[sqf]

On the dipstick I mean.  I've done two oil changes and the oil seems normal when draining, a nice shade of chestnut with a few flakes but lessening since the 1000mi oil change.  There is no reading on the stick once all three plugs are pulled (so I know the oil is flowing in and out of the dipstick chamber) but I find it odd that I never have dark oil on the dipstick.  It's always clear like oil that hasn't been run at all.   

[cyrusb]

Its just that the dipstick is shiny. Dip it in the drained oil that appears dark, and it will look clean too.

[Spitting Bull]

Thanks! Must say I have always wondered about that, too.

Tom

[petefletcher]

Wipe the dipstick on a white tissue and you'll see the muck.

[GreenMachine]

i think the same thing  re. condition of oil in lawn mower...Naturally it comes out black and I say good thing I change the oil in mid season vice looking at the dip shit...heehee

[Thumper]

When you change the oil every 1700 miles or so, it's not going to look like the oil from a high-revving engine that's been run in the summer heat for 3000 miles!

(Which, for these bikes, is one of the reasons we change it so frequently!)