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1968 20-50w oil?

hatchdog

Well-known member
Joined
May 8, 2017
Messages
164
I’m getting ready to do my spring oil change and am considering changing the oil weight. Somewhere in these great pages of info I read a post from Rob (RobertCampbell) where he suggested using a 20-50w oil. Rob’s reasoning was that since our cars are not daily drivers and generally when we drive them it’s for a lengthy drive using 10-30w was not necessary. Also the heavier oil helps keep pressure up.

I am unable to find the post I originally read and would like to confirm this info before I buy some oil. I plan to use Valvoline racing oil with zinc in either weight.

Thanks,
Mike
 

limelyt

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Joined
May 24, 2006
Messages
308
Location
Calgary, Alberta CANADA
Mike

I've been using 5w-30 in the Calspec for the last 13 years and normally put 1200 miles a season and have had no issues. I guess it depends on how tight the engine it.
 

robert campbell

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Apr 10, 2007
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4,322
Mike,
Oil types and brands will generate about a much discussion as the election of a president for our country!

You are correct in what I said. Our cars are now toys and not subjected to the rigors of daily driving in cold weather. In my experience with older engines with miles on them, is that they run higher oil pressure with a 20/50 oil as opposed to 10/30 or 10/40 that was the norm back in the day. And the extra viscosity is a bit better on small oil leaks that develop over the years. I also have always used Castrol in my engines. But that is me. Newly rebuilt motors leak less and have higher oil pressure and will work just fine on the 10/30 or 10/40 blend.

I totally recommend a zinc additive for flat tappet cams.

https://zddplus.com/

Not sure about running 5/30 in our motors. That viscosity oil is meant for much newer engines than ours. But, I am no expert.

Clean oil changed once a year in our toy cars is the best guard against wear.

Gosh, now let's jump into the world of synthetic oils!! We need to make sure that the Russians do not tamper with the internet and post fake news on this subject!!

And if you decide to race your car more than just drive it, we will have another discussion.

Rob
 

Mosesatm

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Joined
Jan 18, 2005
Messages
9,178
One problem with 20-50 is that it takes longer to pump through the engine when it's cold, potentially increasing wear on cold starts.
 

robert campbell

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Apr 10, 2007
Messages
4,322
I agree for the amount of cold starts a daily driven motor was subjected to back in the day sitting outside in the elements.

Our cars are toys and they sit in garages and lead a pampered life compared to back then. And some of our garages even have heat in them.

These cars are started cold a fraction of the time of back in the day. And not driven one mile and shut off and then cold started again and again and again.

I feel the difference between 10 weight oil and 20 weight to be very negligible.

Let the discussion begin!!! This will be fun!
 

franklinair

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Joined
Mar 1, 2007
Messages
4,744
I would suggest 20/50 viscosity oil with the zinc additive.
(Mike's engine is a fresh overhaul (with a new oil pump) and will run 30-40 PSI oil pressure.)

Neil
 

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rvrtrash

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Apr 25, 2003
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3,665
Way back when, I ran Valvoline 20/50 racing oil in my Mach 1 exclusively. Of course, I raced the car both on and off the track and treated the speed limit with utter contempt. I never had an issue. Newer cars are built to much tighter tolerances, with lower oil pressure and lighter oils to get better fuel economy. Heavier oils will take longer to circulate through the engine when it's cold, but like has been mentioned, not many of us are putting ski racks on the roofs of our 50 year old cars and heading to the mountain in the dead of winter. If you push the car hard, or the engine is a little tired, I say no problem with 20/50. If you just cruise and have a fresh rebuild, 10/30 will do just fine. Personal opinion worth approximately what you paid for it.:grin:

Steve
 

robert campbell

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Apr 10, 2007
Messages
4,322
Way back when, I ran Valvoline 20/50 racing oil in my Mach 1 exclusively. Of course, I raced the car both on and off the track and treated the speed limit with utter contempt. I never had an issue. Newer cars are built to much tighter tolerances, with lower oil pressure and lighter oils to get better fuel economy. Heavier oils will take longer to circulate through the engine when it's cold, but like has been mentioned, not many of us are putting ski racks on the roofs of our 50 year old cars and heading to the mountain in the dead of winter. If you push the car hard, or the engine is a little tired, I say no problem with 20/50. If you just cruise and have a fresh rebuild, 10/30 will do just fine. Personal opinion worth approximately what you paid for it.:grin:

Steve

Perfectly said brother!!

Rob
 

franklinair

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Mar 1, 2007
Messages
4,744
I agree. 10/30 in a fresh engine (Mike & Stephen) will be fine. You can buy the zinc additive for $5+/-.

Neil
 
OP
OP
hatchdog

hatchdog

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May 8, 2017
Messages
164
Great dialog all, thanks for giving you thoughts.

Being as my motor is fresh and I drive like an old lady I think I will stick with 10w-30. I have been using Valvoline VR-1 High Zinc racing oil and the conversation on the links provided concerning the quantity of zinc in VR-1 is interesting. Looks like I need to do more research.

I do have two 3 hour cruises in my near future, low speed circle of the downtowns of Coeur D’alene and Sandpoint Idaho. Kinda like back in the day of cruising downtown Spokane. I think I am more concerned about overheating (never had a problem to date) than I am of oil consumption.

Thanks again, great reading!:grin:

Mike

http://www.sandpoint.com/pdf-documents/2018 Semi Flyer.pdf

http://coeurdalene.org/cda-events/car-dlane/
 

mbsf1970

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Apr 10, 2013
Messages
795
Location
Calgary Alberta
The M1 15/50 synthetic seems to be getting rave reviews from real world driving....something to consider. Based on link to thread
Stephen
 

p51

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Joined
Aug 2, 2005
Messages
1,025
Location
NorCal
Thought this was an interesting thread about "wear testing" of high zinc motor oils...

http://www.chevelles.com/forums/13-performance/443674-zinc-myth-test-data-dozen-more-oils.html

The two high zinc motor oils I see mentioned the most in vintage mustang (think "flat tappet cams") threads seem to be:
(1) Valvoline VR1 10W-30 (both synthetic and conventional versions)
(2) Mobil1 15W-50 (synthetic)

All three of these are mentioned/ranked in this thread (specifically, the second posting). Here is a cut-n-paste of those particular motor oils...

***********

7. 10W30 Valvoline VR1 Conventional Racing Oil (silver bottle) = 103,505 psi
zinc = 1472 ppm
phos = 1544 ppm
moly = 3 ppm

8. 10W30 Valvoline VR1 Synthetic Racing Oil, API SL (black bottle) = 101,139 psi
zinc = 1180 ppm
phos = 1112 ppm
moly = 162 ppm

68. 15W50 Mobil 1, API SN synthetic = 70,235 psi
zinc = 1,133 ppm
phos = 1,168 ppm
moly = 83 ppm

**************

I think that the guy that does this testing does it just as a hobby... I don't think that this is some sort of "official lab testing" so take the info for what it's worth.
 
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