beansbaxter
Needs a life
Posts: 5911
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posted May 25, 2004 07:37 AM
Poll Question:
Regular or synthetic oil?
My 12 with nearly 20k miles on the engine just doesnt shift as smooth as when I first bought it. A friend of mine switched his oil to synthetic and swears by it, easier and smoother for shifting.
Asked the dealer about it, and they said it was fine after your bike has 10k miles on it. Then I was also told, that synthetic makes your clutch slip a lot more as well.
So now I dont know what to do. When I do my next oil change, what are the pro's and con's of switching to synthetic oil?
The poll is for what you currently use:
Poll Results:
 8 votes (22%)
Regular
29 votes (78%)
Synthetic
   
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MadMike
Moderator
FEAR THE BLACK FLAG!!!!!!!!
Posts: 6579
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posted May 25, 2004 08:02 AM
Call me crazy(or mad as some people do!) but I feel for street riding and some racing stock motor. that synthetic is way good. But with my Racing Motor regular oil is what I use. everything just looks cleaner and the oil stays on parts more, of course I change my oil every 1-2 races now. but when I used synthetic, it was really dark and seemed like it had a metallic sheen to it?
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200-MPH CLUB MEMBER!
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Hells Dark Lord
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living life, and loving it.
Posts: 7981
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posted May 25, 2004 08:11 AM
for normal street riding either one will work fine....just change it regularly and all will be good....
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When in doubt, lean farther and go faster....
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wormser77
Expert Class
Posts: 223
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posted May 25, 2004 09:00 AM
Amsoil
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frEEk
Administrator
ummm... yeah
Posts: 9660
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posted May 25, 2004 11:49 AM
goin to synthetic helps make my shifting a touch smoother too and was less than twice the price of reg oil. your mileage may vary.
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Hells Dark Lord
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Posts: 7981
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posted May 25, 2004 12:00 PM
I change my oil every 3000 miles no matter what oil I use....I liek the way synthetic makes the tranny feel, but make sure you dont get an oil with anti friction additives....they kill clutches.....
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When in doubt, lean farther and go faster....
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Zaphod Breeblebox
Expert Class
Posts: 117
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posted May 25, 2004 02:57 PM
I switched to full synthetic in my bike at 5,000 miles. I've been using (primarily) Silkolene Race 15W-50.
I now have 23,000 miles and burn no oil, no clutch slippage on the orginal clutch, and a very strong-running engine.
Even though I change the oil every 2500 - 3000 miles, it's actually the synthetic oils' superior resistance to thermally-induced viscosity breakdown that attracts me to them. Particularly as the ZX-12R tends to run hot, and the hot season is long here in Texas. I'm willing to pay a bit more for the anti-heat insurance.
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Zaphod
Y2K ZX-12R
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CrotchRocket
Moderator
Bracket Racing with Betsy
Posts: 8038
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posted May 25, 2004 04:02 PM
 Edited By: CrotchRocket on 25 May 2004 17:04
I use RedLine synthetic 10-40 and change the oil every 30 passes...
Mike I know what you mean with the dirty oil and sheen...Did you find out why its like that and not with the conventional oil???
For you guys that ride on the street, just because you use synthetic doesnt mean that the oil doesnt get dirty!!!...I recommend changing the oil every 1000 miles...
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Jason Miller StreetBike Seminars
*****DragRacers do it better, because they dont cut Corners*****
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beansbaxter
Needs a life
Posts: 5911
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posted May 25, 2004 04:17 PM
wow I change mine every 2500-3000 miles...1000 seems kinda extreme? even at 3000, my oil looks good, but I still change it...
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TurboBlew
Moderator
BUSY DOING THE SCHIAVO
Posts: 4590
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posted May 25, 2004 04:57 PM
Beans... you probably dont wring the bike out that much. For me 1500 miles max!!!
For $4/quart.... I think Mobil 15/50 is the best oil on the market. Motul is nice too...if a sponsor is footing the bills. 
Regular old dino oil I like Castrol.
But synthetic is definitely the way to go!!!!
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Official Charter Member of the RIDERS OF KAWASAKI MEMBERSHIP REVOCATION CLUB
Also a BadAss Internet Forum Moderator 4 Hire!! Come at me brah!
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TedG
Moderator
Posts: 8222
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posted May 25, 2004 07:06 PM
I use the Kawasaki 100% synthetic it is made my Motul. My clutch is like new after 33,000 and it doen't slip.
