Hey folks, this is my first post so bear w/ me.

I just picked up a nice '84 4x4 pickup to play with and I have a few questions. The truck has about 500 miles on a fresh rebuilt 22r, (w/ new Weber carb, header, etc.). The crankcase was filled w/ Amsoil 10W40.

There is a slight oil leak that as far as I can tell is localized to the drain plug. The original owner forgot to replace the washer w/ the drain plug so I didn't think much of it at the time.

I plan on changing the oil this weekend, and it just occured to me that I've always heard that it probably wasnt the best idea to use a full synthetic oil during the initial break in period due to the seals not expanding properly.

So.....

Question 1: Is there some truth to the "no synthetics during break-in" rule, or is that just a myth?

Question 2: What do I do now? I imagine it would do more harm than good to revert back to a conventional oil to make sure the seals get set.

I got alot of good advise lurking around here before I bought the truck, you guys really know your stuff. Thanks in advance for the help.

 

no synthetics during break in and within the first 5000 miles.

reason being you want the bearings etc et cto actually wear. Sythetic oil will not allow for this.

actually oil should be changed after the first 30 minutes of engine break in and then again at like 500 miles again at 1500 and 3000 miules then every 3000miles after that.

it's perfectly fine to go back to conventional. Valvoline 15/40 or Rotella 15/40 is good as it has a higher zinc content in them than most other brands.

 

Thanks!

That's exactly what I needed to know.

 

Yea, what he said.

Get the Rotella T 15w40, later on switch to Rotella T6 synthetic 5w40.

 

There's been a lot of Rotella love going on around here lately. There's also a 10W-30 Rotella that supposedly flows a lot better than the 15W-40. Any big domestic truck forum is loaded with Rotella threads, almost all with lots of good things to say. It's generally available for under $15. a gallon if you look around.

 

Dont forget to drive it like you stole it