What octane are you using ?

[brinkwolf]

Here in Texas where I live the Super UL is from 91 to 93 and all 10% ethanol blend(unless you use race fuel). I put 93 in mine and Husky mix(which said it was a semi syntehtic). I will use this oil till I can get some Stihl Ultra from my dealer or maybe use the Amsoil Saber Pro oil. My other saws have 87 in them but will switch them to 93 when I run them out.

 

[chugbug]

Well there's quite a difference of views here , I wonder what a husky tech would say ?? I wonder if the 89 would be the way to go ? Not to low and not to hi ! I'll see if I can get anyone on the phone today and post the results tonight when I get home .

 

[clutch25]

I use Power 110 leaded race gas....just cause I always have some in the garage and it has NO BOOZE in it!

Using a higher octane than recomended by the say manufacturer is typically a waste...

Now, with that said...you can't beat the smell of race gas premix!!! Not to mention the chance of deto is about 0 with the higher octane...

I pulled my plug from last weekends running of my 55V and honestly...I have never seen a sparkplug look that perfect!

 

[leeha]

On all my nice expensive saws i use the cheapest
crap i can find.

Another gas thread!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[flyboy]

100LL avgas with Stihl oil. Avgas will last a VERY long time without going bad. It does not smell like regular gas either....so you don't smell like a chainsaw after running one.

Avgas will NEVER have ethanol in it. Pilots and the FAA are pretty picky about the stuff that goes in airplanes.

 

[windthrown]

I do not know of any saws that take less than mid-grade gas. But you also have to account for gas dropping in octane once it is pumped and sits in a gas can in the garage. Also note that octane at the pump is research + pump tested divided by two. So the octane may not be as high as it says, even at the pump.

I use super for all my premixed gas for those reasons. Unleaded ethanol-free super gasoline. Had to hunt it up, most all the gas here is E-10 now. I know people that run their Stihls using regular, and they laugh at me for using super. OK, it costs more. 20 cents a gallon more. Cheap insurance in my book.

 

[Magellan]

I said 99% stock. And I'd bet any amount of money any saw you modify will not last as long as a stock saw. Sure, your's will outperform mine, but when you're tweaking your's, mine are making me money. Oh, by the way, I've got roughly 48, maybe 50 saws or so amoung our 4 crews. Of those, 2 (both are Husky 353s) have exhaust baffles drilled SLIGHTLY. Try that with hot saws!

If you're going to bash someone, learn to spell. Butchering the English language may be something you do well... perhaps similar to what you do to saws?

What a jerk.

There's not supposed to be an apostrophe in "yours". You made other mistakes but that's not really my point. It's best not to pull the English straw; invariably someone will come along who better understands the language.

Anyway, relax a little. You're going give yourself a hernia.

Even in todays computer controlled car engines there is really not much advantage in using hi-test in cars that call for it's use. The engines automatically adjust themselves to use regular gas if it's put in. In modern cars the worst thing that happens is the loss of a few horsepower. This is true even if it's a hot Porsche.

Exactly - the car electronics adjust the engine for varying fuel conditions. Saws don't have these electronics to compensate for the user (yet), so it's best that the user pays slightly more mind to what he puts into his saw. Like several have said, it's a small price to pay for a little insurance.

 

[mattmc2003]

I'm of the opinion that if the manual says use regular gas there is no benefit in using hi test. There is a general assumption that if a gas costs more it must be better when it really is just different. The purpose of hi test is to avoid pre ignition in really high compression engines. It is mostly just a less volatile mixture.

Even in todays computer controlled car engines there is really not much advantage in using hi-test in cars that call for it's use. The engines automatically adjust themselves to use regular gas if it's put in. In modern cars the worst thing that happens is the loss of a few horsepower. This is true even if it's a hot Porsche.

But if it make you feel better to use high test in your saw; I've nothing against feeling better.

When your car "automatically adjusts itself" it does so only if it has a spark knock.The knock sensor tells the computer to either richen the mixture or cut timing. Either results in loss of power. Which leads to loss of mileage and such. Higher octane fuels also work better in hot conditions. When i say higher octane, i mean 93. Cause unless your running more than 15 degrees base timing, or 35 advance on most 9:1 or 10:1 motors you don't need over 93. But i started today actually using 100LL and i love it. You can almost touch the muffler after running it it runs so cool. And it smells great, and seems to run better and cleaner. I may not need it, but IMO, i like it.

 

[PA Plumber]

When your car "automatically adjusts itself" it does so only if it has a spark knock.The knock sensor tells the computer to either richen the mixture or cut timing. Either results in loss of power. Which leads to loss of mileage and such. Higher octane fuels also work better in hot conditions. When i say higher octane, i mean 93. Cause unless your running more than 15 degrees base timing, or 35 advance on most 9:1 or 10:1 motors you don't need over 93. But i started today actually using 100LL and i love it. You can almost touch the muffler after running it it runs so cool. And it smells great, and seems to run better and cleaner. I may not need it, but IMO, i like it.

Ahhh, so, smells great and cooler feeling.

Is that close enough to tastes great and less filling?

 

[Octane]

I use 89 octane. Thats what Stihl and Echo recommend, so thats what I use.
You can run 93 if you want, but unless you engine has been modified to have higher compression and needs 93 to prevent knocks, all you are doing is wasting your money.
I use 89 octane fuel mixed at 50:1 with a Echo Power Blend oil and all of my 2-stroke power equipment is very happy.

