I recently rebuilt my 355 and decided to use a flat tappet cam for now. I broke it in correctly with the cam break in additive, but now I am looking for an oil additive to use that has zddp. This is for a bracket racing car, so I won't go easy on the engine. My local engine builder suggested to run Rotella t4 since that's what they run in there 1000+ hp bbf. I have been using the rislone engine oil supplement with zinc treatment with the t4, and was wondering if that is the best setup I could use.

 

For a bracket car? Since it's not a high mileage engine, Walmart oil will do just fine. It all depends on how often you want to change the oil.
I have Lucas 10w40 synthetic in my race engine. My entire oil system holds 9 liters of oil.

 

OP needs not just a quality oil, he needs an oil with high levels of ZDDP! I just check Amazon and found LOTS of suitable Racing oils and ZDDP additives.

 

If you are not driving on the road Valvoline VR1 is a good choice

 

That is what my friend runs in their high hp sbf. He says he likes it.

 

Trouble is, zddp was produced for engines back in the 40's. By the 70's and 80's, oil is now far superior to the oil that was produced 70-80 years ago. The purpose of the zddp was to reduce wear in an engine. This is wear that's going to happen in a 100,000+ mile engine. It's highly unlikely that putting zddp into a racing engine will do anything that modern regular oil can't handle.

It's up to you but I think it's a waste of money looking for some sort of additive to go into a low mileage engine. You would be better off just changing the oil on a more regular basis. Spend the extra money to get your oil analyzed to see what's going on inside the engine.

 

Even with a decent flat tappet camshaft? I know that the Rotella I'm running already has more zinc in it than regular oil, but I figured I would rather have too much than not enough.

 

Lot of confusion here.........."Modern Oil" with new maximum allowable (by law) ZDDP is NO substitute for the protection ZDDP provides to sliding/scuffing surfaces. IE Flat Lifters sliding against a camshaft lobe, rings, piston skirts and ring lands, sliding on the oil film, against cylinder walls.

Also, new , low mileage or rebuilt flat tappet engines, are MORE in need of ZDDP protection, compared to same engine, well worn.

OP is asking for sources for ZDDP, WHY are folks trying to talk him out of it? Unless one OVERDOSES the engine with ZDDP, it can not harm the engine.

 

If it's successfully broken in, and all the push rods are turning when it's running, then you're past the need for the really high ZDDP levels.

Any of the motor oils that are and have always been good for flat-tappet cams are fine at this point. Rotella, the various racing-ish oils from Valvoline Castrol Cam2 etc., hard to go wrong with any of them. Just make sure to choose a reasonable viscosity for YOUR motor build (bearing clearances), NOT put candle wax in it because "all the fast cars run 50W".

 

STP Oil Treatment.. Has ZDDP in it.. It's a cheap snake oil peace of mind...

 

You are already doing it correctly by using the Rislone engine oil supplement. Stay away from STP!

 

Lucas Zinc Additive... I use it with modern 10W30 synthetic blend in my 72 Cutlass (flat tappet cam) since the engine is low mileage survivor less than 40,000 miles on it.

The firebird I use Brad Penn 20W50 synthetic blend "the green oil" (solid roller cam) it has high zinc content and is what my engine builder recommends.

 

Ahh but you've never done any research. Too much isn't good for an engine either.

 

But I have. Too much is bad for a catalytic converter, which I won't run.

 

Don't bother with an additive. Run the right oil in the first place.

Don't outsmart yourself. It's just a car. There's BILLIONS of em in the world, it's not like they're some kind of unearthly alien mystery contraption. Just some metal and plastic and stuff. Don't fall for all the FUD in the marketplace over how bad you need to empty your wallet into somebody else's over your oil choice.

Any good oil with the proper additive package for flat-tappet cams is fine, ON ITS OWN, NO ADDITIVES, once it's successfully broken in, and all the push rods are turning when it's running.