oil question

[chacoy]

Anybody please explain to me what the SH in the motor oil can means?

My 1500 Vulcan manual says it's ok to use oil with SE, SA, etc., except the ones with SH cause it will cause slippage on your clutch.

Anyone out there aware of this? I would appreciate your thoughts.

[Frankt07]

i dont know about the SH, but look onthe back of the bottle and look for the circle. if it says "ENERGY CONSERVING", dont get it. it has friction modifiers that will hurt the clutches.
use an oil that does not say "ENERGY CONSERVING" on the back.
most, if not all, 10w-40 weight oils are not energy conserving and are OK to use

[2WheelFun]

The SH designation was designed for 1996 and older engines. This designation is now obsolete. The API SJ designation was introduced in 1996. Oils with an SL designation can be used to cover both SH and SJ applications.

http://www.carcare.org/Fluids_Filters/engine_oil.shtml

[chacoy]

Yes. But most motor oil has SE, SF, SA, SL..including SH showing on the plastic bottle or can, even the 10w..40.. I've been using Castrol motorcycle oil. I can't seem to find any without the SH. Are these ok to use even the manual specifically cautions it?..Thanks for the replies.

[2WheelFun]

As Frank mentioned...NEVER...NEVER...NEVER...use any oil in a motorcycle engine (wet clutch) that say's ENERGY CONSERVING on the label.

That being said...I use to use Mobil1 Red Cap synthetic oil that was not specifically designed for motorcycles without clutch issues.

[chacoy]

Thanks guys. Right now I have fresh 10w40 car oil in the bike before I covered it for the winter. I'll be changing oil as soon as winter's gone and I'll try that Mobil oil. Thanks again for your quick replies.

[2WheelFun]

They stopped making the Red Cap oil but you can buy a similar oil Gold Cap by Mobil1 at Walmart and it's synthetic also. Just recently I bought the Rotella brand oil in synthetic base at Walmart and it works very well. You can buy it in gallon jugs for about $15.00.

[RichLockyer]

Originally Posted by chacoy

Yes. But most motor oil has SE, SF, SA, SL..including SH showing on the plastic bottle or can, even the 10w..40.. I've been using Castrol motorcycle oil. I can't seem to find any without the SH. Are these ok to use even the manual specifically cautions it?..Thanks for the replies.

You will probably not find an oil that is lower than SH.
The current spec is SM.

[dirtwarrior]

Rotella full synthetic 15w40 is good that is what I use. I wonder if the walmart brand full synthetic is good? I saw it in 5 qt jugs.

[Arkainzeye]

i know this isnt an answer for you. but check this out. on my 2005 vulcan 2000 i read my owners booklet and i was shocked at the rating they rquired. im sorry i cant remember it right now, but when i looked it up it was a OLD rating. basically meaning any oil made at this point is beyong (better) than that rating. i was just kinda shocked at how a 05 bike would have a oil requirement that is pretty dated. basically it doesnt mean anythng except the oil required to keep my little scooter in good shape isnt a high standard oil or have the same higher standards of the oil being produced now...

chris http://www.cruisercustomizing.com/arkainzeye

[RichLockyer]

It's not that they require an old rating, it's that they want to be sure that there are no friction modifiers.
To be 100% sure of that, for a conventional automotive oil, SH is the highest rating.
Newer oils are also fine as long as they carry the JASO-MA.


But.....


There are still plenty of acceptable oils that do NOT carry JASO-MA and do not contain friction modifiers.
Likewise, my clutch gave me problems when I was running Motul Twin-Synd 20w50, which does carry JASO-MA. I replaced the clutch, and within 500 miles it was slipping again. Changed the oil to Castrol GTX 20w50 and it's been fine since (about 250 miles).

[Arkainzeye]

when i used to have a honda cbr 600 and a honda nighthawk i actually ran automotive oils in both bikes. at that time i was running Mobil1 10w30. both bikes were inline 4 bangers. I never had a clutch slipped on either. oh btw i also run mobil1 10w30 in my 1996 honda 300EX atv. Samething no clutch issues in the 5-6 years i had that atv. i think it depends on the bike. My cbr was a very hp driven motorcycle and it never spun the clutch ones using the oil i mentioned. So basically. if you want to be safe follow what your owners booklet says.

[texrider]

Be cautious of combining a "SH" graded duty oil with certain others. Especially "IT" grades, because the mixture gets pretty ripe...

[Arkainzeye]

http://www.motorcycleanchor.com/moto...to/mc_oil.html


chris

[Arkainzeye]

API OIL RATING GUIDE:
The American Petroleum Institute provides standards for rating the viscosity and certain contents of motor oils. This permits oils from different manufacturers to be compared in terms of standard viscosity weights. It also permits oils from different manufacturers to be compared in terms of meeting specific guidelines for content formulation (primarily to ensure compatibility with specific pollution control systems mandated by the government, such as catalytic converters, as well as fuel-mileage increases by reduced oil-based frictional loses), but it refers specifically to automobile engines, not motorcycle engines.


