Break-in method and oil choices - new snowblower

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I recently purchased a 24in. 2-stage Murray snowblower with the 5hp Tecumseh "Snow-King" engine. Per the engine manual the oil is supposed to be changed after the first 2 hours of operation and then every 25 hours of operation or seasonally.

No snow yet, but I wanted to get through the initial 2 hours and get the oil changed before the snow season hit us hard.

I ran the engine for a total of 1 hour broken up into 20min segments over the course of a couple of days "unloaded" and varying the throttle.

Then I ran the engine for 1 hour once again broken into 20min segments over the course of one day "loaded" (I tied down the handle that engages the auger). I ran the engine loaded at 1/3, 2/3, and full throttle over those 3 20min blocks of time.

Changed the oil out last night. That was some nasty looking garbage. Dark grey, kind of milky looking with plenty of bits of shiny metal in it.

Oil capacity is 21 ounces. I dumped 1/2 a quart of Havoline 5w30 I had laying around from summer into the crankcase, let it sit for a bit and pulled the drain plug again. Flushed out quite a bit more garbage. Finally I poured the other 1/2 quart straight through the engine (no plug in) and it was finally running out clean and with no metal shavings.

I filled it up with the new 5w30 TropArtic "synblend" that is showing up at retailers now. Meets SM/GF-4.

So any thoughts on my "break in" proceedures, choice of oil and when it should be changed next?
 
I have used Mobil 1 5w30 for 15 years in my small engines (summer and winter) with no problems. Some on this board suggest 10w30 full synthetic is better.
 
I have that same motor on an MTD snowblower I bought for my parents 3 years ago. For break in, I just let my stepfather use it for one snow, and ran it to make up approximately two hours. I now have 5w-30 Valvoline Synpower(sp). I am going to go by hours used and color of oil. Of course, after the first year my parents went to Arizona for the winter and missed the big snows. I am very impressed with the engine. starts first time, every time.
 
The manual on mine recommended synthethic 0W30 so I put Castrol GC in it, I use Mobile 1 5W30 in my mower and edger. Snowblower runs great. I guess most snowblowers have snow king engines. Make sure you stock up on shear bolts and grease the fittings after reinstall.
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Not much snow in Iowa? You would never get by with a 5hp here.

I have a 12hp Ariens with 36" cut, electric start with on-board 12-volt battery. MSRP was $2595 back in 1999. Still it seem too small for the amount out snow we get. >200 inch's annually.

btw
I have always used Amsoil synthetic 5W-30 in mine with oil change every other year. Never wore out a engine yet in 30 yrs, this is my 3 rd Ariens. Mine has a Tecumseh engine. Back in 1968 I worked in the die-cast foundry for Tecumseh in Sheboygan Falls, WIS. It was a dirty job (was repair man's assist) and only lasted there about 3 months, the smell got to me.

[ December 09, 2004, 01:22 PM: Message edited by: Mike ]
 
I've gotten by just fine for the last 5 years with my 5hp 24" 2 stage Craftsman (probably the exact same thing as the Murray) here in Minnesnowta. I've yet to use a spare shear pin
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, and I do at least 2 neighbors driveways while I'm at it.
 
Err.....do you guys suggest a break in oil change for my Honda HS-520AS single stage snow blower that's being shipped to me (hopefully to arrive sometime next week).

I was just planning to run it until it had about 30-50 hours on it and then change the oil.

I was planning to fill it up with GC and a dash of LC ..it takes a bit over half a quart (21 oz of oil).
 
Chefwong, I would never run a new piece of small power equipment for 30 to 50 hours on its initial oil fill.

Your owners manual will probably specify something similar to mine for a maintenance schedule:
- initial 2 hours of operation: change oil
- every 25 hours or seasonally change oil

The reason you want to change the oil after the first few hours is because all the break in material (metal flakes/shavings) will be setting in that initial oil fill after the first hour or two of operation.

Go by the owners manual for the first oil change schedule and after that, then if you choose to go with a syn I'd say just change it once a year.

However, as a safe route, I'd suggest changing the oil after the first 2 hours and then again after the second 2 hours of operation cheap dino. Then run it for another couple of hours and switch to syn if thats the route you choose to go.

It's only going to cost you about $3 for the first couple of oil changes since these machines typically hold less than 1qt.
 
Actually the owners manual doesn't state anything about changing the oil during break in . They have a matrix chart suggesting changing it every 25 hours of use. With that in mind, I'd love to get some feedback.

Single Stage Honda HS-520 Snowblower (4 Stroke Honda GC160 Engine). Should I just run Havoline 5W30 for the first season, change the oil and then fillerup with Syn and then oil out after 25 hours of use ? I don't expect more than 3-4 hours of use on this unit yearly. Or as Forkman recommends, 2 dino changes at 2 hrs each and ten yearly synthetic changes. It's not a matter of $$ if I'm changing the synthetic, but would it be wasterful/overkill if I'm only putting 3-4 hrs tops on the machine yearly .
 
Forkman, I think you did the right thing by breaking in your motor as you did. The only thing I would have done differently is I would have run that 2nd batch of oil for at least an hour or two before dumping it. I’d want to circulate it some before draining it.

Having no 10W-30 on hand, I recently bought a quart of Pennzoil High Mileage Vehicle 10W-30 for our brand new Ariens 11528 (11.5hp Tecumseh, 28” cut) which suggests the exact same break-in procedures you described. Nice machine, I guess, but for what we use it for and the amount of snow this area usually gets, it’s on the small side.
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Our Ariens only has about an hour on it so far and the oil still looks perfectly clear ... maybe the ugly stuff is at the bottom of the sump and only visible during a hot drain?
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I think I will save that Pennzoil HMV for later and buy 1 quart of Havoline or some other less expensive oil (even Supertech?) for use for the first fill as I plan to leave that stuff in for only a handful of hours as well.

The only other thing I’m doing differently is running a little Neutra and/or MMO in my first few tanks of gasoline. Hopefully, this will make the upper cylinder break-in go just that much smoother.
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--- Bror Jace
 
I have a Toro 2-stage (B&S 8hp) that I bought back in 1994. It's a quality machine which cost $1400 back then. I think Toro has cheapened them up a bit since then.
I changed to Mobil 1 right away and have used nothing else since. I change the oil once a year in the Spring. It doesn't get a lot of use and in fact some years it has not been used at all. Yet it always starts easily, sometimes even on the first pull. It runs great too. I can't see not using synthetic for this application, since the cost is minimal.
 
I was at the local JD/Ariens dealer and a customer was asking about break-in on a new machine. After the guy left, he told me that when he preps them, he runs the engine wide open for 30 minutes before he delivers them. That way he knows there are no problems to come back on, it they hold up for 30 minutes, they will last. I know when I purchased a Honda Lawn mover they would not let me take in the crate but insisted on running before I took it. So these engines likly have some run time on them before the customer gets it.
 
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