Detergent or non detergent in 60's Tecumseh?

[ebinmaine 67,390]

I'm accustomed to using Non detergent oil in all older small engines.

Thanks to @pfrederi I have the manual for the Tecumseh and it says to use detergent oil BUT it is printed in 1998... Over 30 years after DOM on my engine.

 

What do you folks use??

 

 

[squonk 41,050]

If Tecky says detergent ,I'd use detergent. Change the oil often and I don't see any problems. I went thru 4 Tecky's in 11 years in the 60's. What do I know? 

[Digger 66 3,478]

The posts on this I have read :

 

Detergent oil for engines without oil filters 

Non-detergent oil for engines with them 

[Anglo Traction 761]

1 hour ago, squonk said:

If Tecky says detergent ,I'd use detergent. Change the oil often and I don't see any problems. I went thru 4 Tecky's in 11 years in the 60's. What do I know? 

That sounds like a 'Techy Shoot' 

[ebinmaine 67,390]

22 minutes ago, Anglo Traction said:

That sounds like a 'Techy Shoot' 

Ooooo...... That was baaaaddd.....

Hahahahahahha.........

[DennisThornton 4,769]

44 minutes ago, Digger 66 said:

The posts on this I have read :

 

Detergent oil for engines without oil filters 

Non-detergent oil for engines with them 

That's what I've always heard and read. 

[squonk 41,050]

Kohler K Series manual states use detergent oil. For everything. Good enough for me. 

[ebinmaine 67,390]

1 hour ago, Digger 66 said:

The posts on this I have read :

 

Detergent oil for engines without oil filters 

Non-detergent oil for engines with them 

That's been my method for quite awhile.

 

I've always been under the impression that you don't want to hold the dirt in the oil if you don't have a filter to remove it.

 

Of course I realize the technology has Vastly improved in 50 plus years.

 

I'm thinking that it's far more important to change the oil at the right time.

[pfrederi 17,697]

The H60 On my L107 lasted about 20 years and was retired because it didn't have ACR and my father was having more difficulty pulling the recoil.  It was replaced about 1988 with an HH70 that had ACR.  She is still running today and used every couple of days year round.  Both engines always used Detergent oil.  St 30w in the summer 5w-30 in the winter. 

[Racinbob 11,048]

Nothing but detergent for my engines. Here's something I found while searching:

 

"Motor oil detergents were introduced in the 1950s. The concept adjusts for the failings of oil filters by attaching to those particles too small to get caught in filters. Instead the detergent holds the particles in the oil so they don't deposit on engine parts and cause hot spots. If the oil is used for too long, however, it can't do its job. Thus, flushing out old oil regularly helps maintain the cleaning process and the benefit of the detergents."

 

There's a good reason why it always seems to come down to frequent oil changes.

[gwest_ca-(File Mod) 11,039]

I try to use an oil more commonly advertised as diesel engine oil with a CE and CF classification. It is also classified as SJ and SL for gasoline engines. All these letters will be on the bottle. If the long-life diesels didn't require this oil I doubt it would still be available at reasonable cost for the gas engines. 

 

Garry 

[rmaynard 15,434]

2 hours ago, Digger 66 said:

Detergent oil for engines without oil filters 

Non-detergent oil for engines with them 

Just the opposite. 

Detergent oils are for engines with pumps and filter. Detergent oils allow the dirt and products of combustion to mix with the oil and be pumped through the filter and removed.

Non-detergent oils allow the dirt and products of combustion to settle to the bottom in engine without filters where it stays until the oil is drained.

 

With today's oils, non-detergent is hard to find unless you go to somewhere like TSC or Advanced Autoparts where it is stocked and displayed along with other items specifically for small engines.

 

Frequent oil changes negate the need for any special oil, but I still am going to use non-detergent in all my slinger-type engines until it is no longer available.

[lynnmor 7,303]

2 minutes ago, rmaynard said:

Just the opposite. 

