2-stroke marine oil???

[illinoisbassfishin]

What do you guys all think about different kinds of 2-stroke marine oil? I just recently bought a ranger 330v bass boat that had a 1983 mariner 115 hp motor on it about 3 months ago. When I first bought the boat I started out using Pennzoil XLF 2-stroke synthetic blend oil and although the motor wasn't running the greatest because it was out of time it seemed to work just fine. I took it to a local Mercury shop to do a link and sync on it to get everything back in time and get it to run the way it is supposed to. When the motor was done and I went and payed for it we got to talking about motors and things like that and I asked him what kind of oil I should use in the motor or if it really mattered. He told me it's not to an extent that a certain oil will burn your motor up or anything like that but he told me that he would GUARANTEE me that the Mercury oil or the Quiksilver oil (which he said is the same oil just in a different bottle and label) would make the motor idle better and run better. His theory was that the Mercury or Quiksilver is an ashless oil and the Pennzoil will gunk up your carbs and motor over time because it's not refined as well as the Mercury or Quiksilver oil. He did say the Pennzoil would be just fine if you were in a bind with money or if you were somewhere on vacation and couldn't get the Mercury or Quiksilver oil. What do you guys think about the kind of oil I should run in my motor? Is the Pennzoil XLF okay to use or should I stick with what he said? It sure would be nice to use the Pennzoil because it is only $16 a gallon compared to $27 a gallon. I just thought I would add that with every fill up of gas I always put Sta-bil marine fuel stabilizer as well. Any help and opinions would be appreciated. Thank you very much.

 

[starcraft1982]

Re: 2-stroke marine oil???

Take it for what its worth,but when I bought my boat(1988 cajun w/1988 150 xr4)I had a well known mercury mechanic come to my house and completely go over the motor.I asked him if it really made a difference in what oil I used and his answer was Mercury or Quicksilver.I mentioned that my dad ran the penzoil in his bassboat and the man began into a long,technical monologue.The jist of it was to NOT use penzoil.I cant and wont go into all of what he said,but I will say he made me a believer and I have NO issues w/paying a little more for "the good stuff".I ve read other posts about this on here and it will be the basic"ford or chevy"type of deal.I,personally,will not run penzoil.Id probably run Wally worlds sea sense or similar before id run penzoil.You will not be sorry for running Merc oil.All I will say.

 

[JB]

Re: 2-stroke marine oil???

Holy Moly!! A Merc guy recommends Merc branded TC-W3 oil and backs it up with mumbo jumbo! What next??

Mercury does not make the oil. They buy it from whomever makes it. They brainwash employees with that chemistry mythology.

My opinion is that any full synthetic TC-W3 is superior to any TC-W3 petro oil. It will make less smoke, less pollution and less carbon buildup.

A quick SEARCH for outboard oil will produce enough reading for a week or two.

 

[starcraft1982]

Re: 2-stroke marine oil???

I knew it wouldnt take long!Some people!Hes not a mercury guy.:es not paid by mercury.He specializes in rebuilds and does all brands.He,I believe,said omc has an oil thats good too,although Ive not seen it.Hes been in the outboard field for a LONG time and he wasbsimply against penzoil.Notb necessarily FOR merc. or quicksilver.He told me to mix up a glass jar of merc and gas and a jar of penzoil and gas and let both sit and see what happens.I invite you,jb,to do the same.nough said.

 

[Really Old Guy]

Re: 2-stroke marine oil???

Your talking about TCW3 oil. They are all good. Some have a
few more additives.
50 years ago, you could not pay ne to use parrafin oils.
Different story today.

 

[j_martin]

Re: 2-stroke marine oil???

Is this mechanic a real old guy, like me. Back in the 50's and 60's, certain motor oils really gummed things up, because the base was mostly parafinic. PennZoil was one of them. I imagine their 2 cycle oil at the time did also.

All modern TCW3 2 cycle oils are ashless, and all work well. Some smoke less than others, and some may lube better in extreme conditions.

Modern PenZoil semi-synth and synthetic TCW3 oils are esther based, and are about the best you can get for the price. 8 buck a gallon wallyworld TCW3 oil would have been considered golden in the 60's.

 

[starcraft1982]

Re: 2-stroke marine oil???

Actually,the guy was referring to the"newer"penzoil products.I really dont remember much of the conversation,but they changed something a while back.Again,not sure what.Im just providing my input on the matter.That a person,who had knowledge about motors,rebuilding,and all the oils out there,recommended i NOT use penzoil.Thats all.I dont care what anyone else uses.I just was given reason not to and for a few extra bucks,gives me peice of mind.Not bashing penzoil,not bashing anyone for using it and hope you all have great luck w/it.He actually said synthetic wasnt necessary,unless youre concerned about the little more smoke coming out.He simply said he knows of LOTS of OLD(30-40yrs and older)still going strong that never had a synthetic oil ran in them,ever.Kinda makes sense to me.In closing,to each their own.Mercur/Quicksilver is my choice.thats it.

 

[milehighboater]

Re: 2-stroke marine oil???

Pennzoil for 5 years, no problems runs great and no noticable carbon build-up. It doesn't smoke after it warms up.

