I wouldn't be so quick to change back to conventional oil based on the sound of the engine. I run synthetic and find that it is noiser when cold, and quiets down considerably as the engine warms up and stabilizes in temperature. It is not an indication that the engine is not adequately lubricated. Synthetic oil, regardless of brand is a far superior product to use, especially in an air cooled engine that has such a wide range of operating temperatures depending on the season, geographic location and riding style etc. Its molecular structure is engineered to maintain its viscosity, anti shear, gear lubrication, temperature stability, oxidation and breakdown etc, over a wide range of operating temperatures, and as such provides the best protection for your engine. A V-rod is water cooled and the engine temperature is controlled. The twin cam is not. I installed an oil cooler and temperature gauge in my 09 streetglide. I notice that it takes about 20 miles of riding for my engine oil temperature (a good representation of engine temp) to stabilize at about 190 deg. Depending on the ambient temp and riding conditions I have seen it vary upwards to 230 deg. The other day I was stuck in traffic and the EITMS kicked in. The sump temperature was 260 deg! This is a wide range for the engine oil to deal with and still maintain all of its properties and protect the engine.
To me, the protection offered by synthetic far outweighs 10 minutes of engine clatter that I believe, is a result of internal engine tolerances to accommadate the varying degree of thermal expansion that the engine needs to deal with being air cooled.

My .02

 

HDMG makes a convincing argument. I do know that when I switched to synthetic, my noise level went up enought that I took it to the dealer and asked them to check it. they say nothing is wrong if runnning synthetic because the oil flows much better and will slip into small spaces versus dino oil. that sounded pretty good too. Might be bs but I don't know. I do know when i ran th dino oil, in the summer the oil pressure on my evo would just about drop to zero when in traffic and idling. the twin cam and synthetic hasn't given me that experience and it's been 100 here.

Bub

 

I noticed the same quiet down going back to conventional. Mine has always been quiet cold. It's when it gets hot it gets noisier.

 

Your on the East Coast, try that Brad Penn V2 20W50. You might learn to like it. Google Brad Penn and check them out. Call them if you would like. Great oil for a good price.

 

I do know when i ran th dino oil, in the summer the oil pressure on my evo would just about drop to zero when in traffic and idling. the twin cam and synthetic hasn't given me that experience and it's been 100 here.

Bub[/quote]
Well you have a good gauge then. Once the oil is up to operating temp, you are only going to have 7-10 lbs pressure at idle.

 

I have also switched back to dino because of noise , but also because 2 very top notch engine builders and tuners in the midatlantic region wont run synthetics because of the way it wears some engine parts due to it being thin. Dont shot the messenger, just what they explained to me. ?

 

I agree that synthetic oils are great for lubrication of bearings but I'm not convinced it's the best for valve train parts that hammer against each other. The Amsoil was still slick as ice when I took it out but my motor wasn't just noisy for a few minutes at start-up. It was crazy loud most of the time, to the point I thought something was wrong like bad lifters or bent push rods. I still don't see how that much noise coming from a motor can be good. It sounds great now with Castrol GTX 20w50. I'll just shorten my change interval.

 

Like I said before, that my experience. I'm also using the Castrol 20w/50. But this last time that I changed I decided to replace a quart of the oil with a $10.00 quart of Lucas Oil Stabilizer. Lots of good information/testimonials on the web. The back of the bottle lists "for Harley Davidsons." too. Not sure how they were able to say that. A lot of truckers swear by the stuff. I decided to use it during the hottest parts of the summer. It's very hot here in N. GA as is most of the country right now. I may just go with the Castrol alone during the cooler/colder months. I ride pretty much all year if it's dry/sunny. One thing about the Lucas that I read is that the viscosity of the oil is increased significantly which I felt was good because the hot air cooled engines really put the regular oil to the test. Especially if sitting in traffic for a while. All of the used oil analysis' that I've seen with just plain 20w/50 dino oil drop to about a 40 weight (or lower) shortly after putting them in the hot engines. My question for anyone is: Is the HD 360 20W/50 oil ( I know it's made my Citgo) REALLY any different that any other 20w/50 oil (Castrol, Pennzoil, Valvoline, Havoline). I just really am weary of the "motorcycle oils" and wonder if there's really significant differences.....my reading of lots of info online doesn't really make me think so. Don't mean to hijack your thread....it's just that your issue is exactly what happend to me with my 02 RKC. Also, I just can't seem to convince myself to go into the Harley dealership and pay $5.00-6.00 a quart of THEIR 20w/50 (Citgo) oil instead of getting my own Castrol 20W/50 ($13.00 for 5 quarts) at Wal-Mart. I just picked up 10 quarts of Havoline 20W/50 oil for $1.99 quart at the O'reilly's Auto Parts here in N. GA. I also run a Wix black oil filter 51348 for around $5.00. I change every 3K. Sorry so long winded....time for bed

 

My only knock against syns has been the extra noise associated with it. My only issue with syn blends is their isn't a industry standard about how much of the content is syn vs. conventional. I've heard as low as 10%. That said, I'll probably do 1 qt of syn added to the remainder dino as I have 3 qts of syn remaining. I'll probably go 4k between changes...

 

I'll also be switching back to dino at my next oil change because of the extreme noise experienced by the original poster. My noise is with Amsoil.
I won't go into detail because the OP said exactly what my bike is doing with the synthetic.