Detergent oils are for engines with pumps and filter. Detergent oils allow the dirt and products of combustion to mix with the oil and be pumped through the filter and removed.

Non-detergent oils allow the dirt and products of combustion to settle to the bottom in engine without filters where it stays until the oil is drained.

 

With today's oils, non-detergent is hard to find unless you go to somewhere like TSC or Advanced Autoparts where it is stocked and displayed along with other items specifically for small engines.

 

Frequent oil changes negate the need for any special oil, but I still am going to use non-detergent in all my slinger-type engines until it is no longer available.

You beat me to it by seconds, yes the opposite is what some say.  IMO, non-detergent is a relic from the past and should be used in gear boxes, not engines.

[KC9KAS 4,741]

1 hour ago, rmaynard said:

Just the opposite. 

Detergent oils are for engines with pumps and filter. Detergent oils allow the dirt and products of combustion to mix with the oil and be pumped through the filter and removed.

Non-detergent oils allow the dirt and products of combustion to settle to the bottom in engine without filters where it stays until the oil is drained.

 

With today's oils, non-detergent is hard to find unless you go to somewhere like TSC or Advanced Autoparts where it is stocked and displayed along with other items specifically for small engines.

 

Frequent oil changes negate the need for any special oil, but I still am going to use non-detergent in all my slinger-type engines until it is no longer available.

I'm glad you posted this, as I too was think this was the way it should be.

[Racinbob 11,048]

Just for the sake of this conversation the contaminates will settle to the bottom but only when the engine is shut down. Fire it up again and the big ol mixer scatters them around again. Anything that stays on the bottom is called sludge and is a bad thing. I've bought used tractors that had a sludge build up. As long as it isn't too bad it can be cleaned out with a couple of oil changes with detergent oil and a hot engine. Again, it comes down to proper drain intervals.

[ol550 830]

6 hours ago, DennisThornton said:

That's what I've always heard and read. 

 

6 hours ago, Digger 66 said:

The posts on this I have read :

 

Detergent oil for engines without oil filters 

Non-detergent oil for engines with them 

 

Detergent oil keeps contaminants in suspension for the filter to trap.  Non-detergent oil allows the contaminants to settle to the bottom and not circulated reducing wear. Using detergent oil in a engine that has been run most its life on non-detergent oil most likely will end its life. A lot of small engines have oil filters now and all require detergent oil.

[Howie 886]

I have not used non-detergent oil in any of my small engines for ever. Kind of remember the inside of engines with the heavy sludge build up in them that used non-detergent oils. That said I have yet to see in any of the manuals I have that calls for non- detergent oil. Can hardly find it anyway. Any of the newer splash lubricated engines use detergent oils. I agree oil change intervals in these is very important. Air cooled engines run hotter and the other job of the oil besides lubrication is carrying heat from the components I believe.

[Racinbob 11,048]

2 hours ago, ol550 said:

2 hours ago, ol550 said:

 

 

Detergent oil keeps contaminants in suspension for the filter to trap.  Non-detergent oil allows the contaminants to settle to the bottom and not circulated reducing wear. Using detergent oil in a engine that has been run most its life on non-detergent oil most likely will end its life. A lot of small engines have oil filters now and all require detergent oil.

 

 

Nah. I've done it countless times over the past 4 decades or so. Never hurt them a bit. As I mentioned before, the contaminants will get mixed back into 'circulation' just by starting a splash engine. Detergents hold contaminants too small for a filter to catch on a pressure, filter system.

Edited July 8, 2018 by Racinbob

[ol550 830]

Non-detergent oil was used before oil filters became standard equipment. This type of oil would "stick" contaminants to the sidewalls and valleys of the engine to prevent dirty oil from damaging bearing surfaces. Engines that have been run on non-detergent oil for many years will have a thick "sludge" buildup.

 

Found this on the internet.  But use whatever your comfortable with,