Castrol "high performance" oil + Muc Off protector

[k0no]

two quick things:

1) gave my bike its first proper service today. oil, filter, grease & tighten. general housekeeping.
i've always been told never to scrimp on engine oil, as a little more money now saves you from expensive rebuilds later.... a bit corny, but it makes a lot of sense.
- SO, i went and bought some Castrol "sporty" oil (racing? sport? can't remember the packaging), just to see what difference it would make.

result? the bike feels like new! the gearchanges are slick as maple syrup, the acceleration is more urgent, and the bike is more willing to rev and generally smoother. i was actually a bit hesitant to use this sort of oil on a standard road bike, but i can see i made the right choice.... although i expect to have to change the oil perhaps a little more frequently than i would with a non-sporty version. i'm cool with that.

2) i've never really got sucked in by motorbike-centric marketing and stuff. i have always just used a jumbo can of WD40 and a rag to clean my bikes down.
but today i got the urge to buy some Muc Off bike protector aerosol. honestly it's fantastic. in 15 minutes my bike went from being simply "mostly clean" to looking like it had just rolled out of a dealership. all you need is a soft cloth and you're away. also, it seems to be a good product for just gently spraying over the harder-to-reach components inside the frame, just to keep them shiny and rust-free... WD40 always felt a bit iffy as a spray-on panacea, and a quick ride in the rain undid all your work. this sutff however seems more heavy duty in terms of protecting and repelling water.

genuinely impressed customer on both counts, and i don't say that lightly.

[trixynut]

An oil change in itself can make a big difference. I am in the "use cheaper oil but change it very regularly" camp though.
Mucoff do some good cleaning products, i agree. After a good clean, I go for silicon spray all over (not brakes and seat though) which gives a good non sticky protective cover.

[k0no]

good advice on the silicon spray.

yeah, i'll change the oil regularly, but still probably use nice oil.

especially after buying a bike second hand, i'll probably only do 500 miles or so before changing the oil again. i want to flush out the engine completely because i don't know how the previous rider actually treated the bike (apart from it looks great and seems in brilliant condition, i just want to make sure).

[bikeownerus]

Just a 'heads up' on the subject of oil.
Halfords are currently doing 4litres of Castrol Magnatec 10-40 semi-synthetic for £17-50 (plus others).
Good oil at a good price - not sure how long the offer lasts?

[k0no]

Just a 'heads up' on the subject of oil.
Halfords are currently doing 4litres of Castrol Magnatec 10-40 semi-synthetic for £17-50 (plus others).
Good oil at a good price - not sure how long the offer lasts?

g'dayum. that's good.

back to the shops for me!

[Mincehead]

Castrol Magnatec might just have you replacing your clutch plates after the added friction reducers have ferked them up!
My advice, stick to oils formulated for bike engines with wet clutches.

[dandywarhol]

Ditto!

Car oil isn't designed to be frothed up by gears and polluted by clutch plate debris - especially by the dip the clutch wheelie brigade (not inferring you're one of those of course!)

[Mincehead]

Some reading on oils folks:

http://www.kewengineering.co.uk/Auto_oi ... lained.htm

[dandywarhol]

good link mince - not many folks know that 75 gear oil is around the same viscosity as 15 injun oil.....................

[k0no]

Castrol Magnatec might just have you replacing your clutch plates after the added friction reducers have ferked them up!
My advice, stick to oils formulated for bike engines with wet clutches.

didn't realise it was car oil. =P

i ended up buying more of the same that i already have.

[Hustler]

Another good oil link - http://www.carbibles.com/engineoil_bible.html