oil question

s19438

Well-known Member
I have been poking around Y-TMAG since 1996 and now I am going to ask something that has been bugging me for a long time.

these old TO model tractors and others called for mineral oil for the hyd./trans. now many folks are using 10/30 detergent oil as a replacement. the way I understand it mineral oil allows the crud in the oil to drop to the bottom of the tranny/hyd. housing hoping I guess that the tractor owner will eventually flush the system thereby getting the settled crud out of the tractor. the detergent oil, as I understand it, suspends the crud allowing a filter to remove said crud.

since the TO models do not have a tranny or hyd. filter why would you then want to use the detergent oil which keeps the crud suspended ???

please forgive my ignorance but I had to ask.

thanks.
 
No ignorance there. I think the same thing and I pointed that out on a thread last week. If I remember correctly John(uk) had said to use a 10w30 non detergent. He is the only one I can remember saying to use non detergent 10w30. I never could find a non detergent 10w30 here so I just went with the old GL1 90 weight.
 
I think one of the biggest problems with the oil in our old tractors is moisture.

bad gear shift rubber boots is a major moisture source.
but also, the gear case can sweat and in time you will get some moisture buildup.

my buddy would open the drain plug just a little and get a small amount of water out, if the tractor had been setting for a long period of time.

I always have used the GL-1 trans/hyd oil in my 1957 TO-35 and so far it's worked well.

some say to warm tractor up to normal operating temp, then drain trans/hyd drain oil

then add like 5 gals of kerosene to system and run it a bit then drain again

I do not know about this: I bought a fine running old ford car motor once, but before I pulled it and installed it in my other car, I ran kerosene through it for a few minutes.

from then on it smoked like an old freight train, I ruined that nice running 292 ford motor in about 5 mins.

so, no kerosene in the trans/hyd sump of my little tractor.

I buy the GL-1 oil at NAPA, best price I have found, they can order it for you, if none is on the shelf.

My understanding: something about using GL-1 oil because it properly protects the yellow metal in the bearings of the transmission, am not sure of that, but if it calls for GL-1 then that is what I am going to use as long as I can get it.

you are to use GL-1 to protect the transmission bearings, not the hyd system???????

good luck,
 
I have heard "kerosene" so many times as a flush. Kerosene is a dry oil almost no lube qualities at all. In my opinion the worst thing one could use as a flush. Imagine using flame proof gasoline (no such thing)- rub gas and Kerosene between your fingers -NOT slippery. Machinery needs lubrication so why use a non lube as a flush or cleaner? Deisel has more lubricant then Kerosene - but still not a good flush. Long run periods and good oil will clean an engine well.Short runs build wax & varnish deposits as they settle on the castings and cool then build up to form sludge. In long hot runs the hot oil will clean & dissolve the sludge. I had a chevy 350 I got from a car it smoked -burned blue (terrible) It was supposed to be rebuilt before it was used, to put in one of my 5 snow plows in MA. We had an angine let go in the middle of a storm. We put valve coner gaskets on the worn engine ( there was old oil dripping off the heads) when we took off the valve covers you could hardly see the valve springs and rocker arms. We needed it badly -threw it in any way to finish the season. The plows run at least 24-40 hours straight in a storm. At the end of the season I pulled the engine ofr an over haul. When we tor down the engine it was clean as a whistle inside - one would never know it was a sludged up gummed up mess. Heat and constant flushing with hot oild did the trick.
 
I'd say a lot of it depends on your climate. I put GL1 in my 202 and in the winter I can hardly get the thing into gear where normally you just aim it and push very lightly (it's pretty worn). In summer no problem. If you are in a climate where it doesn't get too cold the GL1 would be perfect.
I don't plan on using the 202 much in the winter because I have a TO35 which I intend to use for moving snow with a back blade. I will be trying out some 10W30 in it. Also, since I got the 35, I took the freshly rebuilt hydraulic and 3pt. "guts" out of the 202 to put in the 35 so it no longer has to turn the hyd. pump along with all the other gears in GL1 syrup.
I hope to find some low/no detergent 10W30 but if I don't I will put in regular 10W30. As already stated, I think one of the biggest things is to keep the water out and replace the fluid regularly, especially if you think it has water in it. I have replaced the shifter boots on the 202 and will order a set for the 35 when it goes back together. I also keep the 202 tarped when it sits outside. Just pulled the lift cover this past weekend to remove the hyd. pump and all the GL1 still looked pretty good. There was a buildup of sludge and little metal filings in the corners of the housing but considering I was the first one to replace the fluid in probably decades, I would think that is normal.......that and the old hyd. pump had frozen and broken apart long before I owned it.
 

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