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Ted
2000 Green ZX12 sold
The fast color!!
Green 2005 ZX10R
2009 Concours Black ABS
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beansbaxter
Needs a life
Posts: 5911
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posted May 26, 2004 10:06 PM
TedG...are you saying you have had the exact same clutch in for all 33k miles?
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Ninjaman12R
Needs a job
as a Deal's Gap tour guide.
Posts: 4767
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posted May 27, 2004 03:19 AM
I switched to full sythetic when my 12R had around 1000 miles on it. I use BelRay EXS 10w50 and change it every 2500 miles. I have never had any cluch slippage and the bike shifts like buttah. 
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What we're dealin' with here is a complete lack of respect for the law.
Sheriff Buford T. Justice of TEXAS
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dougmeyer
Needs a job
moderated
Posts: 2713
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posted May 27, 2004 06:45 AM
Mike,
That "sheen" is the lubrication that doesn't drip off into the sump. The color is irrelevant. You skeptics will just not believe how well your bike will shift with some "modern" oil in it. Nearly everytime I ride my 12 I think to myself, "My God, why doesn't everybody use this oil" (Motul 300V) it shifts so smoothly. Try it. You know you can always drain it out if you don't like it and put the dinosaur mulch back in. BTW we put the Motul in the Turbo Shootout bike right from the get go. Clutch life is excellent (considering), blow by (always a consideration with high-boost turbos) nonexistant.
Doug
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Hells Dark Lord
Needs a life
living life, and loving it.
Posts: 7981
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posted May 27, 2004 02:13 PM
it happens Beans....Redelk had like 45000 on his, I have 17000 on mine right now...but its time to change it out....could baby it along for another 5000 prolly, but NOOO not me....lmfao
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When in doubt, lean farther and go faster....
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Marcos Peguero
Zone Head
Posts: 568
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posted May 27, 2004 02:38 PM
I have used the Motul 300v 2 and its excelent stuff. now Im using Motorex full sin and its excelent 2, no complains and the engine its like silk.
Use sintetic simple. If you stcik with motul 300v, motorex full sin, mobil mtx, you will be fine.
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Marcos Peguero
Zone Head
Posts: 568
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posted May 27, 2004 02:56 PM
I use turbo diesel engine oil on my 55hp Skoda Favorit.
Good stuff diesel engine oil since it has the double aditives of convencional regular oil because its design from better oil than regular. C-4 inspection is way more damanding than regular gasoline oil.
Mobil Delvac or Rotella.
PS. Yes my car has only 55hp. Top speed 60 mph (sometimes).
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K Williams
Parking Attendant
Posts: 1
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posted May 27, 2004 03:40 PM
I use nothing but Amsoil 20W-50 full synthetic oil.
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K. Williams
'01 ZX-12R
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tuusinii
Pro
Posts: 1031
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posted May 28, 2004 12:02 AM
Castrol GP 20W50 / GTX 20W50mineral hundres of thousand of trouble free kilometers and not too expensive....
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slug
Pro
Out in search of my mind...
Posts: 1433
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posted May 28, 2004 01:28 AM
the truck gets the castrol GTX (though 10/20 is max visc i can put in it)
bike(s) get mobil1 15-50 (red cap)
after sportrider did their oil comparison, i feel that the 15-50 is best bang for buck, it does nearly as well as the MX4T for half the price.
the only big differences were moly content, which the car version had about the same as one of the bike manufacturer's full-syn motorcycle versions. if it's ok in the bike version...
plus anecdotal evidence supports: no clutch slip after 47k (though i do run a 6t00 vice 1200) and engine internals were spotless at 37K (*SOMEbody* stripped the geardogs on 2nd......OOOOPS)
;P
but oil opinions are like a**holes, everyone has one....and a lot of the time they stink
  
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Hells Dark Lord
Needs a life
living life, and loving it.
Posts: 7981
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posted May 28, 2004 03:09 PM
bottom line is any GOOD oil will work as long as you change it regularly....but better oils work better....and really good oils work best, adn cost the most.....SOMETIMES YOU GET WHAT YOU PAY FOR.....
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When in doubt, lean farther and go faster....
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OZZY
Needs a job
need guberment cheese
Posts: 3172
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posted May 28, 2004 05:32 PM
Beans there is a Mobil dealer a mile or so east of Allsport Honda same side of the street, that has the best price around for Mobil 1, both the automotive version and the motorcycle version. They just changed ownership and the name changed and I don't remember it. Was Staleys for years and years.
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