Synthetic or regular oil on my Road King's 1,000 mile (and thereafter) oil change?

if u can afford the price of the sythetic, go for it. it wont hurt the engine, it will handle high heat better than dino oil, and u could extend the oil change intervals; some say up to 4 or 5000, but myself and my scoot, i'd still change it at no more than 3000 miles max with syth, 2500 miles with dino.

ignore those who obviously have no clue to what their talking about or even ride. if ur still unconvinced, why not hobknob with the guys at hcg about this. register and have fun. http://www.harleychatgroup.com/

There are differences in petrol based oils and synthetic oils and there are also synthetic/petrol based blends. I found a really great web writeup on the differences and which types of oils fall into which catagories. I know that Harley recommends their 20w50 oil for their bikes and it is actually less costly than most of the blend or full synthetic oils. Also it depends on the kind of riding you do. If you use your bike mostly around town and don't do a lot of long distance touring, you will probably need to change it based upon frequency rather than for mileage. If you do a lot of long distance touring then you might want to consider the blend or full synthetic oils so you don't have to change it so often. Here is a link to the article I was referring to earlier. It is a bit long, but when you finish reading it, you will know more about motor oil than about 90% of the average users out there. I hope you like it. It's called "All About Oil."

http://www.calsci.com/motorcycleinfo/Oils1.html

Good luck!

Yeah, it's BS. I personally use the synthetic, but that's just my preference since I ride mine hard. If you are often in stop-and-go traffic, the synthetic could help a little with the engine heat.

And to give you an idea of the "abuse" mine takes. I'm a motorcop in Houston where the heat index on the concrete highways in the summer is well over 100 degrees. 0-80 mph acceleration and very quick stops occur regularly with a lot of shifting going on through the day. 30K miles on my previous bike before converting it to civilian and 18k miles on my new one without any mechanical problems or a single oil leak on either one. Synthetic oil, 5k mile oil change intervals (as is recommended by owners manual).

This Site Might Help You.

RE:

Synthetic or regular oil on my Road King's 1,000 mile (and thereafter) oil change?

Which is better, I heard the synthetic runs a cooler engine, but it is too "slick" and could damage the engine...sounds like bs to me... but that's why I'm asking.

Synthetic is not slicker than dino oil. It does have better adhesion than dino so your moving parts are lubed at start up. It last longer in unit construction engines since the molecules are resistant to shear by the clutch. I run synthetic in my Hondas, one of which has over 155K miles.

I understand that Harley is particular about warranty so you should check with your dealer to make sure you don't void said warranty by using non-specified oil.

You generally don't want to use a synthetic until about your 6,000 mile oil change. Synthetic is a good oil to use though. It does run cooler and doesn't make the gears in the engine wear out near as fast and provides much better lubrication for a smoother gear mesh, which equals a longer lasting engine.

i have heard use synthetic after break in period. its real runny and i have noticed more valve tran noise once i put it in . it does run about 7 degrees cooler. i have a thermo dip stick noticeable difference . i have also heard motor oil is not a good lubricant .im not a scientist just a fool who spends alot of money on my bike. i been running synthetic .95 cu inch 211 cams vance and hines two into one.screaming eagle heads power commander and its dyno d and i run it real hard 40,000 miles on it so far. i live in a hot climate area too so i put an oil cooler on too .later

I use Castrol in my Yamaha Virago 700, and don't care. I've mixed 10w30, 10w40, and 20w50, depending on whim and what I happen to have lying around. My motorcycle has about 80,000 miles on it, leaks oil, but not much, from the rear cylinder, and is a ratbike. It's not pretty, it runs, it gets about 45 miles per gallon in mostly freeway driving.

dont put synthetic in for a while, at lease 4000mi min. if you do the rings will never seat, and it will smoke on startup + burn a small amount where a properly seated motor will not.