Technical Who runs Shell Rotella

Pay attention , this is t-4 .

 

15w40 Rotella in my Yblock

 

I use what we stock at work. It’s 15w-40 ConocoPhillips All Fleet. The diesel oil still has ZDDP in it because the Cummins ISB 6.7 still uses a flat tappet camshaft. The ISB is the most popular engine on the medium duty side today. All Fleet goes in everything on the farm except my new F-150 daily, my Harleys, and my wife’s Caravan. Truthfully, it wouldn’t bother me to put All Fleet in my Harleys either.

 

Very good! That is the “current” Rotella conventional oil and what I hope everyone is talking about. T5 is synthetic blend and T6 is synthetic. What are you talking about?

 

Yes I believe so. The Pertronix thread ended last week and Radials was before that. Disc brakes is due up next.

 

I run it in my flatheads that have a lot of miles on them. Never a problem. For my low mileage flatheads I use Castrol or Quaker State High Mileage 10W30. They have always seemed happy with that, so I am too. I have always felt that clean oil is as important as what kind.

 

anyone remember the kid on here around twenty years ago named Zach(draggin ass) who didn't have the coin for 5 quarts of oil and was asking around if anyone had any used oil they would donate so he could fire up his engine.
the good ol days

 

He wouldn’t accept mine….not enough zddp content.

 

I’ve ran Rotella for the last 25 years in my semi trucks. Used it in some of my gas engines a few times too. I prefer Pennzoil in my gas engines, but it’s been hard to find anything but synthetic in just about every brand lately. Don’t tell nobody, but I even run Walmart brand oil sometimes . Never had a problem with it, and it costs a bit less, too.

 

I use T4 10-40 and is not readily available everywhere (generally). I actually buy it at the Home Depot...

 

I’m using rotella 10-30 in my yblock as per cam manufactures recommendations

 

Then can we do u-joint angles?

 

You will need a degree in angularity......

 

I run Amsoil Z-Rod 10w-40. It has high zinc for flat tappet cams.

Basically all "modern" oils have had to remove at least half the zinc they had 15 years ago. First gasoline oils, then diesel oils. As diesels now have emission controls, which zinc will ruin. Zinc is a very good anti-wear for metal to metal contact like a flat tappet lifter.

Do it was good to run HDEO (heavy duty engine oil) a decade ago as it still had high zinc. Now all the oils accept a few select oils specifically exempt from emissions engines.

I think the Amsoil costs around $12 a quart, I change it every other year which equates to about 4,000 miles at 2,000 a year.

I uses to run Rotella T6 5w-40 in everything before they went to low zinc like everyone else.

 

Yep. Good stuff. Thank you, Sir.

Ben

 

Im running T1 oil in my Banger Model A, Good zinc levels etc.

My 56, Mobil 1 European car formula 5w40, stellar zinc, and cheaper than the vr1, I got tired of the $ I have wasted on VR1, so found a compatible that has been great.

 

You forgot about wheels, black or red?
FWIW, my dad bought Dello 400 for his trucks in 55 gallon drums. As I recall from Chevron. He used it because it was quite a bit less expensive than the Shell distributor was.
Kept his big cam Cummins running for 6-8 years at a time.

 

You could just butt out . just a friendly suggestion ...

 

As long as it's "Traditional Oil" it's okay to comment...

 

Bingo! As I said, there are several different "Rotella" oil varieties, you have to pay attention and not just grab "Rotella" off the shelf. BTW, Tractor Supply is also a good place to find it at a reasonable price

 

I may start using Rotella t4 in my Ford 300 inline if Brad Penn gets any harder to get or more expensive than it is at the moment. I've been using BP for twenty years in my drag racer (flat tappet).
It's difficult to turn away from something that works and is trusted. But with the track record that Rotella conventional oil has, I reckon there's little to be concerned with.

