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2 Stroke Oil dilemma...

Posted by Neil Bishop on November 4, 2010 at 8:18pm in Machinery
About 6 months ago i ran out of 2 stroke whilst on a job, I wasn't anywhere near a dealer to get some decent stuff (stihl/husqy). but i was near a b&q so bought some of theirs. I know, I know, I know what your going to say...but it gets worse...

I'm not one for wasting money and used it up...quick enough that I ran out and ended up in the DIY shop once again... I'm hanging my head in shame.

But, alas! I've got some Stihl one-shot type sachets now which will see me through well into next year.

Here's the dilemma... Have I damaged my machines by buying the cheap stuff? They have been smoking a bit and starting to be a pain in the backside idling and when starting.

I prefer the bad news first please, thanks. Neil
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Tags: 2, mix, oil, stihl, stroke
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Replies

  • Greenlawns November 4, 2010 at 8:29pm
    I'm not sure if you've damaged you machines or not, you'd have to do a compression test on them,
    I used to use Stihl one shots, as they are great quality oil, but as I go through so much of the stuff i now use cheaper stuff which I get in one gallon cans ( my Bro get me it for free , I have about 20 gallon in the garage)
    But i use a 25/1 mix instead of 50/1, ie I use 200ml instead of 100ml, not had any problems whatsoever, no heavy smoking, no overcoking of exhausts etc, not in 15 years anyway, get a compression test and if its fine then dont worry.
  • Mark Brierley November 4, 2010 at 8:34pm
    Ive seen the green oil what is the difference???

    Pro Gard said:
    BTW, I order my HP super oil in 5 litre drums from the dealer, the one shot bottles are a very expensive way of doing it.
  • Neil Bishop November 4, 2010 at 8:37pm
    Cheers guys, i can rest a bit easier tonight. The one-shots i got were £1.50 each (£30 for 20) off ebay. i think i was starting to panic about mucking up the machines and bought them to make sure i at least had the mixture right!

    Out of curiosity Pro, how much am I looking at for a 5 litre drum of the green goodness? Ball park figure
  • Geoff Norfolk November 4, 2010 at 8:38pm
    I'm pretty sure it'll be ok......... places like B&Q don't manufacture their own oil getting it from the big manufacturers like Shell, Castrol etc. Unless it was very cheap, I'm sure it was reasonable quality as they wouldn't risk a load of claims for engine damage to customers machines!
    On a slightly similar vein, I ran out of chain oil a few weeks back and used some old engine oil..... I won't make a habit of it but seems to work fine with no problems..... maybe I should use it all the time?!
  • Andy Thorne November 4, 2010 at 8:49pm
    £30-£40 for 5l of Stihl HP super, about £38 list inc
    Nothing really, when you proably only use a couple a year!

    Neil Bishop said:
    Cheers guys, i can rest a bit easier tonight. The one-shots i got were £1.50 each (£30 for 20) off ebay. i think i was starting to panic about mucking up the machines and bought them to make sure i at least had the mixture right!

    Out of curiosity Pro, how much am I looking at for a 5 litre drum of the green goodness? Ball park figure
  • Neil Bishop November 4, 2010 at 9:13pm
    Thanks for the info guys!
  • Mark Brierley November 5, 2010 at 9:30pm
    I will give it a try


    Pro Gard said:
    The green is suposed to burn cleaner.... not sure if it does but the engines run noticeably smother than using the standard red, particularly the more modern engines like the stratt engine in my MS441.



    Mark Brierley said:
    Ive seen the green oil what is the difference???

    Pro Gard said:
    BTW, I order my HP super oil in 5 litre drums from the dealer, the one shot bottles are a very expensive way of doing it.
  • Lawncare-4u.co.uk November 5, 2010 at 10:11pm
    it has much less impurities / lead , arsnic? etc in it (better for your breathing /chest)

    i wont use shit 2 stroke again , not good for 4-mix or sthil engines.

    super or ultra hp ? for me.....................

    Mark Brierley said:
    I will give it a try


    Pro Gard said:
    The green is suposed to burn cleaner.... not sure if it does but the engines run noticeably smother than using the standard red, particularly the more modern engines like the stratt engine in my MS441.



    Mark Brierley said:
    Ive seen the green oil what is the difference???

    Pro Gard said:
    BTW, I order my HP super oil in 5 litre drums from the dealer, the one shot bottles are a very expensive way of doing it.
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