Oil Pressure and type?

[Guest B1rdman]

i am sure this has already been on here some time in the past, but

i was wondering if some will tell me what oil they use and

what their oil pressure is at cruise 55 to 60

and at idle speed

thanks in advace for any replys.

Gene

[peecher]

Gene, Many folks use a good quality 20-50 oil in their 12's especially if it's got some "miles" on it. Oil pressure was always an issue with these engines and it didn't take long after a rebuild before oil pressure would start dropping. This can be mitigated by upgrading the oil pump to the high capacity Melling 15 pump. The oil pressure on a used engine in fairly good shape might range from 5-10 psi at idle and 20 -30psi on the road. "Tighter" engines will do much better.

[Guest B1rdman]

thanks peecher as always i can get a answer from you,

sets my mind at ease as i have about 5-10 on idle

and 25 on the road.

many thanks again

gene

[Guest simplyconnected]

Peecher offers very good advice. I might add, that oil with 40 (weight) in the numbers (or more) will have the required zinc. Eg: Shell Rotella 15W-40 has at least 1,000 parts per million. Flat tappet engines need this extra protection that modern-engine oils don't offer.

My engine rebuilder/machine shop offers some kind of 'classic engine' oil at sky-high prices, across his counter. When I saw the Duesenburg he just rebuilt, guess what he was feeding it... Rotella So, it's important you get a grade of oil that has 40-weight or greater. - Dave

[Guest peter_smith]

Dave

Just a word of caution, I think all the rotella range of oils are heavy duty diesel engine detergent oils, i.e. they clean all the crap out of the engine and carry it around in the oil. Not a problem if you are starting out with a rebuilt completely clean engine, I use 15/40 turbo diesel in mine, but it's been stripped and cleaned out.

An old worn engine will have deposits of sludge everywhere, the oil might strip this off and dump it in the oil pan blocking the oil pump strainer, causing expensive noises.

But as I say not a problem in a clean engine.

Regards

Peter Smith UK