Benton has at least three stations where it is available:
Benton MARATHON 90 Bass & Gas 270-527-1900 3243 Us Hwy 68 E
Benton UNBRANDED 87 Fast Eddie's Mkt 270-354-6317 8492 Us Hwy 68
Benton SUNOCO 90 Lovett's Sunoco 270-527-9377 421 E 12th St
Weed Wacker help!
- Thread starter zea3
- Start date
Benton MARATHON 90 Bass & Gas 270-527-1900 3243 Us Hwy 68 E
Benton UNBRANDED 87 Fast Eddie's Mkt 270-354-6317 8492 Us Hwy 68
Benton SUNOCO 90 Lovett's Sunoco 270-527-9377 421 E 12th St
n240sxguy
Well-known member
All 10-12 miles away, in the direction I rarely ever go. I think there is a little hole in the wall station a couple miles from me, but I wouldn't stop there.
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Yea, to be honest before our move to SC where every station has pure gas available, we lived in the suburbs of Washington, DC You had to drive about a hour away to find any.
Another echo for Echo. When it comes to gas trimmers, the ECHO SRM 225/225i is the best value for $ IMHO, especially when you can find them on sale like I did at HD earlier this year. I would suggest a straight-shaft model. To avoid the tangled line problems, I got the "Rapid Loader Head" (several options listed here: http://www.echo-usa.com/Products/Accessories/Trimmer-Accessories - listings are about 1/4 of the way down the page. You can use lines between .095" - .155". I use the .095 line and it mows through everything I have placed in its path. When the line is worn, you pull the old line through from the inside and feed a new pre-cut piece from the outside. I carry a few pre-cut lines in my pocket while I'm weed-whacking. Replacing a worn line takes seconds and it's easy. Most pro's use a trimmer head with this or similar design to avoid wasting time de-tangling the autofeed heads.
That's about the best tip you can give anyone who uses small engines. I use pure gas in my vehicles too - better mileage and performance, and less emissions. That might surprise some people.
n240sxguy
Well-known member
That can't be right. The government has poured billions into ethanol incentives. They must be right. They always are.
Did I pour the sarcasm on too thick?
Alcohol based fuels are better in vehicles that require high octane, but they come with a price. They hold more water, and cause a multitude of fuel side problems. Alcohol also doesn't have as many btu's which is why you end up with worse gas mileage than regular gas. E85 is the perfect example of that. It costs 10% less, but you get less mpg. The math just doesn't work.
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Plus you wind up using more fuel, trying to get performance with a subconsciously heavier left foot.That can't be right. The government has poured billions into ethanol incentives. They must be right. They always are.
Did I pour the sarcasm on too thick?
Alcohol based fuels are better in vehicles that require high octane, but they come with a price. They hold more water, and cause a multitude of fuel side problems. Alcohol also doesn't have as many btu's which is why you end up with worse gas mileage than regular gas. E85 is the perfect example of that. It costs 10% less, but you get less mpg. The math just doesn't work.
The very same environmentalists who called for ethanol have been screaming for it to stop for years now. It makes fuel less efficient and makes it pollute more. It has the exact opposite effect than was ostensibly intended. It wastes resources like water - of which it takes 1,200 gallons, to make one gallon of this stuff in the majority of areas where irrigation is necessary to grow corn. It's by far the worst thing we could have done both for the planet and for economic sense.
n240sxguy
Well-known member
If you had billions of barrels of it just sitting there it could be the magic bullet they were hoping for, but not if you have to spend all the resources to grow and refine it. A third grader could've told them the math didn't work. There is no free lunch. We're paying for filets and getting hot dogs with ethanol.
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All of us who did try to tell them were branded as "sellouts to big oil" and such.
But, no matter if you could somehow have it be free with no strings attached, it's still a terrible fuel additive for all the reasons we've been saying. It would solve exactly zero problems and in fact make them worse.
But of course we're.... getting totally off topic. My apologies.
Tim5055, thanks for the link.
I'm sure some political machine is at work here, but note that Dallas Fort Worth metroplex has absolutely zero ethanol free stations.
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I'm sure some political machine is at work here, but note that Dallas Fort Worth metroplex has absolutely zero ethanol free stations.
Thanks for that link. I would like to have found some "good" gas for my offroad vehicles ... but alas it is over 60 miles away. Not 1 station in Tucson.
Uh, oh. Time for a mod to fork off the pure gas into a new thread...
I've tried a few tank fulls of pure gas and I didn't see much of a difference in fuel mileage. Went maybe from 14 to 14.5? Was not worth the extra money.
Back to the Echo. I have the straight shaft one, I too and not a big fan of the curved shaft. I don't want to have to bend over and it gets the cutting head further away.
