Is the factory fill of the diffs and transfer case Synthetic oil?

[Rusty PW]

My old 1965 Peugeot 403 had an actual worm gear axle. The ring gear was bronze. Letting off the gas of the 1500cc motor resulted in noticeable braking. And my little 250 Ducati had spiral bevel gear tower cam drive. This was early 70s. Neat stuff.

I restored a Duc 851 SP some yrs ago. That had the beveled drive and no valve springs. Had a fork to open the valve, and a fork to close the valve.

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[seven30]

I restored a Duc 851 SP some yrs ago. That had the beveled drive and no valve springs. Had a fork to open the valve, and a fork to close the valve.

Yep the famous Desmo valve system. I think the 851 was a four valve too so it was really crowded in there. Setting the forked closers to nill clearance was a pain. Almost easier to pull the heads off. But unless raced they rarely changed once set.

 

[Rusty PW]

Yep the famous Desmo valve system. I think the 851 was a four valve too so it was really crowded in there. Setting the forked closers to nill clearance was a pain. Almost easier to pull the heads off. But unless raced they rarely changed once set.

Yep, 4 valve head. A dentist had bought the bike to restore. It was an Ex superbike racer with a history. He tore it all apart. Found out that he was in WAY over his head. I got the bike off of him dirt cheap. It WAS a basket case. All the parts were in baskets but the frame. Took me 2 years to put it back together. Made some nice coin when I sold it.

 

[JTGuy]

GL5 is pretty good. Hoe about a GL6. Torco makes a 85-140 non sun in GL6.

 

[rr11]

Just making sure here, we are specifically talking about Axle/ Gear and Transfer Case oil, not engine oil.

My motivation to switching the gear/ diff oil out is, I was thinking of getting the Spicer Dana Nodular Iron Differential covers and would have to swap out the oil anyways, but I'll wait until I get more miles on the Gladiator (At 1,000 miles now) until I do so. I'm in no rush to swap out the covers, but... but... if the factory fill is dino oil that would give me the extra motivation to inevitably spill nasty gear oil on myself and swap them out.

Spicer Nodular Iron Performance Diff Covers - Axle | Spicer Parts

I have the same covers on my Jeep. I like them a lot, Will resist damage a lot better than the factory parts.

 

[mkopec]

I have always changed my own oil and very frequently so I have not used synthetic as a result of the frequency.
I know that synthetic can endure more mileage without losing viscosity, but can anyone tell me if changing from one to the other presents a problem??

I was once told that once you start using synthetic, you should not go backwards. Not sure what the logic is for this?

 

[Hootbro]

I was once told that once you start using synthetic, you should not go backwards. Not sure what the logic is for this?

I have heard the reverse of this with the theory that synthetics better detergent action would remove any varnish or sludge between sealing surfaces and thereby opening up for possible leaks. I do not think this is relevant today with most modern "conventional" oils being semi-synthetic regardless.

 

[TheRealStreetcommander]

Keep in mind that 540 RAT does not publish exactly what his testing standards are and has side step any inquiry into his exact methods or if they follow any industry standard ASTM testing.

His gift of long winded writing and statement of "facts" without independent review of the actual raw data and where he contrives that info has appealed more to peoples confirmation bias if his stated "data" aligns with ones own.

Lubricants operate within a specified grade weight and viscosity range with motor oils, gear oils and even ATF having different specs for their respective viscosity that are not readily comparable to each other for a given viscosity with different demands for each type unique to themselves.

People like lists and rankings. 540 RAT appeals to that but I would not tie my hitch to his wagon on his ranking structure or methodology.

100% true. I don't know the man or his intentions, so I will refrain from accusing him of intentional wrongdoing. Until he publishes his test specifications and methodology, his blog is just simple entertainment with no more truth than those peppered into the ramblings of a mad man.

"0 psi" from a transmission fluid/oil? Common guys, nevermind how nebulous his rating system is, he's apparently stumbled onto a liquid lubricant with zero mass and zero resistance to flow. I just cant believe NASA and DARPA haven't contacted him yet.

 

[ShadowsPapa]

I was once told that once you start using synthetic, you should not go backwards. Not sure what the logic is for this?

Nothing to it. It's the additives that would make any difference. Possibility that someone made a change - to a very different brand with different additives and had trouble but there's nothing as far as the base oil that would matter.

I have heard the reverse of this with the theory that synthetics better detergent action would remove any varnish or sludge between sealing surfaces and thereby opening up for possible leaks. I do not think this is relevant today with most modern "conventional" oils being semi-synthetic regardless.

The additives make the detergent. The base oil won't matter.
You can have crap synthetic with bad additive packages, and the same for conventional.
Additives matter, not the base stock.
Other than Pennzoil and some others, most synthetics come from petroleum base stock anyway
Viscosity, sheer, and more, that's where your synthetics matter.

 

[kevman65]

Nothing to it. It's the additives that would make any difference. Possibility that someone made a change - to a very different brand with different additives and had trouble but there's nothing as far as the base oil that would matter.


The additives make the detergent. The base oil won't matter.
You can have crap synthetic with bad additive packages, and the same for conventional.
Additives matter, not the base stock.
Other than Pennzoil and some others, most synthetics come from petroleum base stock anyway
Viscosity, sheer, and more, that's where your synthetics matter.

See, supposed to making a battery install video and got sidetracked by "earl"





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