NanciL
Bakersville, NC, USA
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Joined: 03/24/2003
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I just had repair work done on my ATV, and the mechanic advised that I use high test gas rather than regular, which I will do from now on.
My question is does that hold true also for the small engines such as chain saws and weed trimmers where I mix the oil with the gas?
Jack L
Jack & Nanci
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midnightsadie
ohio
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Joined: 01/07/2008
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I use reg in my equipt BUT ,I add a product called sea foam, keeps the gas from turning to junk, and cleans the carb as it burns. great for equipt with mixed fuel. wal mart and auto stores carry this , it is good stuff.
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ArcticDodge
Sammamish, WA
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Joined: 05/02/2005
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I use 92 in my small motors for one single reason. My off road bike requires 92 and the gas container I have is the one I use for all the toys and tools. Again no other reason than that. The bigger issue that has caused my grief is ethanol. I buy ONLY ethanol free gas from our local farm supply store.
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Turbo Diesel Dude
Green Mountain, NC
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Joined: 01/10/2005
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Fortunately I have two stations nearby that sell straight gas without the alcohol. That, and a little Stabil does the trick for me altho this year I'll have to drop the carb on my lawn tractor as I believe I have some junk get past the filter. I just use the regular grade. Hi-test runs too cool for my engines. JMHO
charles weidman
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Bit Bucket
Brookings, Oregon
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Joined: 04/29/2011
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In my opinion it does. When I got a new quality chain saw from a local dealer\repairman who is a good friend, he was insistent that "super" gas would give better performance and was easier on the engine. Most of his small engine repairs was due to gas going bad or low quality gas.
I'm no expert, but his advice and experience was good enough for me (and he doesn't sell gas either!)...
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mlts22
Austin, Texas
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Joined: 11/15/2010
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Nobody near me sells straight gas, so I buy 92 octane (for 3-5 gallons, the cost difference isn't that much.) If I know I'm going to be running to empty, I skip the additive step. Otherwise, I toss in some Sta-bil in to help mitigate the water-sucking effects of the ethanol, so after some time stored, my generator should fire up and not need a carb rebuild.
I've had great luck with Sta-Bil so far.
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hugemoth
Bend
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Joined: 11/08/2008
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If the engine doesn't ping on regular gas it's fine to use, however gas looses octane if it sets around for a few weeks and that's pretty common on small engines.
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wa8yxm
Wherever I happen to park
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Joined: 07/04/2006
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High test v/s regular.. IS determined by several issues, Compression, Temperature, and Ignition timing being the three biggies.
The higher the compression the higher the operating temps inside the cylinder and the more Horse Power per volume unit you get.
Not all small engines have the power of the ATV engine, and thus not all have the compression.. Timing is also usually optimized for REGULAR gas on things like lawn mowers, Chain saws and generators.
That said, a major issue with fuels today is Booze. They put alcohol in the gas to make for cleaner air (Which I do not believe it does) and higher cost (Which I believe it does). I have heard "Stories" of how this alcohol contaminated fuel can damage small engines. These were, however 3rd hand stories and of a nature I'm inclined to question.
Then someone posted a study done by Mercury (The outboard motor company) where they ran a bunch of different boat motors for 300 hours on both 100% gasoline and E-10.
At the end of 300 hours all but one of the E-10 engines had internal damage.
That one.. Did not make it to 300 hours, it died before that from, as I recall, a "Non fuel related" failure, but it too showed damage that was not present in the E-zero engines.
One of the forums has a link to the study. Not sure if it was here or one of the other networks I frequent.
Nothin adds excitment like something that is none of your business
Kenwood TS-2000 housed in a 2005 Damon Intruder 377
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tvman44
Southwest Louisiana
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Joined: 09/25/2007
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Can't see how ethanol can cause less pollution as it takes more than a gallon of E10 to drive the distance of non alcohol gas.
Papa Bob
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KD4UPL
Swoope, VA
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My Stihl equipment owners manual calls for 89 octane. I always run 92 anyway. It doesn't cost that much more. I also get it from one of the stations that sells pure gasoline, not ethanol. I put ethanol in the car but not the small engines or the boat.
I would suggest you consult the manual or the equipment dealer for instructions.
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