20/40 was about all you got until about 1965 or so.
 
Roger,

You're probably right. I always defer to age and experience, which I learned was smart long ago.

Do read through Dr. Haas' mini-course on oil, though (linked above - ferrarichat). It's interesting and discusses oil viscosity better than most sources I've seen.

Fred
 
Yes I did read it, and to be honest, don't know what to make of it, but it does read a bit like a "bee in a bonnet" if you get my meaning.

Anyway, I'm just recommissioning a rebuilt Lotus-Ford Twin Cam, and based on the recommendation of the makers of the new pistons, gut feeling, and experience, it'll be broken-in with GTX 20-50 with added ZDDPlus, then later switched to Syntec 20-50.
 
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