Farm Boss Back To Life

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BIGChrisNH

Minister of Fire
Dec 16, 2015
646
New Hampshire
I have 3 saws, and my Farm Boss hasn’t gotten much use lately. It’s 5-6 years old now. Tried to start it up and it would fire right up and then idle down and die. Extra pulling just flooded it. Fix was a new spark plug. Also changed the fuel and air filters and she runs fine now. Best $25 I’ve spent in a while. I need to be better about checking my plugs every season on all my small motors.
 
I wish I had your luck with 2 cycle engines. I have 2 gas trimmers that won't stay running. One is very old, the other given to me. The Husqvarna saw I have is also about 5 years old, last year had the same trouble as your Farm Boss. I got a new spark plug, same condition.
When I was about ready for other troubleshooting I let it sit for a day - then it started and has been fine since. Maybe I wasn't starting it
per the factory instructions, I may have been flooding it. The manual says press the primer bulb 6 times - I've been doing exactly that and
it's been starting.
 
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If I use a piece of equipment infrequently I run Tru fule through it. it keeps the carbs from the Varnish on it and the Gaskets from cracking and drying out.
Is TruFuel the ethanol free stuff they sell in gallon cans?
 
Is TruFuel the ethanol free stuff they sell in gallon cans?
yes.. its a little pricey but worh it.. in the winter when I'm running the saws alot I run pump gas and mix through them.. in the spring when its occasional i start putting the true fule in them.. over the summer and early fall they sit with it in there..and when I start cutting alot its back to the pump gas.
 
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yes.. its a little pricey but worh it.. in the winter when I'm running the saws alot I run pump gas and mix through them.. in the spring when its occasional i start putting the true fule in them.. over the summer and early fall they sit with it in there..and when I start cutting alot its back to the pump gas.
Yeah okay, I’ve run that stuff before. I’ll pick up another gallon of it thanks for the reminder.
 
The place where I bought my Stihl chainsaw and blower/vacuum deals mostly with professionals. They recommended Trufuel for my use: infrequent homeowner use.

They also recommend Mechanic-in-a-Bottle, which I add to the 2-gal. regular gas I buy for my push mower and garden tractor.
 
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Yes thanks for the reminder. I was doing that with the snowblower - but should do it with the chainsaw. Pricey is Ok as long as it does the job.
 
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Run some See Foam thru them as well !
 
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My local store sells true-fuel in 50:1 and 40:1
My saws i believe take 50:1. I have several other small engine tools. I don’t have the manuals for them, should 50:1 be ok for all?
 
My local store sells true-fuel in 50:1 and 40:1
My saws i believe take 50:1. I have several other small engine tools. I don’t have the manuals for them, should 50:1 be ok for all?
50 to 1 is good
 
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you can but ethanol free Recreational fuel at most sunoco stations. eliminated all my carb problems
 
My local store sells true-fuel in 50:1 and 40:1
My saws i believe take 50:1. I have several other small engine tools. I don’t have the manuals for them, should 50:1 be ok for all?
50 to 1 is good
40:1 is better...if you like your OPE, and want to keep it.
50:1 was crammed down manufacturers throats by the EPA, so that's what they have to "recommend"...I'm sure they don't mind selling a few extra units because of it either.
If you've ever taken a 50:1 motor apart, there is very little oil film on parts.

But to answer your question, yes, you gas use the same gas/oil in all your 2 strokes (except marine engines, don't use marine oil in non marine, and vice versa)
 
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Mixing too much oil into fuel can cause issues, particularly lean burn down, because more oil displaces the fuel and leans out the air fuel ratio. Generally more oil is a good thing though, if the air fuel mixture remains correct. But it's all based on engine design. I had 2 sleds, a stock 600 with oil injection that was content to run at 60:1, because the oil was directed to the bearings and cylinders before dilution. And a turbo 800 that runs about 30:1, because the extra fuel from the turbo washes out the bottom end of the motor, necessitating more oil to maintain acceptable lubrication. I can go through half a gallon of oil per day in that machine. That same amount of oil would cut me firewood for the next 20 years.

There are also 2 general types of oil, those for air-cooled engines, and those for water cooled. Don't confuse the 2.

But some brands now divide this into 3. Air cooled engines (mostly handheld equipment) Liquid cooled land based engines (snowmobiles, dirbikes, etc) and marine liquid cooled engines (outboards and PWC's.).
 
Why is marine 2stroke oil bad for non marine engines? I had a 85 hp evenrude outboard with oil injection. Sold that after I purchased a gallon of evenrude synthetic 2 stroke oil! That was like 5 yrs ago. Still have half a gallon. I mix it 50/1 and use in my echo blower and string trimmer as well as my little stihl ms170. They all run well, and unfortunately I can’t get anything but ethanol gas at the pumps.
Rob
 
Why is marine 2stroke oil bad for non marine engines? I had a 85 hp evenrude outboard with oil injection. Sold that after I purchased a gallon of evenrude synthetic 2 stroke oil! That was like 5 yrs ago. Still have half a gallon. I mix it 50/1 and use in my echo blower and string trimmer as well as my little stihl ms170. They all run well, and unfortunately I can’t get anything but ethanol gas at the pumps.
Rob
Marine engines run cooler than air cooled OPE...so its not designed to deal with the temps...plus that's probably not synthetic oil being that its for injection use(?)...running dino oil at 50:1 is OPE suicide IMO...I don't even love doing it with synthetics!
 
And then some of us goofballs run gallons of water cooled 2 stroke oil through our diesel engines to replace the lubricity lost when the epa required the refineries to strip all the sulfur out.
 
Why is marine 2stroke oil bad for non marine engines?
It will work ok until it doesn't. Weed trimmers and blowers generally don't run hot. And as long as the saw stays relatively cool you'll avoid engine scoring from oil film being burned off. Also, carbon deposits may become an issue, with carbon scoring of the cylinder occurring over time. A good synthetic oil would avoid all of that. Maybe it depends on how long and how well you want your equipment to run. A 2 cycle engine can run and start fine for a long time with an engine that is beat. It may be down on power, and it may be one mistake away from seizing. You can tell a lot about an engines condition by pulling the muffler and getting a quick look at the internals. Compare it with pictures or experience of what a clean sound strong running engine should look like. Then make the choice of using a low grade or inappropriate fuel oil, or not.