Outdoor Power Equipment (Lawn Mowers, Snow Blowers, Chain Saws and more) Discussions

i have a TMC backpack leaf blower that has a little kawasaki 2 stroke engine. This unit is probably from the 80,s and calls for a 25:1 mix. can i just mix it 40:1 and use it in this unit? Seems like every 2 stroke i,ve ever had uses 40:1 or 50:1.  i am using yamalube semi synthetic oil.

Had the same issue with an older Sears brushcutter. It was made in the early 90s and called for a 16:1 mix. I tried that with conventional 2-stroke oil and that thing smoked like no tomorrow. I found a great alternative.... a product called Opti-2. You mix 1.3 oz.  with 1 gallon of gasoline and it provides a multi-ratio mix that will work with anything 2-stroke, regardless of what ratio is recommended. Something to do with the lubricants in it enables it to run that way. I'm sure there are similar products, but it has been working well for me for 7-8 years now. That brushcutter gets used 1-2 hrs. at a time, maybe 50-60 hrs. yearly and has seen that much wear/tear since it was new (around 1992) and has needed nothing more than a spark plug change every year, a filter cleaning and the bearings and gears in the shaft end greased. IMO that's a pretty good testament to the newer multi-ratio mixes. Oh yeah the Opti-2 doesn't really produce any smoke and can increase performance quite a bit over basic 2-stroke oils. Just my honest opinion. And just to be on the safe side I do mix it a little stronger than is recommended. I add a bit more to the gas producing a ratio around 40:1. I only did that to protect my chainsaw and it works well in everything else.  

How strong is that backpack blower? Size? Later! 

Having multi ratio two stroke mixes is a nuisance.  That's for sure.  I have machines that run anywhere from 15:1 up to 100:1.   My outboards run at 100:1 so their fuel is mixed at that ratio.   My OPE two stroke engines (ice auger, trimmers, chainsaws, lawn mower, leaf blower etc. are from 15:1 to 50:1 and are supplied from the same source.  I usually make a mix that's probably around 35:1.  It seems to work fine in all of the engines.  The newer two cycle lubricants are considerably better than they were twenty years ago.  So I'm not too concerned with using a lower oil to fuel ratio.  If using the older machine with the highest oil to fuel ratio on a big job and/or a hot day, I'll just add a couple drops into it's tank just to be sure.  Otherwise it's 35:1 pretty much.