# best weight oil to put into a 18.5 briggs



## joec1951 (Feb 26, 2012)

I use a 15W-40 diesel type oil in my 86 Goldwing and thought maybe this would be a good choice for the Briggs. They say a SAE 30 is good or SAE 30HD, any thought's on this. The Briggs is about 12 -13 years I think, I got it used last year.


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## wjjones (May 28, 2010)

Sae 30, or Sae 30 HD I get the Briggs sae 30 from Lowes, TSC, etc its all I have ever used in my mower, and it has 420 hrs on it now.


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## stickerpicker (Sep 16, 2003)

I've tried to think of when an oil of any weight or brand that caused a problem and came up with a big fat " 0 " . So with that in mind I run 30wt. mostly and what ever brand is cheap and slick. The last I found a couple of months ago was Kendall for $1.98 or was it $1 .99 / Qt. so I bought several cases.

This is what the oil engineers at a seminar told when I was working running 1,000 and 2,000 horse power engines.

---- The wider the numbers a multi-viscosity oil has the poorer the lubrication quality. The reason being those oils have more polymers to get the wider number spread and polymers aren't as good a lubricant as oil. i.e. a 10w - 30 oil has better lubrication than 5w-40. ----

So how important is this? I can't say since we know of engines that have run hundreds of thousands of miles with wide spread viscosity numbers.

I suggest running whatever makes you feel good and find something else to be concerned about.

EDIT: I failed to mention that I do follow the API designation closely for the recommended oil for a given engine.


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## wjjones (May 28, 2010)

I have always heard something about a difference of detergent and non-detergent oil?? I would not use 15w40 diesel oil in a mower engine though but thats just me.


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## joec1951 (Feb 26, 2012)

Thank you all, stickerpicker thanks for the education SAE 30 it is.


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## stickerpicker (Sep 16, 2003)

wjjones said:


> I have always heard something about a difference of detergent and non-detergent oil?? I would not use 15w40 diesel oil in a mower engine though but thats just me.


Non detergent in my air compressor.


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## Thomas (Nov 1, 2006)

What does your tractor booklet say...cold or warm weather conditions.


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## wjjones (May 28, 2010)

Thomas said:


> What does your tractor booklet say...cold or warm weather conditions.




I use sae 30 all year even when it gets into the teens. I have read somewhere though that a thinner weight is ok in cold weather? I just dont like swapping weights so I just put the 30 weight in there all year.


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