Oil (Type/Weight)

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I installed a Lockhart cooler and Lockhart bypass thermostat. The cooler is mounted on the front down tubes. The thermostat is in front of the transmission between the plates of the cradle. I think both are no longer sold by Lockhart-Phillips. For anyone interested, I think my neighbor has a Lockhart cooler he's not using.
 
Since I haven't looked at oil coolers for so long I'll have to dig around on the net to see what's out there after 25 years.

I didn't like the looks of the big bare rad type ones mounted on the front of the bike. My 1st attempt at cooling the oil was done by cutting a vent in the right side cover so air would pass between the cover and the oil tank. My bikes in a corner against the wall so I could only get a shot of it from the inside looking out.

Oil (Type/Weight)


I never did any testing back then to see what effect it had on the oil temp but I'm sure it did something on the hiway.

On my 750 I scavenged a water pump cooler off a car in a junk yard and fashioned a scoop for it and then tucked it behind the oil tank but still sticking out a bit to catch the wind. I was able to get a shot of it but not from a good angle. You don't usually look into it so much and man is it ratty looking after sitting 25 years.

Oil (Type/Weight)


I've never tested this one either to see what effect it had. When I start working on these bikes (soon I hope) I may try to clean it up and use it again as some of the prices I just saw after a quick look on the net were pretty scary. I should fit an inline thermostat though.

Has anyone else seen a nice looking and/or good functioning oil cooler suitable for mounting on a Norton?
 
Are you sure that's not a Ford power steering cooler? That was a common mod among my friends back then.
 
I'm not sure of anything except it came out of a junkyard near where I lived. I've never seen another one like it but it sounds logical that it would be used by others for the same thing if it was a common part. It fit so perfectly between the top of the shock and the rear of the oil tank it almost looked "Norton."

The side cover mod I don't recall ever having seen before either but since being on this board I've seen a photo of a similar mod.

Another thing I'm sure of is I'll be copying a lot of mods I've seen and heard about right here on this board for my next rebuild! With all the innovations folks have come up with for Nortons since I last rode these bikes they are like different machines altogether. I'm going to be afraid to bolt anything on my bike without first quizzing everyone here on whether or not there's a good mod to perform on the part first!

The world wide web sure beats the heck out of reading cycle mags once a month!
 
That's what I've found too. Instead of inventing it yourself you can run it by several folks who have done the job years ago. I'm still amazed at all the new equipment available for these bikes.
 
nomadwarmachine,

To answer your question, I use:
20W-50 in the crankcase, Castrol
90W in the gear box, any brand
20W-50 in the primary, Castrol

and I change the crankcase oil every 1,500 miles and the others every 3,000 miles.
 
I use Valvoline VR1 50W in the crankcase. The high ZDDP (zinc) content in this oil is preferred for flat tappet engines. Any oil with a decent zinc content will do, and since I live in the deep, deep south, straight 50W works great. At 2000-3000 mile oil change intervals, the long life advantages of synthetic don't come into play.

Stock filter is the same as most Ducatis for the past 30 years. I use the K&N 153. The nut welded to the back of the filter makes installation/removal a breeze.

I run Ford ATF in the primary. Manual says to use motor oil, but the ATF works great for two reasons: Its designed to work with friction plates (the guts of an automatic), and being tinted red, I can tell if the primary is leaking, or if the primary is getting fouled by oil from the engine.

I run 90EP in the gearbox, but see no harm in using a multi-weight, such as 85W-140EP. Again, synthetic is a waste of money, IMO, if you plan on changing the gearbox oil on a regular basis (6000 miles or so).
 
and from one more 'Synner' user to confuse you!!....... I use Amsoil 20/50 (not the special HD stuff). Barrels off this winter for repaint. Cam looks near perfect (std RGM supplied part) as do the lifter faces after 17,000miles +500 or so on mineral running in etc. Amsoil 75w/90 in the gearbox and no signs of wear either after 6000 miles.
 
+1 on the Amsoil 20/50 It has the SG rating (Zinc) I use to use Castrol 20/50 until they removed the Zinc. The dino oils don't take the heat as well as the synthetics, And as I live in So. Calif. I need to have an oil that better deals with that. Keith1069 Why do you not like the motorcycle grade? The stuff I buy has no mention of H.D. on it, Just a v-twin. Although I do use it in my Buell. It is made for air cooled motors.
 
you need to watch the rotella. the new formulation is called rotella triple t and the zink has been removed to work with the new emissions. the dello 400 has also been reformulated with the lower zink so the diesel rated oils are now all but useless to flat tappet motors.



