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LArger oil cooler

  • Thread starter Thread starter makenzie71
  • Start date Start date
M

makenzie71

Guest
My bike has an oil cooler on it...but it's a real dinky looking one. About 2" X 6" X .5". I'd like to have something a bit beefier on it considering the volume of oil running through it. How big would be overkill?

Also, what should the normal operating temp of the oil be? I'll be installing a gauge.
 
I'm sure someone could give you some input but that somone needs to know what you ride. Year, model and size please.
 
yeah guess I should have added that...it's a 1979 GS750E. It has an old school lockhart oil cooler kit on it. The cooler is actually 2 X 5 X .75...my earlier guestimate was a tad off.

I want to put something on it at least twice that in size...if not a little bigger. There's a lot of oil flowing through this bike. Seems like a cooler that small will heatsoak pretty quick and then be essentially worthless.
 
makenzie71 said:
I want to put something on it at least twice that in size...if not a little bigger. There's a lot of oil flowing through this bike. Seems like a cooler that small will heatsoak pretty quick and then be essentially worthless.
Click to expand...

What do you mean by "heatsoak"? Never heard that term used like that. Regardless of how small the cooler is, it will transfer heat out of the oil. Maybe not enough heat to suit you, but it will continue to work no matter what.

If you don't mind spending some money check out the Earl's line of coolers. Super nice stuff, but not cheap. A cooler like you mention will cost about $80 - $100. http://www.anplumbing.com/shop/index.php?shop=Accessories&dept=Oil!_Cooler
 
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Actually, it'll cost me about $25...but I know where to look. Those coolers are closer to the size I want, though.

A heatsoaked is when a cooler loses it's ability to transfer energy from the oil (in this case) to the outside air due to it's limited capacity. Essentially, the oil inside will be moving too fast to be affected after the bike has reached normal operating temperature. I know the math doesn't directly apply, but gearboxes for direct drive water wells use oil coolers to keep the temperatures down. According to the formula, the GS cooler, considering the engine's oil capacity, and if it had been a water well gearbox lol, the GS750 should have a 3-row core comprised of 3/8" ID tubing, with a surface area of approximately 35sqin with air cooling to maintain a 175*f operating temperature.

Of course that doesn't account for the fact that the motor will produce more heat...or that the cooler will see forced air while moving. But still...anything has to be "better" than the 10sqin single-row cooler it has.
 
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not that I can share...it's something the field guys at work came up with. I'll find out, though.
 
okay the formula they used was simplified...comes up with air cooled system that you need approximately 1sqin of surface area per 100cc of oil. That's assuming 3/8" ID tubing and 3/4" fins. And this was with forced air but the fans never see the volume of air you would running a bike 70mph down the road.

They work with gear boxes, though...they create a lot of heat but we don't see it creating enough heat to match what an internal combustion engine would do.
 
Now, when i say this, keep in mind that *I* am of the opinion that an oil cooler on ANY air cooled bike is a good thing. Most of the bretheren on here believe that an oil cooler on these motors is a bit of overkill. Frankly, they are probably right, as ive run the cafe at severe RPM for quite a while when i had that 52 tooth rear sprocket on it running it on the highway.. and NEVER had an overheat. (it redlined doing about 85, but DAMN that bike would rip your arms out of socket taking off) But, considering the low pressure system on your 8v motor, the oil will never likely move fast enough to suffer from heatsoak anyway. At fair RPM, say around 5-6k, my 1100G, also an 8v, rollerbearing low pressure oiler motor, only pushes about 3 -6lbs of pressure. At that rate, the oil will be pleanty cool coming out of the cooler. I assume that you are planning some head work and maybe a bore job on your bike, so you are looking to protect that. I would bet that just about any cooler you put on it would do the job fairly well, and as said, its not something that you should be overly concerned about. However, im all for an oilcooler, no matter the hive's concensus, as i am a firm believer that temperature moderated motor parts simply last longer since they are not subjected to wild temperature swings. Just my opinion tho.
 
BassCliff said:
Hey Mr. Nessism, is that what you have on your 850? Which one? I think an oil cooler would be, uh,...cool! :rolleyes:


Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff
Click to expand...
Wow those ARE good prices, and some of those are fricken HUGE!!
 
If you have a lot of spare cash a Earls setup like this would be ok, dont u think?

engine2.jpg


IMGP0667.jpg
 
BassCliff said:
Hey Mr. Nessism, is that what you have on your 850? Which one? I think an oil cooler would be, uh,...cool! :rolleyes:


Thank you for your indulgence,

BassCliff
Click to expand...

The cooler I'm using is not shown on the AN Plumbing web site, although that's where I bought it - Earl's store in Lawndale, CA. It's the smallest curved motorcycle model. Those regular Earl's coolers are quite thick so their is quite a bit of cooling capacity there. The motorcycle specific models are thinner. Fortunately for GS owners, there is quite a bit of clearance between the front wheel and the engine so the thicker coolers work well.
 
Personally I think with good oil (especially fullly syn) & regular changes you probably don't need an oil cooler on a stock bike mine has been ok so far even in heavy traffic.

I admit it would be nice to have one but I think the hose runs don't look nice on the bike.