 

[mattmc2003]

I kinda get a little adreneline rush too....smells a lot like the drag strip. But i did notice the new to me 6401 burned through it in a hurry! Though it was my first takn through it of any kind of gas. So i have nothing to compare it too.

 

[buzz sawyer]

When your car "automatically adjusts itself" it does so only if it has a spark knock.The knock sensor tells the computer to either richen the mixture or cut timing.

Glad someone finally brought out this point, but the knock sensor only affects timing. Fuel mixture is controlled by the coolant and air intake temp sensors, air flow sensors or manifold pressure sensor and trottle position sensor. EGR valves also acted somewhat to contol knock by recycling some exhaust gas into the intake. This chemically "cooled" the mixture to reduce oxides of nitrogen (NOx) in the exhaust and in the process reduced detonation and pre-ignition. Than goodness we don't have all that crap on a saw....yet.

As I see it, running at high rpm with low load as in limbing, there wouldn't be much chance of detonation or pre-ignition since there is a lot of cooler mixture going through the saw with low load. I would expect knock when you have the bar buried in hardwood - high load, lower RPM. Modding the muffler should make it run cooler, reducing the need for higher octane fuel.

That being said, if it's stock, it should be fine on FRESH 89 and 91 can't hurt. I rarely mix more than a gallon at a time and dump anything older than a month or two into my truck. I take several gallons unmixed to a job and mix as needed.

 

[galde]

The only local brand (that I am aware of) that still offers pure gasoline (no ethanol!!!!!) is Texaco -- but that is only until April '09. I use their premium for all 2-cycles, and their regular for vehicles and 4-cycle small engines.

 

[mattmc2003]

I have an example of some power loss. My example is extreme, and far from the saw world, but it just goes to show...anyway. I was at a mustang performance shop about two hours away with a friend getting his car tuned. Anyway, we just had built a motor for his car, and he had it tuned elsewhere, but it ran like a DOG! down low. When he finally got it in tune, the air fuel ratio was so lean in low rpm, that the computer took away timing. We didn't know about the A/F deal at the time. We just knew it wouldn't accept our changes made with the handheld programmer. the timing stayed low. Anyway, on peak he only gained a few hp, but down low at 2500rpm, he gained a tad over 100 hp!!! Thats a big deal. Talk about a wake up. I also saw a supercharged GT500 the same day on the dyno. It made 540 ish at the wheels, and they were gonna make an identical run one more time, and the car heated up, and it cut timing. Still sounded fine, ran fine, but if i remember correctly it only made 420 at the wheels that time. All just because of heat and such. Detonation is a big factor. There is a reason they computer controlled vehicles try and protect from it so much. It can do a lot of damage. So to me, it is worth the extra insurance to run better gas. In fact, the reason we built the motor in my buddys car was because of detonation. 150 shot + forgetting the timing is 10 degrees advanced= three busted pistons.

 

[ran3465]

Does any know if Sunoco 100 octane "race gas" contains ethanol? I call our local station which sells it and of course no one in there knows!

 

[E&R_firewood]

91-93 octane, i'm not one to argue with an owner's manual . . .and my saws are like my kids (childless) so i want the best for them, sure a kid can subsist on beans and store-brand white bread, but they'll be happier and healthier on red meat and fresh veggies!

 

[chugbug]

I got a hold of Husqvarna today through e-mail , there answer to the octane question is here ------------Thank you for contacting Husqvarna with your question. While we do recommend 89 octane fuel, the unit will operate on 87 octane. The higher octane gives a better burn-off and will produce less emissions. It will also prevent buildup of carbon in the cylinder. The units will also run fine on a 10% ethanol mix. However, we recommend that if you are going to let the unit sit longer than 30 day that you empty the fuel tank.

Tried to find good gas today and its harder than I thought , unless you can trust all the no-name stations like giant and sheetz and el-cheapo, there's no way to no what kind of gas there selling , I was wondering if Ammco is still in bussiness , remember the white gas !!! A guy that worked for a stihl dealer years ago said thats the only gas they would buy untill one day they went down and got some and it wasn't clear , they asked the owner and he said that load wasn't Ammco and he had purchased unbranded gas on that load . Just seems like you don't really no what your getting . Has anyone found a particular brand that seems to be a hi quality fuel ????

 

[mattmc2003]

I was told once that coleman fuel was really the old school "white gas". So i put some in my homemade go kart. About a year ago. (we used to just put some junk together and go race it around the parking lot at the local rec center at night for fun). Anyway, it ran like a scalded dog for just a bit, blowing flame out the muffler like a propane torch. Then it would slowly die out. Some friends researched it and it was really 55 octane. who knew.

 

[E&R_firewood]

Has anyone found a particular brand that seems to be a hi quality fuel ????

sinclair, it is only available in limited areas, i believe, as the refineries are located in Sinclair Wyoming and Oklahoma . . . the octane ratings are always higher, it does cost a bit more than texaco or chevron, but i have always had great luck with it and i KNOW it is supporting the local economy

 

[Ljute]

I've read from unreliable sources (another forum) that 93 octane does not have ethanol in it. Anyone here in this reliable forum know if it's true?