Stickier Oil additives

[rocco16v at netzero.net (L F)]

Smoke and mirrors.  This "clinging"...is it even desirable?  Who needs it?  I don't have many egg beaters or gear gangs in my engines that are lubricated by oil being pulled up from the sump. 
  Far too many other properties are more important in your oil; corrosion prevention, particle suspension, heat resistance, EP properties, pure lubricity, etc.
 I'm reminded of a sales demonstration given in a motorcycle shop where I was manager in the '70's.  A salesman with Bardahl (anyone remember Bardahl?) set up a three-ball wear machine (a legitimate device) in the service area and poured a small amount of a well-known 2-stroke oil in the cup.  He turned it on, and in a few minutes, amid clouds of smoke, the balls screeched to a halt with obvious "wear".  He set up and ran the test with new balls, but when the smoke started this time, he added a thimble-full of Bardahl 2-Stroke Oil. The smoking stopped and the test continued until we agreed that the balls would not be wearing out anytime soon.  Those of us who witnessed the test immediately switched to Bardahl.  
Big mistake.  The stuff smoked in our dirt bikes and sleds, fouled plugs, built up deposits very rapidly, and gave very poor ring life (most of us raced and performed frequent tear-downs of our engines to check piston and ring wear, etc.).  In other words, it was lousy oil for use in engines.  What it DID have (we found out much later) was a large dose of Extreme Pressure addives, just what it needed to perform well in the three-ball test, but not much else.  The lessons I took away from that experience are many, but some are:  don't rely on a test set up by a partial individual, there is usually more than meets the eye, be skeptical when a seller is selling, try to get the whole picture, don't make hasty decisions based on one example.  (this particular test was irrelevant; no one had an engine with several large ball berings rubbing - not rolling - against one another)
It is great fun watchin these demo in the FLAPS, though.

Larry (now well on my way along the road of skepticism....)
sandiego16v
  ----- Original Message ----- 
  From: Marko 
  To: scirocco-l@scirocco.org 
  Sent: Monday, August 11, 2003 9:19 AM
  Subject: Stickier Oil additives


  Ever go into an auto store and see those little
  plastic display boxes ? The ones with two sections and
  oil in them ? One has an egg beater on both sides of
  the partitions and as you turn the crank, the egg
  beaters whip the oil around. The side with the oil
  additive starts clinging higher to the blades of the
  egg beater thing. The other display has plastic gears
  going up the inside of the box on both sides. The side
  with the additive has the oil going higher in the
  gears.

  Are these products worth anything or just straight
  crap and smoke and mirrors ? 

  If these are a good idea, which one do you like ?
  thanks

  =====
  87 Scirocco 8v
  84 Jetta 16v

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