 

[illinoisbassfishin]

Re: 2-stroke marine oil???

well I went ahead and bought another gallon of quiksilver premium plus oil. Thanks for all your input guys. I really appreciate it.

 

[emckelvy]

Re: 2-stroke marine oil???

While there's certainly nothing bad to be said about Mercury's or any other outboard mfr's oil, I can personally attest that while the use of Penzoil outboard oil used to be Certain Death for Mercs and other brands due to carbon buildup, this problem doesn't seem to present itself in the stuff they make now. I did lotsa rebuilds in the 80's due to stuck rings, with the advent of better additive packages etc in the oils, and excellent carbon cleaners like Seafoam and the mfr's products, hardly see any now with ring-sticking .

The big problem area nowadays is with fuel systems due to the Evil Ethanol!!!! ;(

I've been using and recommending the Penz synthetic-blend oil which Wal-Mart has been selling for years at a very reasonable price, and have never seen problems with it. If you wanna spend more for the OEM oil, or upgrade to a full synthetic, can't argue with that, either. I run synthetics in my cars & bikes but that's a different beast altogether.

But my experience with the Penz blended oil has been all good so far. Needless to say, the higher-hp higher-performance motors oughta be running with a premium oil, just to protect your $$$ investment if for any other reason. And many mfrs require an upgraded oil anyway. All my Inline Six and smaller Mercs liked the Penz just fine.

IMHO...............ed

 

[merc850]

Re: 2-stroke marine oil???

I ran a 1962 Merc 700 DR for 15 years on Amsoil 100-1 and it pulled tubes, skiiers,(once with a failed waterpump) broken boats and the compression is still 140 psi and the plugs lasted for seasons.
I also ran Amsoil gear lube and because the gearcase didn't leak! I kept it in for 3 or 4 seasons. The motor was retired last year - running. I now have a '75 Merc 850 and I'm running it on Amsoil.

 

[boater1234]

Re: 2-stroke marine oil???

I have used pensoil full synthetic 2stroke oil in every 2stroke i have ever had since it's been out,buy far imo is the best oil for the money at ($28)a gallon at walmart besides amsoil or i have used royal purple which is awesome oil itself but both are way more expensive.Very little smoke even when i broke in my newer 15hp merc 2stroke at 25:1 just recently it was a huge difference then reg oil.

Now don't get me wrong about the reg 2stroke oil like supertech which is pensoil relabled,that stuff is good also and they all will mostly do their job but it will smoke a whole lot more and run a little rougher then the full synthetic.

Also i think the biggest thing if i'm not mistaken is that the synthetic oil is biodegradable compared to the reg oil.Plus i personally think it will lubricate your motor way better and not break down as easy.Also you get no carbon build up from what i have heard,plus your plugs will last a ton longer.I have used royal purple lower unit oil in all my motors also and i love the stuff.man that stuff sticks to your skin like glue no matter how many times you wash it off so imagine how good it protects your lower unit.Just figured i throw that in.Good luck.

 

[JB]

Re: 2-stroke marine oil???

He told me to mix up a glass jar of merc and gas and a jar of penzoil and gas and let both sit and see what happens.I invite you,jb,to do the same.nough said.

Well, that might be interesting, but that doesn't seem to me to have anything to do with running an outboard.

My point is that there is no TC-W3 oil, dino or synthetic, that is not good for an outboard. With synthetic (any TC-W3 synthetic) there are visible, measurable and repeatable differences in actual use.

This seems to me to be another Ford/Chevy/Dodge/Toyota/etc,etc. discussion that has no resolution.

 

[milehighboater]

Re: 2-stroke marine oil???

Which weight of Royal purple are you using?

 

[boater1234]

Re: 2-stroke marine oil???

I buy the sae 75w 90 lower unit oil.It is also rated for marine lower units as well as cars.It's a little pricey at autozone at $20 a quart but not bad considering i do it only once a yr on my 15hp merc that only takes 9oz to fill.So i can almost get 3yrs at of one bottle.They sell full synthetic mobil one lower unit oil for around $8 a quart but i will stick with royal purple as it has never let me down.Plus it does not say on the mobil one that it is good for marine outboards like the royal purple.

I'm sure all lower unit oil is good but i would just rather spend a few more bucks on the synthetic stuff and have peace of mind for myself.Who knows maybe i am just wasting money on it but the way i look at it is that it can't hurt it right.Plus outboards are very expensive today and i will put the best products that i have had the best experience with and stay with that product.I guess you can say i'm very anal with my stuff and i take care of all my toys like no other,looks like it just came out of the showroom even after 10 yrs use.

What i find very funny is that yamaha has said for i can't tell you how many yrs don't use synthetic in our outboards it just doesn't work and we havn't done any research on it because we belive it is a waste.But yet what do you know they just came out with their own line of full synthetic oil for their 4stroke outboards.Also after all these yrs about how bad it is and what a waste it is so they preached to everyone,now they say it is the best in the world and their outboards need to run with this oil.The one thing i will say is they have the best group oil for sale[groupIV oils]for your outboards so i have read in a ton of articles.Well we will have to see how it holds up as i'm sure it will be good stuff.