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Thread: Fuels

  1. #1
    - Skoontz's Avatar
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    Default Fuels

    Sam brought up a point I have been looking at for a few months now, this being the fuel rules.

    4. Digatron DT-47FT Fuel Tester
    This test is used to detect the presence of illegal oxidizers in a fuel mix. It does this by comparing the
    fuel being tested to a known sample in which the instrument has been zeroed. The presence of illegal
    additives will cause the instrument to read a positive number. The positive reading is proportional to the
    amount of additives in the fuel. We have expanded the usable range of this test to allow readings from
    fuel containing methanol.

    this taken from ABPA rule book.

    Does anyone in the audience have a test showing that oxidizers significantly increase performance in a stock outboard?

    I'm very curious here, as in CA, we use 3 different fuel blends with free to be, you and me, woe is me hug a tree mixes. there are times, when this is all you get....Seems to me, that unless it can be shown the oxidizers raise performance, at least out here in the land of fruits and nuts, we could save a whole bunch of grief by easing up on this rule....

    Input anyone>?

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    Bill, there was a MAJOR problem with this a few years ago now at the stock nationals, I'm sure there is still a thread on that other site about it..
    But reading your questions about fuel a week or so with George and what he runs on the east coast. up here,I or should say quite a few of us run Chevron as it seems not to have any "winter " stuff in it and it stays well with in the meter. I have tried supreme and regular and to be honest I see the same performance from both. Texaco have pulled out from here but our BP is more less 76 now since the pumps are orange and a little green oh yeah and the shell pumps are a a little black /red and yellow so I guess Texaco do still have a presence in the northwest.

    a few years ago now I did mix a few "things" in some fuel to see what would happen, really bizarre stuff, but it still read good, tried it in testing but never in the race and for the price of the stuff and for the price of a block, pistons etc ( as in what could have happened) and the next 20 years of my friends looking over my shoulder I have not gone there ever again.

    hope this helps a bit

    Regards, Carl

  3. #3
    Sam Cullis Mark75H's Avatar
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    Oxidizers do increase performance in internal combustion engines, not a lot unless a heavy dose is used, but probably enough to increase each Stock record by 2 or 3 mph on a super tuned kilo boat at 10% ethanol. Basically 10% ethanol is enough to cause one generation of speed records, but probably not enough for the average racer to take advantage of without help ... but that will happen ... there is always a Ed Runne, Harry Brinkman or Harry Pasturzak out there.

    The situation is that RFG with 10% ethanol is not actually widely used outside CA, the east coast I-95 corridor from Fredericksburg VA to Maine, the big cities in Texas and a few other basically northern cities. APBA's "fuel of the day" rule is actually sufficient as long as Divisionals and Nationals are not held in these areas and I think that is taken into consideration when they are awarded to particular locations.

    I'm pretty sure I recently read the Nationals where the closest station had gas that went over was cured by going another mile to the next station where the gas was OK.
    Last edited by Mark75H; 04-01-2008 at 05:22 AM.
    Since 1925, about 150 different racing outboards have been made.


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    Sam Cullis Mark75H's Avatar
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    Since 1925, about 150 different racing outboards have been made.


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    Team Member Joe Silvestri 36-S's Avatar
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    Some of you may think I'm off my rocker, but I would like to see stock and mod go to straight ethenol. It would be better for the enviornment and it would eliminate the hassle of finding fuel that will pass the meter test. How much faster, if at all, would a stock or mod engine go if you did nothing more than switch from gasoline to ethenol?
    Joe Silvestri
    CSH/500MH

    My avatar picture is complements of Fred Eckert. 1997 Hinton, WV Nationals Thundermug 20-H Runabout.

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    Sam Cullis Mark75H's Avatar
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    Default It could be done, but

    Since you can't just switch to alcohol without changes in carburation, it is sort of a moot question. I think you were hoping that it could be done with no big cost to each racer.

    With changes limited to the carburation & ignition timing to optimize the fuel switch, Stocks could probably go about 5 mph faster in each class ... everyone would need a new prop, carb jetting and timing changed to stay competitive ... $300 to $500 out of pocket for the prop and other stuff if you can't do it all your self. Dewald could not make enough props fast enough for all classes to change over in one year.

    Some of the mod classes would see the same speed increases, but others would see dramatic increases because the existing rules vary widely from class to class as to what is already allowed. 850 would probably gain the most ... everyone on the same lap with the leaders would be running well over 100 in competition, maybe 110+. I would guess that a lot of racers don't really want to go a lot faster to stay competitive, we'd have to rewrite the Mod rule book to write in new restrictions to keep speeds the same.

    There is the down side of alcohol to remember as well ... it evaporates quickly, very poor for storage. So poor that many alky crews dose their motors with gas & oil before they hang them up for the weekend. In cooler weather it makes motors pretty hard to start. A lot of the primer squirt cans you see have alcohol, oil and gas to make the alkies start easier.
    Since 1925, about 150 different racing outboards have been made.


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    - Skoontz's Avatar
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    OK, thanks for the input. So, what rule changes could be made in the fuel requirements of stock to make this a simpler way to do things? Since Roger Carr told me the approved digitron fuel gauge cost him $595 7 years ago, there has to be a way to allow a little more latitude in fuel blends other than fuel of the day to ease up some of the stress on weather you will bump the meter or not.....

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    Sam Cullis Mark75H's Avatar
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    What's the problem with the fuel of the day rule?

    You ask to have your gas tested before the race, if it bumps more than the gas the race committee bought at the closest pump, you go to that pump and buy some.
    Since 1925, about 150 different racing outboards have been made.


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    Fuel of the day works just fine , Sam. Ideas are also good to place on the table, because, they in turn, generate new sometimes better, sometimes not so better ideas....

  10. #10
    Sam Cullis Mark75H's Avatar
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    OK, here is a direction it could go if 10% ethanol became much more wide spread. It probably gives a pretty predictable reading on the meter. We could bump up to that reading as the legal limit and maybe another parameter like specific gravity to help keep racers honest (ethanol is slightly heavier than gasoline).
    Since 1925, about 150 different racing outboards have been made.


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