Dan :)
 
Oil coolers

Oil coolers

I have an old Lockhart oil cooler on my '81 GS850G -- same model oil cooler I had on my supposedly '81 [actually an '81] GS850G I bought in '82 and ran until '87. Bike rags at the time said this was the best one on the market -- something about the way the tubes contacted the finning [???]. Anyway, I'm looking for an oil cooler for my '82 GS1100G, and one for my '80 GS850G. When I try the website link posted by Nessism,

http://www.anplumbing.com/shop/index...pt=Oil!_Cooler

what I get is the infamous "Not Found" message.

Does anyone have a currently "good" URL for that shop? Thanks!!

-- Bill
 
makenzie71 said:
My bike has an oil cooler on it...but it's a real dinky looking one. About 2" X 6" X .5". I'd like to have something a bit beefier on it considering the volume of oil running through it. How big would be overkill?

Also, what should the normal operating temp of the oil be? I'll be installing a gauge.
Click to expand...

Your oil temperature should be 180 degrees fahrenheit so when shopping for an oil cooler the ideal set up would include a thermostat like a Lockhart BP-180 which as the name implies opens @ 180 degrees. Most OEM cycle manufacturers (My 83 R100RS had one) incorporate a thermostat when installing an oil cooler on their models because oil that is too cold has it's own set of problems like water condensation. Unfortunately you don't have many options since the aftermarket oil cooler manufacturers like Derale & Lockhart have closed their doors.

You can verify oil temperature by installing a VDO Oil temperature gage which has the pick up in the oil drain plug. Air cooled GS oil temperature can quickly spike above 220 degrees fahrenheit after a spirited ride and when stuck in traffic you will see your max oil temperatures. A lot of 83 GS1100E owners which has the hotter 1100 cam report seeing oil temperatures close to 300 degrees fahrenheit in Stop & Go. IMO that's not good.

I first used the Lockhart 500 series which is comparable to the size you listed. After numerous performance modifications I noticied my oil temperature were increasing and I luckily purchased the larger Lockhart 700 oil cooler which barely fits above the tach cable. The S/S & AN fittings are not necessary since most of the GS's have roller bearing cranks running < 15 psi but they sure look cool.
 
Bill Lloyd said:
I have an old Lockhart oil cooler on my '81 GS850G -- same model oil cooler I had on my supposedly '81 [actually an '81] GS850G I bought in '82 and ran until '87. Bike rags at the time said this was the best one on the market -- something about the way the tubes contacted the finning [???]. Anyway, I'm looking for an oil cooler for my '82 GS1100G, and one for my '80 GS850G. When I try the website link posted by Nessism,

http://www.anplumbing.com/shop/index...pt=Oil!_Cooler

what I get is the infamous "Not Found" message.

Does anyone have a currently "good" URL for that shop? Thanks!!

-- Bill
Click to expand...

Bill I have an oil cooler i just got for MY 1100G. I dunno where to pick up the connectors for the cooler side of things. I have the adaptor plate already and it looks like on THAT end it just takes hoses and hose clamps. Perhaps one of these days this week we could meet up and you could maybe show me how you had yours hooked up on your 850s, as id assume they'd be just about the same?
 
Bill Lloyd said:
I have an old Lockhart oil cooler on my '81 GS850G -- same model oil cooler I had on my supposedly '81 [actually an '81] GS850G I bought in '82 and ran until '87. Bike rags at the time said this was the best one on the market -- something about the way the tubes contacted the finning [???]. Anyway, I'm looking for an oil cooler for my '82 GS1100G, and one for my '80 GS850G. When I try the website link posted by Nessism,

http://www.anplumbing.com/shop/index...pt=Oil!_Cooler

what I get is the infamous "Not Found" message.

Does anyone have a currently "good" URL for that shop? Thanks!!

-- Bill
Click to expand...


Hey Bill,
Link works on my computer. Not sure what's wrong. You might want to try typing anplumbing.com in the address line, which will take you to the front door of the shop. Once there it's an easy matter to navigate over to the oil cooler section. Keep in mind that the motorcycle specific coolers are not shown.

Good luck.
 
srsupertrap said:
Your oil temperature should be 180 degrees fahrenheit so when shopping for an oil cooler the ideal set up would include a thermostat like a Lockhart BP-180 which as the name implies opens @ 180 degrees. Most OEM cycle manufacturers (My 83 R100RS had one) incorporate a thermostat when installing an oil cooler on their models because oil that is too cold has it's own set of problems like water condensation. Unfortunately you don't have many options since the aftermarket oil cooler manufacturers like Derale & Lockhart have closed their doors.

You can verify oil temperature by installing a VDO Oil temperature gage which has the pick up in the oil drain plug. Air cooled GS oil temperature can quickly spike above 220 degrees fahrenheit after a spirited ride and when stuck in traffic you will see your max oil temperatures. A lot of 83 GS1100E owners which has the hotter 1100 cam report seeing oil temperatures close to 300 degrees fahrenheit in Stop & Go. IMO that's not good.

I first used the Lockhart 500 series which is comparable to the size you listed. After numerous performance modifications I noticied my oil temperature were increasing and I luckily purchased the larger Lockhart 700 oil cooler which barely fits above the tach cable. The S/S & AN fittings are not necessary since most of the GS's have roller bearing cranks running < 15 psi but they sure look cool.
Click to expand...

This is a smart post and I agree with every thing it says. I would like to add a few things. Put a gauge on your bike first and if the temp rarely goes above 280 don't put a cooler on it. A cooler with out a stat will take longer for the engine to warm up (increase engine wear and water in the oil problems the number one cause of sludge especially if ridden for lots of short trips). I like stats to be set at 200 degrees. Dan
 
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