stfoulks
New Member
Caught with my pants down
So - I bought a 98 Sportster 1800 6 weeks ago. Rebuilt engines had been installed in 2004 (Twin 717's), and the owner had the receipts for that and faithful maintenance/winterization each year since. He told me he'd run premium Bombardier oil in it and nothing else. Well, today was the day that the oil light came on and I had to do a dope slap because I hadn't bought any to keep on board. The only marina on the lake had Mercury TC-W3 and nothing else, so I bought a jug and filled 'er up. Reading this, I feel like I should drain the reservoir this week and get the API-TC... as I checked the receipts from the seller tonight, I was surprised to see that the premium Bombardier oil is on the receipt as TCW3. Do I need to drain before switching or is there harm in running this tank out? Regardless of that answer, do I need to thoroughly clean the reservoir before putting the API-TC in? No excuse for not having spare oil on hand, I plan to get many seasons of fun out of this thing and want to do whatever it takes to increase the odds of keeping it on the water and out of the shop.:bigear:
So - I bought a 98 Sportster 1800 6 weeks ago. Rebuilt engines had been installed in 2004 (Twin 717's), and the owner had the receipts for that and faithful maintenance/winterization each year since. He told me he'd run premium Bombardier oil in it and nothing else. Well, today was the day that the oil light came on and I had to do a dope slap because I hadn't bought any to keep on board. The only marina on the lake had Mercury TC-W3 and nothing else, so I bought a jug and filled 'er up. Reading this, I feel like I should drain the reservoir this week and get the API-TC... as I checked the receipts from the seller tonight, I was surprised to see that the premium Bombardier oil is on the receipt as TCW3. Do I need to drain before switching or is there harm in running this tank out? Regardless of that answer, do I need to thoroughly clean the reservoir before putting the API-TC in? No excuse for not having spare oil on hand, I plan to get many seasons of fun out of this thing and want to do whatever it takes to increase the odds of keeping it on the water and out of the shop.:bigear: