Oil selection and your clutch

[lather]

Why not use Rotella T6?

[thanks4thefish]

I usually do use T6 but the auto store only had 5 gallon buckets of the stuff so I went to get some Castrol 4T Racing and they were out of that. So on the advice of the sales guy I tried the Actevo. It got some advert saying it stays sticky to prevent dry starts as the oil stays up and not in the sump. I've been running T6 for many years now. I tend to change oil yearly then use the old oil on my chain saws.  Actevo is a JASO MÁ rated oil which is a high quality. I never have heard of it until I used it last week. I used a generic cheap oil filter that leaked badly and swapped it out for a KN filter which I should have gone with in the first place. 

[DavidS]

On 10/7/2023 at 5:32 AM, 2and3cylinders said:

Shell Rotella T6 5W-40 is also MA rated even though it's advertised as a diesel ⛽️ oil.

It's base stock is not PAO and 5W may sound thin but I ride down to 32F and never in 100,000s of miles have had an oil issue on a few bikes.

At $22 a gallon you can't beat its value! 

I have also been using Shell Rotella T6 for years, and wouldn't use anything else. I just took my bike to have a safety check at my local mechanic, and when I arrived he told me he replaced the oil as a courtesy. When I asked him what oil he used, I just replaced the oil with Rotella T6 when I got back home.....

[thanks4thefish]

What oil did you use to replace it?

 

[jthayer09]

My .02 on the Rotella T6 because I love the stuff. However, I haven't put it in the 2021 T9GT yet for a few reasons which I will get into.

T6 is cheap and great for winter, has high zinc content which leaves the engine clean. However as one poster pointed out it is a little bit more clunky when shifting compared to normal synthetic motorcycle oils.

I've also found it to be kind of fragile/thin, in that it shears down a weight after a few thousand miles and you can definitely feel the difference when it happens. T6 5W-40 is a synthetic class 3 oil and doesn't come from PAO; it is only able to be called "synthetic" for marketing purposes, and it does not carry a very good shear stability rating in many applications. This is fine for winter riding but shearing down from 40W to 30W is not what you want in the hot season.

I'm not bashing T6, it has gone in every bike of mine for the winter season for as long as I remember. However there has been some mumbling on forums about T6 damaging catalytic converters that seem to have only gotten worse since motorcycles are now on Euro 5. Admittedly most of this seems like speculation or anecdotal evidence from usage of Rotella in gasoline cars, but it is worth thinking about as EURO 5 bikes start saturating the market and we get into EURO 6.

As for why it hasn't gone into the my '21 T9 is less about the shortcomings of Rotella pointed out above and more to do with my local Family Farm & Home selling Mag1 full synthetic 10w-40 for $7/Quart. Mag1 comes with the JASO MA2 stamp on the bottle and is on the monthly published list of approved oils from the certifying organization.

If I still had a EURO 4 or older bike I'd dump T6 into it every winter without a second thought.

[2and3cylinders]

I said I ride in colder weather. So that's one advantage of the T6 and I change it about every 4000 miles. So sheer breakdown is not really an issue. For the money, you can't beat it.

[lather]

I did back to back oil analyses from Blackstone on 5W40 T6 and Motul most expensive full synthetic at about 6000 miles (on my 2008 Concours 14). The T6 did drop a bit in viscosity but not significantly. Blackstone said I could extend the change interval. The Motul held it viscosity better but the wear indicaters were fine for both. Now that Rotella comes in 15w40 I am fine with it year round. 

[2and3cylinders]

what's the issue with the 5W-40? In cold weather I'd be concerned with the 15W-40.

I have pushed my change intervals to 6k but not on my high mileage (over 60k) bikes; which coincidentally my 15 FJ now falls into 😉

[DavidS]

12 hours ago, thanks4thefish said:

What oil did you use to replace it?

 

Rotella T6

[Ride365]

Glad we all have multiple good choices, and today's oils are so superior to even anything from just 20 years ago. In saying that.......I will stick with PAO Ester synthetic motorcycle oil in my baby. The shifting quality clear up to the change interval with Motul/Belray I run is superior to any oil I have ever used in multiple motorcycles. Film retention is also "typically" superior with true synthetics as well, but any high quality non energy conserving car/truck oils are better than leaving even a synthetic in for extended intervals. To each their own, we overall have some great choices out there, however I don't look to save a buck or two on anything with my bikes.  

[2and3cylinders]

Which Belray oil do you like?

[Robber]

On 10/18/2023 at 10:07 AM, thanks4thefish said:

Not exactly about synthetic but semi-synthetic and my transmission whine. I tried the Actevo Castrol 10-40 and the (yeah I know your supposed to keep rev's up and all that) 6th gear whine has diminished by 90%. Wonyachdering if anyone has experienced this. I'm wondering if Dino oil on my next change will be even quieter?

I'm a marine engineer and we always do UOA (used oil analysis) and Rotella T6 in Diesel engines has the best viscosity longevity I have ever seen in some of those 1600 HP MTU engines. Like 400 hours and still protecting. We get it in 55 gallon drums. 

I was gonna do some oil experiments to cut down on that whine. You are talking about that one at around 45-55. So did you used synthetic or regular oil. I am running 10w40 mobile 4T synthetic and whine is annoying. 

[DavidS]

On 10/27/2023 at 5:08 AM, thanks4thefish said:

What oil did you use to replace it?

 

I replaced the unknown new oil they added at the shop with Rotella T6 - thats the only oil I use on my Tracer 900 gt

[Ride365]

21 hours ago, 2and3cylinders said:

Which Belray oil do you like?

I like this flavor very much, shifting quality may have lasted even a bit longer than the full synthetic Motul 7100 I mostly run. I have also noticed that clutch basket chatter in neutral with either of these oils is practically non existent, engine mechanical noises overall are very subdued. Yeah I pay a bit more over other excellent choices out there, but for me the benefits outweigh the price.  I used to run Mobil 1 4T exclusively in my last 2 bikes, that is another motorcycle specific oil that is very available at most popular autoparts stores. I live near one of the largest if not the largest motorcycle dealerships and accessory stores in the country "Iron Pony" so I have unfair access to so much that puts a strain on my wallet. 

 

[Heavy]

Man, I love Iron Pony.

Used to travel to the area a fair bit for work. 

Inventory and selection like you have never seen  anywhere.