[Carl Fenn]

I know Warro uses it in his videos he swears by it.

[fressko]

My experience with dealerships was terrible. First service they didn't bother to clean the secondary filter, which was half obstructed with junk, bits of plastic etc. An official one.

[linestunter]

Welcome aboard, @linestunter. Congrats on the new bike! Seems like you're one of many sportbike riders who've seen the light and found out how much fun going back to basic can be! I've never owned a "fast" bike (my fastest was a TRX850 but apparently they're not very quick) and my 535 CGT is perfect for me. I love it.

The single cylinder grunt is pretty fun, huh? It's cool plonking along and only changing gears when you feel like it.

When you do the oil change, take it super easy on the drain bolts. I know you've done lots of spannering but these are different. The main drain bolt, the big one: Do it up finger tight, then give it a couple of bumps on the spanner to just nip it up. A lot of these guys have stripped the thread out of their case doing it up to torque spec. The smaller plug seems less prone to stripping. Don't be frightened by all the metal shavings caught in the oil strainer (next to the drain bolt) but also, take it easy on those cheesy screws that hold it in. I don't bother to check it every oil change anymore, maybe every 3rd change will do me. The 3 filter cover screws too. just nip them up.

I've taken it easy on all the screws on my bike and haven't stripped or snapped one yet, touch wood. It doesn't leak oil and no plugs or screws have vibrated out.   

I see Sparesbox (online) has Penrite MC-4ST 10w50 and HPR Diesel 15w50 on sale 20% off with free delivery for 20 litre drums right now. That's not bad.

You a control line flyer by any chance? That's fun, too.

hi yes many moons ago, still have a fox 35 and some hand oilers around , were great times as a boy
have got the oil change done ok , no stripped bolts, i replaced the copper sump plug washers with fiber washers as they seal better and need less toque to seal, i just nibbed them up so alls good
the filter screen had some metal shards and what looked like fiber dirt so glad i did an early oil change
will do another oil change and clean the screen at 500k mark and see what the screens like, if the screens clean will leave it alone on next change 
when i fitted the sports gold star muffler i also fitted a straight through header pipe removing the catalytic converter so have no worries running zinc in the oil
not really sure the engine needs it as it has a roller cam roller lifters but i guess if zincs anti wear it carnt hurt
i think the joso spec is for clutches in motorbikes, but plenty people running motor car or diesel oil without any problems
i have watched some Indians doing bullet 500 oil changes on youtube dumping the oil then starting the engines not once but twice to pump out the last drop of oil ,  unbelievable no way would i do that
cheers damien
   

[Carl Fenn]

Well normally l just kick the bike over to get out the last of the oil with the kill switch on, personally l feel this is a much safer option, l use fully synthetic in the bike now and will change oil and filter every 3,000 miles, l have the gold star silencer fitted but have temporarily removed it for sake of warranty, l don’t have the header l found that a bit pricey, l also found the filter screen full of crap at only 400 miles l blasted it clean with some brake cleaner l will monitor it for future reference.

[9fingers]

For what it's worth, Gashousegorrilla, the #2 Royal Enfield 500 engine guru in the USA, recommended Mobile 1 V Twin oil to me and that is what I use. It is specifically designed for air cooled engines.....large temp variances......and is available at Walmart. Costs a few bucks more than Rotella, which I have used in my V Strom, though I am currently using Valvoline for that one, and it does shift better.
9fingers

[Carl Fenn]

Well l use the synthetic due to the high temperatures in lean burn engines it stays stable at hotter temperatures it might offer some extra protection those engines do run a bit hot, it rides better now hardly any clutch drag.

[gizzo]

hi yes many moons ago, still have a fox 35 and some hand oilers around , were great times as a boy
have got the oil change done ok , no stripped bolts, i replaced the copper sump plug washers with fiber washers as they seal better and need less toque to seal, i just nibbed them up so alls good
the filter screen had some metal shards and what looked like fiber dirt so glad i did an early oil change
will do another oil change and clean the screen at 500k mark and see what the screens like, if the screens clean will leave it alone on next change 
when i fitted the sports gold star muffler i also fitted a straight through header pipe removing the catalytic converter so have no worries running zinc in the oil
not really sure the engine needs it as it has a roller cam roller lifters but i guess if zincs anti wear it carnt hurt
i think the joso spec is for clutches in motorbikes, but plenty people running motor car or diesel oil without any problems
i have watched some Indians doing bullet 500 oil changes on youtube dumping the oil then starting the engines not once but twice to pump out the last drop of oil ,  unbelievable no way would i do that
cheers damien
 

Good on you Damien. People have found some pretty wild stuff in that screen at early services: lots of swarf (mine had), bits of shop rag, one guy found the finger from a work glove (actual finger not included) IIRC.

Agree about the zinc: it's not needed but at the same time won't do any harm. I use the same Penrite diesel oil in all my bikes. Too easy.

I have an old 15 size Nobler hanging around somewhere plus a combat wing of some sort and a couple of coreflute combat/trainer/beaters. And a little solid wing trainer I converted to electric to fly with the brat. 

[Roadie]

Good on you linestunter. I'm also an Aussie but living in Cambodia. I also have a new 2021 500 that I bought in the Phnom pehn dealership. I had them do the first service and have no idea if they cleaned the filter. I'll have to check that myself. The bike suits the low speeds of the roads here but the roads are so bumpy I leave the tyre pressures low and find it fine. Probably more like India roads here. I don't know what to do for oil yet as motorbike oil means for scooters here. 10/40 seems all they have which isn't much good in a tropical climate. Getting anything like mufflers means trying to order in from o/s. I'll probably need to get from India. Anyway, all good

[CHURCHILL]

Although I am new to Enfields and my recently purchased 500 trial has less than 500 miles on it and the book says it has just had a service, I will still give the bike a full service and checkover myself as that way I know it will be done right and I learn about my new bike, as an engineer I have the skills and tools to do my own service and repairs so I dont use dealers only for spares.

[Carl Fenn]

Well this is the best option, that’s what l did to mine found out dealer had not done it properly, mine had 400 miles on it. I found out they had not cleaned the gauze filter full of crap, one thing to be very careful with is the bolts and drain plugs they soon strip if they do you have trouble, just nip them 10th of a turn from where they stop finger tight, they should not leak but if the do just a small fraction more until they stop weeping, pay no attention to torque settings many people strip fasteners it’s common.

[CHURCHILL]

I agree with the caution on tightning drain plugs they are so easy to strip, I have noticed that Hitchcocks motorcycles have a spark plug/drain plug helicoil kit for such repairs,

 https://accessories.hitchcocksmotorcycles.com/accessory-shop/Recoil-Kits/11982

[Carl Fenn]

Well l have not stripped any thing yet but these do bring back memories of the 70,s brits, l stripped a couple of them many decades ago, l will take a look at that always handy to know.