first oil change on 3038

retiredmgn · Feb 21, 2011

Hi folks,
I went shopping today to pick up engine oil for 50 hour change. Dang. Changed my share of oil but this time I wanted to 'do by the book'.
Never payed attention to much more than viscosity but the JD manual lists several specifications from the manual as follows -

John Deere Plus-50 is recommended (thanks anyways but JD oil is pricey)
ACEA Specification E4/E5 may be used (couldn't find this spec on any oil)
Other oils may be used if the meet one or more of the following:
API Service Classification C1-4 (nope)
API Service Classification CH4 (nope again)
ACEA Specification E3 (scarcer than hens teeth)

To top it all off I came across oils that were labled "Desiel" (but without said specs) and others listed "for gasoline".
The chart in the manual shows I should use SAE 5W-30.

Sooooo, what do you guys use??

RoyJackson · Feb 21, 2011

Due to the small amount of oil you'll need (4-5 quarts), I suggest you just ante up and get the JD oil.
After all, it's unlikely you'll be changing the oil more often then once a year...

retiredmgn · Feb 21, 2011

RoyJackson said:
Due to the small amount of oil you'll need (4-5 quarts), I suggest you just ante up and get the JD oil.
After all, it's unlikely you'll be changing the oil more often then once a year...

You make a good point Roy. And I might end up doing just that. Thing is, what I learned to day shows I have a lot to learn about using the proper oil for a machine. I like to educate myself on these 'details' so I ain't just wingin' it.

JD3520Turbo · Feb 21, 2011

on my 3520 I use 15-40 Shell Rotella T. That is the weight that they said to use in it, so i use it. That oil is used in everything from semies to these little tractors and everything in between. I used it in my Duromax pickups that I had, and it worked fine.
Your tractor sounds like it needs a thinner weight oil than mine did.
Let us know if you find an oil that meets all those requirements. Besides Deer.