I've heard some people suggest using rotella t oil would be beneficial for small block ford engines...what do you guys think? Should I use this oil or go with some conventional with zinc additive, also what would be the desired weight? Thanks

 

I run Shell's Rotella 15w40 in all my stuff, diesel and gas. The zinc level fluctuates a bit but it hovers around 1200ppm. As long as your over 800ppm your flat tappets will be happy.

 

x2. Rotella has been run in my 390 for 30 years, and now I run the full synthetic version in my new build.

 

Amsoil 15W-40 Diesel and Marine, better wear protection (ASTM D4172 wear of 0.35), high TBN (12.1), and good for 25,000 miles.

 

I run Rotella T in my Dent, a '70's era hot rod, a '98 DOHC Neon and lawn equipment... basically anything with a flat tappet or slipper follower cam that benefits/needs the zinc EP properties. It has worked great... plus readily available at a parts store or Walmart and reasonable cost. The little Neon survived 2 daughters through HS and daughter #2 through college and still runs like a top with 150k.

I usually run 15W40 and use 5W40 synthetic for extreme cold weather (eg Neon in upstate NY winter). There is or used to be a 10W30 conventional Rotella but its hard to find.

 

Pretty hard to argue with 30 years. I run it in everything as well...hoping my stuff runs for 30 years too. Heck, I hope i'm alive then.

 

They still make it but it is hard to find, the last few I bought at O'Reilly about a year ago, shows up in Walmart every now and then...I think they probably only get it in when they accidentally order the wrong stock number. You could probably get a parts store to special order a case for you. I think 15W-40 is fine for a 70's engine though. I've always run 15W-40 in my 390, even in extreme cold. I used to try to find 10W-30 for my 400 because it was the weight the PO ran, but now I gave up and run 15W-40 in both.

Probably should caveat that with the fact that it was two different engines. The first was replaced because of low compression and I found some piston skirts in the oil pan (hard saying how long they were in there). The second engine was replaced because I finally got around to building the engine of my dreams. Both of those engines were driven very hard and the first one had over 200,000 miles on it before being replaced. Neither engine ever had any oil related problems, both showed consistent oil pressure their whole lives and looked spotless inside when removed.

I love Rotella, I figure you can't beat the price vs. quality. I'm sure there are better oils out there (e.g. Amsoil) but they aren't as readily available and cost more. The only engines I don't run Rotella in are my motorcycle and my Buick, but that is only because I can't get it in the weight I desire to run in those two.

 

ISSUES:

Flat tappet camshafts undergo extreme pressure and loads, thus requiring an engine oil that is fortified with anti-wear additives to provide premium protection. The severity of higher spring pressure in racing engines also creates the need for additional wear protection. To preserve catalytic converter life, phosphorus levels in motor oil have been reduced. Concerns have risen that oils containing lower levels of zinc/phosphorus could provide insufficient protection in high-pressure areas of flat tappets and camshaft lobes found in many older and high performance engines.

The most commonly used anti-wear additive in motor oils is zinc dialkyldithiophosphate(ZDDP). ZDDP contains both zinc and phosphorus components working together to provide anti-wear protection, and is most important during cam “break-in” procedures. Proper break-in lubes should be used during the break-in phase for all new or rebuilt engines with flat tappets. These lubricants provide the extra protection required to reduce wear at the point of contact during break-in and help the flat tappet face properly mate with the cam lobe. Once the break-in phase is completed, AMSOIL motor oils, which are formulated with high levels of zinc and phosphorus, will provide premium protection to flat tappet cams. The American Petroleum Institute (API) and International Lubricants Standards ApprovalCommittee (ILSAC) have mandated the reduction of phosphorus to extend catalytic converter life. However, reducing the level of ZDDP can compromise protection to engine components, most notably in flat tappet camshafts. Current API SN and ILSAC GF-5 specifications for gasoline engines have maximum and minimum phosphorus levels of 800 ppm and600 ppm, respectively, for SAE 0W-20, SAE 5W-20, SAE 0W-30, SAE 5W-30 and SAE10W-30 motor oils. All engines, especially high-performance modified engines, benefit from oils with superior film strength and anti-wear properties. The flat tappet/camshaft lobe interface is the one area in an engine that has extreme contact load. Since this load increases significantly when non-stock, high-pressure valve springs are employed, the use of properly formulated motor oils is extremely important to reduce wear and extend flat tappet/camshaft life.

RECOMMENDATION:

AMSOIL recommends motor oils containing high levels of zinc/phosphorus for superior protection. The tables above list many of the AMSOIL synthetic motor oils that are formulated with high levels of anti-wear additives:

AMSOIL ZRT,ZRF, AMO, ARO, HDD, AME, RD20, RD30, RD50 and AHR all contain high levels of zinc/phosphorus,maximizing flat tappet/camshaft life in stock modified and high-performance applications.

AMSOIL Z-ROD™10W-30 (ZRT) and 20W-50 (ZRF) Synthetic Motor Oils are formulated with high zinc and phosphorus levels to provide protection in gasoline engines with flat tappet camshafts. Z-ROD oils also contain high levels of rust and corrosion inhibitors for maximum protection during long periods of storage.

AMSOIL PremiumProtection 10W-40 (AMO) and 20W-50 (ARO) Synthetic Motor Oils are formulated with high zinc and phosphorus levels to provide protection in both gasoline(SL) and diesel (CI-4 Plus) applications. These oils are an outstanding choice where high zinc-containing protection is required, such as in late model hotrods that require extra camshaft protection.

AMSOIL Series3000 5W-30 Synthetic Heavy Duty Diesel Oil (HDD) is a combination diesel/gasoline oil with a higher starting TBN to handle the significant stresses from high soot loading and acid generation in modern diesel engines.HDD contains the high phosphorus and zinc required for long life engine protection.

AMSOIL 15W-40 Synthetic Heavy Duty Diesel and Marine Motor Oil (AME) is engineered for use ina wide variety of light and heavy-duty applications. AME is formulated with high levels of zinc and phosphorus to ensure protection of flat tappet camshaft lobes in high performance diesel engines.

While I agree, Rotella is a great oil to use, if you are looking for the best protection, AMSOIL is the best choice. If yall are having difficulty finding AMSOIL products, I'm an AMSOIL Independent Dealer and would be happy to drop ship you anything that you need at a much better price than one may think.

 

The traveling Shell Rotella marketing van spokesman said the current Rotella T SAE 15W40 had less ZDP than previous formulations, but now has improved lubricity properties over the previous formulation. The levels of Zn and Phosphorus is not published by Shell.

Alternate to Shell Rotell T is conventional Valvoline All Fleet plus diesel oil available in most SAE weights with 1270 ppm Zn rather than only 15W40.

Use SAE 15W40 Rotella T in my 73 FE390 & 73 AMC 401 Jeep engine & 1948 Ford tractor engine all with flat tappet lifters, since it is the most economical higher level ZDP concentration motor oil on the market.

Alternate is Valvoline VR1 conventional racing oil, available in all SAE weights with 1400 ppm Zn & 1300 ppm Phosphorus which available off the shelf at most auto parts stores.

 

Unless you just rebuilt the engine putting synthetic to your engine is like burning dollars.
Rotella is the best bang for the buck followed by chevron for zinc ppm and shear strength. Chevron actually has more zinc ppm and a better shear/wear vs rotella but rotella is cheaper.
bobistheoilguy forum, you'll learn more about oils than you thought you wanted to know.
edit to add that I run amsoil myself but in "newer" engines. No sense in using it on 100K+ miles engines.
just my opinion

 

I just went with some castrol 10w40 with stp zinc additive.

 

As Gator180 just stated.... "Castrol with a Zinc additive". Is this approach not getting the zinc/phosphorous levels where they should be? Or is this a "band aid" for not wanting to buy more expensive (or available) oil ? I am close to the start up/break in stage of my newly rebuilt '76 302 & I am debating on what to run once the motor is broke in. (if it survives the break in!! All this oil talk has me paranoid!) I know everyone has personal preferences but common sense tells me that adding a zinc additive will give the same protection to your cam/tappets. Whatcha' think ?

 

Go with what your cam manufacturer or engine builder recommends, especially if they require it for a warranty.

Otherwise if I was breaking in a flat tappet I would use Rotella T and a zinc additive for the break-in period. But you will get 100 different opinions for this...

 

If you are wanting to properly break-in your engine, I wouldn't just merely use an additive to compliment a decent oil. Oil preferences, well, we'll just say everybody has one. AMSOIL carrys a product that is specifically designed for what you are after. It is a SAE-30 Break-In Oil (BRK), you run it for up to 1000 miles and then switch over to your motor oil of choice (we all know what I would use, lol). Anyway, I'm a data and facts kind of guy, so here you go.

AMSOIL Break-In Oil (BRK)
Phosphorus Level - 2040 ppm
Zinc Level - 2265 ppm

http://www.amsoil.com/lit/databulletins/g2881.pdf

Good luck, I hope this helps.

 

The motor has Castrol GTX 10w-40, plus 1) qt. of Lucas break in additive in the crankcase awaiting me to initially start it up. I am the engine builder. My thoughts are what I should use AFTER the break in for oil. Again ,everyone will have their favorites but I am inquiring about oil facts. So... Does or will, a high quality oil,plus an additive (like STP Zinc additive) equal the protection qualities of a Rotella or Amsoil or whatever high zinc content a particular oil has?