Older Skidders - Quality of Oil

[Loony661]

This is mostly out of curiosity, but also because everyone has a different opinion on the subject. My question to you all is:

In older equipment, skidders specifically, what kind of oil do you use throughout your machine (engine, trans, hydraulic, etc)? Do you use the cheapest farm and fleet brand you can buy, or do you run a high quality, top name like Amsoil or Schaeffer's, etc? 

I can tell you that any leaks bother me, but I can tolerate an occasional drip. Anymore and I try to repair before it gets worse. I also believe that high quality oils do perform better, and last longer than cheap stuff. What say you?

[B.C.C. Lapp]

Ive used the cheap stuff forever and have never had problems.    Paying for the expensive stuff is fine if you want to but unnecessary.     It aint the name on the oil that matters but regular oil and filter changes matter a lot.   I keep records for every machine and do the maintenance on time.  With all the tractors and skidders Ive owned I've only ever done one out of frame motor rebuild and that happened because of a split oil filter.
     I have a friend that worked in a refinery for decades that told me the only difference from brand to brand is the color.  All the same stuff.

[Firewoodjoe]

This has become an interest for me in the last year or so. I never cared for the most part. I tried to stick to one brand though. But I was having cold weather starting problems and had already done the normal mechanical checks. Well I looked into oil and cold weather pour test. Now I use only rotella t in the winter and generally all summer. And it does make a difference. As for hydraulic oil I use the farm store stuff. Just get a pallet and be done. Well since the motor oil thing I've been paying more attention on the hydro oil. The cheap stuff will have grimy junk in the bottom of every bucket. The good stuff don't 🤷‍♂️ Also been thinking of swapping oil out in the summer to 68 weight. For better heat protection. So far I'm still using the farm store stuff but it has me thinking. 

[barbender]

Joe, I have seen the same difference in hydraulic oils. The good stuff flows WAY better in our lovely -20° temps, that's the main difference I've seen.

[EricR]

The statement on the cheap stuff from the tractor supply website turned me off of using it even though it supposedly meets deere specs. The stuff I use now is double the price

Warning: ultra j20a plus utility tractor fluid is primarily designed for use in older equipment manufactured before 1990 or for aging machinery where frequent fluid replacement is required

[Andries]

What? That's a clear sign that it's oil priced to leak out or get dumped/replaced when a decrepit old hydraulic hose pops.
But it meets specs? 😝 
I'm with @barbender, the good stuff flows at low temps, and is priced accordingly.

[chevytaHOE5674]

More expensive oil generally has better additive packages to help it deal with temperature extremes, moisture, extreme pressures, etc.

The more expensive oil is cheaper than things like piston pumps, hydrostatic drive motors, etc.

[Jkauffman]

What I hate is machinery that calls for straight motor oil throughout,like trans/hydraulic oil etc.Now that gets expensive

[barbender]

Yes I have a Case 1845c that calls for 10-30 engine oil for the hydraulics, with a Case additive mixed in that has become quite expensive.

[Riwaka]

Another thing to consider is oil incompatibilities. There are cases where someone was short of the same brand/ spec of oil they were using in a machine and added something else to make up the volume required and problems resulted. Similarly, when changing from one brand to another, not enough old oil from a previous brand was removed.  

[Kodiakmac]

The manual for my 440 JD called for JD303 in the hydraulics, but it became ridiculously expensive at the JD dealer or completely unavailable - so I switched to TDH fluid from Canadian Tire which met or exceeded the JD stuff and was a little more than half the price.  I used Castrol 10W30 in the engine and I never had an issue with either oil.  I didn't use the skidder very often in bitterly cold weather because that is just too hard on old machinery... and old bones.