Redline V-Twin transmission oil
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It's just their regular Shockproof Heavy in a different bottle. I know a lot of BMW and Harley guys like it their transmissions. It's worked well for me in two BMWs.
I have used Shockproof Heavy in my BMW (Which call for 80W-90) for about 75k miles. I change it every 12k, and it comes out looking like it went in. Major improvement in shifting on the Beemer. Give it a try.
Yes, I have used it in several motorcycles. You can run it 25,000 miles in a Harley. But , I always liked BelRay 85w140 gear saver better.
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Finally got a chance to change the transmission oil out and went with the Red Line Shockproof. Went for a 50 mile ride today and the transmission shifts slightly smoother and seems to be slightly less clunky. Most transmissions shift better right after a drain and fill, so I'll see how it shifts after a couple thousand miles and decide whether to stay with the Red Line or try the BelRay, which was a close second of the oils I considered.
I have a TC-88 and I recently changed to redline in my trans. The oil looked so strange I called redline to verify that it was not defective. The rep assured me that the appearance was correct. At first I did not notice any difference but after about 100 miles the shifting improved dramatically. I will use nothing but redline in my trans. When I change my engine oil I still can not decide on Amsoil or Redline,,,, but that is for a different thread.
I had Belray in the trans and it was neither good or bad in performance.
I had Belray in the trans and it was neither good or bad in performance.
After having 7 Harleys I can honestly say I've never had a transmission failure, or Hard shifting because of the trans,Or even a leak. As long as you have some type of oil in the trans, you shouldn't either. Harley recommends their oils for the trans and they work. They're nothing special. The even say to use their Syn III in the trans. It has a GL-1 rating which is all that trans needs.I use auto part store oils. Pretty much any regular gear oil will have a Gl-5 rating which will also work without issue. Unless you have bent shift forks due to slamming it in gear like your trying to kill it, the trans will pretty much just click into gear. What makes the biggest difference in shifting is running a 10/40 or a 15/40 wt oil in the primary, It has enough grab so it won't slip, but not so much to cause that famous "Clunk" when going into first gear.Too heavy a primary oil even 20/50 wt can cause drag on the clutch plates and makes shifting feel like your not using the clutch when shifting.Or make shifting into neutral hard. I don't use designer brand name oils with catchy names like "shock proof" or "gear glide". To me that's like selling fishing lures. Some are designed to catch fish, some to catch fishermen.,,,
After putting a little over 200 miles on the Redline Shockproof, and changing the primary oil, [I decided to use the Harley Plus3 in the primary], I have noticed a big improvement in the shifting of my Harley. I feel it's a combination of fresh oil in the transmission and the primary, and using the highly regarded Shockproof in the transmission. It clicks into neutral very easy and I have yet to go past neutral into 2nd when trying to find neutral. We'll see how it works after some more miles but right now i'm pleased.
Originally Posted By: 4wheeldog
I have used Shockproof Heavy in my BMW (Which call for 80W-90) for about 75k miles. I change it every 12k, and it comes out looking like it went in. Major improvement in shifting on the Beemer. Give it a try.
I have a "new to me" BMW R1150RT and at this service interval I poured in M1.
I am very intrigued and will try the Redline tranny oil next.
I will say....that the M1 was a HUGE improvement in shifting and I am very pleased.
I have used Shockproof Heavy in my BMW (Which call for 80W-90) for about 75k miles. I change it every 12k, and it comes out looking like it went in. Major improvement in shifting on the Beemer. Give it a try.
I have a "new to me" BMW R1150RT and at this service interval I poured in M1.
I am very intrigued and will try the Redline tranny oil next.
I will say....that the M1 was a HUGE improvement in shifting and I am very pleased.
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Redline lubricants are top shelf. in my 2001 VW 5 spd manual with 99,xxx miles i was having serious shifting issues, put in redline MT-90, it was better, but wait! after another 1,000 miles it was a lot better!! mobil I is like the old gray mayor, extended performance is the only product using real synthetic PAO group IV oil, the rest like almost everyone else is group III highly refined crude oil!!
