I have a Cat 262B skid Steer. I’m in Missouri and it does get cold in the winter but I don’t expect to run much in sub zero temps. Looking at the OMM chart in the Cat app it shows 15w40 as an option for hydraulic system (5 to 122F). That being said the chart is broken up choppy on my phone so it’s not 100% clear. I would like to run Mobil Delvac 15w40 Super in the engine and hydraulic system if possible Sam’s Club often has it on sale for $12 a gallon and that’s what I run in my F250. Thoughts, professional advice?
Case recomends 10w30 DIESEL Oil for the hydraulic oil system.
TBH although it’s listed as an alternative I would not suggest to use it in your climatic conditions in the hydraulic system. The 15W part of the multi grade is a tad too heavy. Stick with a straight SAE 10W hydraulic oil would be my advice. Also the use of engine oil in hydraulic systems is a throwback to the “one size fits all” mantra for fluids that dates back to the 70’s and 80’s. Modern oil formulations have improved tremendously since then, however the recommendation has never been removed from the manuals.
My machine is about 20 years old didn’t know if heavier oil would be warranted? Also there was a sticker in the cab from a service company, I called the guy to see if he had any records but he didn’t. He suggested I use aw32 fro O’Reilly Auto Parts. Thoughts? Does aw oil have enough zinc?
You would need to see the spec sheet. A “normal” 10W (ISO 32) hydraulic oil should contain about 500ppm of zinc.
I agree with Nige. Unless you live in the Sahara Desert or the South Pole, and your machine doesn't absolutely spec some weird oil, then AW32 hydraulic oil is a pretty much universal oil in moderate climates. It's an oil designed for hydraulic systems, where SAE engine oils are not necessarily. As Nige mentioned, it also has the needed zinc and other additives for wear protection, that's what the AW is. And if I'm not mistaken it also contains anti-foam agents, which is desirable in a hydraulic system.
Looking at the spec sheet the O'Reilly's AW32 oil only contains 173ppm of zinc. Better than nothing but not really what I would consider as a true "anti-wear" oil, more of a budget hydraulic oil with some anti-wear properties. https://images.oreillyauto.com/parts/img/documents/oro/oreillyelhydoil32pds.pdf In comparison Cat HYDO advanced SAE10W hydraulic oil (not that I'm suggesting you buy it) contains 900ppm of zinc. There will be a multitude of products in between these two extremes.
Mobil Delvac 1300 Super 15w40 has around 1200 ppm of zinc. What would make it unsuitable as hydraulic oil? Also I see NAPA has a TO-4 10w oil for about $100/5gal would this be a good substitute for Hydo? If I’m going to spend that much I might as well just bite the bullet and buy hydo. I’ll prob never put 2000 hours on this machine in the next 10 years. Is hydo one and done?
What makes it less suitable (instead of unsuitable) is that it contains no anti-foaming agents (very desirable in a hydraulic system) plus the additive package is more designed to maintain in suspension the carbon particles resulting from combustion which is not the case in a hydraulic system. As I mentioned before the “15W” part of the 15W40 viscosity rating is also a tad too heavy when cold for your climate. On top of that the 40 rating when the oil is hot is waaaaay too high when you consider the preferred oil is a straight 10W. The 10W TO-4 oil is much closer to a 10W hydraulic. It contains all the required additives for a hydraulic system plus others for powershift transmissions and brake friction material. You don’t need those but they are not detrimental to a hydraulic system. Many people use TO-4 in hydraulics (including some regular posters on this forum) because it is often cheaper than regular hydraulic oil.
I appreciate you taking the time to respond and share this information!
Is there a specific widely available good value hydraulic oil you would recommend for my 2005 Cat 262B? I’m in St Joseph Missouri.