Racing Gas in my 357xp

[jvpski]

I have been told by my husky dealer that alcohol in gas can cause carb issues. However, it most cases there is alcohol in gas. However, there is a gas station by my house that sales racing gas 104 octane to guys turning qtr mile times at the local track.

Does anyone know if 104 octane is safe to put in a chainsaw and should I even worry about alcohol in gas. So, just stick with the 92 or 89 octane.

Thanks

 

[TRI955]

I did the racing fuel for awhile, saws don't run quite as well on it.
Just run premium fuel and keep it fresh. If the saw is going to sit for extended periods of time, drain it and run it dry. That's just the way I do it now.


Mike

 

[gonecountry]

If you can afford to use the good gas use it I would at least try it a couple times if it was available to me.

Also the alcolol or (methanol) in the gas is usualy only an issue on saws that sit around for awhile with the same fuel in the tank
There a tons and tons of threads on both of these topics if you got a few days to spare search it. :greenchainsaw:

 

[FATGUY]

I did the racing fuel for awhile, saws don't run quite as well on it.
Just run premium fuel and keep it fresh. If the saw is going to sit for extended periods of time, drain it and run it dry. That's just the way I do it now.


Mike

:agree2:
might be overkill but no more than 4 wks old. Exactly as TRI said, if it'll sit for a while... fire it up, dump the gas and let it idle away till no fuel left. DO NOT rev it to hurry the process along.

 

[wood4heat]

Does anyone know if 104 octane is safe to put in a chainsaw and should I even worry about alcohol in gas. So, just stick with the 92 or 89 octane.

Thanks

Race gas actually burns with less energy than pump gas. Doesn't sound right but you have to think about the trade off, it's more stable and burns cooler. This allows higher compression, more advanced ignition and leaner carb settings. Tuning that makes more power but would run too hot and cause detonation on pump gas. A stock engine makes less power on race gas because it's not tuned hot enough to get a complete burn.

 

[smilin possum]

I run 100 AVfuel in all my saws and small engines. No problems.

 

[mattmc2003]

I run 100LL too. Its for quality reasons. If there is a small power difference, i can't notice it either way. I spent a lot of money on a new saw, so im not taking chances on cheap gas. So i buy for quality.

 

[jropo]

might be overkill but no more than 4 wks old. Exactly as TRI said, if it'll sit for a while... fire it up, dump the gas and let it idle away till no fuel left. DO NOT rev it to hurry the process along.
__________________Why don't ya want to rev?

 

[Mad Professor]

I run 100 AVfuel in all my saws and small engines. No problems.

+1, I mix it up and store it in 1-gal metal coleman fuel cans. 6 months storage of mix is no problem, even my 066 I mill with.

Some of my saws needed to have the Hi turned in a bit, the BR400 blower didn't care at all.

The unmixed fuel is good for 2+ years. Cheaper than race gas too.

 

[MS460WOODCHUCK]

might be overkill but no more than 4 wks old. Exactly as TRI said, if it'll sit for a while... fire it up, dump the gas and let it idle away till no fuel left. DO NOT rev it to hurry the process along.
__________________Why don't ya want to rev?

You'll burn it up man!:jawdrop:

 

[roncoinc]

On fuel burning...
i asked my HVAC guy why wasnt it better to burn kero in my home heating furnace..his simple answer was that the higher quality fuels dont put out as many btu...below the point of "ping" ( pre-ignition ) lower octane fuel gives more power..
i asked a pilot friend of mine what his big jet used for fuel,,basically kero,,NOT gasoline... more power..
kinda like like how you will get more longer lasting heat out of a lb of wood than a lb of gasoline in the stove.
diesel engines put out more "power" than gas engines,,wonder why ?

 

[deer slayer]

100LL also, bought 5 gal in January, and still have about 1-1.5 gal left unmixed. The 460 w/muffler mod runs very well w/it. Getting a lot of wood from local tree service that preferred to cut shorter so they can handle better, is why I have not burned more. Down side less saw time for me

 

[jropo]

You'll burn it up man!:jawdrop:

OOps! better stop doing that then!
Thanks

 

[Zombiechopper]

On fuel burning...
i asked my HVAC guy why wasnt it better to burn kero in my home heating furnace..his simple answer was that the higher quality fuels dont put out as many btu...below the point of "ping" ( pre-ignition ) lower octane fuel gives more power..
i asked a pilot friend of mine what his big jet used for fuel,,basically kero,,NOT gasoline... more power..
kinda like like how you will get more longer lasting heat out of a lb of wood than a lb of gasoline in the stove.
diesel engines put out more "power" than gas engines,,wonder why ?

people confuse btu with octane. there is more btu in a long chain hydrocarbon like deisel but its less volatile

 

[Henry G.]

