Hi Stewart,
Thanks for the explanation on acidity, I didn't know why but guessed there was a very good reason for both PAW's advice to leave the piston at the bottom of the bore for a few days, and the car diesel oil being deliberately made alkaline to combat acidity... now I know... well a bit more than I did before [
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I look forward to getting some more information if the bio-chemist has time to correspond with you.
Stewart & Andy,
I will look into the possibility that you two were extracting more water by "cooking" the olive oil for longer. The 3 batches of oil I have produced so far have all been hazy. If held up to a light it is not possible to see the bulb clearly through the oil.
However, once the olive oil is mixed with the desired amount of paraffin then the resultant mix is clear. Perhaps the small quantity of water that may be present in my modified oil will enhance running
It does seem to work very well though so I am not unduly worried, although I will heat it for longer next time I make some.
Cost of olive oil was mentioned a couple of times during the various messages. I don't mind buying some good quality olive oil to modify. By using the modified olive oil as lubrication we can eliminate castor, which is quite expensive and also ether which is also expensive. The olive oil is now starting to look reasonably economical if we eliminate the two most expensive parts of a commercial diesel mix..... not counting the ignition improver which we may add in small percentages.
There is seldom anything worth watching on T.V. so the time can be better spent watching the latest batch of lubrication cooking, in any case it doesn't take long to make and is easy to clean
up after.
I was hoping to go flying today and accomplish some testing as well. Unfortunately the day started grey and dreary looking, certainly not inviting enough to clamber onto the moors. I ended up doing some chores that need (desperately) doing, while thinking... if I get these out of the way now I get to fly more later.... hopefully !
I am keeping an eye on the weather for the next few days, might still get a nice day yet.
Reg