Super Tech Oil!!!

[P2breaker]

I saw full synthetic Super Tech 10w40 motorcycle oil at Walmart. JASO-MA2 rating. The bad part is that it was $8.48 a quart. Super Tech is supposed to be cheap so right now it isn’t worth it for so little savings. Has anyone used it. How did you like it.?


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

[Top Cat]

$8.48 a Qt means for 5 quarts in my Victory it would cost me $42.40.
That is not cheap.
I can get Rotella T-6 full syn for $22 a gallon. That is $5.50 a qt

[Sabre-t]

@P2breaker, it's not JASO-MA2 rated. They didn't pay to get the actual certifications. They claim that it meets those specifications. That may seem like nit-picking, but I was an R&D chemist for a major industrial chemical company. Products that make claims like this but don't actually get tested by certification labs sometimes don't actually meet the requirements. They get away with it because no one is willing to do what's needed to make them stop making such claims.

I'm not saying Super Tech is one of those companies, but claiming to meet standards and actually being certified as meeting those standards are not the same thing. I have used a number of Super Tech products and have always been pleased with them.

[P2breaker]

Originally Posted by Sabre-t

@P2breaker, it's not JASO-MA2 rated. They didn't pay to get the actual certifications. They claim that it meets those specifications. That may seem like nit-picking, but I was an R&D chemist for a major industrial chemical company. Products that make claims like this but don't actually get tested by certification labs sometimes don't actually meet the requirements. They get away with it because no one is willing to do what's needed to make them stop making such claims.

I'm not saying Super Tech is one of those companies, but claiming to meet standards and actually being certified as meeting those standards are not the same thing. I have used a number of Super Tech products and have always been pleased with them.

Ah but that means it is JASO-Ma2 rated. The question is whether the rating is real. Without facts to the contrary I have no reason to believe it isn’t. That price on it sucks though.

[TX1700]

Originally Posted by Sabre-t

@P2breaker, it's not JASO-MA2 rated. They didn't pay to get the actual certifications. They claim that it meets those specifications. That may seem like nit-picking, but I was an R&D chemist for a major industrial chemical company. Products that make claims like this but don't actually get tested by certification labs sometimes don't actually meet the requirements. They get away with it because no one is willing to do what's needed to make them stop making such claims.

I'm not saying Super Tech is one of those companies, but claiming to meet standards and actually being certified as meeting those standards are not the same thing. I have used a number of Super Tech products and have always been pleased with them.

How do you know they did not pay for a certification? I would not use Super Tech oil when there are better oils available for the same price. I sure wish that there was away to shut down companies that lie about such! To many out there to catch and not enough authorities to catch them. Thanks for your sharing your knowledge on this!

[Sabre-t]

Originally Posted by TX1700

How do you know they did not pay for a certification? I would not use Super Tech oil when there are better oils available for the same price. I sure wish that there was away to shut down companies that lie about such! To many out there to catch and not enough authorities to catch them. Thanks for your sharing your knowledge on this!

If they had paid to have it certified, they would have certainly put the Petroleum Quality Institute (API - the circular label that lists all of the certifications) label on the bottle. The pics above do not show that label. Getting those certifications is too expensive to not display the API label.

[andyvh1959]

That's the best point to make about it, if the API label isn't there, then you have to question it.

[BrokeAss]

To be utterly frank, motorcycle oil is entirely unnecessary. What makes motorcycle oil well...motorcycle oil is not what's in it, but what's not - namely, anti-friction modifiers. You can spot oil that is devoid of this agent by observing the API circle on the back. If it says, "Energy Conserving" it has the modifiers. I have been using High Mileage 10w40 car oil for tens of thousands of miles in multiple bikes for over 15 years. No failures, no clutch slippage, with 32,000 miles put on an '04 Mean Streak alone. Quit paying $8-15 per quart for "decaffeinated" motorcycle oil when 10w40 car oil is also decaffeinated and can be had for $22 per 5qt jug for Mobil 1 full synthetic, or $15 per 5qt jug for Quaker State semi-synthetic.

