TOPIC: A VAST Neglected field...

I'll illustrate with a story-

Many years ago, in what became Virginia City Nevada, close by to me in Reno Nevada--the miners were hard at work in the diggings in a mining camp, on the steep slopes of Mount Davidson. It was early in the days of the Comstock era, the 1850's. Henry Comstock and others had discovered outcrops of gold-bearing rock here. Miners on their way to the big strikes in California, the "49'ers" had stopped on the way West here.

As time passed, the miners had come to curse the "Blasted Blue Stuff" a fine grey-blue clay that turned to a sticky mud when wet, and clogged their diggings. Some had discovered this sticky blue clay made...decent bricks. They used it to make small shacks and paved a few short roads with it. On and on they dug and toiled, loudly cursing that dang Blasted Blue Stuff, good only for slinging away, or making a few bricks from. This continued for months or years. They mostly discarded the Stuff, lousy clay that clogged and stuck to their boots.

then someone had the idea to assay the blue Stuff. Turned out it was extremely rich silver ore!!

They had been throwing away some of the richest Silver ore ever found. No more brick making!! In the end more wealth in the form of silver was mined in the Comstock mines than gold!!

This is to illustrate how we Gadgetmen, have been ignoring the very highest fuel efficiency gains, those in the Small engines. The lawnmowers, snowblowers, chainsaws, 4 wheelers, generators, on and on.

In a sense this is understandable, lawnmowers don't have an odometer or gas gauge! And Mea Culpa-- I first Grooved my own lawnmower 5 years ago. We have a big back lawn, about 60 by 80 feet. Grows like mad.
Last spring I bought ONE GALLON of gas, there is still gas in that gas can. I lose more gas to evaporation than mower use!!

Do YOU have any Small Engines? Do any of your neighbors or friends? Know anyone who cuts wood, has a 4 wheeler, small watercraft? A generator? Huh?

The small engines have no ECU, PCV valve, tire pressure, or potential vacuum leaks to speak of. Just a tiny carburetor and a spark plug or maybe two. Ron recommends, and I and Heysoundude both did our first Grooves on lawnmowers. And it works.

Look in the Index for posts on small engines. They have been the ones with the very best fuel economy gains, measured in run time.

and if you know someone who uses small engines a lot or for income....

just sayin'!

Tracy G

Well, I'm bangin' the drum again on the small engines.

Does anyone have an example to show, or ask about?

anybody...?

Tracy G

I too have grooved my lawn mower, I went from filling my tank every time I mowed to filling it every other time. The only time I got better results than this was when I started experimenting with vaporizing gas as fuel instead of liquid form. This combined with the groove netted me 300% gains, but alas until I find a better container to heat the fuel and not catch it on fire i'm settling with the groove.

I have a generator that needs to be grooved but that is one of those projects I just cant seem to get too.

as a foot of lake-effect snow has been threatening to blanket my parents' driveway, pops called a couple of times today to "make sure I didn't have some free time to swing over and put that groove thingy on the blower?" sorry pops...

Greg- get your dad's snow blower Grooved!! Your poor 'ol Dad, he's counting on you!!

Just a friendly smack on yer noggin with a Small bit! LOL!

I Can be such a Nag sometimes...

(Tracy ducks as the longest thrown Intercontinental snowball comes screaming in from Greg...!)

These Small Engines are the blue silver ore underfoot....

Tracy G