smartguyz
Gold Member
- Joined
- Mar 16, 2003
- Messages
- 488
- Location
- Beaverton, Oregon
- Tractor
- JD318, Power-Trac PT425 with scuffed-up green paint.
Hi guys - I occasionally read other forums, and there was a thread on synthetic oils (I know - there have been more than a few), and I was thinking of my PT adventures (I am up to 32 hours as of yesterday). I wanted to solicit any maintenance advice from you guys - my PT gets FILTY dirty during hard work. I am copying my response to a thread on 'synth oil' in GardenWeb. Your feedback is welcome:
------- Start copied response to synth oil flame wars. -----
My opinion is that under normal conditions, it is frequently seen that conventional oils do fine, as they have for decades. It is under abnormal conditions that I think that synthetics would be better. For example, one must consider when greater lubricity, resistance to breakdown, etc. would actually make a difference. I submit that it makes sense when these conditions are encountered, which would be under severe wear or abnormal conditions.
My buddy Ron's sentiments are that if you change oil very regularly in your car (every 2500 miles), and you don't encounter severe conditions, then it won't make a difference when you go to sell the car - the resale value will be similar. The difference would be if the car underwent severe service, or if an oil change was missed, or if you were towing something, etc. - something out of the ordinary which would promote damage. If the car had a history of severe repairs, then your resale would go down. I agree.
With tractors, I find that 'severe service' is much more the norm. Although I take very good care of my equipment, it is not unusual (while brush-hogging, for example), to encounter really adverse conditions that my car would probably never see - going up steep grades with a full load, massive amounts of dust while grinding up brush, pushing against very heavy piles of vegetation/rocks/dirt, scrambling up uneven terrain while moving a heavy load - this is the normal day for my tractor. When I'm done at the end of a long day, my tractor is frequently FILTY - I mean, there is grass, dust, mud, weeds, and countless other slop all over the poor thing (not to mention yours truly). I always take the detergent, pressure washer, and power blower out and spend an hour cleaning it off. If it's been a really long day (say 8-10 hours in the saddle), then I also do the routine maintenance, including greasing zerks, spraying lube on the linkages, drying off rust-prone areas. I then pull the air filter and clean the pre-filter, which is usually completely coated with dirt and junk. I clear the cooling fins on the engine.
It is fair to say that given this treatment, it is entirely possible that dirt and glop might enter the engine. Contaminants could have entered the gas line through the vent of the tank. Certainly by-products of combustion are in the oil. I cannot think of a good reason to leave any oil, synthetic or not, in the crankcase longer than recommended, regardless of its superiority.
I always exceed the mfg. recommendations for maintenance, and use the best quality of product I can afford. I have never had a piece of quality equipment let me down as a result.
So, I would NOT go with fewer changes, synthetic or not, I would use the best OEM or equivalent filter materials, and I would maintain maintain maintain. I'll see you the next time you've spent 10 hours continous on the tractor with a brush hog, a bucket, and a dirty, steep field. My tractor (God willing) and I will be there to greet you wearing our coat of dust and glop, properly maintained.
Thanks for listening,
Rob /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
------- Start copied response to synth oil flame wars. -----
My opinion is that under normal conditions, it is frequently seen that conventional oils do fine, as they have for decades. It is under abnormal conditions that I think that synthetics would be better. For example, one must consider when greater lubricity, resistance to breakdown, etc. would actually make a difference. I submit that it makes sense when these conditions are encountered, which would be under severe wear or abnormal conditions.
My buddy Ron's sentiments are that if you change oil very regularly in your car (every 2500 miles), and you don't encounter severe conditions, then it won't make a difference when you go to sell the car - the resale value will be similar. The difference would be if the car underwent severe service, or if an oil change was missed, or if you were towing something, etc. - something out of the ordinary which would promote damage. If the car had a history of severe repairs, then your resale would go down. I agree.
With tractors, I find that 'severe service' is much more the norm. Although I take very good care of my equipment, it is not unusual (while brush-hogging, for example), to encounter really adverse conditions that my car would probably never see - going up steep grades with a full load, massive amounts of dust while grinding up brush, pushing against very heavy piles of vegetation/rocks/dirt, scrambling up uneven terrain while moving a heavy load - this is the normal day for my tractor. When I'm done at the end of a long day, my tractor is frequently FILTY - I mean, there is grass, dust, mud, weeds, and countless other slop all over the poor thing (not to mention yours truly). I always take the detergent, pressure washer, and power blower out and spend an hour cleaning it off. If it's been a really long day (say 8-10 hours in the saddle), then I also do the routine maintenance, including greasing zerks, spraying lube on the linkages, drying off rust-prone areas. I then pull the air filter and clean the pre-filter, which is usually completely coated with dirt and junk. I clear the cooling fins on the engine.
It is fair to say that given this treatment, it is entirely possible that dirt and glop might enter the engine. Contaminants could have entered the gas line through the vent of the tank. Certainly by-products of combustion are in the oil. I cannot think of a good reason to leave any oil, synthetic or not, in the crankcase longer than recommended, regardless of its superiority.
I always exceed the mfg. recommendations for maintenance, and use the best quality of product I can afford. I have never had a piece of quality equipment let me down as a result.
So, I would NOT go with fewer changes, synthetic or not, I would use the best OEM or equivalent filter materials, and I would maintain maintain maintain. I'll see you the next time you've spent 10 hours continous on the tractor with a brush hog, a bucket, and a dirty, steep field. My tractor (God willing) and I will be there to greet you wearing our coat of dust and glop, properly maintained.
Thanks for listening,
Rob /forums/images/graemlins/grin.gif
