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View Full Version : Best Gear Oil..??



fogducker III
10-28-2008, 09:42 AM
What are your opinions of type/brand of lower gear oils and the different applicatioins? Synthetic or...???

I have a bottle of Royal purple 90W.........any good?

VetteLT193
10-28-2008, 10:09 AM
I run synthetic in everything I own... can't say enough good things about it.

For the lower I've been using the Mercury/Quicksilver synthetic but I might try something different eventually.

MOP
10-28-2008, 11:21 AM
Spectro or Redline Shock Proof I believe are the very best!

Conquistador_del_mar
10-28-2008, 11:23 AM
I use nothing but synthetics. I use Syngear II in the lower units and the rear ends of my cars. It is a little pricey at $50/gallon if you buy it in the 5 gallon buckets, but it has shown itself to be a superior lubricant. Bill

fogducker III
10-28-2008, 12:20 PM
So is the synthetic Royal Purple any good?

I will look around and see if I can get the Syngear II, Spectro or Redline Shock Proof gear oils here in Canada, does the weight matter, or just stick to 90W ? Thanks for the input...........

CHACHI
10-28-2008, 12:52 PM
Most synthetics are a 75W90 or 75w140 either will work, you will have less fluid drag with the 75w90. Running in the "cool" waters of BC the 140 might be a touch of overkill, just make sure they are GL-5 rated.

Ken

VetteLT193
10-28-2008, 03:06 PM
So is the synthetic Royal Purple any good?

I will look around and see if I can get the Syngear II, Spectro or Redline Shock Proof gear oils here in Canada, does the weight matter, or just stick to 90W ? Thanks for the input...........


They are all good. I usually get what I can buy in the store... I have used Amsoil in the past and couldn't tell the difference between that and Mobil 1 and it is a PITA to mail order. I think Royal purple pulls more $$ than Mobil 1 in my area so I stick with M1.

One of the reasons I use the quicksilver / Merc stuff on the outdrive is the bottle is compatible with the filler pump so I know I won't have to screw around with one extra thing.

I use Mobil 1 in all of my engines. I was sold when I installed roller rockers in one of my old Corvettes. It had over 80k miles on it at the time in hot FL weather and it looked brand new inside.

DonziJon
10-28-2008, 06:55 PM
MerCruiser INVENTED their Drive. So what's wrong with using their Drive Oil? Is it Too Expensive for you BIG Spenders? Just wondering. :bonk: John

MOP
10-28-2008, 07:40 PM
MerCruiser INVENTED their Drive. So what's wrong with using their Drive Oil? Is it Too Expensive for you BIG Spenders? Just wondering. :bonk: John

Sorry to say you are wrong on a few counts, Charlie Strang invened the out drive Mercury Poo Pooed the idea. Volvo was the first to commercially produce the drive. The Mercruiser Bravo grabbed Volvos upper design as soon as the patent died. They were some stupid not using the lower gear case design also as it incorporated and oil pump to keep the drive cool. Another planned obsolescence on their part better known as the annuity drive! The oils we speak are better and more costly!

mjw930
10-28-2008, 08:59 PM
Been there, done that with all the top brand oils in the outdrive and my engine builder, as well as Speedmasters (arguably one of the best Merc drive shops in the country) are back to Mercury "green" drive fluid. On some extreme applications they use Torco which is the spec oil for Merc #6 dry sump drives.

This is after 10 years and literally thousands of drives. On more than one occasion they have had drives fail using Redline, Dyson, Royal Purple and Amsoil only to rebuild them using Mercury "green" gear oil and have the same drives on the same boats last twice as many hours before they need to be opened up again. This includes APBA race boats as well as some pretty fast poker run boats, most of them putting well over 600hp through their bravo 1, X and XR drives. On the NXT units they have also had better luck with Merc green in the tranny than any of the "exotic" gear lubes. BTW, the NXT tranny is nothing more than a Bravo XR gearset mounted horizontally in a separate case.

fogducker III
10-28-2008, 09:46 PM
Holy crap..........did I open a can of worms???

From what I gather, just use the nearest gear oil I can get? lmao

I will use synthetic, and the best purchase price I can find...............thanks for the replies.

MOP
10-28-2008, 10:47 PM
Oil :shocking: Spark plugs :nilly: Bimini's :eek: Weenie bars :toiletpap props :bonk: and a myriad of others :convertib::boat::wrench::computer::newzealand: out there that wake the guys up a little. All good advice nothing bad just different opinions!

BUIZILLA
10-29-2008, 08:57 AM
Periwinkle WiFi huh .... :angel:

Conquistador_del_mar
10-29-2008, 10:09 AM
Been there, done that with all the top brand oils in the outdrive and my engine builder, as well as Speedmasters (arguably one of the best Merc drive shops in the country) are back to Mercury "green" drive fluid. On some extreme applications they use Torco which is the spec oil for Merc #6 dry sump drives.

This is after 10 years and literally thousands of drives. On more than one occasion they have had drives fail using Redline, Dyson, Royal Purple and Amsoil only to rebuild them using Mercury "green" gear oil and have the same drives on the same boats last twice as many hours before they need to be opened up again. This includes APBA race boats as well as some pretty fast poker run boats, most of them putting well over 600hp through their bravo 1, X and XR drives. On the NXT units they have also had better luck with Merc green in the tranny than any of the "exotic" gear lubes. BTW, the NXT tranny is nothing more than a Bravo XR gearset mounted horizontally in a separate case.

Has there been a new High Performance Gear Oil released by Mercury Marine in recent years? I have to presume the term "green" gear oil must de different from the blue color gear oil that I last used. Bill

DonziJon
10-29-2008, 10:10 AM
Sorry to say you are wrong on a few counts, Charlie Strang invened the out drive Mercury Poo Pooed the idea. Volvo was the first to commercially produce the drive. The Mercruiser Bravo grabbed Volvos upper design as soon as the patent died. They were some stupid not using the lower gear case design also as it incorporated and oil pump to keep the drive cool. Another planned obsolescence on their part better known as the annuity drive! The oils we speak are better and more costly!

Well you got me on the details MOP. HOWEVER: Dosn't Mercury reasonably have to stand behind THEIR product?....(The O/D)

Why would they recommend Their oil (they can put their label on any oil they want to repackage).... if it was inferior to others... when the oil contibutes to the Reliabiliy and Reputation of their O/D product? John

yeller
10-29-2008, 10:18 AM
I use Merc's oil. My cousin has over 1500hrs on his B1 and it has never been apart. Drive has close to 1000hrs at 400hp and over 500hrs at 600hp. That's good enough for me.

BigGrizzly
10-29-2008, 10:29 AM
Well since I am as old as dirt and have raced my whole life and have have done real life oil test for Honda I will jump in. Most synthetics are really good. I use two types, The Merc HP oil, which is not made by Merc. and Amsoil. You can do the same as Vette suggested just try to keep it the same brand. I won't chase all over the country side either for the god perfect oil. The next question you will ask which is best for your engine and I will get the:popcorn: and will not partisipate because I have done a bizzillion threads on it so look it up. Here is how it will start. Mop will say Spectro, some else will say Mobile one. Another will say Amsoil, I will say anything but a 10/40 petrol base, and it will go on for about 15 pages and you will still not know.

MOP
10-29-2008, 11:49 AM
Randy there is always OSO oil thread!! That will get anyone crazy!!

BigGrizzly
10-29-2008, 12:01 PM
God that thing is so outfield. I think it typical OSO,speak, think, lie and speak again. " They say" well who the heck is THEY, it seems THEY have an opion on everything.

yeller
10-29-2008, 09:17 PM
it will go on for about 15 pages and you will still not know.:rlol: :rlol: Exactly what happened to me after reading the OSO thread.....except it cost me a lot more than 15 pages of lost time.

mjw930
10-30-2008, 07:53 AM
Has there been a new High Performance Gear Oil released by Mercury Marine in recent years? I have to presume the term "green" gear oil must de different from the blue color gear oil that I last used. Bill

Sorry, yes, I'm talking about the latest Merc HP gear lube, not the older stuff that we used to call "green death".

I think they actually have it colored green so it's easy to differentiate from engine oil or 2 stroke smoke but that may be an urban legend.

As Randy said, Merc doesn't actually make any lubricants but they are made to their specs and regardless what people want to think, very few know more about what's going on inside the Bravo outdrive than Mercury.

CHACHI
10-30-2008, 08:30 AM
Not all of Mercury's lubricants are made to their specs. some of them are just relabeled product already available at retail.

Ken

Conquistador_del_mar
10-30-2008, 10:39 AM
Sorry, yes, I'm talking about the latest Merc HP gear lube, not the older stuff that we used to call "green death".

I think they actually have it colored green so it's easy to differentiate from engine oil or 2 stroke smoke but that may be an urban legend.

As Randy said, Merc doesn't actually make any lubricants but they are made to their specs and regardless what people want to think, very few know more about what's going on inside the Bravo outdrive than Mercury.

I try to keep in mind that most companies do not have experts in every aspect of their products. I prefer to research what the race or super high performance guys are using to get some fairly good advice on what they have determined to be good products. Not trying to get anyone in trouble, but when I discovered quite a few years ago that some of the offshore Mercury race teams were using lubricants other than their own sponsored brands, I took their preferred usage as a testamonial to the lubricants they were using - all hearsay - :yes:. There are probably many lubricants available that will perform well for the sport class usage, but I try to find what might be a better product in the long run - no matter what the cost, since breakdowns cost tremendously more than paying more up front for the maintenance. Just some random thoughts, Bill


Not all of Mercury's lubricants are made to their specs. some of them are just relabeled product already available at retail.

Ken

It would be interesting to know if there are any Mercury lubricants which are specifically formulated for them - not just certain dyes added. They are not in the lubricant manufacturing business any more than Ferrari or Porsche.

BigGrizzly
10-30-2008, 01:23 PM
Actually there are none. Some times they specify a polymer so they do not encroach on some one else s product. Having worked on the oil testing at Honda I can tell you how it works. At Honda no one did tests untill We started it because of alternate fuels. vAt the time we had an excess of funds so it started, before that it was, a known company would come in with a sales presentation. We as do other companies figure a profit margin and go from there. Well we contacted various race teams Formula cars Nascar and Nhra teams. We then found none ran any tests. It was who pad the biggest sponsorship. They assumed all oil was the same, true to a point. What I found was there has never been recorded a failure that was attributed to the oil in a race car. Point of order, if a radiator blows and the engine over heats and detonates and seizes it is not the oils fault. That being said, after 6 months of engines running 24/7 we uncovered many differences. Now to be fair if oil is changed an good intervals, it probably won''t affect the engines durability. There are some points about heat and engine temps to be considered on race engines. there is too much involved to print here but past threads have more on our tests. To put you guys at ease use a name brand oil with the recommended viscosity and your safe.

Pismo
10-30-2008, 01:35 PM
Mobil 1 gear lube.

Tony
11-01-2008, 08:22 PM
Here is how it will start. Mop will say Spectro, some else will say Mobile one. Another will say Amsoil, I will say anything but a 10/40 petrol base, and it will go on for about 15 pages and you will still not know.

Randy, I have to be fair to you here, since we seem to be so "contrarian" in other sections. :)
This summary of the oil topic is funnier than sh*t!! :yes:


:beer: