schaeffers or ?

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I have an 2002 ford f350 with the 7.3 has about 74,000 miles on it have owned it since new have been running schaeffers 15/40 in it the last few oil changes seems to like it but it is expensive around $28.00 a gallon,I can get the Rotela T6 15/40 for around 20 at the local wal mart or I can get the amsoil oe 15/40 for around the same price as the schaeffers.
I only change the oil once a year don't drive it much and been using the wix 51734xe oil filter because we get them cheap through work.trying decide what to use this time.
Has anyone tried the rotella 15/40 in a 7.3? or should I just stick with what I have been using.
 
There is nothing wrong with Rotella T6 5w 40. Rotella has rebates Schaeffer's has never had a rebate I've seen. 74,000 miles isn't that much on a truck that age. You will make it just fine on Rotella for a year. My last Rotella T6 went 19 months with low OCI miles.
 
your talking pocket change!! why so many discuss a few bucks is beyond me!! so much $$$$ is foolishly spent on unhealthy habits so use whetever you like.
 
Originally Posted by benjy
your talking pocket change!! why so many discuss a few bucks is beyond me!! so much $$$$ is foolishly spent on unhealthy habits so use whetever you like.


LOL its another thing if your getting something for the extra dollars in not its a waste and you've been taken advantage of.
 
Schaefer's is great stuff. Rotella is fine and proven oil too. I'd likely argue Schaefer's is probably a better blend of higher quality stuff, if you're a PAO nut, but that is speculative, and you might not ever see an actual longevity increase in reality.

So there's two ways to look at this:
1) because the truck gets so little use, it's not ever going to wear out and so use what's cheap and convenient.
2) because the truck gets so little use, buying a higher end oil really is not a costly consideration that makes much difference.

Since you don't drive it much, I'd probably go Schaefer's since it supposedly uses Antimony which is a good add to combat corrosion and other bad conditions, and then use UOA to verify that you can change it every other year.
 
Agree with a two year interval with Schaeffer Oil. (Two Fs in Schaeffer guys) Makes sense with the low usage and a UOA.
thumbsup2.gif
 
Originally Posted by JHZR2
Schaefer's is great stuff. Rotella is fine and proven oil too. I'd likely argue Schaefer's is probably a better blend of higher quality stuff, if you're a PAO nut, but that is speculative, and you might not ever see an actual longevity increase in reality.

So there's two ways to look at this:
1) because the truck gets so little use, it's not ever going to wear out and so use what's cheap and convenient.
2) because the truck gets so little use, buying a higher end oil really is not a costly consideration that makes much difference.

Since you don't drive it much, I'd probably go Schaefer's since it supposedly uses Antimony which is a good add to combat corrosion and other bad conditions, and then use UOA to verify that you can change it every other year.


I always look as Schaefers as a Group 3 company. Do they have a high PAO oil?
 
Originally Posted by Mainia


I always look as Schaefers as a Group 3 company. Do they have a high PAO oil?


Does it really matter? Group III has many qualities that meet Group IV PAO, and even exceed Group IV PAO in some ways. So the idea that Schaeffer likes to do a Group III (75%) and Group IV (25%) in most of their full syn motor oils is not really a bad thing, but actually a positive in some ways.

https://www.machinerylubrication.com/Read/533/base-oil-trends

https://www.machinerylubrication.com/Read/31106/polyalphaolefin-pao-lubricants

The main thing that PAO offers over Group III is thermal oxidative stability. A quality Group III has higher lubricity than PAO, has better additive solubility, and comes very close in viscosity index and pour point.

I have had very good results with Schaeffer syn blend which is 75% Group II+ and 25% Group IV PAO. Just ask my Detroit 60 12.7L with 1,046, 240 miles on it, is still all original except for water pump and air compressor, and only uses about 1 qt of oil in 11-12,000 miles. Still works every day.
 
Thanks guys will probably just stick with the schaeffers going to send off a sample to get tested just got the sample bottle from blackstone today, I have around 3,700 miles on the oil now and it has been in there since last October.
 
I used to have a 2002 F350 with the 7.3 as well. The 7.3 was in my opinion the best motor International made for these trucks. Mine only had about 131,000 when I got rid of it. Mechanically (Motor, Trans and Differentials) it ran great, loved the truck. The issue I had was the rust around the inner rear fenders, rocker panels and bottom of the inner doors. Had the rust fixed I thought but it returned a year or so later. I hated to get rid of the truck but because of the rust I had to.

When I had my 7.3, I thought the pol and filter were super easy to change. I used Delo 15w40, Shell Rotella 15w40 but mostly the Motor Craft 15w40 purchased at WM (3 Jugs in the 5 Quart Containers along with the Motor Craft FL1995 Oil Filter). The oil filter although pretty big was super easy to get to as you know. I would loosen it just a little then use a Sharpe Steel Punch to puncture the bottom of the oil filter to let the oil filter drain before removing it with no mess to deal with. The oil filter held well over a quart of oil as you know. Although the 7.3 held 15 Quarts of oil, it was a breeze to do the oil and filter changes. The Motor Craft 15w40 was/is a great oil as well. t was made for Ford by Conoco-Phillips specifically designed to work well with the HPOP ( High Pressure Oil Pump) that drive the Injectors in the 7.3 as the 7.3 was noted for sheering some brands of oil early on.

Looking back on it, I wouldn't have an issue using the Rotella T6 5w40 in the 7.3, it is really a good oil. I use the Rotella T6 5w40 in my 2011 Ram 3500 Cummins, no issues at all. As a matter of fact, I am the member of the Shell Rotella Website which allows you to cash in on Shell Products and other Merchandise on their website.

Much continued success with your 2002 F350 with the legendary 7.3, hang on to it as long as you can.
 
By the way, there is a great website for the Power Strokes incase you were not aware. powerstrokehelp.com this guy is very knowledgable.
 
I tried to run mobil delvac esp1 5/40 in it once and it seemed to crank longer to start I took it to the dealer i bought it from and had them hook it up to the computer thought something was wrong and he said it was starting within specs and all the pressures where fine,talked to another diesel shop he said he's never heard of anyone running 5/40 in a 7.3 to change it back to 15/40 as soon as I did it started starting quicker for some reason not sure why.I don't run it alot in the cold if i do i plug it in the night before i drive it.
I have been offered 25,000 for the truck a couple of times i just don't want to spend 50,000 more to get a new one with all the emissions on them and having to use def fluid I can at least work on this one if I have to.I have seen bill on powerstroke help.com he has some pretty good info on there.
 
Originally Posted by TiredTrucker
Originally Posted by Mainia


I always look as Schaefers as a Group 3 company. Do they have a high PAO oil?


Does it really matter? Group III has many qualities that meet Group IV PAO, and even exceed Group IV PAO in some ways. So the idea that Schaeffer likes to do a Group III (75%) and Group IV (25%) in most of their full syn motor oils is not really a bad thing, but actually a positive in some ways.
.


Absolutely right - does it matter? No. I've never been a PAO purist, though many on here are. You made fine points, and so I don't see much more to add. Good points!
 
I would hold onto your 7.3 as long as possible. The 7.3 is a favorite with the Power Stroke folks. When I had my 2002 F350 7.3, I changed the oil and oil filter every 5000 miles or 6 months, never had any issues. Of course the front end would get greased as well. My oil was never really dark or dirty each oil change.

Now, with my 2011 Ram 3500, the oil and filter is changed every 5000 miles or 6 months. The owners manual states every 7500 or 6 months. Due to the emissions stuff on my Cummins, the oil gets dark five minutes after changing. The emissions stuff started showing up on the 2007 and newer diesels when the fuel changed (ULSD). I always use the Rotella T6 5w40 and either the Mopar or Cummins oil filter. Cummins makes the filters for Mopar for the Cummins Diesel, both good filters.
 
Tractor Supply 15w-40 or Supertech 15w-40 are REALLY good conventional oils. They are the cheapest out there $$wise, but very robust. I have 300k miles on my 7.3 and have used ST for 3 years now. I have a UOA on here under severe use conditions and it was stellar. Save yourself the coin and the headache and just change it every 5k like it should be done on the 7.3.

And word to the wise, avoid "powerstrokehelp" at all costs. There is MUCH better information out there.
 
I ran texaco ursa premium tdx and baldwin filters for years when i first bought the truck cause i got it for free at the trucking company I use to work at ,then i ran mobil delvac 15/40 for a few years decided to try synthetic it didn't like 5/40 so i read online and everyone really liked schaeffer's 15/40 so I thought I would try it.I can get titan 15/40 at work right now for free that's what they run in everything just seems like cheap oil and I get wix filters real cheap guess I could change it every 3,000 miles and it would be fine,I have never let the truck go over 4,000 miles with out changing the oil but i only put about 3,500 miles a year on it.
 
Originally Posted by bbslider001
Tractor Supply 15w-40 or Supertech 15w-40 are REALLY good conventional oils. They are the cheapest out there $$wise, but very robust. I have 300k miles on my 7.3 and have used ST for 3 years now. I have a UOA on here under severe use conditions and it was stellar. Save yourself the coin and the headache and just change it every 5k like it should be done on the 7.3.

And word to the wise, avoid "powerstrokehelp" at all costs. There is MUCH better information out there.



When I had my 7.3 (2002 F350) what an alsome truck. The 7.3's were noted for being very reliable and for being a work horse as well. Also, very easy to work on. When International built this motor for Ford, they hit it out of the park.

I now have a 2011 Ram 3500 with the 6.7 Cummins. This motor is also a work horse and very reliable.
 
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