Re: Vintage Outboard Oil ?

[DAN ANDERSON]

I got the whiskers, just not sure about the memory! Tried to do a little reaserch and could find anything as to first year OMC made their oil? I think it was about 1965, but don’t hold me to it. Mercury could have been first. Of course the beginning was slow because it cost more, a lot more. The outboard oil up till then was just non detergent 30 wt. I can remember my dad insisting a small green (6 oz. coke bottle Quaker State) full to the gallon on our 1960 Evinrude 10 hp. Of course I’m sure people used everything back then. Auto oil, used oil, etc. I remember a particular oil in the south that got a bad reputation for engine destruction. GRC. It was in a small can for one gallon of gas. Of course you don’t know today if the consumer was mixing correctly or what, but it got blamed for everything.
The invention of manufacturer oil at least have a minimum standard. Mercury did have a problem with their oil. It was good oil (Formula 50D as I remember). They had a dilution problem. It was hard to get it mixed in with the fuel. It was thick and would fall out of dilution as I understand. They later came out with a pre diluted product and end of problem. Those first oils gave the industry detergent, dispersants, and zinc packages that the oils needed to guarantee the engine would break in properly and run cleaner with good lubrication properties. Other oils did the same things as long as they were rated TCW? Later came TCWII & TCWIII which were just later refinements to the formulas. Today’s oils are far superior to the originals, but no substitute for proper ratios for our old motors. Hope I got most of that right. Just the way I remember it.

Dan in TN