I have a 16 year old bottle of sig castor, and was wondering if I could still use it.

So long as it doesn't smell rancid and has no obvious "bits" floating around in it then you should be okay.

Like all things organic, castor can be invaded by micro-organisms that cause it to be broken down.

Even Jet fuel goes off -- in fact jet fuel contamination is a *big* problem in some parts of the world and significant amounts of biocide are used to prevent the growth of bacteria that are happy to grow in what we might think is a very hostile medium.

If your castor has been stored in a cool dark place then chances are that it's okay but your nose and eyes should be able to confirm this.

You bottle beats mine, I have had one for 7 years and it has been frozen several times,

Its still good..

Does your bottle smell rancid! Is the color good!

Richard

Nothin much to add to what X and YUKON said. They pretty much hit the nail on the head. If it looks and smells OK run it.

The biocide is actually a lucky by-product of the FSII (fuel system icing inhibitor) which gets added to turbine fuel (I can't remember the % now but it's not much). Without it a bacteria called cladosporium resinae lives on the kero and eats its way through alloy fuel tanks.

As for castor, I've never had any go off and especially not when mixed with methanol. Raw castor slowly oxidises (that's why engines gum up over a long period) though so it's best kept in an air tight container same as you'd store fuel.

I couldn't help but go look at my last quart of Sig AA, given to me about 92, been down to +5 F. twice, opened 3years ago. No flakes smells good, ran in fuel last summer. The first quart was open when I got it and did develop some whiteflakes. After the fuel and oil was thoughly mixed at room temp I ran it through a coleman lantern funnel/felt filter got the chunks out ran fine.