oil Change

[chief]

when I had to leave my bike outside, I always changed the oil more often, due to condensation in the oil. I always changed the oil at the beginning of the season and tried to time it to just before the end of the season, so the oil was nice and clean over the winter. Synthetic oils don't have the same problem with moisture as dino oil, but any bike left outside should be treated the same way, IMHO.

[CDNRatMan]

    49 what I did because I did not know when the last oil change was done on my bike, I waited till the spring got the bike outside and warmed it up went for a 10 km run, came home drained the old oil, filled it back up with dino oil on sale at CTC. Went for another short run. Draine dthe oil, removed the filter and the screen adn everything, let it sit for about 2 hours to drip all I could out. Filled with Amsoil 10W30 because of the weather we have. New filter, Kaw filter. Off we went ready for the summer.

[chief]

Ok, here is a quiz for all you Amsoil+ and other synthetic oils for that matter: I am a 3000 mile between oil changes kind of guy; what kind of miles do you folks run on Amsoil and other synthetics between changes? (Once you have done the first change to synthetic to flush all the dino oil from the system)?

Thanks in advance;

Regards and such,
49Reo

You CAN change at 3K... I usually go by the season rather than miles. With multiple bikes, the mileage per bike can be low. So, for me, its seasonal... I change it twice a year... or if we do long tours I will change before the trip and maybe afterwards... 5k to 7k for me otherwise.

Just drain the dino and put in the synthetic, no need to flush it will work just as well.

[DC]

Im not sure why any bike rider would not use the best lubricants in the business. Tested and printed Best price at  $10.00 a Qt. (cost).
Just check out my site.

http://www.amsoil.com/lit/G2509.pdf
Not advertising just informing.

Can I get this at Pep Boys?

[49Reo]

Thx!!

[pcarrell]

From the Amsoil site;

"What is the oil change interval for AMSOIL motorcycle oils?
Answer: AMSOIL motorcycle oils are engineered to provide protection up to twice the manufacturer's recommended change interval or one year, whichever comes first.
For Big Twin Harley-Davidson transmissions, follow the Harley-Davidson recommended drain interval for synthetic oil up to 20,000 miles or one year, whichever comes first. Unless you are using an AMSOIL Ea air filter, change the filter based on the manufacturer's recommended intervals."

I just change it every spring and do a filter change twice a year.

[49Reo]

Ok, here is a quiz for all you Amsoil+ and other synthetic oils for that matter: I am a 3000 mile between oil changes kind of guy; what kind of miles do you folks run on Amsoil and other synthetics between changes? (Once you have done the first change to synthetic to flush all the dino oil from the system)?

Thanks in advance;

Regards and such,
49Reo

[jmbo]

I'am an Amsoil guy.  Ran nothing but in my Triumph Thunderbird.  For a bike that cruised the high side of 5 grand at 70MPH I felt I needed a higher performance oil. But I'm going a different direction with my Drifter. I just bought it with 12 grand on the clock.  Not sure what was in it but when i changed it my guess it was dino oil and it was dirty.  For my first change I'm going with Rotella T6 synthetic. Figured to run it a thousand miles or so then change it out for Amsoil.  Rotella is a high detergent oil so it should clean out any crap in the system. Read a lot of reviews by guys who swear by Rotella in their bikes so I'm not too worried about any bad effects.  Plus since I plan for a short run between changes I'm not out tons of money.  Rotella is $23 bucks a gallon at Wally World.

[pcarrell]

You're funny!

No man, it made my bike run smoother then it ever has.

[45 Bravo]

So you say amsoil is a good thing, or you had to BUY a whole new bike?..

45 Bravo

[pcarrell]

Friend talked me into Amsoil a while back......whole new bike!

[49Reo]

I have been running Kaw synthetic 10w-40 for about 2 years now, with Kaw filter. Biggest difference I see in using synthetic, is, no "lirrle man with a hammer wanting out noises" from within.... haven't tried Amsoil or Mobil 1 for bikes; ran Mobil 1 5-w30 in my '95 Ford 1 ton 460.
Liked it in winter; get to 40 below up here sometimes.

Regards and such,
49Rep

[chief]

The money you save buying lower quality oil and filters will eventually cost you money. Yes you can get 60K miles doing this but the wear will be significantly greater. Do yourself a favor, use quality oil and filters and change your oil appropriately.

If your bike doesn't live in a temp controlled environment... synthetic oil and more frequent oil changes are the way to go. Synthetic handles moisture from condensation etc much better than fossil oils. Use the appropriate viscosity and NEVER use any oil with friction modifiers... unless you like screwing around with clutch repairs.
Those are my basic recs for oil... brands etc are up to you...

[michaelh42]

I bought Mobil 1 n20/50  from bikebandit.com for $14 each. not the best price but easy to order.  Will do my first change (for me) next week. My drifter should have about 24k on it by then. One concern I have is that when i ordered the K&N filter I received the KN303 filter. according to K&N it is the same filter but a .5 inches longer. thread count is the same and diameter is also the same. guess I will find out next week 

[george]

thanks rgdewar, got mobil 1 today and filter at wal mart  20/50?

[rgdewar]

I have used Mobil 1 (10 - 30) sometimes (5 - 50) from the first oil change and Fram filters. I have over 50 K miles and recently used Mobil V-Twin synthetic for the first time. I think it is a little better in that the clutch seems to work a little smoother. Maybe I was just lucky so I think you are better off with the V-Twin. I got mine at Walmart about 8 or 9 bucs a quart.

[george]

Thanks Chief

[chief]

No, everyone doesn't use AMSOIL... folks use different oils ... I use K&N oil filters.... kn204.

Here's some info from the mods/tips area on the web site.
http://www.vulcandrifterriders.com/oilfilters.html

[george]

Asking, are you all using 20/50 amsoil motor cycle oil, and which filter for a 2001 drifter, thanks just done a 3000 mile ride throught Texas and New Mexico, 1st time for me to change oil, had it done at dealer, first time,  appreciate any help, wondering about 10/30 or 20/50

[chief]

KN-204 works. It works on my GOLDWING too. Their is a list of filters on the website.

[michaelh42]

I am going shopping later this week. My local Autozone is small and not helpful. Thank you for all of the inputs. I was on K&N's website and they have the same filter listed for all years. Hopefully it will work.

[chief]

I use full synthetic (Amsoil for bikes) and K&N oil filters in both my goldwing and drifter... have done for 9 seasons now. So long as you don't use oil with friction modifiers you are ok. I like synthetic because its hard to overheat (and breakdown) and deals with condensation much better than fossil oil.

[roadrash]

amsoil bike runs cooler and make sure which filter you have some 1500 have diffrent filter

[griz01]

I get both oil & filter at the local Autozone here.

[michaelh42]

I talked to the local Kawasaki Dealer that said the same thing. go with the Mobil 1 V-Twin. The chemical make up is different mainly for the wet clutch.
Thanks for the info on the filter and screen. Iw ill look for the filter around here. Yes I do like made in the USA!