I've tried a few tank fulls of pure gas and I didn't see much of a difference in fuel mileage. Went maybe from 14 to 14.5? Was not worth the extra money.
Back to the Echo. I have the straight shaft one, I too and not a big fan of the curved shaft. I don't want to have to bend over and it gets the cutting head further away.
Ethanol has a bad reputation that it doesn't quite deserve. Don't get me wrong though, it does have a few issues of its own, namely its affinity for water (since it's an alcohol), and is not compatible with old rubber fuel lines and seals. That said, we have had carburetor and fuel problems as long as gas has been around. Ethanol is just the newest thing to blame for most problems.
When I was stationed in Connecticut (4 years), I had 1 gallon of 89 octane, 10% ethanol survive for 4 years. We had a small yard, and my Echo saw light duty use trimming around the house. That gas was stored in the outdoor shed. When I filled the gas can, it got one bottle of Echo Power Blend oil, and a dose of Stabil. And I had absolutely zero problems related to fuel, and my trusty GT-230 always started in a few pulls.
My GT-230 is a curve shaft, and I like it. Even with me being 6'2", it's not a problem. It seems easier to be able to flip it around and use it for edging the sidewalk and driveway. I don't mind the straight shaft trimmers though.
Last thing for everyone, make sure you use air cooled two stroke oil in your fuel mix for your air cooled engines. The oil bottles will have the rating JASO FC and/or ISO L-EGD. Do not use TCW-3, that oil is for water cooled engines. The oils are formulated for their respective engines and their operating conditions and temperatures.
When I was stationed in Connecticut (4 years), I had 1 gallon of 89 octane, 10% ethanol survive for 4 years. We had a small yard, and my Echo saw light duty use trimming around the house. That gas was stored in the outdoor shed. When I filled the gas can, it got one bottle of Echo Power Blend oil, and a dose of Stabil. And I had absolutely zero problems related to fuel, and my trusty GT-230 always started in a few pulls.
My GT-230 is a curve shaft, and I like it. Even with me being 6'2", it's not a problem. It seems easier to be able to flip it around and use it for edging the sidewalk and driveway. I don't mind the straight shaft trimmers though.
Last thing for everyone, make sure you use air cooled two stroke oil in your fuel mix for your air cooled engines. The oil bottles will have the rating JASO FC and/or ISO L-EGD. Do not use TCW-3, that oil is for water cooled engines. The oils are formulated for their respective engines and their operating conditions and temperatures.
Well... From a practical standpoint we really DO need to either treat the ethanol fuel, or use pure gas, for the small engines. Large engines get away with using ethanol because typically they don't have carburetors.
And this is important advice right here.
I agree that the curve shaft is easier to flip around and to do edging and what not with. My old weed eater was a curve shaft. The straight one on my Echo is, at least for me, a bit trickier to get in the right position to make a nice edge. Not too much of a problem though with the straight one.
I have never had a straight shaft weedeater before, so I got one. If I had it to do over again, I would opt for the GT. I expect that might be a few years though! Love my Echo weedeater!
I have never had a straight shaft weedeater before, so I got one. If I had it to do over again, I would opt for the GT. I expect that might be a few years though! Love my Echo weedeater!
That's why I treat my small equipment gas with Stabil. Even with that, it will not prevent the carbs from gumming up if left to sit for too long (that goes for both regular gas and ethanol blends). My equipment with diaphragm carburetors (handheld two strokes) usually drain back to the tank when not in use, and haven't gummed up on me. The other things with float style carbs, are more prone gum up since the fuel sits in the bowl. I've had to clean out the carb in my generator, moped, and two outboards after they got gummed up. My usuall rroutine now is when I am done with them, I turn the fuel valve off and run them dry. No problems since I've adopted this practice.
I also believe the problems are worse nowadays, since machining tolerances are a lot tighter. Easier to clog a smaller hole than a larger one.
n240sxguy
Well-known member
I always let my engines run out of gas just like you. Same with my motorcycle. I don't want to tear apart and clean four carbs.
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Echo's are awesome!
The straight shafts seem more awkward for edging. You have to hold them sideways and angle them in to keep the line perpendicular. A bit trickier. My curved shaft, I just flip upside down and spin the D handle around and stand behind it. Seems simpler that way
Edging with the straight shaft is no different IMO, just flip the thing over. I do have a dedicated Echo edger, it is much faster and make a cleaner lines.
Just laid four pallets of sod this weekend and the edger made quick work of cutting the sod edges and curved lines around the plant beds.
Just laid four pallets of sod this weekend and the edger made quick work of cutting the sod edges and curved lines around the plant beds.