How I baby my 2 stoke motors.... 30-1 instead of 50-1

[preventec47]

For what its worth, I dont ever use any of the elite synthetic 2 stroke oils for chain saws, but I frequently use 2 stroke oils for outboard motors and conventional 2 stroke oils for air cooled motors meeting the min specs. What I do to baby my engines somewhat is I run all my mixes at 30 to 1 instead of 50 to 1 to assure a little extra lubrication to my
bearings and cylinder walls etc. while running and also to leave heavier coating when saws are idle. I would expect there to be excessive carbon buildup perhaps but so far I have not seen it. The saws seem to run just as well and
I dont really pay much more for oil as I usually buy it by the gallon.

 

[SS396driver]

From what I understand too much oil isnt good either . More oil less gas =engine runs lean , will it damage the saw I'm not sure . I run a little fat on oil but my saws have been tuned to run on the rich end of the spectrum.

 

[ClimberBusinessman]

You run the risk of clogging the carb or having carbon deposits. Also, if you're running equipment meant for 50:1 on 30:1 without tuning the carb, I'd expect it to run a bit rough and lower on power. You might also want to think about some of the potentially negative health effects from breathing all that extra oil in the exhaust. I don't think you're going to extend the life of your equipment that much, and you might even worsen performance in the meantime. If you must run 30:1, at least tune the carb and run a fuel additive like B12 fuel additive from time to time to clear out the carbon buildup.

 

[preventec47]

The risk of running lean because of mix change is not realistically possible. The mix change due to air temp changes and altitude are more significant. The carb isnt clogging because of viscosity increase.... however I do acknowlege possible carbon buildup but I have not seen it yet. The saw's power change is not perceptable but I do admit to more exhaust pollution. Somewhat like autos with thinner oil to produce better mileage but more wear, I suspect the 50-1 is required more my govt pollution mandates than equip longevity considerations.

 

[Mad Professor]

I've run quality 2-stroke oil for air cooled since the early 1970s at 50:1.

No oil related problems ever.

 

[cscltd]

(jump to 13min for numbers)

this video says different, under full load cylinder was 29c or 84f hotter when using 25:1 compared to 50:1 and only after 3 cuts too!
and you may not see carbon build up as much if your are using outboard oil (water cooled) which has a lower flash point than air cooled oil hence will burn off at lower temp (even before the oil does it job of lubricating the hot side corner of piston)
most oils that say are for both outboards and chainsaw are water cooled oil in disguise

 

[Captain Bruce]

For what its worth, I dont ever use any of the elite synthetic 2 stroke oils for chain saws, but I frequently use 2 stroke oils for outboard motors and conventional 2 stroke oils for air cooled motors meeting the min specs. What I do to baby my engines somewhat is I run all my mixes at 30 to 1 instead of 50 to 1 to assure a little extra lubrication to my
bearings and cylinder walls etc. while running and also to leave heavier coating when saws are idle. I would expect there to be excessive carbon buildup perhaps but so far I have not seen it. The saws seem to run just as well and
I dont really pay much more for oil as I usually buy it by the gallon.

They will either smoke, or scream!

 

[Cricket]

From what I understand too much oil isnt good either . More oil less gas =engine runs lean , will it damage the saw I'm not sure . I run a little fat on oil but my saws have been tuned to run on the rich end of the spectrum.

I had an ancient - I want to say Homelite? - been years - that was so sloppy that it required a mix about double what it actually called for. Smoked like a chimney, but ran and cut like a champ. Not sure what happened to that thing - lost it in a move, I suspect.

 

[ihookem]

You can run rich if you want and likely wont hurt any. However, I am the kind of guy who questions everything with a measure of doubt and seem to be curious what really is the truth about oil. I have run car with 10K changes for 300, 000 mi. on my Duramax deisel. I even ran the Amsoil, with oil tests for 46 and 39 K without an oil change , with filter changes every 15K. The oil tests were good at 46K and 39K but did show signs of weakness so I changes them . This was 200,000 mi. ago and the engine runs darn good. As for 2 stroke oil, I have run 128/1 Amsoil in my 1997 25 horse Merc for many years. It runs perfect to this day . Now I go with Merc @ 50 /1 and sometimes just 2 oz. per gal. ,, = 64/1 and have been doing this for 23 yrs. Never a problem. As for my chainsaws, I have run 128/1 Amsoil for years ( 1 oz per gallon ) but sometimes just 100/1 . Never a problem in 35 yrs. However, I dont run my saws for months at a time, but got my first saw ( Stihl 011) in 1989 and ran it for years. When I was an Amsoil nut/ follower I read all there was. Amsoil would test 2 strokes at 300/1 mix and there was no problem . I still run 100/1 Amsoil in all my saws. However, Amsoil does not have much if any for solubles in their oil so it does not mix easy in the gas. It sinks to the bottom so mixing very well is a must. Since they dont have soluble additives in their 2 stroke mix, it is rational that you dont need and much oil for the mix.

