Originally Posted By: bubbatime
Originally Posted By: sasilverbullet
2014, 22 H.P. Briggs & Stratton V-twin, High dust, high heat,
six hours mowing at a time every 3 weeks or so.
Briggs recently added the 15W50 recommendation for EXACTLY what you describe. Most folks run an engine for 30-40 minutes, so a 30 or 40 weight would be OK for them as the oil is still heating up for that short duration. And just so you are aware, Briggs recommended synthetic 5W30 for like 10 years straight. They never recommended 15W50, until about 18 months ago. Why? Because people were blowing up their engines and Briggs had to warranty them. They changed their recommendations, and correctly, added the 15W50 weight to the manual.
Running that engine for 6 hours straight at a time is going to really heat up the oil. I would run 20W50 in it (if you are cheap) or Mobil 1 15W50 if you are willing to spend a bit more on oil.
Don't be scared of the 50 weight. Its exactly what you need. Trust me on this.
From Briggs:
Small Engine Oil Type Recommendations:
-Use SAE 30 in warmer temperatures of 40° F and higher (5° C and higher).
-Use SAE 10W-30 for a varying temperature range of 0 to 100° F (-18 to 38° C), this grade of oil improves cold weather starting, but may increase oil consumption at 80° F(27° C) or higher.
-A synthetic oil SAE 5W-30 is the best for very cold temperatures of -20 to as high as 120° F (-30 to 40° C) providing the best protection at all temperatures as well as improved starting with less oil consumption.
-Use SAE 5W-30 for very cold temperatures of 40° F and below (5° C and below).
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For continuous-use, such as commercial lawn cutting or pressure washing, use Vanguard 15W-50 Oil (temperatures from 20°F to 130°F).
Things to keep in mind when choosing lawn mower oil:
-Use a high quality detergent oil classified "For Service SF, SG, SH, SJ" or higher.
-Do not use special additives.
-Synthetic oils are an acceptable oil at all temperatures. Use of synthetic oil does not alter required oil change intervals.
You said "people were blowing up their engines". We would like some info about that.