Which Oil ? documentation?

[Drew Pojedinec]

Toppa,
I think it will depend mostly on what is available where you live.  I'm not certain what is on the shelf in Germany.

[Toppa]

Valvoline VR-1 is available. Which viscosity do you recommend?
20W50?

there was still no time to check the engine 

[jayb]

I've been using either 10W-30 or 20W-50.

[rockhouse66]

My understanding that any brand of 20W50 oil will have adequate zinc and other components for a flat tappet engine.  Reason being is that 20W50 is not a new(er) car oil - they all use much lower viscosity grades.  If you want to run lower viscosity than 20W50, I agree the VR1 is the answer as it is readily available.  I use the VR1 10W30.

[ericwevans]

You might have something there, I was always running 20W-50 Castrol for years and have been fine even without the ZDDP additive that I just started using recently as a safety measure.  I recently changed to 10W-40 and in short order it ate the cam.  Never had an oil pressure problem the whole time 30PSI idle, 55PSI cruise (1800 RPM).  New cam going in this coming weekend, I'll report on the carnage when I get the old one out.

[cammerfe]

The four cam engine in my ECTA car might as well have flat tappets since it uses what are known as 'buckets', they fit over the valve/spring and are shaped on the top to hold shims used for setting the lash. The cams set directly above the line of buckets and the cam lobes act/impinge on the (hardened) shims. There is no rocker arm of any sort.

The factory oil is a 'semi'-synthetic which seems to mean that it is part synthetic and part dinosaur sourced. In any case, for the first 40K miles of driving, I got complimentary oil changes at the dealer. After that I did it myself and used Mobil 1 and a premium filter. The car is now 14 years old and has 160K+ miles on the clock. It doesn't use oil between changes.

The cams are cast iron. If there was any sort of surface failure in the cam/shim interface, I'm sure the first thing that'd happen would be the kicking out of the shims on top of the buckets. And the next thing would be the clatter of the fairly massive clearance between the cam lobe and the top of the bucket.

KS

[ericwevans]

Yeah, my Kawasaki Z-1 has a shim on bucket setup like that.  Pretty common in the motorcycle world.

[Toppa]

I ordered VR1 20w50... 10Liter  freakin expensive...

will see. Hope my Oilpressure will increase with the thicker oil...

[cammerfe]

Toppa---

'Thicker' oil will probably increase your oil pressure but not necessarily improve your oiling. Mecca has available a monograph on the subject that may well be available on their website. Their thesis is that the higher pressure is due to the fact that 'thicker' oil has larger molecules. The higher pressure is from trying to force these larger molecules through the extremely small interstices in a running engine. Think of the molecules as if they were small ball bearings. Many smaller ball bearings will give better support than a few larger ones---and they'll flow easily through the narrow places that are part of what you have at the crank and rod bearing surfaces.

KS

[Toppa]

ok...

what about high volume oilpumps? In which case will it make sense? the price for me will be about 3 times higher...

[cleandan]

I have been using Kendall GT-1 High Performance with Liquid titanium (20w50)
The current MSDS sheet lists this as having 1200 ppm zinc. All other properties are listed as well.
The thing you need to do is check this about once every six months. The parameters do change and without notice to you the end user.
One list I would like to have is what needs to be in the oil for adequate protection for our flat tappet use.
Zinc%
Phosphorus%
Ash%
Other additives, such as titanium with this Kendall.
There is a LOT of misinformation floating around as well as "best oil" opinions based on what people feel rather than what any test has proven.
I have had good results with the Valvoline VR1 and Shell Rotella too.
I just happen to have a great supplier who keeps stock of the Kendall at a reasonable price so I buy a few cases when needed.

[machoneman]

"The thing you need to do is check this about once every six months."

Truer words were never spoken. I worked years ago with all the major oil companies (Amoco, Exxon, Mobil, all the PA based oil refiners like Penzoil, Quaker State, Wolf's Head, etc.) as we helped them market tank truck loads of oil. Also local re-refiners like Motor Oils Refinery where used oil was repurposed.

I learned that it's really most often the local or regional blender/distributor/reseller who decides what additive package goes into your bottle of motor oil. And they can and do often change the mix or percentage of ZDDP or any other compound at the drop of a hat. BE SURE that your purchased oil has a current tech sheet that matches the rating on the bottle's top and/or is current within the year of the tech sheet.

It would be really cool to develop say a ZDDP test strip that actually shows the percentage of said compound in a particular bottle. That ain't gonna happen though!

[Toppa]

bought the VR1, still waiting for my concrete to install my auto lift. then i will pull of the pan and have a look for the oilpump. dont want to buy new parts without an diagnosis...