Originally Posted By: BigCahuna
After having 7 Harleys I can honestly say I've never had a transmission failure, or Hard shifting because of the trans,Or even a leak. As long as you have some type of oil in the trans, you shouldn't either. Harley recommends their oils for the trans and they work. They're nothing special. The even say to use their Syn III in the trans. It has a GL-1 rating which is all that trans needs.I use auto part store oils. Pretty much any regular gear oil will have a Gl-5 rating which will also work without issue. Unless you have bent shift forks due to slamming it in gear like your trying to kill it, the trans will pretty much just click into gear. What makes the biggest difference in shifting is running a 10/40 or a 15/40 wt oil in the primary, It has enough grab so it won't slip, but not so much to cause that famous "Clunk" when going into first gear.Too heavy a primary oil even 20/50 wt can cause drag on the clutch plates and makes shifting feel like your not using the clutch when shifting.Or make shifting into neutral hard. I don't use designer brand name oils with catchy names like "shock proof" or "gear glide". To me that's like selling fishing lures. Some are designed to catch fish, some to catch fishermen.,,,
Harley long since retracted their "syn3 in all 3 holes". They now recommend their trans fluid. The Syn3 didn't do well in transmissions and quite frankly all their oils are overpriced low performers but hey - it says harley davidson so it must be good lol. I have had 4 harleys, got 2 now and I run Redline products in them all. I use the V-twin oil, their trans and primary fluids and they simply work better than the harley products.
After having 7 Harleys I can honestly say I've never had a transmission failure, or Hard shifting because of the trans,Or even a leak. As long as you have some type of oil in the trans, you shouldn't either. Harley recommends their oils for the trans and they work. They're nothing special. The even say to use their Syn III in the trans. It has a GL-1 rating which is all that trans needs.I use auto part store oils. Pretty much any regular gear oil will have a Gl-5 rating which will also work without issue. Unless you have bent shift forks due to slamming it in gear like your trying to kill it, the trans will pretty much just click into gear. What makes the biggest difference in shifting is running a 10/40 or a 15/40 wt oil in the primary, It has enough grab so it won't slip, but not so much to cause that famous "Clunk" when going into first gear.Too heavy a primary oil even 20/50 wt can cause drag on the clutch plates and makes shifting feel like your not using the clutch when shifting.Or make shifting into neutral hard. I don't use designer brand name oils with catchy names like "shock proof" or "gear glide". To me that's like selling fishing lures. Some are designed to catch fish, some to catch fishermen.,,,
Harley long since retracted their "syn3 in all 3 holes". They now recommend their trans fluid. The Syn3 didn't do well in transmissions and quite frankly all their oils are overpriced low performers but hey - it says harley davidson so it must be good lol. I have had 4 harleys, got 2 now and I run Redline products in them all. I use the V-twin oil, their trans and primary fluids and they simply work better than the harley products.
Their most current bottle of syn III still says it can be used in their transmissions.Here ya go. http://www.harley-davidson.com/store/syn...-12-62600005--1
Originally Posted By: BigCahuna
Their most current bottle of syn III still says it can be used in their transmissions.Here ya go. http://www.harley-davidson.com/store/syn...-12-62600005--1
And it's junk. Never will I use syn 3 in my Harley b
Redline forever.
Their most current bottle of syn III still says it can be used in their transmissions.Here ya go. http://www.harley-davidson.com/store/syn...-12-62600005--1
And it's junk. Never will I use syn 3 in my Harley b
Redline forever.
Why do you say its junk? They must have sold several boatloads of it over the years, and if it was causing any problems I'm sure they would have dropped it from their product line. I don't use it because I feel it's overpriced. But, if it could be had for the price I pay for gear oil, I'd use it.,,
Originally Posted By: BigCahuna
Why do you say its junk? They must have sold several boatloads of it over the years, and if it was causing any problems I'm sure they would have dropped it from their product line. I don't use it because I feel it's overpriced. But, if it could be had for the price I pay for gear oil, I'd use it.,,
I wasn't trying to be disrespectful. I apologize if I came off that way.
K. I've used syn 3 thinking oh it's harley so it must be Gods gift to my bike. So I rode with a clunky tranny,a hammer going into first,you know the drill.
When I significantly increased the power output these "qualities" became unbearable so on a whim I tried redline shockproof heavy.
Almost immediately the tranny didn't clunk anymore,it shifted smoothly. It was like the tranny finally operated like it should have.
So I suffered for 10000 miles with syn 3. It's been 30000 miles now with shockproof heavy and I feel it's my duty as a harley owner to inform other harley owners that there is a better way,and a better product.
And harley now says to use formula+ and not syn 3 in the tranny,regardless of what the bottle says.
Why do you say its junk? They must have sold several boatloads of it over the years, and if it was causing any problems I'm sure they would have dropped it from their product line. I don't use it because I feel it's overpriced. But, if it could be had for the price I pay for gear oil, I'd use it.,,
I wasn't trying to be disrespectful. I apologize if I came off that way.
K. I've used syn 3 thinking oh it's harley so it must be Gods gift to my bike. So I rode with a clunky tranny,a hammer going into first,you know the drill.
When I significantly increased the power output these "qualities" became unbearable so on a whim I tried redline shockproof heavy.
Almost immediately the tranny didn't clunk anymore,it shifted smoothly. It was like the tranny finally operated like it should have.
So I suffered for 10000 miles with syn 3. It's been 30000 miles now with shockproof heavy and I feel it's my duty as a harley owner to inform other harley owners that there is a better way,and a better product.
And harley now says to use formula+ and not syn 3 in the tranny,regardless of what the bottle says.
I used SYn3 in my Sportster...worked fine. But in the trans on my TC88 BelRay 85w140 seemed to be the best.
Originally Posted By: Clevy
Originally Posted By: BigCahuna
Why do you say its junk? They must have sold several boatloads of it over the years, and if it was causing any problems I'm sure they would have dropped it from their product line. I don't use it because I feel it's overpriced. But, if it could be had for the price I pay for gear oil, I'd use it.,,
I wasn't trying to be disrespectful. I apologize if I came off that way.
K. I've used syn 3 thinking oh it's harley so it must be Gods gift to my bike. So I rode with a clunky tranny,a hammer going into first,you know the drill.
When I significantly increased the power output these "qualities" became unbearable so on a whim I tried redline shockproof heavy.
Almost immediately the tranny didn't clunk anymore,it shifted smoothly. It was like the tranny finally operated like it should have.
So I suffered for 10000 miles with syn 3. It's been 30000 miles now with shockproof heavy and I feel it's my duty as a harley owner to inform other harley owners that there is a better way,and a better product.
And harley now says to use formula+ and not syn 3 in the tranny,regardless of what the bottle says.
I didn't take anything you said as being disrespectful, no need to apologize. I know Harley has sold their "Formula" oil for a while, and offered Syn III as a alternative trans oil. Sorta like they offer HD 360 motor oil and Syn III as an alternative oil. I've heard several people say that Harley doesn't recommend their syn III for transmissions. I've searched and can't find an official statement from Harley, or a Service bulletin stating that. Could you direct me to one if you know of it.,,,
Originally Posted By: BigCahuna
Why do you say its junk? They must have sold several boatloads of it over the years, and if it was causing any problems I'm sure they would have dropped it from their product line. I don't use it because I feel it's overpriced. But, if it could be had for the price I pay for gear oil, I'd use it.,,
I wasn't trying to be disrespectful. I apologize if I came off that way.
K. I've used syn 3 thinking oh it's harley so it must be Gods gift to my bike. So I rode with a clunky tranny,a hammer going into first,you know the drill.
When I significantly increased the power output these "qualities" became unbearable so on a whim I tried redline shockproof heavy.
Almost immediately the tranny didn't clunk anymore,it shifted smoothly. It was like the tranny finally operated like it should have.
So I suffered for 10000 miles with syn 3. It's been 30000 miles now with shockproof heavy and I feel it's my duty as a harley owner to inform other harley owners that there is a better way,and a better product.
And harley now says to use formula+ and not syn 3 in the tranny,regardless of what the bottle says.
I didn't take anything you said as being disrespectful, no need to apologize. I know Harley has sold their "Formula" oil for a while, and offered Syn III as a alternative trans oil. Sorta like they offer HD 360 motor oil and Syn III as an alternative oil. I've heard several people say that Harley doesn't recommend their syn III for transmissions. I've searched and can't find an official statement from Harley, or a Service bulletin stating that. Could you direct me to one if you know of it.,,,
OEM branded lubes are notorious, pricey underperformers. The consensus here is that Red Line Oil Shockproof offers a dramtic improvement? I'm not at all surprised.
Doesn't Shockproof have suspended (not soluble) moly in the formula? A LOT of it? That'll smooth out anything ... provided you don't have clutches or any other friction-senstive mechanism to worry about.
Doesn't Shockproof have suspended (not soluble) moly in the formula? A LOT of it? That'll smooth out anything ... provided you don't have clutches or any other friction-senstive mechanism to worry about.
I've always heard it has suspended teflon in it. I had some lightweight shockproof in my trans gearbox a couple years ago.
It's terrible stuff to completely get rid of. Had to fill the trans with solvent and run with no load to completely get it out. This was after a fill of the regular redline MT.
It's terrible stuff to completely get rid of. Had to fill the trans with solvent and run with no load to completely get it out. This was after a fill of the regular redline MT.
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