two stroke vs four stroke

[az cra-z]

I recently did the recommended valve adjustment on my Robin/Subaru, service manual available online. It was easy and fun!

 

[wilbur]

View attachment 18858

NOT.

C'mon, we all have opinions and make choices and then get trapped into defending them. This is an age old and tired debate and there ain't no correct answer here but we do get stopped by what we know.

Good point .I would like to add that a lot of the complaints of the two strokes are the cheap china made engines .I have a Tecumseh that is FIVE years old and I have done nothing in the form of maintainance to this engine other than change a spark plug even when it didnt need it.The two strokes are a lighter engine due to less parts.Now other than my cars I have a Snow blower ,Leaf blower ,and Weed wacker ,that I have had for over TEN years along with my Lawn mower (Briggs 5.5 Diamond plus FOURSTROKE).The Lawn mower does smoke due to maybe the valves or rings I am not sure but I have not done any work on the other engines ,which do smoke but they are supposed to cause they are all TWO STROKE engines...Now I am not bashing the four stroke.Mmy Lawn mower still runs great and it is alot bigger than my snowblower engine which is the same size h.p. When it comes to size and power I. guess I am leaning towards the two stroke .

 

[Mountainman]

ok for real now
what truly sounds better to you all
a four stroke wizzing by
or a two stroke ??

as we ride those THINGS

 

[Nitrohorse]

ok for real now
what truly sounds better to you all
a four stroke wizzing by
or a two stroke ??

as we ride those THINGS

I guess it depends on what you're in to.
Myself, I like being able to fire up the 4 stroke at 6:30am on a Sunday morning to cruise down to the diner for breakfast. I wouldn't do that with a 2 cycle.
I guess stealth is more appealing to me than noise and smoke.

 

[wilbur]

Good point,but I work with a few guys who own Harleys and when I say how loud they are they say that people hear them coming and thats a safety factor .When I ride some people will hear me coming and give me room to get by.

 

[sparky]

I like speed!!!!!.

2-stroke!

It's not your fault. I know you are just repeating what you have heard. I wonder who started the rumor that 2-strokes last longer because of less moving parts. LOL

The "rumor" wasn't that 2-strokes last longer, but that 2-strokes last longer IF ran WOT for hours at a time. 4-strokes aren't designed to be ran at WOT speeds for more than 20~30 min at a time, whereas 2-strokes are designed to be run WOT all day every day until they go kaput.

If you really want to compare 2-stroke to 4-stroke reliability, then don't even consider the Crappy Times engines. Now... how many Mitsu or Tanaka 2-strokes have you heard of with problems? That's what I thought.

 

[Irish John]

2-stroke!

The "rumor" wasn't that 2-strokes last longer, but that 2-strokes last longer IF ran WOT for hours at a time. 4-strokes aren't designed to be ran at WOT speeds for more than 20~30 min at a time, whereas 2-strokes are designed to be run WOT all day every day until they go kaput.

If you really want to compare 2-stroke to 4-stroke reliability, then don't even consider the Crappy Times engines. Now... how many Mitsu or Tanaka 2-strokes have you heard of with problems? That's what I thought.

The HTs can't last when run at wot for more than 30 minutes. That is just a fact of life. I should know because I've been through a lot of HT motors. Recently I had one seize before it was run in - the chrome lining flaked off the cylinder! The HuaSheng & Honda motors can run at high speed all day without any problems and that is also a fact of life. I'm sure Tanaka and Mitsu are good but they don't come in kits. Honda made a 5 cylinder 125cc 4-stroke that peaked at over 20,000 rpm back in the mid 1960s.
The 4 stroke Honda 50 engine is quite happy running at high revs for a long period of time. I go 55 km non-stop up the freeway occasionally at almost max speed without stopping with no ill effects and then I do the same coming back. Because it is boring flying along the freeway I often choose to take smaller roads where I get to vary the speed.

 

[Mountainman]

ohhhhhhhhhhhh sparky -- think we got you !!!

4-strokes aren't designed to be ran at WOT speeds for more than 20~30 min at a time

ohhhhhhhhhhhh sparky -- think we got you !!!

let's not forget about good old Nascar
they run those big 4-strokes all day long

truth has it -- that
well built 2 and 4 strokes can both be run basicly forever -- well you know what I mean

as far as sound enjoyed by most
4-strokes win this hands down
I hang out at a place where many Harley riders also go
these guys at many times comment
and it's a little 4-stroke -- that's cool

we live on an old dirt road
one of the oldest roads in Calif -- used to be the trail up north
when ones are out at times tearing up and down the road
I perfer also -- to be annoyed by the 4-strokes
rather than that buzzing bee sound..

yes there it is -- the buzzing bee or the cool thump thump ???

as we ride those things

 

[sparky]

I'm sure Tanaka and Mitsu are good but they don't come in kits.

Yes they do. They might not be at a price you like, but they both certainly do come in a few different kits.

The 4 stroke Honda 50 engine is quite happy running at high revs for a long period of time. I go 55 km non-stop up the freeway occasionally at almost max speed without stopping with no ill effects and then I do the same coming back. Because it is boring flying along the freeway I often choose to take smaller roads where I get to vary the speed.

Well, when you decide to quit varying the throttle and hold it wide open at all times on flatland and downhill (maybe not so much downhill, but certainly don't go any slower than flatland), like I do with just a tiny 33cc 2-stroke... I'll reconsider all preconceived notions.

let's not forget about good old Nascar
they run those big 4-strokes all day long

truth has it -- that
well built 2 and 4 strokes can both be run basicly forever -- well you know what I mean

Nascar cars run without transmissions, just like our MBs?!? That's craziness!

I'd really like to see the results of running a Mitsubishi versus a Subaru both at WOT until one of 'em kraps out. My money'd be on the Mitsu, and I have no experience with either. I have a Chinese 2-stroke that isn't a happy time, and I ride the thing far faster than it should be capable of handling. As soon as I replace it with a Subaru, I won't be holding it at 30mph for 8 miles at a time. And even the 25mph that it will hit probly won't make me feel good on the inside.

 

[Nitrohorse]

Nascar cars run without transmissions, just like our MBs?!? That's craziness!

What does a transmission have to do with engine RPMS and reliability. 9000 RPMs is 9000 RPMs, regardless of what the engine is coupled to.