 

Bumping this back up, was hoping to get some discussion going. Guys seem certain about it, so let's hear why you're so certain. Maybe we all could learn something

 

This isn't accurate. Modern passenger car oils still carry ~800 ppm of zinc, that's more than half of what they carried before levels were reduced to prevent poisoning of exhaust catalysts. And many diesel engine oils, like Rotella T-4, have ~1200 ppm of zinc, far more than half of what they had prior to reductions were introduced to protect diesel particulat filters. What's more, modern zinc compounds are more advanced than they used to be, they are able to provide higher levels of protection at lower concentrations. Also, there are different types of zddp compounds, such as primary and secondary, and each perform slightly differently; some plate out quickly to provide a layer of protection faster, but are less robust and wear away more quickly, while others plate out more slowly but are tougher and last longer. Most additive packs in engine oils include combinations of different compounds, so it's not just the total amount, it's the chemistry of the package that counts.

There's no argument that the level of zinc in engine oils has been reduced to protect exhaust after treatment devices, but it's not helpful to spread misinformation that causes misunderstandings of the situation. When Ford developed the flathead V8 in the 1930's and subsequently modified it up into the early 50's; and the early OHV engines developed in the early to mid 50's, the zinc compounds used in engine oils was very primitive, and in much lower concentrations than today, if it was used at all. I think it's helpful to keep that in mind.

 

I'm not trying to spread misinformation. That is just my understanding of lowering zinc in oils. Roller cam engines don't need the levels of zddp and therefore don't care as much.

Poisoning catalytic converters is the reason, nothing else. Not in the intrest of engine longevity, in the intrest of the catalyst.

FWIW, citing that primitive zinc was used in the 50s has nothing to do with our discussion. Engines didn't last, and things failed much sooner than today.

 

I thought the discussion was about Rotella, and who is using it.

 

I bought a bottle of 10W-30, High Mileage. I bought that one for the high mileage aspect, which I'm not going to say isn't just marketing. I had a road trip the next day, it was just a tad low. I'll do an oil change next weekend, and I'm not sure if its what I'll go with or not. VERY open to opinions, that why this thread got my attention.

I've got a buddy that runs Rotella in everything!

 

The same guy that told me about the Mobil 1, also said that of it as well.

 

It is more about the API designation than "diesel oil vs gasoline oil". According to the experts at Machinery Lubrication, diesel oils (API designation "C" ) have a higher level of detergent additives to scrub the excess internal soot created in a diesel. Using that API oil in gasoline engine, according to them, washes the lubrication film off of the cylinders promoting faster wear. Gasoline engines use API designation "S".

 

I use Providence 10w-30 Conventional in my '32. Works for me...
https://tipsforefficiency.com/who-makes-providence-oil/

 

Thanks for the reply. Yes, diesel engine oils do tend to have a higher level of detergent additives, which is a good thing IMO. The detergents in engine oil are there to not only keep the internal surfaces of the engine clean, but also to neutralize acidic compounds that form due to the heat and pressure of operating conditions as well as combustion byproducts. I disagree that detergents "wash the lubrication film off of the cylinders promoting faster wear"; if that were true this would affect diesel engines as well as gasoline engines, correct? No, that is not how it works. The detergents are part of the lubricant film that is present on the walls of the cylinders, can they wash themselves off the wall? Think about it.

Piston rings are lubricated by a process known as hydrodynamic lubrication, where the film of oil present on the cylinder walls lifts the rings and floats them off the surface, much like how a water ski is lifted on the surface of a lake when it is pulled by a boat. That is why piston deposits are bad, as deposits build up on the ring lands and into the grooves they restrict the free movement of the rings, which can prevent the rings from reaching that state of hydrodynamic lubrication, which will lead to bore polishing. So what prevents the buildup of deposits? Detergents.

BTW, I know those "experts" at Machinery Lubrication; not bad guys at all, but not the end all of lubrication experts by any means. A lot of guys in the industry would get a big kick out of that . But please, if they posted that about detergents washing the lubricant off the walls of cylinders, could you please post a link. I'd like to see that.