Well as some know I am building a Indian tribute motorized bicycle, well my engine is still stuck in Orlando, Florida due to our airports still being shut down here. So I am ordering some minor things to at least have the stuff on hand so I can make steady progress once my engine comes in.

So I am looking at 2 cycle oil right now. The car/truck guy in me screams to break the engine in on conventional 2 cycle oil and then switch to synthetic but lots are telling me to just run synthetic for break in as well. So for right now I am looking at synthetic 2 cycle oils, I can pick up conventional 2 cycle oil from the local advance auto parts store here if I hear people starting to recommend breaking in on conventional more so than those that claim running synthetic.

So for the point of this I have been looking at a few different 2 cycle oils and want to get every bodies opinion on them.

First off I am looking at Amsoil, my previous job had a real friendly guy that worked for Amsoil and I learned quite a bit about their oil from him. They have this one oil called "DOMINATOR® Synthetic 2-Stroke Racing Oil", which they really upsell. I don't know of anyone running this but I cant even buy it off Amazon so probably will have to order it, Amsoil site lists it as being $12.25 per quart. Which should last me quite a while since the bike holds only .6 gallons and should get 80+ miles to a tank.

Second oil I came across is a Redline product which I love their Lead Subsitute and I use it in my '56 and have been for 3 years now with no problems like Ive read about other brands causing valve sticking. But they have a 2 stroke racing oil for $12.73 from Amazon for 16oz. They don't have a quart option. I need to verify it is synthetic as the photo of the bottle states High performance Synthetic but the description states conventional.

Third oil on my list of potentials is Lucas Semi Synthetic 2 cycle oil, it is listed as clean burning smokeless, low ash, and suitable for air cooled engines. I can get it for $15.62 for a quart.

Fourth oil on my list is Royal Purple HP-2C high performance 2 cycle oil that is listed as being ashless but nothing about being smokeless. This I can purchase for $13.23 per quart.

So I want to ask what have others used for performance 2 cycle oils? What did you like? What had the lowest amount of ash/smoke production?

 

Opti-2 is good stuff, run that in everything. I don't think you'll have any problems with any of them.

Keep in mind people sometimes use fuel terms like "rich" interchangeably with oil ratios. This is not the case. More oil and less fuel in the mix makes it run lean, even if it smokes more. They think adding "extra" oil will provide more protection. Maybe, but it also causes sludge and stuck rings, excess carbon, etc, leads to cylinder scoring. The key to good break-in is seating the rings right away, don't be futzing around with it at idle or the cylinder will soon glaze over. Go beat the **** out of it under load.

 

i use valvoline 2 stroke in all my 2 strike engines. never had any problems with any of them. i do not buy into the amsoil, royal purple, or any of the other snake oil claims.

 

Well over on the motor bike forum I am on I was given this article from the '70s.

http://www.bridgestonemotorcycle.com...oilpremix6.pdf

The article states running more oil didn't cause the rings to stick and actually caused more power to be made. But thing is we are talking about synthetic and it is worthless to run extra synthetic oil mix as it wont lubricate any better. But they are saying in the article that oil is what seals the rings and more oil cause a better seal when it comes to 2 strokes. I honestly don't know about that.

But I was turned onto a Amsoil 2 cycle oil called Saber professional synthetic 2 cycle oil that is the only oil on the market that provides lubrication and protection at 100:1 mix. I was told by this Aussie that races 2 stroke bikes years ago and knows people that still do that swear up and down by this stuff. In my eyes less oil you can run more fuel is in the mix and more fuel means more power. But now I need to do some reading as now I am wondering if 2 stroke engines really do use oil to create a better seal of the rings and actually will make more power with more oil than with less oil.

I never heard of that but all of the reviews ive seen people were stating how much better their old 2 cycle edgers run at 80:1 - 100:1 mix with the Amsoil performance 2 cycle oil compared to other synthetic oils at higher oil mix ratios.

 

Stick to a 50:1 oil. I knew a guy trying to race a YZ400 at 100:1 and he stuck that thing repeatedly. I know we are talking apples and oranges here, but ring seal or not, you have bearings to consider, and in that case, more oil is more better.

jmo....

 

I think I am going to do that I think I will get this instead and just run a few tanks at 32:1 for break in after a few tanks switch to a 50:1 ratio. 50:1 with synthetic should be equal to 32:1 of conventional.

https://www.amsoil.com/shop/by-produ...?code=TDRQT-EA

I was just told about the Saber oil and Amsoil is dead set on recommending an 80:1 to 100:1 mix to obtain all the benefits of Saber. honestly this isn't a race engine but I do want race quality oil as it lubricates better and lets face it higher compression, reed valve, and being an air cooled engine in hot Texas with a single speed setup I rather have oil that is over kill than under kill. I could run the Saber oil at 50:1 but it is more expensive per quart than the Dominator by about a $1 which I know isn't much but that $1 saved will add up in the long run.