GavinJuice said:
thought i should share this, i read alot on the suzuki GS forum which is a wealth of info. Most guys on there run Rotella Diesel oil with has a very high ZINC content with is what JimC posted and the most critical point being the camshafts. Whats so great about the Rotella Diesel is its available at Walmart and its CHEAP!!
Click to expand...
 
I'm running a K&N 153 right now on a 73 850 Commando.

I have a few of the Baldwin 474 (I think that's the right number - not in the garage at present) on the shelf, but the K&N with its welded nut on top is so much easier to take off. The Baldwins, no matter how lightly I "torque" them on, require impalement with a big screwdriver to remove - bloody mess.

FWIW, I run Redline 20W50 in the crankcase, currently Royal Purple 75W-90 hypoid gear lube in the gearbox, and Redline MTL in the primary chaincase. The latter two I will probably switch to Redline MT-90 next time around.

Redline crankcase oils have a lot of advantages, only one of them being a very high zinc content.
 
Looks like I am going to have to find some Red Line 20W50 synthetic oil, and some Redline MT-90W. Thankfully, no need for primary oil after the switch to the belt drive and dry clutch.
 
Corona850 said:
Here you go, read this:

http://www.nortonclub.com/docs/OilTemp.pdf

I am sure it's been posted on here many times previously.
Click to expand...

I wish Allen Goldwater (author) still had his set-up in place. It would be interesting to see a comparison amongst the different oil coolers available today. Also mods like the one Ludwig mentioned about drilling the air escape hole in the head fins. I'd be interested in seeing the minimal sized oil cooler required. Now I'm considering running an oil temp gage:(
 
I will comment on Bills info. regarding Shell
Rotella(15/40), it is still avalible in the old high zink formulation in 5 gallon tubs and 55 gal. drums. I run it in my much modified '85 Saab
SPG and 907duck.
One can still obtain Rotella in single grades,(original high zink formulation) which I have used in my 450 mk 111 d, bevel twins, Nortons, ad infinitum, for the last 40 years or so, and have never lost a crank or suffered any heat related failures of any kind.
If you want to talk about heat, try Ga. 60 in mid-July, trying to stay in front of the youngsters.

For information only:

Commandos equiped with a central alloy tank with a temp. sender, located near the supply banjo, have shown a drop of 20-25 degrees F., at full chat compared to the stock tank.
 
Way COOL Ludwig! (pun intended)

Very nice work!

I find these mods more appealing than running oil lines and mounting a cooler on the front of the bike although I am finding some attractive oil coolers on the net.

Your right inner thigh would become a biological heat sensor/gage too.
 
ludwig said:
yes , an alloy oil tank is a big help .
this is what I made : close copy of original , but slightly bigger , no drain plug (oil is sucked out ) and shorter lines .:

(photo of photo , so lousy quality )
Click to expand...

Very well done, did you do the welding yourself?

Jean
 
Keith1069 Why do you not like the motorcycle grade? The stuff I buy has no mention of H.D. on it, Just a v-twin. Although I do use it in my Buell. It is made for air cooled motors.
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It's not that I don't like it but the UK importer only does it in 0.95litre packs and it's £12 std m/c syn or £14.50 for the special? HD stuff. The std 20/50 comes in 5 litres so it's a bit more economical!
 
Oh O.K. I thought there my be something I didn't know. I talked to the reps. at a trade show once and that is what I was told, That's all. But I bet if we were to talk to any of the oil reps. they would all tell us their oil was the best on the market. Also another reason I use Amsoil is a lot of guys at Bonneville were using it and some of those bikes are really pushing the limits. The team I got to pit with had a bike running nitro methane that had 240 H.P. and it was a v-twin. Never had oil related problem. They did have one other bike burn a hole in the piston from the nitrios oxide though. I would think the most important thing no matter what oil we use is to change it on a regular basis. Just my opinion and I have NO scientific data to offer just what I have seen.
 
GavinJuice said:
thought i should share this, i read alot on the suzuki GS forum which is a wealth of info. Most guys on there run Rotella Diesel oil with has a very high ZINC content with is what JimC posted and the most critical point being the camshafts. Whats so great about the Rotella Diesel is its available at Walmart and its CHEAP!!
Click to expand...

I work for Shell, the maker of Rotella. Several years ago a buddy who has a vintage shop asked me which oil was best for vintage bikes. I asked our lube specialists and they said Rotella too.

Almost any modern oil is so much better than what these bikes ran on originally, you probably can't go wrong with most.

What I won't do is use synthetic or any other super premium oil, I think it's not worth the money.
 
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