Don't like the smell of Gasoline?.......

[James Kovach]

But do not want to use Coleman? Get some SEF 94 and give it a try. You will not be disappointed. IMO, it is worth the price over gasoline and not just because it does not smell .

[Mr.HillBilly]

James, what is SEF 94?

Is that Small Engine Fuel.

[James Kovach]

You'd think you guys would be a little more "Google Savvy"

http://www.vpracingfuels.com/sef-94.html

First link when you Google "SEF 94"

[Mr.HillBilly]

That is how I got the Small Engine Fuel. But the cheapest I found it was $6.50 a quart that is about as bad as nitro.

[James Kovach]

Look for a place that sell gas and oil. Place here sells it in 5 gallon pales for $54. Same price as Coleman.

[Azalin]

Thank God the smell of Shell gasoline is not bad. Because i have no chance to find Coleman or SEF 94 in Turkey.

[MotorRotor]

What kind and ratio of oil do they use in that Sparx?

[Eppler]

I have not smelled any gas from my G20 unless I take the carb off. My fuel lines on my can are sealed and I store it inside the house to keep it out the heat. Another thing I have started doing is mixing half a gallon at a time. As fare as keeping it off my hands i fill it up close the line to the tank run pump back wards and as soon as you break the seal to the fill line the gas is sucked back in the can or further away from the fill nozzle.

[mss001]

For me and my follow europeans Aspen 4 is a great alternative to pump gas.

http://www.aspen.se/Aspen_%28eng%29/...lkylate_Petrol

Coleman fuel and SEF94 is not readily available where I live.

[jockstrap]

Almost imposible to find Colemans fuel here in Oz anymore.. I've had no luck at all so never even been able to try it..

I'm using "Shellite" (lighter fluid) currently and seems to work well.. FYI.. very little smell also.. it's available from Bunnings and other hardware stores over here..

[Pinecone]

Coleman fuel and lighter fluid are the same thing. Naptha.

[MotorRotor]

Originally Posted by Pinecone

Coleman fuel and lighter fluid are the same thing. Naptha.

Good to know! Thanks

[jockstrap]

I thought there were some subtle differences thou?

I've read that Colemans smells like "popcorn" when running the engine - shellite certainly doesn't smell like that.. also shellite has a very slight odour but I thought colemans had none - a bit like alcohol?

Maybe there are just some minor chemicals differences that change the smell and basically still render them the same..

interesting.. wish I could get hold of some colemans here to try..

[rockinar]

I noticed at Home Depot today in the Home and Garden section they have what is called "TruFuel". It looks to be the same thing as SEF94.

http://www.trufuel50.com/

[Vantskruv]

Originally Posted by mss001

For me and my follow europeans Aspen 4 is a great alternative to pump gas.

http://www.aspen.se/Aspen_%28eng%29/...lkylate_Petrol

Coleman fuel and SEF94 is not readily available where I live.

Nice one. I see it is quite available here in Sweden, and it is not so expensive. Does it work well with your engine?

[mss001]

Originally Posted by Vantskruv

Nice one. I see it is quite available here in Sweden, and it is not so expensive. Does it work well with your engine?

It's all I've ever used and it works great. Put 15 L through the motor so far (mixed with 4% pennzoil marine). Admitted, I don't really have a frame of reference as I haven't tried pump gas. But the motor is running great, starts easily, provides plenty of power and it doesn't smell

[Intrepid175]

These alternatives look interesting but most of what I saw, they're pretty expensive. The worst was $43 for a case of 6 quarts. That works out ot almost $29/gal which is above what 30% nitro glo fuel runs. "No thanks!"

The main reason I went gas was to save a bit on fuel costs. I'm not quite ready to go all electric yet. The way I deal with the smell it to thoroughly drain the fuel tank and carb, then plug off the fuel and vent lines. I wrap the fuel can in a trash bag while it's in the car. So far, that works pretty good.

FWIW!
Fly Safe,
Steve R.

[Trnquill]

Even though the price of a premium non-smell stuff is almost or exactly the same as nitro, you get 2-4 times longer flight time with gas. That equals to 2-4 times less expensive flight hours!

I guess it varies across the globe but at least here in Finland I would not suggest using ordinary gasoline with Zenoah engines. It includes 5-10% ethanol and you should not put ethanol in Zenoahs. Ethanol degrades rubber and plastic parts. It says so in the manual.

[rbort]

Regular gas definately saves you the most money. Those small engine fuels with no ethanol cost at least 3 times more in bulk than gas and make no measurable performance difference that I could see when I was in FL either in rpm power or heat.

So it really boils down to the smell thing. If its so objectionable to you then certainly get some small engine fuel or coleman to solve this but you have to pay a premium for it.

As far as ethanol hurting the carbs, I've been flying gas helis since 1997 and I don't see any ill effects from it as far back as they started adding it to the fuel - not sure exactly when that was.

I burn a gallon a week easily and for me the cheapest gas is the way to go. Even if it did hurt the carbs, a good response to that is if you're flying gasoline you would be saving enough money to buy a new carb every season if you had to, but really you don't.

Bottom line is the smell, that's what should be your decision maker.

-=>Raja.

[James Kovach]

To me the benefits of running SEF94 are reflected in its cost. It does not smell and performs better than pump gas. It has better throttle response. Tunes easier. Seems to burn more efficiently. Kept my engine cooler under heavy loads. It is just an all around better fuel.

I have stated before, if you are just out there flying mild, you will likely not see the performance increases. But if you are looking for a performance boost when really pushing an engine, this stuff will do it.

As for the cost. Well, it is a matter of finding someone to sell it to you at the right price. You are going to pay a lot if you try and buy it in quart containers. You need to find someone selling it in 5 gallon containers. Seems the price range for 5 gallons is $50-80. Even at $80, I personally would still be buying it.