Not dissagreeing with anyone here, but your post brings up a point worth considering, Russ. You mention that racers fun full comp., and therefore this means that full comp. is more efficient. That is obviously true when running high horsepower saws, but does that directly relate to the average joe running an 036 with a 24" bar?
Afterall, a semi truck hauling 40,000 lbs., is running more efficeintly per pound than a pickup truck hauling, 5,000 lbs., but this doesn't correlate to saying a pickup truck will haul 40,000 lbs. more efficiently than 5,000.
So, we obviously need to take power output into consideration when speaking of efficiency, no? But, you do touch on this when you say full skip on a short bar is a "crutch" for an underpowered saw. Well, if a guy likes running an 036, then saying that full comp is a crutch for low power is just the same as saying he needs a bigger saw--something he's not arguing. For his 036 application, seems full skip is working fine for him.