Hours on a mower

[jcworks]

That is not too many hours for that engine but i would definitely use oil made for small engines because most of them have added zinc and i believe automotive oil does not

MowerNick, thanks. Yes, I have about decided that. I've always used just regular oil off the shelf....good brands of course. But, I think I'll pay the higher price for the mower oil and not have to be concerned. Since its a Kawasaki engine I'll likely just bite the bullet and buy Kawasaki brand 10w40. I'm in the Deep South so I'll just go with the 10w40. If they offer just straight 40w I think I would just do that; but as someone here mentioned its hard to find that.

 

[jcworks]

Well actually I do .
I studied oils as part of an undergraduate course then again in a couple of post graduate diplomas.
I have broken them down physically & chemically
I was part of the team who originally initiated X-Ray diffraction of used oil to work out the actual alloys that were in the oil, their particle size and percentages then this was plotted agains the actual measured wear during prescribed tear downs for inspection on defence helicopter engines & from this work whole new set of maintenance proceedures were derived with substantially longer operational hours between strip downs
Back then those with lots of brass buttons thought it was all some sort of hocus pocus but after the team predicted 6 engine failures almost to the minute they took notice
Then later did some work with Bel-Ray lubricants working on variations of their blends of motorcycle oils.
So yes I do have a far better understanding of oils than the average Face Book hero who has read the sides of one too many bottles of oil or opened a couple of oil filters with a can opener .
And FWIW the last project I did with the Defence Standards Lab, renamed the Material Research Labs post Vietnam when anything military was considered dirty was to use Accoustic Emissions for the testing of pressure vessels and in particular artillery shell casings & hand held rocket but the lab got defunded, outside contracts were all cancelled so the team was disbanded .We were all head hunted to come to the USA to set up the work again but I had committments down here so I stayed put & went into foundry metallurgy then tertiary metallurgy before becoming a workers compensation risk so went into transport & finally mower repair .
But in order to have an intelligent arguement with some one the other party needs to have an open mind and from the nature of your reply I seriously doubt that you fit that criteria
So you can take it or leave it I do not give a wrinkled rats rectum what you think

Bert, I had no idea you had done that. Thanks a bunch. You've gone to lengths to help out with previous questions I had [especially my question about the hydros if you recall]. That was a huge help. As for my next oil, I'm thinking I'll just bite the bullet and pay a couple dollars more at next oil change (end of season) and go with Kawasaki 10w40. What do you think on that? I assume their oil at the dealer will be a "mower oil". I'm thinking 10w40 because the manual OKs that in the high temps we have in Alabama.
'

 

[bertsmobile1]

I rarely mention the "previous life" a people should read what is written then independently verify rather than taking anything read as gospel truth.
I can ( and have ) been just as wrong as the next man but my science background makes me appreciate when I am proven to be wrong .
Science is nothing more than the best explaination that we can postulate with the information &/or technology at the time .
So as our understanding changes so do the "facts" .
This is why I have no signature line .
Academic qualification do not mean you are always correct
There were real scientists who said smoking was good for you and funny enough some of the same ones are now saying climate change is a hoax ,
Very few people understand oils and I do not claim to be an expert either , there are a swathe of specialist courses up to Phd level specific to oil.
they understand I just know enough to sort the BS from the facts
There was not much on the tele tonight so I went back & added a few links to the previous reply that you might like to check out .
There used to be a site out of Germany called "The Oil University" or some thing like that along the same lines as "the Battery University " that I was trying to find a ink for so readers other than RevB could read & expand their understanding but I can not find it .
It is amazing how may people will argue black & blue that "detergent oils" clean dirty old engines because they saw it on a TV commercial

 

[SamB]

And as previously mentioned
I do not give a wrinkled rats rectum
If you want to believe there is no difference in the additive packages blended into different oils so car and mower oils are all the same just having different coloured dies in them to make them look different so it is all a scam then you are welcome to your beliefs .
I no longer get paid to educate people
And it is good not to take anything read on line as 100% gospel truth .
the information is there if you want to find it there are a lot of oil blenders who will be delighted to explain the differences in great detail and of course why their oil is better than brand X oil
Kohler put a very superficial explaination on You Tube Car Vs mower oil and if you do their certification course there is a more detailed explaination .
Noria ( a company I may or may not have had an association with in the past ) is a specialist industrial plant management company that specializes in fluids ( Lubricants, cutting fluids , oils & greases ) who put out an excellent range of publications that are now mostly on line and have a comprehensive set of publications as well as training courses
On other forums I have used their E-Zine Machinery Lubrication to explain the difference between Detergents & Dispersants which thanks to You Tube idiots now seem to be interchangable , although Detergents are dispersants but dispersants are not detergents and neither of them actually clean a dirty engine , that is the job of solvents & alkanizers
I think it was Simon & Garfunkel who sang "A man hears what he wants to hear & disregards the rest "
And this is generally the mind set of those who come out with a simple "Prove it" and no matter what is said or done they will neither listen nor try to understand.
Some one who want to know will say "Please explain"
After all there is almost 1/3 of the US population believe President Trump actually won the last election to the point some were willing to put their lives on the line to prove it .
There are people who believe that G5 phone towers caused Covid 19 and if you say otherwise they come at your with a "prove it"
And despite what is happening right now the climate change deniers still say "prove it "

And with this I shall bow out of this post as it is no longer serving any useful purpose and will very quickly degenerate into a slinging match .

