John Deere small tractors - best engine oil?

[Beaver Cove Deere]

Dealer oil is pretty cheap if you compare it to the cost of an engine.

Once you start with a brand and type of oil you should not move away from it unless unavoidable.

Mystik Oil is some of the best oil going IMO but Rotella ain't no slouch either.

 

[dodge man]

It doesn’t hurt a thing to switch between brands of oil. I’m running Amsoil diesel oil now, mostly because I had some left over from when I owned a Dodge with a Cummins. I will probably run the Rotella synthetic when I run out of Amsoil.

I run the JD low viscosity Hygard for hydraulic fluid, that’s one area I try and stick with the JD stuff, probably not a necessity though.

 

[RalphVa]

M1 0w30 ESP

 

[Username Taken]

I'm not a fan of heavy oils at all. But I'm gonna run a 15W/40 when the time comes. Piston slap in these engines is obvious.

As to brand? A good one, I suspect. The last I knew, Deere has never owned a refinery, run a refinery, drilled a well, fracked oil or had much to do with a refinery. In any way. Might own some stock but that's about it. I also don't believe they have a lot of Chemical Engineers sitting around twiddling their thumbs. Mechanical and other Engineers? Sure.

Royal Dutch Shell and Exxon have a few. More than a few.

I'm not going to buy a tractor from Valvoline and I think I'll pass on Deere oil although I'm sure it's good oil. Probably real good. I'm just gonna stick with the kids that know what they're doing when it comes to oil.

Haven't looked into a Rotella Tractor

 

[beenthere]

I'm not a fan of heavy oils at all. But I'm gonna run a 15W/40 when the time comes. Piston slap in these engines is obvious.

As to brand? A good one, I suspect. The last I knew, Deere has never owned a refinery, run a refinery, drilled a well, fracked oil or had much to do with a refinery. In any way. Might own some stock but that's about it. I also don't believe they have a lot of Chemical Engineers sitting around twiddling their thumbs. Mechanical and other Engineers? Sure.

Royal Dutch Shell and Exxon have a few. More than a few.

I'm not going to buy a tractor from Valvoline and I think I'll pass on Deere oil although I'm sure it's good oil. Probably real good. I'm just gonna stick with the kids that know what they're doing when it comes to oil.

Haven't looked into a Rotella Tractor

Knowing a bit about the John Deere oil laboratory that formulates and tests their branded oils. To my personal knowledge, it has been a leader in their line of oils since a visit in their labs for a high school report in 1955. A few years back, but a well-established part of Deere even then.
Do some research..

 

[Milo]

In 1996 when riding through Iowa on my BMW motorcycle I needed a rear tire. The BMW dealership I stopped at was a small operation but the owner met me there after hours to change my tire. I could tell the man knew BMW motorcycles. It turned out the BMW shop was just his hobby business that his wife and hired mechanic mostly ran, his background was chemical engineering and his full time job was working for Deere in charge of fuels and lubricants.

 

[Beaver Cove Deere]

It doesn’t hurt a thing to switch between brands of oil. I’m running Amsoil diesel oil now, mostly because I had some left over from when I owned a Dodge with a Cummins. I will probably run the Rotella synthetic when I run out of Amsoil.

I run the JD low viscosity Hygard for hydraulic fluid, that’s one area I try and stick with the JD stuff, probably not a necessity though.

Go tell that to my buddy who smoked a perfectly good 400 Big Cam Cummins. Funny part was the tractor spent it's whole life on the road hauling bulk engine oil.

 

[dadohead]

It would be nice to see some scientific data that proves one oil is better than another.

I agree! Someone in Deere Engineering sent me this link years ago. Really valuable data; I have changed to different oils in my own cars/trucks because of it. Tractors? I still use Deere oil. I figure if it's good enough for a $200k combine or $300k excavator... good enough for my CUTs.

The oil test 'countdown' starts about 1/8 the way down. Make a link to it because it gets updated as new oils come out.

540 RAT - Tech Facts, NOT Myths

540ratblog.wordpress.com

 

[bmaverick]

I agree! Someone in Deere Engineering sent me this link years ago. Really valuable data; I have changed to different oils in my own cars/trucks because of it. Tractors? I still use Deere oil. I figure if it's good enough for a $200k combine or $300k excavator... good enough for my CUTs.

The oil test 'countdown' starts about 1/8 the way down. Make a link to it because it gets updated as new oils come out.

540 RAT - Tech Facts, NOT Myths

540ratblog.wordpress.com

One must scroll to the bottom for the really nice bit of info - - -

Never trust any motor oil advertising or claims. Because, the Motor Oil Industry is the worst for fraudulent claims and false advertising. Buyer beware…

This speaks volumes.

And over the years, I have the same conclusions he had arrived at. It's best for others to read vs. just providing the all around solutions.

Good blog, thanks for sharing.

Now I'm really please with the Yanmar / John Deere engine oil findings in knowing what to use in these compacts. Screw using 15W40 forever !

 

[milkman636]

I agree! Someone in Deere Engineering sent me this link years ago. Really valuable data; I have changed to different oils in my own cars/trucks because of it. Tractors? I still use Deere oil. I figure if it's good enough for a $200k combine or $300k excavator... good enough for my CUTs.

The oil test 'countdown' starts about 1/8 the way down. Make a link to it because it gets updated as new oils come out.

540 RAT - Tech Facts, NOT Myths

540ratblog.wordpress.com

That is an informative blog. I wish i had read it about a week ago. I plopped a jug of Plus50 10w-30 down on the parts counter Saturday for my newly acquired 1023e. My little Kubota always sounded better with 10w-30 so i figured my 1023e would too. The parts guy at the Deere dealer proceeded to talk me into buying 15w-40 instead, which I put in Sunday. The stuff poured pretty slow going in and I've been second guessing my choice. Now I'm seriously thinking about dumping that oil for some 5w-40 before the real cold weather hits. It's either gonna be that or look into what it takes to install a block heater?