 

Well over on the bike forum they are telling me that the chrome plating on the cylinders is thin and that they have ran 50:1 and it caused scratching of the cylinder walls where chrome was being scratched off. They are recommending to run it at 32:1 all the way down to 15:1. I personally don't see how in this day and age a Chinese engine can be built and require 50`s - 70`s oil mix ratio of 15:1 - 32:1 when everything today is around 50:1.

 

I would then use quality oil that is designed to run at 32-1? What I wouldn't do, is run the oil at a higher (or lower for that matter) mix ratio than is specified by the oil manufacturer. Sludge and carbon are to be avoided just as much as too little lubrication. Once it builds up it's going to scratch and score the cylinder too. The carburetor will (or should) have an "altitude" screw, adjusted similar to idle mixture. Lean it out somewhat, this is the intent, - this takes experimentation and is a very fine adjustment. Check plug for proper burning, they shouldn't be black, coated with oil on a 2 stroke anymore than a 4 stroke. Again keep in mind that air/fuel ratio and fuel/oil ratio are two different things.

2 strokes are different than 4 strokes in that they should be running a little rough (rich) at idle, when there's no load on the engine. A smooth idle means it's too lean. When under load though it should smooth out. Classic LawnBoy mowers are a good example. They "four stroke" or have a slightly rough staccato idle but when run into thick, tall grass they settle into the classic smooooth LawnBoy "power hum". They have LOTS of power for their weight, even wet grass doesn't phase 'em.

The principle at work here is that the engine should never run a lean air/fuel mixture while under load. As far as gas/oil mix 16-1 was common before special 2 stroke oils were widely used. In the 1950s, straight weight 30 motor oil was used for the mix. 32-1 came in the 1960s when 2 stroke oils improved (and needle bearings). 40-1 and 50-1 are supposedly a result of better oil technology but emission reductions are probably at play here too. I got tired of 3 or 4 different oil mix cans laying around and switched to Opti-2. I bought a bunch of those Opti-2 pouches and when those ran out I bought a gallon jug. It should last a while. One mix for everything. Everybody gets the vapors at using a 70-1 mix ratio but have used it for years and years now with no problems. Sometimes I mix up some Castor bean oil just cause it smells good. Not so good in cold weather, as it tends to separate.

 

I got my engine in today and the paperwork talks about oil mix that they recommend.

They start off saying the preferred fuel is E10 usually 91 octane. It also goes on to say mix fuel and oil at a ratio of 30:1. 20:1 if working the motor hard, operating in hot conditions, and for running-in. It also says external fuel filters can cause failure of small two stroke engines an that the tap filter is more than adequate and if you have a extra filter supplied to discard it. Well I have my garden tractor sediment bowl with built in shut off valve. I don't like a filter in the tank I rather trap the trash outside of the tank and keep the tank clean.

Aside from that they recommend Valvoline two stroke racing oil or to use Valvoline two stroke oil as an alternative.

They have a warnin ghow ever that synthetic oils or blends can cause premature failure of bearings and seals and use of these types of oil will void the warranty.

Well warranty is only 6 months I think so I don't care about that.

Just like to know how can synthetic oil which provides better lubrication than conventional oil cause premature failure.

In any case Amsoil got back with me told me they recommend their Amsoil Dominator racing 2 stroke oil that has superior lubrication at 50:1.

Right now I am looking at plugs the head I ordered he recommends a B8HS plug for hot climates.

 

I'd avoid E10, alcohol fuels. It wreaks havoc on small engines in oh so many ways.

 

Well there is no way to avoid E10 fuel as everything here pump wise is E10.

Only option is to buy those small cans of true fuel at lowes but I am not going to spend $6 for just 32 oz.

 

Not everything - fill up a 5 gallon container or two.

Houston GULF 93 100 105 Hyperfuels 281-447-7200 12455 Westpark #G-6 2016-01-23

Houston GULF 87 93 112 Race Fuel Depot 832-672-6392 6125 W Hwy 8 2017-03-31

https://www.pure-gas.org/index.jsp?stateprov=TX

 

Well I will have to see what I do. This storm really screwed with my finances right now works been really hit and miss with so much time off. I need to buy the oil, the NGK spark plug recommended for the head I purchased. I need to buy the windowed piston so I can check quench when the head comes in, etc.

So I will make note of the fuel and go from there. I really prefer plain gas as it will last longer and it will have more energy content than the E10 fuel that we all have around here that is local to me.

 

NGK does make a good plug for 2 stroke apps.

How easy is engine disassembly? Or at least cylinder/piston removal and inspection? That's what you want to look at. Excess carbon is engine death, stuck rings, scored cylinder walls. Everybody wants to add "extra" oil to the mix - even the manufacturer?? It won't do any good, in my opinion, if it sludges up the exhaust ports. This will cause a noticeable lack of power. I'd break it in, run it for the season and see what the innards look like this winter after 50 hours or so. The recommended oil ratios are really a function of the particular oil. I wouldn't run Opti-2 at 32-1 for example, it's designed to run at 70-1.

I rebuilt a LawnBoy last winter from scratch basically, am going to pull the jug this winter and take a look see. It was ruined by the PO by excessive oil mix, it was all sludged and carboned up, glazed cylinder, and scored the cylinder.