Not to drag you back into the oil discussion, bertsmobile1, but I use the T6 in my OHC Ford non-cat converter 2.5 engine that holds 5 quarts. The oil comes in gallon containers, so I have some on hand after an oil change. It's no doubt overkill in the mowers , but I know Ford had a lot of issues with high wear on the cam and followers due to oil issues, so I use the T6. It's going on 300,000 miles so far.

 

[Tiger Small Engine]

Not to drag you back into the oil discussion, bertsmobile1, but I use the T6 in my OHC Ford non-cat converter 2.5 engine that holds 5 quarts. The oil comes in gallon containers, so I have some on hand after an oil change. It's no doubt overkill in the mowers , but I know Ford had a lot of issues with high wear on the cam and followers due to oil issues, so I use the T6. It's going on 300,000 miles so far.

You can lead a horse to water…but you can’t make him drink. Prove it.
Servicing one or two pieces of equipment a year versus hundreds often qualifies for more experience (in Disney Land). Please by all means, keep spending extra money for “mower oil.” This is the sort of thing that keeps the economy going.

 

[slomo]

You can lead a horse to water…but you can’t make him drink. Prove it.
Servicing one or two pieces of equipment a year versus hundreds often qualifies for more experience (in Disney Land). Please by all means, keep spending extra money for “mower oil.” This is the sort of thing that keeps the economy going.

T6 isn't mower oil, is it???? Shell T6 right?

 

[SamB]

T6 isn't mower oil, is it???? Shell T6 right?

Nope, not 'mower oil'. Full synthetic diesel engine oil. It's NOT compatible with catalytic converters, due to additives. Shell Rotella. T6 Recommended for vintage muscle cars.

 

[GrumpyCat]

It is amazing how may people will argue black & blue that "detergent oils" clean dirty old engines because they saw it on a TV commercial

I haven't seen it on TV but I will agree detergent motor oils will keep an engine clean, probably not do much to clean a dirty engine. If you disagree then I suggest you consider how dark used motor oil comes out of a diesel engine. This is soot, pure and simple, being kept in suspension by the detergent properties of the motor oil. Used diesel motor oil is nasty stuff to get on anything such as your hands or clothing.

 

[GrumpyCat]

Nope, not 'mower oil'. Full synthetic diesel engine oil. It's NOT compatible with catalytic converters, due to additives. Shell Rotella. T6 Recommended for vintage muscle cars.

T6 recently lost it's API gasoline engine S rating. The old T6 was a fantastic "fleet oil", equally good for gasoline and diesel engines. The new is not. The S rating had to be sacrificed to protect expensive diesel emissions equipment such as the DEF and SCR.

Guessing some of the chemistry for neutralizing gasoline combustion byproducts is still in the oil you buy today, but this is only a guess, and is certain to disappear in the future.

You think I am being a conspiracy theorist? In ancient times Mobil-1 decided their automotive oil would be a great product for the aviation market, at a much greater price of course. They made very few changes. Somehow got the oil certified (or self-certified). Then not long after aviation engines started failing prematurely on Aviation Mobil-1. Most aviation engines use leaded gasoline. Mobil-1 was not formulated to handle combustion byproducts from lead. Couldn't neutralize the acids formed or something like that. Mobil-1 bought a lot of new engines for pilots, and exited the market with tail tucked between their legs.

 

[SamB]

T6 recently lost it's API gasoline engine S rating. The old T6 was a fantastic "fleet oil", equally good for gasoline and diesel engines. The new is not. The S rating had to be sacrificed to protect expensive diesel emissions equipment such as the DEF and SCR.

Guessing some of the chemistry for neutralizing gasoline combustion byproducts is still in the oil you buy today, but this is only a guess, and is certain to disappear in the future.

You think I am being a conspiracy theorist? In ancient times Mobil-1 decided their automotive oil would be a great product for the aviation market, at a much greater price of course. They made very few changes. Somehow got the oil certified (or self-certified). Then not long after aviation engines started failing prematurely on Aviation Mobil-1. Most aviation engines use leaded gasoline. Mobil-1 was not formulated to handle combustion byproducts from lead. Couldn't neutralize the acids formed or something like that. Mobil-1 bought a lot of new engines for pilots, and exited the market with tail tucked between their legs.

Remember, I said "Diesel" T6, not T6 Multi engine. Two different oil formulations. T6 Diesel should not be used in any modern gasoline automobile/truck engines. As others have stated, STAY with your engine makers, B&S, Kawasaki, etc, recommended mower oil for peace of mind and warranty protection.