 

[RK-NL]

Adding extra oil to the mix has a few drawbacks. Oil burns hotter than fuel. If you're not spooging out of the exhaust at 30:1 it means you're running significantly hotter than on 50:1.

When you go from 50:1 to 30:1 you go from 2% oil and 98% fuel to 3.3% oil and 96.7% fuel. When you go from sea-level to about 650ft you lean out your mixture by about 1%. So you're right saying that it's not likely to cause a lean seize, if you adjust the carb properly. You might get some difficulty starting, because the pilot jet is a tad on the small side, but it shouldn't be anything major. You might foul a plug if it doesn't start right up, but that's nothing you can't fix with a lighter and a plug wrench.

I don't think running more oil has any added benefits on the wear of the saw. It's designed for 50:1. Modern oils are very slick and do a great job creating film. By running 1.3% more oil through the saw, you will increase the cost of running it. I don't think any possible savings in service life would offset the cost of the extra oil over the life of the saw.

 

[Tomos770]

and you may not see carbon build up as much if your are using outboard oil (water cooled) which has a lower flash point than air cooled oil hence will burn off at lower temp (even before the oil does it job of lubricating the hot side corner of piston)
most oils that say are for both outboards and chainsaw are water cooled oil in disguise

Modern JASO FC/FD 2stroke oils (aircooled OPE) have also lover flash points.....like Shell advance ultra 2t....or any modern 2stroke oils labeled for mofas/Scooters etc...

And yes.....I would never use TC3-W labeled oil un any aircooled OPE

EDIT : why is O*P*E labeled as a swear word?

 

[Tomos770]

I don't think running more oil has any added benefits on the wear of the saw. It's designed for 50:1. Modern oils are very slick and do a great job creating film. By running 1.3% more oil through the saw, you will increase the cost of running it. I don't think any possible savings in service life would offset the cost of the extra oil over the life of the saw.

Ok for the 2strokes of the past decade....maybe (with modern synthetic oils!)

But nowadays we have strato saws.....DiTech Scooters...E-Tech outboards....where botom end (bearings) get less oil....because of the new design.....how mix flows trough the engine...

 

[Canyon Angler]

I frequently use 2 stroke oils for outboard motors and conventional 2 stroke oils for air cooled motors

I always heard that TCW-3 is no-go in air-cooled engines because they get way hotter than water-cooled outboards, and presumably get carboned up when using TCW-3.

Can't carbon deposits cause problems with piston rings (like scuffing/scoring/seizing)?

 

[Old-Feller]

Using too much oil will eventually cause rings to stick, Resulting in lost compression. It would definitely help the bearings though.

 

[funky sawman]

I have burnt thousands of gallons of sawgas in my time on Earth raping trees. I've switched back and forth from 40 to 1 and 50 to 1, only difference is the richer oil mix hurts your wallet more. Keeping a saw in tune is much more valuable

 

[EchoRomeoCharlie]

Run whatever oil ratio you want...why do we need a thread on it though?

 

[rmotoman]

Run whatever oil ratio you want...why do we need a thread on it though?

Because we love oil threads.

 

[camel2019]

As long as it’s tuned for it I saw run it. My Stihl kombi tool spoofed out of the exhaust with 50 to 1 both with my mix(Stihl mix bottles) and trufuel caned stuff I really need to get the screw drivers to tune it.

 

[preventec47]

I hate to admit but about fifty years ago in my teens, once when I ran out of
2 stroke motor oil I mixed 4 stroke oil instead because that is all I had
and ran a saw for a few days with a Stihl chainsaw. I couldnt tell the difference
though I probably shortened the lifespan a thousand hours ? ? ?

 

[Canyon Angler]

I hate to admit but about fifty years ago in my teens, once when I ran out of
2 stroke motor oil I mixed 4 stroke oil instead because that is all I had
and ran a saw for a few days with a Stihl chainsaw. I couldnt tell the difference
though I probably shortened the lifespan a thousand hours ? ? ?

I remember a lady I worked for in the mid '70s had a Poulan chainsaw ...we just mixed 30W motor oil with the gas. I don't think I even knew back then that there was such a thing as 2-stroke oil. And I don't think the saw even called for it. Whatever the case, the saw worked fine.

Her neighbor had a 2T LawnBoy lawnmower that I mowed her lawn with, too -- and same deal with that, IIRC.