I seem to recall the Lycoming additive does not play well with Continental starter adapters, at least on the IO-550 engines; in a Lycoming I agree there is no apparent downside. The Phillips Victory line of oils also contains the additive.
I had a terrible experience with Phillips 20W50, and then on several occasions with 15W50, in my O-200, and will never use either again in that engine. I use W80, because that’s what Continental says to use, and it works perfectly fine. I always preheat to assure an oil temperature in the sump of at least 45F before starting. My Lycoming O-360 came to me with 15W50 being the oil of choice, and it has worked perfectly well in that engine for me for twelve years, so I’ll stick with it. I can’t explain the differences, but it has never had the viscosity breakdown which the same oil have several times in my O-200.
What were your problems?
All the local O200 owners I know use 15W50. We’ve been doing so for years. The Jodel we just sold was over 2200 engine hours. Most look for nearer/over 3000. We never pre-heat, but are rarely below 0°C at startup. North Scotland
When we got the Bolkow, we fitted a cartridge filter, changed from W100 to. 15W50, and change oil at 25 h, filter at 50 h.
Same as with the Jodel for 21 years. I was happy with the engine on my final delivery flight
Bathman wrote:
What were your problems?
When I bought the 150 in 1987, the previous owner had used W80. There was a surplus of Phillips 20W50 around the hangar, and I was offered a few cases. As soon as I started running on it, I had less good running. This culminated in stuck exhaust valves, and removing three cylinders (so I did all four). The valve springs were coated in black glassy ash, like they’d been dipped in liquefied broken black glass shards. It was a big job to sandblast the springs, but I cleaned them all up. I switched back to W80, and it ran fine. Years later, I was convinced to try 15W50. It seemed okay until the summer. I was orbiting a friend’s farm on a hot day, and noticed the oil pressure had gone to zero, though temp was normal. I pulled the power and landed in his field. I checked the oil, and there was lots, but it had no viscosity whatever. I spent the afternoon visiting my friend, during which time the engine cooled. I checked the oil, nice the thick, started and warmed up, watching the oil T&P carefully, all fine. After a few minutes, and a good run up, I took off for the ten minute flight to home. I was careful to fly at a lower power, and faster speed for better cooling. A few miles short of home, oil pressure zero again, though temp okay. I flew a long glide into home. Again, silly low oil viscosity, so I dumped it out. I only had 15W50 at home, so I refilled with that. I ran it up, T&P fine. A few days later, I flew up to the airport to buy some more oil for stock. By the time (15 minutes) I arrived, the oil pressure was dropping. Again, no viscosity when I checked the oil. I dumped the new 15W50 at the airport, and put in W80. The engine has never seen another type of oil since, and zero problems (in >2000 hours of flying).
I cannot explain the oil problems I had, but am just very luck that at each occasion the 15W50 went watery, I had somewhere to land right then. If I’d been over the vast open areas of Ontario, which I frequently crossed, it would have been a serious problem. That said, the 15W50 has been perfectly fine in my Lycoming O-360 for the 600 hours I have flown it (from being zero timed just before I first flew it). So I’m not knocking 15W50, ‘just saying that my O-200 really did not like it on several occasions, and that could have ruined my engine, and left me gliding. A lot of my flying will involve leg lengths of more than an hour, with very few, if any suitable landing sites for a wheel plane, so I like reliability. That’s another reason I like the flying boat, many bodies of water become reasonable emergency landing sites.
That’s an amazing report.
What could be the explanation?
As I posted previously, with these engines having oil temperature regulation, the only benefit of multigrade could be
There are claims going around the internet that nearly all engine wear takes place in the first few seconds after startup, before the oil pressure has a chance to build up. This sounds plausible but I have not seen any evidence that this has any bearing (no pun intended) on engine reliability, or even how many parts are outside service limits at the next overhaul.
Peter wrote:
There are claims going around the internet that nearly all engine wear takes place in the first few seconds after startup, before the oil pressure has a chance to build up.
If that would be the case, why do engine manufacturers (and regulators) define engine limits in terms of hours and not in terms of cycle times?
Maoraigh wrote:
All the local O200 owners I know use 15W50. We’ve been doing so for years. The Jodel we just sold was over 2200 engine hours.
And what fuel do they use Mogas?
If that would be the case, why do engine manufacturers (and regulators) define engine limits in terms of hours and not in terms of cycle times?
That’s why I don’t believe this either, or, if it is true, it isn’t relevant to anything to do with engine reliability. If you speak to an engine shop, they will tell you that most engine parts at TBO are within new limits, most of the rest within service limits, and perhaps a few are knackered.
