Using expensive pre-mix fuel versus mixing my own

[MossRoad]

A gallon of gas is $2.50 and a small bottle of 2-stroke oil for 50:1 to make a gallon of fuel is about $1.75. So $4.25 to make your own gallon. 2-stroke oil is cheaper by the quart. Maybe $5 at most. And a quart makes about 12 gallons of 50:1, so that's about $0.41 per gallon.

$2.50 + $.41 = $2.91 per gallon VS $20 per gallon....

Good grief! We are a society of convenience and laziness... :laughing:

 

[atsah]

I use $120 worth of the Stihl Motomix, 93 octane, synthetic 2 cycle oil and no ethenal, the gas around here is poor.. Before I started using the motomix I was ripping carbs apart every spring, I haven't taken a carb apart in years.

It's a matter of how much you use in a year. If you use a lot of mixed fuel and can't see spending the extra on premix, buy high octane fuel and synthetic 2 cycle when you need it, don't store it for long periods of time and run you engines out of fuel before you put them away for any length of time. I know a lot of loggers that use a lot of fuel in a year and the above is what they do and don't seem to have carb issues.

 

[Egon]

Mixing the two cycle oil is always a vaudeville act for myself. First it's getting the right amount of gas in the container at the station. It's either too little and then too much and spills over. Makes for smelly car on way home. Next comes that mix ratio. cc or mm and litres and how much of which each is. Then, when the oil amount is figured out decanting always ends up to little and then too much. Also you can't read the gauge strip when it's on an angle. And when it's sitting up it's too opaque to be able to see any level.

Joys of memory and eyesight that are challenged!
You also have to remember where you left the fuel can or that the bungs on a chainsaw should be closed before using it.

 

[Sawyer Rob]

Some canned gas is Hi-octane E0, with 2 stroke oil... Some is "engineered fuel" not gas and is also E0, with an even higher octane rating, it has an even longer, 5 year self life.

I have Hi-test E0 gas available close by, but I still use quite a bit of canned fuel...

ALL of my carb problems went away once I got away from E gas, and I had plenty of carb problems before, that ended up costing me hundreds of dollars!

SR

 

[Oldoak]

I use pump 89 octane (what my chainsaw etc manufacturers recommend), high quality synthetic two stroke oil and Stabil. The Stabil goes in the straight gas when I get it home. I pour a gallon at a time from that container into a small container for premix. Like KYErik's experience it can sit for months and still be good.

I use a Ratio-rite for measuring the oil, rinsing it out with gas and pouring that into the premix container so I get all the oil I measured.

The premix gas stuff would be convenient but I've never found making premix to be bothersome and I like knowing what oil I'm using. And it's way cheaper.

:thumbsup: I'm certainly with you on that. No need for anything different.

And all the gas in my area is 10% ethanol blended. Never caused me a problem. I really don't understand what others are doing that it causes them problems. :confused3:

 

[FredH]

One method I have used for years to battle the ethanol fuel , ( We use to have it here for years , only in the winter due to bad air quality days in the valley ) , is to mix all my 2 cycle at 32-1 rather than the newer 50-1 mix . Seems the extra oil lessons , if not eliminates any of the problems associated with the ethanol blends . My neighbor mixes at 50-1 in small batches and runs his saw and other items , backpack blower , etc... . He has had to take the saw and blower both to Stihl for carb rebuilds and line replacements due to leaving fuel in tank for 6 or 7 months . Yet I have left fuel in my saw , weedeater and 2 blowers for almost a year without any issue's . He also had to replace his earlier saw when it seized due to likely incorrect ratio mix .
All my 32-1 does is foul the plug quicker . For Me , a $4 plug is a lot cheaper to replace than a $900 saw . :thumbsup:

Fred H.

 

[rekees4300]

I use $120 worth of the Stihl Motomix, 93 octane, synthetic 2 cycle oil and no ethenal, the gas around here is poor.. Before I started using the motomix I was ripping carbs apart every spring, I haven't taken a carb apart in years.

Ditto I like the Motomix convenience and chainsaws/weedeaters start/run much better. No Ethanol is a big plus.

 

[Mike_Kanzer]

I had trouble with my Stihl chainsaw starting when I was using my own mix with gas from the station. It cleared up beautifully when I switched to the Motomix. For e added cost is worth it. I don't use the saw that much that the added expense is a burden. I think the ethanol is a real problem in these small 2 stroke engines. Just my .02

 

[Gary Fowler]

I have never had a carb issue with my chainsaws and I use E10 gas with a Stabil stabilizer. I also drain the tank and run the carbs dry before storing. I like to dump my 2 cycle gas after about 2 months if I haven't used it up. It goes into the tank on my truck and NO, I haven't damaged any sensors or anything else on my truck doing this. I posted a ratio on this before and dumping a full gallon of gas/oil mix into a 20 gallon tank of pure gas is much less oil than an engine that uses 1 quart of oil in 6000 miles.
I put Stabil in my gas when I get it back to my shop. I never know how long it may set in some of my mowers, so it is better to be safe than sorry.
It is a bit of a pain to remove the gas from my mowers or try to run the carbs dry for winter storage so I just give them a double shot of Stabil and never had a problem with them starting next spring.
As for mixing the right amount of oil, the single dose bottles will eliminate that problem if you use them. I buy the 16 oz. bottles with the little dose jug on top and that also eliminates the problem. Just fill the single dose bottle on top of the container and then dump it into a container that contains more or less 1 gallon of gas. With the synthetic 2 cycle oil that I use which is suppose to work for 32:1 or 50:1 there is plenty of oil for a bit more than a gallon if I don't hit the mark dead on when filling the container.

I think lots of poster are overthinking the mixing ratio or just too lazy to mess with mixing up the gas. This isn't a chemical experiment where each item has to be exact to the .001 milliliter.

The only reason I can see for someone to pay $8 for a quart of premix is if they have a saw that is only used for cleanup after a storm or some other equal task that only happens once in 3-5 years. A quart of premix might be the best way to handle that but I would still drain the carbs after using it.

 

[oosik]

Between my weed eater - Stihl FS350 - & Stihl chain saws, I go thru around five gallons of fuel a year. I mix my own - 87 octane gas with 10% alcohol, Stabil & Stihl 2 cycle oil. Been using this combination for the 35 years I've been here and never had a moments problem with this fuel mix.