I try to never argue with theory. I have so many theories I'd just never get anything done.lol
I have conducted some evaporation tests on our local E10.And some smoke tests to go with those, and color tests. When that fuel first hit Manitoba in about 98/99 I was working at a Honda shop, working on small engines, generally under 1000cc. We saw the fuel crises almost right away. Especially amongst the farming community who tend to sneak their farm-gas into their small engines. Farm gas can often be in their atmospherically vented storage tanks for several months. The results were disastrous;all their small engines quit running.With the possible exception of their 2-cycle units. It seems there was fuel stabilizer in the oils they were often using. In any case they (the farmers) all had to learn to buy smaller quantities of fuel and stabilize it, for their small engines. We did a lot of carb work that first summer.
What I found was that vented,un-stabilized gas was good for about a week, before the smallest engines;(sub 80cc) had trouble starting on it, the carbs had to be readjusted, and they were down on power.By the end of the next week even 500cc ATVs were complaining and often pinging. Another week and Carb'd cars were fighting to start,with full bowls no less.
With stabilizer added the gas was still good after many weeks and I don't know were the drop-off point might have been.
Interestingly, the un-stabilized fuel turned color as it aged, and I learned to tell how old the fuel was by it's color!
This came in very handy, when, after educating the customer as to the fuel issue; three weeks later, the customers would come in complaining about my shoddy carb job. I would, with them present, drain some fuel out, and compare the color to my samples. Shazzam! No free second carb job for you Dick! Then I would light there sample on fire, still with them present, and compare it to the fresh stuff we had on hand all the time. The results spoke for themselves. Their sample would be hard to light, smoke, flutter and often die before it was all consumed. The new stuff; stand back!
Yeah so, that's how I saved my boss money.
Sometimes when I was very busy, and to select non-dicks, I would just tell them to home and swap the gas out. Problem solved. I was always back-logged with work there, and I used this opportunity to generate good-will. And it worked, I was busy there non-stop 12months a year, lotsa OT .
Yeah so, when that stuff came in, they simultaneously pulled all other non-oxy fuels in our neighborhood. And that was the year my 367 was born. With around 11.3Scr!.
I've been stabilizing all my yard fuel ever since.I have had zero fuel issues,since.
