I have 2500 miles on my 2002 and plan on changing the oil myself for the first time.
Does anyone have any recommendation on synthetic oil or any other tips that I should be aware of.

H-D syn. is good but expensive!!! Any top name syn is good as long as it has a Diesel Engine Rating: Mobil, Amsoil, etc.. :D

My sportster runs Mobil 15w50 which can be bought at most
stores like autozone, pepboys, any :censor walmart.
Half the price of h-d syn oil. Why pay the stealer $8.95
quart when many people on this forum run mobil-1 at half
the price.
I have run mobil-1 for over 3 years and never had a problem
with it at all.

My sportster runs Mobil 15w50 which can be bought at most
stores like autozone, pepboys, any :censor walmart.
Half the price of h-d syn oil. Why pay the stealer $8.95
quart when many people on this forum run mobil-1 at half
the price.
I have run mobil-1 for over 3 years and never had a problem
with it at all.

What is the DIESEL RATING thing all about ?????
I changed to M1 15W/50 about 2 weeks ago and can tell there's diff at Hwy speeds.

I'd agree with xllent01, been using Mobil1 in my trunk for years and recently in the bike. When I adjusted the valves in the truck was amazed at how clean it was....no sludge. :D

Me toooooo on the Mobil1 15w50. I've been running it for the last 10,000 miles in both the engine and the primary. Love the stuff.

Gary

I've been running Mobil1 in my Tacoma its entire life (110000 miles and still runnin good) and plan on using it at first oil change. Right now there is syn3 b/c the dealer did my 1000 mile service just to be sure that there was nothing wrong with the bike for warranty purposes. I am absolutly going to run Mobil1 15w50 at 4000 miles.

p.s. I also like the mobil1 oil filter for my truck. Gr8 filter material and backflow valve design

Jimbo999,

The "DIESEL RATING" reference is for Diesel Engines, which tend to run hotter then gas engines.. So when the oil has been rated for a Diesel engine it tends not to break down as quickly as a standard gas engine oil would!!!
Since the old V-twin tends to run Hotter you should use a oil that will handle the extreme temps that a V-twin or Diesel engine makes... You'll find that most good Brand Name oil will be diesel engine rated..
:D

I work for ExxonMobil in the UK and I have written a lot about the subject of engine oil, especially Mineral vs Synthetic. If you can afford it go fully synthetic. But as we say in the industry any fresh oil is better than no oil! Yes the diesel rating refers to engine operating temperature.

I just changed the oil in my '03 XL1200S using Valvoline Synpower(full synthetic) 20w50 and changed the primary using SYN3. The Valvoline bottle didn't say specifically "Diesel rated" but it did say on the website it was fine for diesels but said not to use it in the primary (so I didn't). Does anyone see any problem using this oil?

Greg

Greg,

Shouldn't be a problem, but I would tend to stick with a diesel rated oil!!

Just my .02 cents!! :D