Talk to me about oil testing?

I was going to change the Miata's oil this weekend as the place I got it from couldn't tell me when it was last done.  I figured that since the car had ~30k on it when I got it, I would get a baseline oil sample done when I did this change just so I know there's no weird things waiting for me.  (its only 30k on a newish vehicle, but a man has the right to be paranoid sometimes.)

Any precautions for getting the sample since I don't have a kit and the "official" sample container or instructions yet?  Clean stainless steel container?  Clean glass container?  Taken mid-stream?
I know Blackstone Labs was always the go-to ~20 years ago, are they still?

I think Bob does oil analysis on the side? 

Hold off. I'm at an event running I'll be back shortly. 
 

edit: text me 765-376-3190. 

In reply to bobzilla :

Sweet.  I'll text you now, get ahold of me whenever is good for you

Blackstone is still a standard for oil testing. Many BMW owners with long stroke S54 engines (that do 7900 rpm) routinely have their oil tested by them to determine bearing condition.

In reply to wspohn :

They're always welcome to use me lol. 

Mid stream, warm not hot and about 4-6 ounces in a clean sealable container until you get the kit.  I have 2 extra if you are near zip 18914.

In reply to porschenut :

3 ounces is all that's needed. Actual testing doesn't use more than about  an ounce total but this leaves room for retests as needed. 

If you're changing the oil regularly, what's the benefit of testing?

In reply to Brett_Murphy (Agent of Chaos) :

The answer is complicated. It's not for everyone. Sone people like to do yearly checkups. You can see early signs of wear sooner than waiting for it to fail. Some engines have known weak points (m3 engine referenced above) that testing can detect before it becomes a problem throwing engine parts outside blocks. It can also determine if the oil you are using is right for your car with your driving. Changing it regularly doesn't do any good if it's the wrong fluid. You can use it to determine the proper OCI's for your vehicle and driving patterns. 
 

there are a lot of possible benefits. Race shops that build and maintain cars have been using my services to determine if the oil they are using is right for their application, and how long to use it. Amateur racers using me to help them find the right oil for their setup. 
 

you're right. It's not for everyone. It's not always cost effective not needed. It's just another tool available in your toolbox to help save you money down the road and possibly find a problem before it comes up. 

Bob- I've got a Toyota 5.7 in my sequoia with 240k miles. It's had 0w-20 full synthetic for its life. The dummy oil pressure gauge is below half at idle when warm and I'm wondering if I should change viscosity or change to a semi synthetic. Would analysis help me make a more informed decision in a situation like this? 

grover said:

Bob- I've got a Toyota 5.7 in my sequoia with 240k miles. It's had 0w-20 full synthetic for its life. The dummy oil pressure gauge is below half at idle when warm and I'm wondering if I should change viscosity or change to a semi synthetic. Would analysis help me make a more informed decision in a situation like this? 

Definitely can try. First thing to see is if the vis is staying consistent. Is it getting fuel loaded thinning it out (even though mos 0W20 are pretty good about handling silly amounts of fuel).Second thing to check is if the fluid is overheatng and shearing.  It's not as common with engine oils unless they run hot or have excessive heat/load on bearings etc.

If it's bearing wear we should see that in the elemental analysis as well. If all those pass muster, it may be a faulty sender or gauge.

I guessed at the amount, better too  much than not enough.  Never did the analysis thing before but the truck is only a 4.8 and has been pulling a trailer and pretty big load in the bed for a few years.  Last trip was in some hilly country and the motor was worked hard, so since it has 175K on it I wanted to see if all was good.  It has been using coolant and they can eat head gaskets at this age.  Well the news was all good.  No issues with the report, well written and I can continue to thrash it up hills at 4000 RPM or higher.  There was 0 coolant in the oil, so I looked deeper and found a hose weeping fluid but it fell on the exhaust so there was no spot.  The money was well spent and while I don't see the need to do it again it was worth it.

Correction, I may do some testing on the new turbo motor in the Baja, just to see how the break in went.  After a few thousand miles I may do a check.

