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The guy that wrote that article is has done some interesting and helpful testing, however, he is making some claims that are inaccurate, most likely because his “research” was limited . . Unfortunately, this is a good example of why you cant believe everything you read on the internet and should double check “facts” with more than one source . . His claim that he is an engineer has nothing to do with oil whatsoever because he is not an oil engineer/chemist . . His engineering degree might be in structural or electronics etc which have absolutely nothing to do with oil, therefore, his basic understanding of oil and test results may not much better than any other reasonably intelligent person if it is better at all.
FROM THE RAT
“And keep in mind that so-called Break-Oils with their typical low wear protection capability are absolutely NOT required for proper break-in and ring sealing. That has been proven over the past couple of decades by numerous Factories using highly ranked 5W30 Mobil 1 synthetic oil in their brand new performance vehicles. They break-in and seal their rings just fine, and of course come with a warranty.”
1. most auto mfg’s “plateau” hone their cylinders sand use thin rings which helps break them more quickly.
2. the phrase "highly ranked mobil 1" is relative and it has been proven in different tests that there are better oils out there.
3. there are two different types of “zddp”, one type establishes a long term protective layer . . the other is one that is designed to maintain and protect that layer . . joe gibbs break in oil has both types.
FROM AMSOIL
http://www.ultimatesyntheticoil.com/articles/converting_to_amsoil.htm
“The engine break-in issue is the subject of much controversy as everyone seems to have their opinion on when an engine is considered fully broken in. The information we provide is based on the results of engineering studies as well as many years of experience and teardown analysis on test vehicles. The differences between a vehicle that was properly and fully broken in and one that was not can often be hard to detect. There are tell-tale signs, but they are not easily detected except in all but the most extreme situations. The subject of what occurs during the break-in process can easily be the subject of a 100 page report, so what we cover in this website page is only the essential points you need to know. The break-in process we describe here is nothing compared to the extensive break-in process that race car engineers go through before an engine is ready to be converted to AMSOIL as well as racing in competition.
Breaking in an engine is a process of properly wearing-in the pistons/cylinders/rings, bearings, valves, camshaft, lifters, rockers, etc... In addition, part of the breaking in process is not only wearing-in and seating the internal engine components but also stress relieving the components as well. Crankshafts, connecting rods, pistons, blocks etc... have many stresses due to the casting or forging process, machining and welding process. We have viewed and measured these stresses, called fringes, using what is called lazer holography. These stresses are properly reduced/eliminated by costly and time consuming heat aging as well as shot peening and or high frequency vibration on a very specialized bedplate for an extended period of time. For production applications this is cost and time prohibitive. Therefore, the next best thing is exposing your engine to multiple heating and cooling cycles under various load and RPM's, which is described in the following paragraph. The heating and cooling break in process continues over a period of time and does not need to be run on petroleum oil.
Breaking in a new engine is the one area that petroleum oil is better for than synthetics. You see, petroleum oil has a very low film strength compared to synthetics. That's bad for long-term wear-protection, but it's ideal for breaking in a new engine. That is why we recommend you run the factory installed petroleum oil for about the about the first 500 miles. Then drain the oil, remove the factory installed oil filter and then install AMSOIL Synthetic motor oil and an AMSOIL EaO oil filter and you're ready to go. For diesel engines we recommend the same procedure, except at the 500 mile oil-change use conventional petroleum oil combined with an AMSOIL EaO nanofiber oil filter. The petroleum oil will better allow the break-in to continue, while the nanofiber oil filter will reduce wear particle damage by about 70% compared to standard or OEM filters.”
FROM THE RAT
“Using much higher ranking motor oils with their much higher wear protection capability, means that special break-in procedures ARE NOT REQUIRED.”
This is simply wrong, as Amsoil implies and logic dictates, the rings must contact the cylinder to break in . . using oil that prevents this prevents the rings from breaking in which is why some engines that are “broken” in with synthetics always smoke.
FROM THE RAT
“I suggested he go with low zinc synthetic 5W30 Mobil 1, API SN, that provided 105,875 psi in my testing, which put it in the INCREDIBLE wear protection caregory.”
I have not seen any testing on the specific oil he mentioned, however, I find it highly unlikely that Mobil 1 would have 2 SM rated oils where one provides a whopping 1,000% increase in wear protection for only around .50 cents more per quart . . This simply boggles my mind.
Mobil 1 5w-30 . . API rating SM . . $27.00 . . . .105,875 psi
Mobil 1 0w-40 . . API rating SM . . $24.00 . . . . . 1,540 psi
Mobil Synth S . . .API rating ? . . . . . . . . . . . . . 6,389 psi
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