Forum

[Leon Novello]

Regarding Alan`s comment, I always drained the oil when it is cold; the reason is after a run in the heat and standing for a few days, any oil that is going to drain will already have drained down to the reservoir. And as some modern oil has magnetized molecules, that thin film of oil is always going to stay on ferrous metal in the engine. Magnetized oil: that is one reason the lawn mower didn`t seize when I drained it, went to work, bought oil, came home and found the my wife had mowed the lawn with no oil in the engine. The mower was not damaged as far as I could hear, and ran for years afterwards. I seem to have good Gremlins in my shed.

[binary]

I agree with Leon Novello. This discussion about what oil to run is a tired old chestnut that is taken out of the forum closet from time to time and given an airing. Here is to hoping that it slips quietly back into the closet where it belongs and the door is firmly closed.

[Valsp]

Leon You are a lucky chap. Where did you find a wife that mows the lawn for you?

[Leon Novello]

Valsp: We had a deal, she mows the lawn and I don`t work on the bullet in the lounge room.

[simon]

Im a fan of monogrades generally but not for Indian Bullets. They have no proper oil pressure release valve and that combined with a plain big end means that oil pressure when cold can get way too high.

[ric]

Binary, it's a problem of our own making, we're just too polite to simply reply 'RTFM' as soon as the question is asked.

[PeteF]

Got to disagree with Leon here.
If you drain the oil hot you have more chance of draining any sludge out with it, as it will be more likely to be in suspension.
Hot or cold, there will be plenty of oil on the engine surfaces to run until the new oil circulates.
People get paranoid about oil circulation after an oil change - there really isn't a problem for the minute or so it takes to get the new stuff round.
Regarding the mower, I'm not at all surprised that the (Briggs and Stratton?) engine ran with minimal oil. These engines don't have an oil pump generally and are designed to manage on minimal lubrication.