In reply to porschenut :

Wish you'd have contacted me. I have some experience with those 4.8's doing work. 

In reply to bobzilla :

This sort of thing has always interested me. How did you get involved in oil testing?

In reply to Woody (Forum Supportum) :

A local guy I autoxd with worked for a company that did it. They were looking for an analyst with some mechanical background.  In 3 years I had earned my OMA and CLS and was a "senior analyst" that specialized in engines and microscope work. I loved the job. I liked helping people work through odd problems that only got odder with the sample results. I liked that we could keep multi-billion dollar operations going with out testing and results.  Sadly, the company and personnel changes made it a bit hostile for me and I moved on after 6 years. 

I realized I had all this training and information locked in my head and wanted to find a way to use it to help people like me (amateur racers) save money and possibly keep race cars running longer etc. The number one question I would be asked was the obvious: "What oil should I use." Then I'd spend 15 minutes explaining why that was he wrong answer and what questions they should ask and how that can help them. So late last year I decided to put together my own PLP with my former employer and offer testing and analysis to people at a reasonable price with correct testing and an explanations of those results and how they apply to them and their car. Something that isn't the canned responses of my former employer that no one really understands and something that isn't as campy and "everything's fine" on every report of the common source for UOA. A little more in depth, and I will ask a lot of questions to get more information to explain the results.

I am terrible at marketing and haven't promoted my self well but hope to expand next year. I am not going to get rich doing it. It's more of a passion for me and a way I can exercise my brains and hopefully provide a service that helps people do what they like to do.

In reply to bobzilla :

Bob do you have a little kit like the Blackstone we could use to send you samples? I'd prefer to support a GRM'r if I can. 

In reply to z31maniac :

Yes I do. They look like this:

You can email or text with questions. racersoilanalysisresource@gmail.com or 765-376-3190

bobzilla said:

In reply to porschenut :

Wish you'd have contacted me. I have some experience with those 4.8's doing work

How do you prefer to be contacted?  My only issue is with the 4 speed it goes from below 3K to 4.5K RPMs on hills.  Doesn't seem to hurt anything though, just wish it had more torque down low. 

In reply to porschenut :

You can email or text with questions. racersoilanalysisresource@gmail.com or 765-376-3190

In reply to Mr_Asa :

What oil do you plan to use? The dealer did my first 2 changes with 0W-20 but I'm thinking about moving to 5W-30 since I'm in a warm climate and starting to do track days.

Dang, wish I would've known, I just sent SWMBO's oil off to Blackstone.

Can you glean anything off of the "standard" blackstone reports?

In particular, her J35 Honda V6 has been hurt for a while (multiple instances of oil starvation and spalled cam lobes) so I know it's bad, but we are interested to know just how bad.  We've already determined that a salvage yard motor is in the future.  Just waiting for this one to go boom.  Or get really, really loud

In reply to bobzilla :

OMA and CLS?

In reply to HotNotch :

Get the report and send it to me. They don't do much in the way of oil condition tests, they focus on wear and contamination. It would be interesting to see if the oil is overheating. You might be able to go up a viscosity to buy a little more time. 

In reply to Woody (Forum Supportum) :

They are certifications. One isn't difficult to get (OMA, Oil Monitoring Analyst), the other was hard as hell and there are only 1200 certified in the world last I checked (Certified Lubrication Specialist). That second one they sent us out to Witchita for a week to attend a class after spending months prepping and then take the test at the end of the week. Dude.... My mind died that week. 

bobzilla said:

In reply to Woody (Forum Supportum) :

I am terrible at marketing and haven't promoted my self well but hope to expand next year. 

If ever there was a perfect business to run an ad in the back of grm and cm, you are it!

Also, try contacting specialty car retailers (like bring a trailer) and see if you can offer your services to their sellers. Car with clean oil report sells for more, etc. Win for you, win for car seller, win for car retailer, win for buyer.

Not often do you get a winwinwinwin in business.