Compared two hydraulic fluids side by side for 3 months, the cheap stuff won me over

Ran my clamshell dredge on the generic brand hydraulic oil for a full quarter in Tampa Bay, then switched back to the name brand. Oil temps ran 4 degrees cooler with the cheap one and the pump sounded smoother, no idea why. Anyone else seen a budget fluid outperform the premium option on older rigs?

2 comments

2 Comments

noraroberts4d ago

Four degrees is within noise on most gauges, so I'd bet that's more about ambient temp than the fluid. And smoother sounding usually means the pump is working harder, not better, on a worn rig.

oliver_baker494d ago

Dude, my buddy ran the same test on his old Cat and the cheap fluid actually dropped his pump whine too. He swore it was quieter for like a week, then it blew a seal and he blamed the oil, but honestly that rig was junk anyway.