Why not use OW-x all the time? (Indian Chief owner

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Originally Posted By: SkipII


I have an Indian Chief Vintage, which is notorious for having a sticky gearbox when cold, and it is because the clutch plates get gummed up with cold oil in the first few minutes of operation. (Indian Thunderstroke engines have a shared sump with engine and gearbox, so they do want a specific motorcycle oil that does not have the friction inhibitors,but that seems separate than viscosity).

As well, if Bob is correct (and I think he is!), why do manufacturers persist in recommending 10W or even 20W (in the caae of Polaris/Indian) if the science shows that flow rate is too sluggish? And why does Indian (or others) recommend a blend?


Your over thinking things. The answer to your question is the manufacturer (Polaris) knows better then "Bob" who is nothing more then some stranger posting information on the internet.
Polaris designed and built your engine, they know best and want your engine to last as long as possible.
AS far as "blends" in fully synthetic oils (which is simply highly refined conventional oils) some good compounds are removed from the conventional oil when its refined into "synthetic" but additives are added back in to make up for the loss.
Yet, unlike some other thinking, there are some good qualities of conventional oil and with a blend you get both worlds.
Bottom line, both types of oils have good qualities, just because an oil is labeled synthetic does not mean there will be less wear. By the question you posted, it sounds like you are convinced your engine would experience less wear if you used synthetic oil, that is untrue.
 
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Originally Posted By: alarmguy
Originally Posted By: SkipII


I have an Indian Chief Vintage, which is notorious for having a sticky gearbox when cold, and it is because the clutch plates get gummed up with cold oil in the first few minutes of operation. (Indian Thunderstroke engines have a shared sump with engine and gearbox, so they do want a specific motorcycle oil that does not have the friction inhibitors,but that seems separate than viscosity).

As well, if Bob is correct (and I think he is!), why do manufacturers persist in recommending 10W or even 20W (in the caae of Polaris/Indian) if the science shows that flow rate is too sluggish? And why does Indian (or others) recommend a blend?


Your over thinking things. The answer to your question is the manufacturer (Polaris) knows better then "Bob" who is nothing more then some stranger posting information on the internet.
Polaris designed and built your engine, they know best and want your engine to last as long as possible.
AS far as "blends" in fully synthetic oils (which is simply highly refined conventional oils) some good compounds are removed from the conventional oil when its refined into "synthetic" but additives are added back in to make up for the loss.
Yet, unlike some other thinking, there are some good qualities of conventional oil and with a blend you get both worlds.
Bottom line, both types of oils have good qualities, just because an oil is labeled synthetic does not mean there will be less wear. By the question you posted, it sounds like you are convinced your engine would experience less wear if you used synthetic oil, that is untrue.


If you paid close attention to the automotive world, you would know that engineers do not always know best what to put in your engine and for how long. If they did, we would not have had lawsuits over prematurely failed engines due to sludge buildup. They (the engineers) may have the best intentions, but they are people, and hence fallible. I know if I followed my owners manual for my Toyota, I'd likely be replacing my transmission soon. That "lifetime fluid" really only holds up for 40k. So instead of having it serviced every 100k miles, I do it every 30k because that is what UOA's tell me is best.

You can trust them, but verify.
 
10w30 and 10w40 are a nice oil for driving a shared sump bike home from the dealership and dumping it to put in GOOD oil.
the spread on these (and 10w50 and even more 10w60) is so great that the VIIs cant cope with a shared sump and you end up with 2 or 3 grades out in a short order
same goes for 5w40...a great non-shared sump oil but just does not hold up in a shared sump. for daily drivers.

now, if you have a race bike, with sponsors and are doing frequent tear downs AND dumping the oil every moto/race then sure use 0w10 and get that extra 0.5hp
 
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