You can usually tell to a certain degree of what the oil the condition is, even if it's the sight glass method. If it's dirty or been used for a while you can usually tell by the colour of it when you take a look. However, this also depends on what type oil you use. For instant, the Suzuki oil I use is dark in colour in comparison to some other types which are more of a light golden colour. So knowing when it's dirty or in need of a change is hard to tell because it generally looks black when you look at it through the sight glass. So it really becomes a give and take thing were I generally go by mileage and or if my atv starts to act or idle strangely. But if the oil is a light golden colour when it's new then it's easy to see when it needs changing as it starts changing colour.
Now the only downside to the sight glass method that I could see is if there where any particles or small tiny metal shavings floating around in it. This would essentially be very hard to tell by simply looking through the sight glass. Only by removing a dip stick and checking it visually would you be able to know exactly what's going on with your oil. Each have their own quarks. I like the oil sight glass for simplicity and a quick check. But if you want to know what your oil is really doing, then the oil dip stick is a more precise oil evaluation tool.
Sight glass is great on level terrain, but mine usually isn't and I find myself squatting down and hanging from the rear rack to get a reading. The problem is that a sight glass must be on one side of the case, while a dipstick can be in the middle of the case, making it much less likely to give false readings.
Dipstick or both.
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