Anybody ever put an oil thermostat on their 750? This last winter I've noticed that my temp gage rarely gets up to nominal. To compensate I run 5/30 in the winter which means a lot of oil changes. I know some of you have come up with creative ways to block the coolers but a thermostat seems like it would be more ideal. I used to own a Porsche 914/6 and they made a thermostat that was a 2 x 2 and would open up at around 170 degrees. The oil send and return lines are in the perfect location for such a device. My only concern is that I may end up with too much oil in the case before the thermostat opened. The 914/6 is a dry sump so that's not an issue. Any comments or thoughts?

Personally, I like the fact that my Paso runs cool. I don't see anything wrong with a cool-running motor.

cool is ok as long as the oil reaches operating temperature. Specially in colder climates an oil thermostat can be good as the engine warms up faster and hence there`s less wear.
I have an oil thermostat but never came around to mount it on the bike as it requires getting new oil lines with different screw connectors made.
There are the typical inline oil thermostats but those require cutting the lines and refitting with some clamps. I heard from a few guys who did that, that they had problems with minor oil leaks. With the oil lines being expensive and maybe even rare I would not chose that option.

G.

Why not just partially cover one or both of your oil coolers.Add or remove until the correct temperature is reached and leave it on until winter is over.They do it on radiators in racing all the time.

Cheers
Andrew

Hey everybody, I appreciate the replies.

Andrew2 - It's impractical for me to cover the radiators because it might be in the low 50's / high 40's when I start riding and then by the afternoon it's in the 90's. I want the system to be automatic. My bike (gearbox) seems to be happier with something like 20/40. But it takes a while for that oil to warm up and in the meantime it can create undo wear on parts.

Paso750 - thanks for the input. I usually build the oil lines myself and there are a couple of tricks to keep them from leaking. True, the connectors can get pricey but so is an engine. I figure I can do the whole project for about $250 if I reuse the stock connectors.

Just a thought but have you tried any hydraulic engineering outfits . I don't think that changing the grade of oil will have any influence on how quick the temp rises on warm up , but if you start with a thinner oil ( 5) it will get to the correct operating viscosity quicker. I guess it also depends on what you accept as " correct operating temp"..... My SS had 2 coolers and I would remove one during winter , and like you I saw the oil temp getting up there a bit later in the day . With 2 coolers I couldn't get the oil over 80 deg C ( milky sight glass ) , but with 1 cooler I was seeing a peak of 120 deg C . I reasoned that the accepted oil temp in a water cooled engine being about 10 deg C hotter than the coolant which at 90-100 deg C put the oil temp at a nice comfortable max of 110 deg C , so .... I figured that 120 wasn't to bad for a peak temp and if I was bothered I would go to a semi synthetic . As an aside , if you are in to gauge ogling is interesting to see how much difference sitting tucked in behind a vehicle ( not right up its arse ) and then backing off some distance can make to the oil temp , and I have used this tactic to add a bit of control to the temp on " transport stages " whilst between "special stages" ( special stages are bits of road where you really fang it up ) AND I will swear its warmer ( you notice this when its really cold ) in behind another vehicle .... specially a big truck.
I have used in the past a large flat brush ( not a broom ) with the bristles trimmed short ( not a word Nnnnnnornan ) and I just stick the bristle side into the cooler..... works a treat and never fell out either , and easily removed when the ambient temp gets up