Help me choose an oil! - Cub Cadet Riding Mower (Kohler KT745 26HP Twin)

I_Hate_CVTs said:
I guess I should look into how easy HPL is to get. Not sure about shipping costs to Canada, potential duties etc... it's a lot of hassle potentially to get that stuff. Has anyone else gotten HPL in Canada?
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Yes, you will get raped on shipping, there's no other way of describing it, due to the weight. Best bet, if you have somebody you know that lives in the US that visits (like I do with @Rand) then have it shipped to them and they can bring it up, or, if you are going stateside, you can pick it up.
 
OVERKILL said:
Yes, you will get raped on shipping, there's no other way of describing it, due to the weight. Best bet, if you have somebody you know that lives in the US that visits (like I do with @Rand) then have it shipped to them and they can bring it up, or, if you are going stateside, you can pick it up.
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Maybe there’s an UPS mailbox store near him on the south side? That should be cheaper than the shipping costs 🤣
 
OVERKILL said:
I think you mean extra ZDDP, it's the phosphorous that's the anti-wear additive, not the zinc.
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Even with shipping costs, I trust the HPL far over any shelf oil with a questionable zddp additive. Amsoil certainly makes a good Small Engine oil as well, and as you go down from there I would definitely shorten any service intervals to what the OM says at a maximum.

I ran the Amsoil for 140 hours in both the engine and hydros; the engine oil was darkened a little but still transparent, but the gear oil looked identical to when I poured it in. I’ll probably run the HPL til I hit 300 hours total, so around 150-some more hours. I probably won’t even change the hydros at that point unless I’m bored, since they’re kind of a pain.
 
SubieRubyRoo said:
Even with shipping costs, I trust the HPL far over any shelf oil with a questionable zddp additive. Amsoil certainly makes a good Small Engine oil as well, and as you go down from there I would definitely shorten any service intervals to what the OM says at a maximum.

I ran the Amsoil for 140 hours in both the engine and hydros; the engine oil was darkened a little but still transparent, but the gear oil looked identical to when I poured it in. I’ll probably run the HPL til I hit 300 hours total, so around 150-some more hours. I probably won’t even change the hydros at that point unless I’m bored, since they’re kind of a pain.
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And just a further note on the HPL Small Engine line, it has a very heavy treatment of antioxidants in it; if my understanding was correct this one is among the highest for all the HPL oils, specifically due to the harsh environment that small engines must work in. This is on top of the already impressive add pack that HPL uses.

But don’t take my enthusiasm the wrong way; there are certainly other oils that will serve you well and cost less. I prefer a little more cost up front to offset what could be massive costs later due to oil-related issues.
 
If you keep the oil clean and full with a reasonable quality off the shelf synthetic such as T6, Mobil 1, ect and keep up on all the other maintenance, that Cub Cadet will most likely be falling apart before the engine wears out.

How many sets of tires, mower decks and transmissions do you want the engine to last through?
 
OVERKILL said:
I think you mean extra ZDDP, it's the phosphorous that's the anti-wear additive, not the zinc.
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My bad. But the Amsoil, Toro and VP small engine oil does say zinc on the bottle.
A7824D0A-13EC-4631-A73D-CDB5952280B3.jpeg
 
Kohler 10w30 synthetic air cooled or Toro same weight. Toro is blue do you can see on stick and change every 50 hrs motor wil last forever. I’ve got 2000 on my Kohler using it. Need the air cooled for the additives they put in.
 
OVERKILL said:
Yes, the marketeers definitely wrote that, lol.

Is there a VOA to show how much phosphorous is "additive"? (IE, how much higher it is over your typical API PCMO)
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I don’t think so but I might be inclined to send a couple of samples in just to see how much different it is…..if any.
I have some Toro and some Amsoil small engine oil that I could have sampled. I’d love to get a Honda small engine oil VOA because that stuff is stupid expensive.
 
CarDoc66 said:
I don’t think so but I might be inclined to send a couple of samples in just to see how much different it is…..if any.
I have some Toro and some Amsoil small engine oil that I could have sampled. I’d love to get a Honda small engine oil VOA because that stuff is stupid expensive.
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Would definitely be interested to see that!
 
JeffChaseFan said:
Kohler 10w30 synthetic air cooled or Toro same weight. Toro is blue do you can see on stick and change every 50 hrs motor wil last forever. I’ve got 2000 on my Kohler using it. Need the air cooled for the additives they put in.
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Not sure how much difference it really makes. The guy in this thread:
Honda EU7000IS | Bob Is The Oil Guy

Has >7,400hrs on his Honda generator and he's just using some plain-Jane Synthetic 5W-30's in it. IIRC, Motul and Delo.
 
JeffChaseFan said:
Great oil! And I love the blue color to see on dipstick
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Yes, I use the full synthetic formula on my enclosed inverter generators because they do run hot…..and my new snow thrower too. The full syn is hard to find, I get it at Tractor Supply. The regular SAE30 I got on Amazon to break in my new engines this year. Two generators and the snow blower. Tractor Supply sells the full syn blue 10W-30 cheaper than I paid for the regular blue SAE30 on Amazon! Everyone must use it because it sells out fast.
 
OVERKILL said:
Not sure how much difference it really makes. The guy in this thread:
Honda EU7000IS | Bob Is The Oil Guy

Has >7,400hrs on his Honda generator and he's just using some plain-Jane Synthetic 5W-30's in it. IIRC, Motul and Delo.
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Well, because it’s a Honda!
My Generac 7000EXL has about 3000+ hrs on it running M1/10w-30 but thats a full pressure lube engine too. The new smaller inverter generators running Chinese Rato 79cc, 212cc, and 224cc engines don’t inspire me in terms of longevity. We will see, I have two 79’s and one 212cc generator that will be getting some hours camping this summer.
 
CarDoc66 said:
Well, because it’s a Honda!
My Generac 7000EXL has about 3000+ hrs on it running M1/10w-30 but thats a full pressure lube engine too. The new smaller inverter generators running Chinese Rato 79cc, 212cc, and 224cc engines don’t inspire me in terms of longevity. We will see, I have two 79’s and one 212cc generator that will be getting some hours camping this summer.
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He also has a large (in size, not output) Honda diesel generator, but that's the one that decided to die after a few hours that had him scrambling for a replacement backup unit.
 
Try Canadian Tire, they run sales every so often…

Any full synthetic diesel rated 5W-40 or or 0W-40…

General PDP Template

www.canadiantire.ca www.canadiantire.ca

If you have room, a Fram 3614 sized oil filter also fits, and an oversized 3600 size also works…
 
Contrary to popular belief you do not need high ZDDP in a small engine. Splash lubed, or pressure lubed, hydraulic lifters or not, it isn't needed. Yes, they have flat tappet cams, but the valve spring pressures are so low you can push the valves open with your hand. There is nothing special about Briggs, Kohler, Toro, or John Deere oils. There is nothing wrong with them, they are good oils, but don't pay more for a "special oil" for your small engine.

I service many different small engines, some for commercial mowing companies. Some of their mowers have 5000 hours on the cheapest Supertech or Quaker State oil they can get their hands on. Keep the oil full and change it often. I have a guy who swears by running 5w20 in all his machines for his business saying it saves fuel. I wouldn't do it in mine, but he has been doing it for 4+ years now with no issues, one machine has over 1200 hours.
 
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