Red Armor vs Stihl Ultra Datapoint

[Flatzout]

Yes. I read that the Stihl Ultra " is biodegradable, degrading by 80% in 21 days."
https://llequipment.stihldealer.net...nts-and-fuels/oils-and-lubricants/oilhpultra/

WTF does that mean? It means that when my builder (@Chainsaw Jim ) opened up my 044 and said "please Dave, please, in the name of all that is holy, STOP using Stihl Ultra" I listened and switched to Red Armor.

That means if you dump straight ultra on to the ground it will degrade by 80% in 21 days , it has nothing to do with shelf life of the oil itself or when mixed.
For what it's worth , my saws run good on saber 50:1, vp and red armor @ 40:1.

 

[lilspenny]

Friend brought over two saws this weekend; a gorgeous "red lever" 026 and a very fine 028 Super. Both saws ported by the same builder. I had run the 026 before and after the porting, never knew it to have any problems. This was my first time running the 028.

Anyhoo, both saws seemed to have idling issues. They cut fine. Fast and fun. Friend was running 32:1 93 clear with Stihl Ultra. He left the saws at my place as I have a potential buyer. Yesterday, I ran a little experiment. I emptied his Stihl Ultra blend from his saws, and filled them up with my fuel, Red Armor 32:1 in 93 clear. Once re-tuned, the idling was ridiculously smoother and more even, and the throttle response was what it should have been.

I'm beyond familiar with the "this oil is better than that oil" phenomena, but has anyone else ever experienced this obvious a performance difference? I'm just looking for a sanity check (wrong place to look for sanity, I know) to make sure I'm not imagining this.

Yes. Red Armor, at 50:1 runs great in my 4-mix engines. But.... not as clean as I want. I may have to accept that. My 029, on HP2 40:1, runs like a scalded dog, but my br800 cannot handle that. Saber, in my 4-mix engines, is good but no oil I've tried runs better than VP and Red Armor. Ultra will never be used again. It's dirty and it stinks. Saber is great with lubrication, great with film strength, good insofar as carbon, but not as good with throttle response as are VP and Red Armor. The lower flashpoints may have something to do with that. I want to try VP @50:1 and open the valve cover just to see what film there is.

 

[SawAddictedFarmer]

Yes. Red Armor, at 50:1 runs great in my 4-mix engines. But.... not as clean as I want. I may have to accept that. My 029, on HP2 40:1, runs like a scalded dog, but my br800 cannot handle that. Saber, in my 4-mix engines, is good but no oil I've tried runs better than VP and Red Armor. Ultra will never be used again. It's dirty and it stinks. Saber is great with lubrication, great with film strength, good insofar as carbon, but not as good with throttle response as are VP and Red Armor. The lower flashpoints may have something to do with that. I want to try VP @50:1 and open the valve cover just to see what film there is.

Um this is a 2018 thread and @Heffalump hasn't been on here since 2020. Amsoil Dominator FTW!!!

 

[59billy]

Um this is a 2018 thread and @Heffalump hasn't been on here since 2020. Amsoil Dominator FTW!!!

Oil threads are forever.

 

[EFSM]

My 029, on HP2 40:1, runs like a scalded dog

A 15 yr old dog at that, no offense intended.

 

[singinwoodwackr]

Been using RA, 40:1 for quite some time now at the suggestion of the guy who ported one of my 346s. No complaints.

 

[EFSM]

There was a hotshot that stopped by our shop today trying to sell some used trimmers. He claimed to go to GTG’s and build hotsaws and absolutely swore by Stihl Ultra oil. The “armor oil,” as he called it, wasn’t worth touching. Hmmm…
Every time I take apart an engine that was being run with RA, I get that warm feeling that goes with seeing a puddle of sticky oil down in the crankcase.

 

[FergusonTO35]

Currently running Husky silver bottle (semi-synthetic I think) at 40:1 and it seems to work quite well so far. Makes the fuel dark blue for easy identification too.

 

[edisto]

A 15 yr old dog at that, no offense intended.

Is that 2 in human years?

 

[FergusonTO35]

There was a hotshot that stopped by our shop today trying to sell some used trimmers. He claimed to go to GTG’s and build hotsaws and absolutely swore by Stihl Ultra oil. The “armor oil,” as he called it, wasn’t worth touching. Hmmm…
Every time I take apart an engine that was being run with RA, I get that warm feeling that goes with seeing a puddle of sticky oil down in the crankcase.

If he actually knew anything, he would also know that used trimmers aren't worth spit.

 

[EFSM]

Is that 2 in human years?

?
No. 90.

 

[jakethesnake]

I still run red armor

 

[lehman live edge slab]

A 15 yr old dog at that, no offense intended.

No not that ultra powerful but they last like plenty of tree guys that started with them and got good service from them.

 

[EFSM]

Yes they do last a good long time. I like the big HD carburetor. But stock they’re dogs, but they wake up extremely well after a muffler mod.

 

[lilspenny]

Crip?

lol

 

[lilspenny]

Yes they do last a good long time. I like the big HD carburetor. But stock they’re dogs, but they wake up extremely well after a muffler mod.

Agree with that. I performed surgery on mine this year... bought new in 1995... probably has 20 hours on it. I agree this saw is weak, but the mod made a big difference.