[Peg]

Originally Posted by BrokeAss

To be utterly frank, motorcycle oil is entirely unnecessary. What makes motorcycle oil well...motorcycle oil is not what's in it, but what's not - namely, anti-friction modifiers. You can spot oil that is devoid of this agent by observing the API circle on the back. If it says, "Energy Conserving" it has the modifiers. I have been using High Mileage 10w40 car oil for tens of thousands of miles in multiple bikes for over 15 years. No failures, no clutch slippage, with 32,000 miles put on an '04 Mean Streak alone. Quit paying $8-15 per quart for "decaffeinated" motorcycle oil when 10w40 car oil is also decaffeinated and can be had for $22 per 5qt jug for Mobil 1 full synthetic, or $15 per 5qt jug for Quaker State semi-synthetic.

New member arrives... Starts an oil argument.

[BrokeAss]

Originally Posted by Peg

New member arrives... Starts an oil argument.

Actually, I have no desire to argue, this information came out on forums clear back in 2004. We went to the oil manufacturers' websites, read the literature on their products, and determined that the only voodoo to be found in motorcycle specific oil was an absense of anti-friction modifiers for the purpose of preserving wet clutch performance. Remove said clutch from the equation and there's very little difference between the engine in my Nomad and the V8 in my Lexus...water cooled, overhead cam, 4-valve, similar redline. It's true that motorcycles often share engine oil with the transmission gears, but many automobile transmissions use 5w30 motor oil in them, such as my '05 Colorado, so obviously the shear strength of 5w30 is adequate for the gears in a truck, so I'm confident 10w40 will hold up in a much lighter bike. I'm merely making statements here, not making a challenge to anyone, so be educated and buy/use whatever you like in your machine, it's yours to look after however you see fit.

As for being a new member, sure...I signed up 8 months ago and didn't really post as the site seemed rather dead to be quite frank. It's now Spring and things seem to be revving up a bit so I checked back in. If you wish to inquire as to my qualifications for contributing here, just ask. Post count does very little to reveal who's at the other end of the coax...

[Peg]

Don't get me wrong... I like your style. It's a brave man sure of his ground who can make an entry like this.

I'll give it two...

[recumbentbob]

Shell Rotella T6 now has a 15W40 in addition to the 5W40.

[mr500]

Originally Posted by BrokeAss

To be utterly frank, motorcycle oil is entirely unnecessary. What makes motorcycle oil well...motorcycle oil is not what's in it, but what's not - namely, anti-friction modifiers. You can spot oil that is devoid of this agent by observing the API circle on the back. If it says, "Energy Conserving" it has the modifiers. I have been using High Mileage 10w40 car oil for tens of thousands of miles in multiple bikes for over 15 years. No failures, no clutch slippage, with 32,000 miles put on an '04 Mean Streak alone. Quit paying $8-15 per quart for "decaffeinated" motorcycle oil when 10w40 car oil is also decaffeinated and can be had for $22 per 5qt jug for Mobil 1 full synthetic, or $15 per 5qt jug for Quaker State semi-synthetic.

Interesting. I never knew about the "Energy Conserving" on the label . I like the Mobile1 stuff. Run it in all my cars.

Love to learn new stuff

[mbarr10]

Don't get me wrong... I like your style. It's a brave man sure of his ground who can make an entry like this.

I'll give it two...

I'll go 1. Got to admit it has been awhile since we had this going on, "Best lube" just can not bring myself to use the "O" word.

[BrokeAss]

Originally Posted by mbarr10

I'll go 1. Got to admit it has been awhile since we had this going on, "Best lube" just can not bring myself to use the "O" word.

Haha, indeed...the Great Oil Debate has been going on for years and shows no signs of stopping anytime soon, and is fueled mostly by nothing more than mere anecdotal evidence. If it were a question of BEST oil for your bike I believe a very strong case could be made for Amsoil 10w40 Motorcycle Oil. However, when you get to the point of looking after a small fleet of motorcycles and are self-employed, frugality dictates you research alternatives. Harley owners, with their separate Primary and Transmission lubes, already forego the concerns of modifiers in their engines and so we noted that many swore by Shell Rotella, an oil purportedly intended for diesel trucks. This led to the question: what makes motorcycle oil so special, and subsequently expensive? And the answer ultimately was found in the API service label, or should I say, was found MISSING on said label.

It would seem, then, that as always...just add the adjective "motorcycle" or "boat" to any product and you can ask 4x as much money for it and all it cost you was printing a different label or bottle.

This is what I use in 95% of my bikes, whether mine, my son's/daughter's, a customer's or a flip: