Just curious about your experience with the Valvoline VR-1. Did you run anything before moving to the VR-1? If so, did you notice if your engine used any more/less oil between oil changes?

 

You should change the oil before storage because exhaust and water form acid. I've seen it on military airplanes where said acid has eaten the rear wing spar almost to failure from the combination of exhaust gases (blow-by on your bike) and water (condensation).
I'm not saying it will eat your bike engine up but it might etch the parts in the engine. Probably will not make the bike fail at any point but it can't possibly be healthy.
BTW Use gear oil in the transmission.

 

I'm using the Harley full Syn engine oil and their Trans and primary oil. Stuff is way too expensive at right at $100 with filter and primary gasket.

 

They ALL work fine, but as we tour far from home on our bikes I use HD oil 'cause if we need it, it's not hard to find...probably stopping at dealers anyhow for souvineers. When I say far from home; we have even had our bikes shipped as much as 2500 miles away, then fly to ride, but that's a different thread.

 

That's probably the best argument I have heard for sticking with the Harley oil. Never really crossed my mind but the others usually are on most store shelves ,at least not around here.

 

 

I have no complaints at all with the VR1. I tried synthetic but it made the top end on my Evo real noisy so I switched to the VR1. Bike runs smooth and quiet. My bike maybe uses 1/4 quart between changes, maybe. The local guy that recommended the VR1 to me had at the time 150,000+ miles on his Evo Dyna and he hadn't been into the motor yet.

 

When I'm on a touring holiday, two of the last things I want to concern myself with:
1. Where am I gonna get my snake oil, if I need it and didn't pack extra
2. How much money am I gonna save on oil

 

Though I'm firmly convinced of the superiority of Synthetic oil over Dino, this ^^ is one rationalization I soundly reject. IMO, If you want to save money, buy Dino. If you want better oil, buy Synthetic.

Fooling with change intervals in some parsimonious attempt to justify the small difference in operating costs your oil choice makes,, is foolish ! Considering only an oil's basic resistance to chemical breakdown and none of the other factors (dirt, additives depletion) that affect engine wear is,, foolish ! I'd opt for frequently changed Dino over extended change & Synthetic all day long, if those were the only parameters to consider. They aren't !

 

I've read a lot on here about using synthetic 20-50 in all three holes. This makes sense to me as all my sport bikes use one oil across the board as that's how they're built, and those motors are higher compression and spin much faster than a V-Twin. Sorry if anyone is annoyed by another oil post, but if you don't like it don't read it. That simple.