I run 100LL too. Its for quality reasons. If there is a small power difference, i can't notice it either way. I spent a lot of money on a new saw, so im not taking chances on cheap gas. So i buy for quality.

Ditto. Its about a buck a gallon more, and is made to last months and months. Cheap insurance. And it smells GOOD...:hmm3grin2orange:
Also I have a friend at the place I buy and when he's around he gives me the super duper good stuff same price as AV gas, its 3/4 AV gas LL100 and 1/4 tolulene, I cut that 50/50 with premium and my bikes and saws run great on it...I think its around 112 octane uncut....

 

[Mad Professor]

On fuel burning...
i asked my HVAC guy why wasnt it better to burn kero in my home heating furnace..his simple answer was that the higher quality fuels dont put out as many btu...below the point of "ping" ( pre-ignition ) lower octane fuel gives more power..
i asked a pilot friend of mine what his big jet used for fuel,,basically kero,,NOT gasoline... more power..
kinda like like how you will get more longer lasting heat out of a lb of wood than a lb of gasoline in the stove.
diesel engines put out more "power" than gas engines,,wonder why ?

A jet is a totally different type of engine than a piston propelled machine.....

A pound of methane will provide more BTU than any other hydrocarbon fuel, run that. You'll need a real gas tank!

 

[dragrcr]

ok, AV gas or 110 race fuel or any other higher octain fuel is going to TAKE AWAY power...... no question about it, hight octain fuels burn slower to resist detonation, and are only needed in engines that have been modded and TUNED for the higher octain level, IF YOU CANNOT ADVANCE THE TIMMING 110 WILL HURT POWER.. because the burn will be slower and you will lose combustion pressure. run what the manufacturer recomends as that is what fuel the timming curve will be most effective at.

 

[Henry G.]

According to this link, theyre the same? I have heard the same thing before, however what was discussed is that the BTU difference was so slight as to be even noticed?

http://www.spiritpfc.com/faqs.asp

Also I believe the put ethyl alcohol in gasoline not methanol......
BTW higher octane fuels burn COOLER as well.....good for air cooled motors...

 

[ironman_gq]

octane is a measure of knock resistance not a measure of energy output. BTU's are a measure of energy output and have nothing to do with the octane rating of a fuel Case in point being diesel, while it would have a very low octane rating (I know they measure it by its cetane rating and not octane) it has a very high energy content compared to gasoline and that is why they make more power.

 

[BuddhaKat]

The truth is, octane doesn't produce any power, it's just something that regulates detonation. How much octane is needed depends on a lot of factors, but compression and engine type are two of them. 2 Cycle engines tend to have higher compression than 4 strokes, but not always.

I'll tell you what is a waste is running AV gas in a saw or 2 cycle motorcycle. These engines rev way higher than any airplane and AV gas just isn't formulated for high RPM's. Running AV gas at 10k+ RPM will cost you some power for sure. How much of a loss is subjective. Some people probably wouldn't even notice it.

Here's what I suggest:

1. Race Gas: Not all race gas is the same. If you have access to race gas I would suggest you call the mfg and ask them what they would recommend for a chainsaw. I use VP Racing Fuels C12 in my saws. This gas is an excellent fuel that's perfectly blended for small CC, hi RPM 2 cycle engines. I also only run Stihl Ultra for my mix. C12 is great because it has a little bit of lead in it which is really good for lubrication. AV gas has lead in it too, but a lot more than C12.
   
2. 50 Fuel: These people make a premixed gas specifically for chainsaws and small 2 cycle motors. I tested some of their gas and I have to tell you, I think it was the best out of all the fuels I tested. If you can get it, it's well worth it. You'll be able to get it from their website at www.50fuels.com
3. Pump Gas: Ya know, sometimes ya just have to run it. Try to stay away from pump gas that has ethanol in it. Ethanol=BAD. It's abrasive, it sucks in water out of the air, and it causes your gas to go bad very quickly, gumming up everything it touches. Pump gas is the lowest quality fuel a refinery makes and shouldn't even be used in your car. If you have to use pump gas, don't by the cheap stuff. Get a quality mfg and buy their mid to hi grades. Premium isn't necessary btw. Anything over 89 octane is fine.

Quit thinking octane though. It's the blend that matters, not the octane. If you do end up with a higher octane fuel, you'll probably have to adjust the carb a little bit and possibly the timing. Bring it to the shop if you're not comfortable tinkering with those settings. (Or ask here. Somebody will point you in the right direction.)