Lube room and parts-counter shorthand for synthetic lubricant. On a label or in conversation it can mean anything from a true PAO or ester to a hydrocracked Group III oil, so experienced techs ask what the base stock actually is. Syn products cost several times as much as mineral oils and earn it through longer drains, a wider temperature window and cooler running in hot gearboxes.
Put the syn 220 in the cooling tower drives, they run way too hot for mineral.
Also heard as
- synthetic
- full syn
Related terms
Dino oil
Joking name for conventional mineral oil refined from crude, used to set it apart from synthetics.
PAO
Polyalphaolefin, the synthetic hydrocarbon base oil built from alpha-olefins and classed as Group IV.
Base oil group
Five-group system that sorts base stocks by saturates, sulfur, viscosity index and chemical type.
Ester
Synthetic or natural base oil made from acids and alcohols, valued for solvency, film strength and biodegradability.