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------
Is SL or SM better than SF/SG for my Motorcycle?
API's Standards Rating is influenced by government mandates (such as pollution control), and thus oils meeting newer ratings do not necessarily perform better (or even the same as) oils meeting an older rating, depending on your motorcycle engine type. API standards are created for automobile engines, not motorcycle engines. For their rating system explained, see the API MOTOR OIL GUIDE (new guide with SM classification on it).
--------------------------------------------------------------------------------


--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

API CLASS RATINGS APPLICABLE TO MOTORCYCLES:

SA through SE OBSOLETE -- Use SF/SG or SH unless you find motorcycle oil which still meets the original rating that your bike calls for in the owner's manual. I am not familiar with any SA/SB/SC/SD/SE rated oils still on the market.

SF & SG TECHNICALLY OBSOLETE FOR CARS, BUT STILL IN COMMON USE FOR MOTORCYCLE OILS -- You can find motorcycle oil which still meets the SF/SG rating (such as offerings from Castrol, Mobil, Royal Purple, Amsoil, Bellray, Motorex, etc). If your bike calls for that in the owner's manual, there are still a large number of motorcycle-specific motor oils on the market that are SF/SG rated, including every motorcycle oil which meet the full JASO-MA specification. Most current motorcycle engines still call for SF/SG rated motor oils. If you can not find an SF/SG rated oil and that is the rating called for, use an SH or SH+SJ rated oil -- but do not use API SJ, SL or SM!

SH Technically obsolete. This oil specification is used by some motorcycle manufacturers, and you can still find many SH rated motorcycle oils on the market. Do not use if your motorcycle calls for API SJ/SL/SM rated oils (only a few do).

SJ Technically obsolete. For 2001 and older automobile engines. An "Energy Conserving" motor oil (something good for late model cars, not most motorcycles). Note that this standard reduces the phosphorus contents of the motor oil, which is not necessarily a desirable reduction for most motorcycle engines. Check your motorcycle owner's manual specifically for recommendation of an SJ-rated motor oil before using it in your motorcycle, or stick to using SF/SG-rated, SH-rated or dual-rated (SH+SJ) motorcycle oils instead. Do not use unless an API SJ rating is specifically called for by your motorcycle manufacturer.

SL Technically obsolete. For 6/2001 - 11/2004 automobile engines. An "Energy Conserving" motor oil (something good for late model cars, not most motorcycles). Note that this standard reduces the ZDDP (zinc and phosphorus) additive contents of the motor oil even further than SJ rated motor oils, which is not a desirable reduction for most motorcycle engines. Check your motorcycle owner's manual specifically for recommendation of an SJ or SL rated motor oil before using an API SL rated oil in your motorcycle! Do not use unless an API SJ or API SL rating is specifically called for by your motorcycle manufacturer.

SM NEW/Current. For all 12/2004 and later automobile engines.
(See API Press Release: SM Rating Released, 20 Nov, 2004).
An "Energy Conserving" motor oil (something good for late model cars, not most motorcycles). The API increased the standards for anti-foaming, increased detergent levels, and improved low-temp performance, while lowering the ZDDP package contents again. API SM now replaces API SJ and API SL -- but SM-rated oil is still not suitable for most motorcycle engines (just as SJ and SL rated ones weren't), especially virtually every air-cooled, oil-cooled and air-oil cooled motorcycle engines and ANY motorcycle engine designed prior to 2001 (such as Suzuki Katana 600/750/1100, Suzuki Bandit 600/1100/1200). Check your motorcycle owner's manual specifically for recommendation of an SJ/SL/SM rated motor oil before using API SM rated oils in your motorcycle! Do not use unless an API SJ, SL or SM rating is specifically called for by your motorcycle manufacturer.

[StirFry]

Here's another newbie question for you...

Should I change oils depending on time of year? When I rode to work this morning it was 29 degrees. In the summer, I'll be riding on +100 days. Should I vary the viscosity through the course of the year?

I know there are plenty of oil experts here (Rich) that can answer this one.

Cheers,

[RichLockyer]

It depends on where you live.
Even though I stick with 20w50 in my Vulcan year-round, I am a big fan of using the lighted grade of oil that is suitable for the temperature ranges expected.
I guess one reason I'm sticking with 20w50 is my little project to test various oils for durability, but also, here in SoCal, we'll get a week of 50 degree days backed up with a week of 80+.
Though it is extremely unlikely that we'll get into the 100+ range within a month of having cooler temps, it has happened, and I would rather not find myself planning a ride through the desert with relatively fresh 10w40 installed.

For your area, I would probably switch out to 10w40 during the winter... and likely stick with it unless you expect temps above 90 for weeks at a time like we get here.
I do think that M1 15w50 is a good compromise and is suitable year-round in most areas. Being a synthetic, it has cold flow characteristics more comparable to a 10w40, but has the shear stability of a 50wt.