pre mix ratios

[HubrisHCC]

Hello everyone,
I've been slowly restorating an 84 marathon for a year now and never questioned my mix ratio since I haven't encounterd and problems from it so far. I've been running a 32:1 mix since the previous owner ran it and instructed me to do the same. More recently I noticed alot of people are saying the correct mix should be 125:1. Now I think we can all agree this is a pretty significant difference, and I was wondering if anyone could confirm the proper ratio and possibly enlighten me on the pros/cons of running different ratios.

[madoc1]

welcome hubris. ez-go recommends 40/1 for the first tank and 128/1 for everything after that. it's easy to remember at 1 ounce per gallon. if you magnify this it is legible.

[Dave Box]

Good Lord Jim, that is one clean engine. Do you use it to power your cart or do you eat your dinner off it?

HubrisHCC, Madoc1 has answered your question and that is the correct number. The disadvantages of running an overly rich mixture are.

Reduced performance. All that oil is reducing the amount of fuel going into the engine and will foul your plug
Muffler Clogging. The engine should burn off all the oil, at 32:1 unburnt oil will pass right through and accumulate in the muffler eventually blocking it reducing performance until the engine completely dies.
Smoke. Your engine will look like a mosquito fogger ( a well tuned 2 stroke running 128:1 will not smoke).
As a slight aside you should be aware that it is not sufficient to pour gas and oil into your fuel tank. You should pour them into a separate container and agitate to mix the solution. I can almost guarantee that if you were look at the bottom of your fuel tank you will see a nasty slick of undissolved oil lying in there.

Dave

[HubrisHCC]

Thank you for the clarification guys I'm gonna have to change this up with my next jug. I'm kinda excited to see if she'll be a little more responsive with the proper ratio. But until then I have the sudden urge to grab a bottle of degreaser and a rag on my way to the garage.

[Dave Box]

It would probably be a good idea to clean out your muffler, this sound pretty brutal but it does work. Light a big fire and when it is roaring away place your muffler on top. After some 30 minutes you will likely see flames shooting out of either end. Just keep cooking away for about another 30 minutes. Allow the muffler to cool and then gently tap it to shake out any ash. This is know as Barbequing the muffler and you will find several references in this forum. After this your engine will breathe a lot easier.

Dave

[HubrisHCC]

Yea I've seen the term used quite a bit but wasn't exactly sure about the process. Does it matter how the muffler is set into the blaze? Upright, on it's side, upside down, etc.?