Automatic oiler or no?

[rsscha]

OK, I'm a Triumph newb and looking for some sage advice and experienced input from those of you who know.

I just purchased a 2003 Sprint ST and the previous owner had installed several mods. One of these is an automatic oiler made by Pro-Oiler (not sure the model but has adjustable rate). I'm wondering the pros and cons of a system like this. Take off and manually oil every 500 miles or more often as indicated in the manual or leave alone and be vigilant about cleaning the muck?

The oil reservoir is underneath the seat and, as with any oiled system no matter how well sealed, has leaked and caused a little mess under there. It's not bad and no visible current leaks but some residue and I happen to be a little more particular than some. Also, the whole underneath of the bike on the left side - plastic, mounts, shrouds, fenders, etc, etc, are grimy from the oil residue attracting all the road muck. I haven't completely cleaned up yet as this will take some time.

All thoughts, suggestions, opinions, etc welcomed.

[uraberg]

I vote remove.

Modern chains can get by with a lot less maintenance than you think. Besides, a constantly "wet" chain may just attract, and hang on to much more dirt than a "dryer" chain.

[triplestrength]

I used a "loobman" oiler and the chain and sprockets have lasted 40k miles with one ajustment.
Yes I do get a little oil on the bike but it is easy enough to clean off.
I just use left over engine oil from regular changes to top the resevior up.
Chain appears oily and relatively clean all of them time.

Sent from my GT-I9100P using Motorcycle.com Free App

[grizzly adams]

I use the Pro oiler and find them very good, the mess you see is probably from filling it rather than a leak,check out their website for instructions. During the summer I have set to around 2 and winter 3-4,I use gear oil as less fling being that bit heavier so less mess

[lovecuba]

Originally Posted by triplestrength

I used a "loobman" oiler and the chain and sprockets have lasted 40k miles with one ajustment.
Yes I do get a little oil on the bike but it is easy enough to clean off.
I just use left over engine oil from regular changes to top the resevior up.
Chain appears oily and relatively clean all of them time.

Sent from my GT-I9100P using Motorcycle.com Free App

+ 1 on that! I too have a Loobman fitted. So simple and with highly accurate delivery via the twin heads. Push the button and ride and most importantly, you decide how little oil to use. Use a mixture of chainsaw bar oil and kerosine.

[KitNYC]

I used a Loobman for a while on my Trident. It failed in such a way that I didn't realize it until I had put a few thousand miles on the unlubed chain and ruined it. I would not install one again; it's just as easy to lube the chain as to inspect it. The more automatic types like the Scott and Pro oilers are, IMHO, added complexity waiting to make diagnosing a problem harder.

I use the DuPont Teflon lube, which is much less messy than most. I'm thinking about changing to another type now that they've changed the formula, but I haven't decided yet.

Cheers,
-Kit

[Beach]

Personally I'm not a fan of such devices, unless the bike is used for courier work.

Every bike I've seen with these is covered in oil and grime and I'm yet to genuinely hear of spectacular mileage that justifies them.

My bike has 85,500kms. Its on its second set of chain and sprockets with plenty of life left.

Some people love them, but I'm yet to be convinced.

[rsscha]

Ok, so still deciding on auto oil or not. If i were to remove the mod, what is the consensus on dry (teflon or other) lube versus a traditional petroleum or synthetic oil? I prefer dry on my bicycles because the gunk doesn't seem to be as bad.

[KitNYC]

Originally Posted by rsscha

I prefer dry on my bicycles because the gunk doesn't seem to be as bad.

The chain is bigger, but the same logic holds true.

Cheers,
-Kit

[DaveM]

If this is a useful reference my first chain and sprockets on my 2004 Sprint ST that worked very hard, lasted 50,000 kms before replacement.

This was with an inspection and lube about every 600 kms and a clean with kerosene and a rag about once every 1000 kms.

At 76,000 kms when I traded it, the second set of chain and sprockets still had many serviceable miles left in them.

People either love auto chain lubes or not.

I am in the "or not" category but each to their own.

my opinion is that they were more useful on the old pre "O or X" ring type chains, but not so much now.

cheers
Dave