Yes, 2 cycle engines love octane.

I just switched all my OPE to AVGAS 100LL. It's high octane and it doesn't have all the garbage additives (ex: ethanol) that automotive gas has.

It stays fresh for years.

89 octane is all that is needed in most 2 cycle engines. If the manual recommends a higher octane then use it but otherwise it's a waste of money. 2-cycle engines do not love octane like davefr says. That statement is ridiculous. Using AVGAS like davefr is asking for a melt-down. High octane gas burns slower and can cause overheating problems in engines requiring lower octane. Dave, you are wasting your money on AVGAS.

Yes, I'm waisting + $.75/gallon on fuel that lasts years vs. weeks!!! AVGAS doesn't cause melt down. I'll take the miniscule risks of AVGAS anyday over ethanol/oxygenated crap in automotive pumps. Do a search on AVGAS in 2 cycle equipment and you might be enlightened.

AVgas means nothing. High octane means slower burning (raised flashpoint). You will not gain power by using high octane, but will most likely lose power. Can't say I agree with overheat issues but it's possible.

For home owner, having a gad that don't go bad even for a year IS about the most important thing. I AV gas can do that, I think it is very valuable. It is not about gaining power. You want power, get a bigger 2cycle!!!

The question is whether AV gas will hurt the engine. Any technicle data?

The way I understood this topic, having worked on cars for the last 30 years. Higher octane is only needed for higher compression engines--typically found in older vehicles, hot rods, etc.. Higher octane will not hurt if used where not needed, its simply a waste of money. If you use lower octane gas in a higher compression engine, you will get pre-ignition or pinging. I never heard of higher octane gas lasting longer. I have has a dozen or so 2 and 4 stroke engines for lawn/yard equipment and I never saw any recommendation for anything over 87-89 octane (regular).

Why is it that people say they can store gas for only a few weeks? I have a gallon can for trimmer and I store it for months during the winter. I could maybe believe it if the can didn't have tight fitting cap or something. Few weeks, no way. I use 87 octane, same as I use in my vehichles. ??????????????????????????

Stihl recommend 89 octane gas. It is pretty much known you use more than 87. Only Honda trimmer specified you can use 87.

Shelf live of gad depend on the temperature of storage and how full is the container. People want to push it, it is their choice, don't cry when things happened. I learnt my leason.

I do use 93 in the Echo products because that is what Echo says to use. They run better too on 93 than 87.

I had a friend that ran a Briggs on Av gas and it seized up after about 30 minutes. High octane AV gas in a low compression engine is still burning when it comes out the exhaust. I'm talking really high octane here. There is only one reason this topic started. The dude that promotes the use of avgas likes to tell his buddies, Hey man, My mower runs on avgas. Wooppeee So what?? Waste your money if you want. Shoot...why not use jet fuel in your kerosene lamps??

Higher octane does work better, but is it a racing chainsaw???? Then unless you make your living with it, you could probably squeeze by with the lower octane.

Just use Mobil or Shell to stay away from ethanol. If itÂs a boat or dirtbike I personally would use Mobil Super+ octane level of 93.

Simply use fuel stabilizer in all small engines, as it not only preserves the fuel and prevents shellacking, but inhibits the deleterious effects of Ethanol and other additives. The kid working at our airport made the mistake of using AV gas in their lawn mower, with spectacularly disastrous results.

I personally use Octane 89 for all my Domestic Please Craft Sure have used AV 101 during my early yrs racing snowmobiles and motorcross and enduro 2-strokes , but that was for short term performance gains under extreme conditions and tuning .But my lawnmower and saws and trimmers ..etc just plain old pump gas suffices . It is a good policy to use a fuel treatment occasionally and stabil during storage. I like Lucas Products , but MMO , Duralube or Resilone ..etc are other fine Carb Cleaning additives and lubricants that help reduce carbon . Raystrom recently tabled a Product that was very interesting also . Can not remember the Title , but it had showed some merit for use within OPE and even Diesel Engines. Ray can you enlighten this Old Dude once more Bro ..Thanx :)

When in doubt refer back to your notes lol . I put Rays info within my Favorites . Star Tron is the Product Identifier . I will be trying to locate some this week within local supply Stores in my area . It really has some intriguing concepts .

Just stay away from ethonal if you can, here I can get 91 oct without ethonal. Race gas will most likely make less power in the average small engines. Steve

AV Gas will definitely produce less performance within regular ope units. Only engine performance changes (Porting and Tuning) will provide any significant performance increases within these engines . I suppose if your a Lawn Tractor Racer or a Chainsaw Cutting Competitor you may find use for High Performance Fuel , but not within your everyday gas trimmer or lawnmower's lol .

chainsaw engines are very high performance, you should be using the best high octane gas, stabil, and synthetic oil in every tank. We are talking pennies more for the the better stuff.

Mid grade should be good enough for any 2-cycles unless you run them hard, like a string trimmer through tough grass and weeds, then I’d probably go with the Premium. Compression ration isn’t the determining factor in these small engines, they’re low, it’s the hot spots that form from running these machines hard.

Ethanol should be avoided if you have alcohol free gasoline available in your area. This is because alcohol decreases the lubricity of the fuel, and the engine receives its lubrication from the mixture.

As far as using leaded aviation fuel, I wouldn’t due to the lead that will form deposits in the engine and on the plug, in addition to the extra unnecessary expense and it being illegal.

Use a fresh fuel from a reputable station, Top Tier if you can, and use a stabilizer if you plan on not using all of the fuel.

Use a good synthetic 2-cycle oil, and mix at the correct ratio as recommended by the manufacturer.

The premixed canned fuel seems to be good quality and saves the hassle of having to mix gasoline and oil, although it is quite expensive.