On Mon, 31 Mar 2008 07:26:58 -0400, "Roger Long"
wrote:

I guess beginning and end of season is fine for most folks. My fuel bill
last year was $420 so, roughly 120 gallons, 120 hours. Even someone who
motors as much as I do should be fine changing just spring and fall.

I would argue that if you change the oil at end of season, changing it
again in the spring is a total waste. The oil does not go bad over
the winter and any small amount of moisture picked up over the winter
months will evaporate after a short time running the engine. If you
really motor a lot, over 200 hours per season, changing it once in
mid-summer would be appropriate.

"Ernie Harrod" wrote in message
...
That test kit is known as a blotter type test. It measures the
transverse absorption spectra of the fluid which depends on such
things as viscosity, surface tension and ion affinity. It does not do
a chemical analysis but is better than no analysis at all. You can
make the kit yourself by simply using blotter paper and putting a drop
of hot oil on it. You can get blotter paper at your local art supply
store for much less than that kit. If fact, one sheet of blotter paper
will allow you to do about 50-100 tests for less than $5. Why not just
change the oil twice a season? It wouldn't cost as much as the test
and you would be looking at relatively clean oil to inspect at the
change. Synthetic oil is far superior to either the parafin or asphalt
based conventional viscuous amolients.

This advice is all spot on!

Change the oil twice a year.

Use 100% synthetic oil.

Art blotter paper is what is used in the test, it is far cheaper.

Three things to add:

View the blotter under a microscope (not under your tongue).

Take pH readings of the oil.

Record the data and view trends.


Millions of car and truck engines run trillions of miles with minimal
maintenance. So let's go overboard on checking a boat engine that never goes
more than a mile or two from shore. Don't forget that frequent magnafluxing
of the block helps too.

A class in engine repair may be more helpful for Jon.

"Capt. JG" wrote in message
...
"Ernie Harrod" wrote in message
...
crap removed


You are one sick puppy. Do you get a thrill out of stalking people? You
clearly know nothing about boats or engines, but you know a heck of a lot
about stalking. **** off.

--
"j" ganz @@
www.sailnow.com




Take your rudeness and vulgarity elsewhere! I find it really distasteful
that you must subject everyone to your outbursts.

"Tony Helton" wrote in message
...

"Capt. JG" wrote in message
...
"Ernie Harrod" wrote in message
...
crap removed


You are one sick puppy. Do you get a thrill out of stalking people? You
clearly know nothing about boats or engines, but you know a heck of a lot
about stalking. **** off.

--
"j" ganz @@
www.sailnow.com




Take your rudeness and vulgarity elsewhere! I find it really distasteful
that you must subject everyone to your outbursts.


I agree! Seems to me this gay chronic complainer and Usenet abuser has a
dysfunctional personality. Sort of a cross between psycho and schizoid
combined with paranoia, dementia and gender identification problems. His
main contribution has been and always will be just more clutter and
continued failed attempts to control - not to mention patently disingenuous
attempts to appear normal and friendly to disguise his ingrained
back-stabbing nature with loud cries that scream "Please accept me, nobody
wants me in real life - I've failed at everything I ever tried to do, maybe
I'll be accepted here! Maybe I can fool people since they can't see how I
look and act like a weasel."

The only ones to be fooled are fools!


--
Gregory Hall

"Roger Long" wrote in message
...
"Wayne.B" wrote

I would argue that if you change the oil at end of season, changing it
again in the spring is a total waste.

That makes sense. There's going to be less condensation in an engine than
a tank (and I'm already on the record about that). Any moisture is going
to be pure distilled water so not acidic.

OK back to once a year.

--
Roger Long




Except the "end of the season" doesn't imply the end to sailing. It's just
fewer sails per month. This argument does make sense, however, as possibly
mid-season is a better idea.

--
"j" ganz @@
www.sailnow.com

"Roger Long" wrote in message
...
"Capt. JG" wrote

Except the "end of the season" doesn't imply the end to sailing. It's
just fewer sails per month. This argument does make sense, however, as
possibly mid-season is a better idea.


Maybe for you but I'm up here in Maine.

An oil change just before any long layup is a hard and fast rule.

--
Roger Long

Fortunately, I'm not in the frozen tundra where polar bears roam. LOL

--
"j" ganz @@
www.sailnow.com

"Capt. JG" wrote in message
news:Z_6dnay8NMMAimzanZ2dnUVZ_j2dnZ2d@bayareasolut ions...
"Roger Long" wrote in message
...
"Wayne.B" wrote

I would argue that if you change the oil at end of season, changing it
again in the spring is a total waste.

That makes sense. There's going to be less condensation in an engine
than a tank (and I'm already on the record about that). Any moisture is
going to be pure distilled water so not acidic.

OK back to once a year.

--
Roger Long




Except the "end of the season" doesn't imply the end to sailing. It's just
fewer sails per month. --

You are in San Diego, right? Some of us sail where the sea sometimes freezes
so 'end of season' can often be stretched to say, mid November, but after
that all bets are off.

"Tony Helton" wrote in message
...
. Don't forget that frequent magnafluxing
of the block helps too.

You strip your engine on a regular basis just so you can magnaflux the
cylinder block??.

On Mon, 31 Mar 2008 09:55:57 -0700, "Capt. JG"
wrote:

Except the "end of the season" doesn't imply the end to sailing. It's just
fewer sails per month. This argument does make sense, however, as possibly
mid-season is a better idea.

Roger is in an area where there actually is an "end of season".

"Capt. JG" wrote in
:

Do all Perkins 4-108s smoke like that? I almost bought a boat that did
that, but it smoked at all rpms, so I passed.



No, they don't. It only smokes if the prop is too steep and you're shoving
more fuel into it than it has air to burn....turning it into carbon.

It'll smoke if you're going forward and pull hard astern...

That boat probably needed to have its injection timing done and its
injection set. Smoke doesn't hurt them, just wastes fuel.