Marvel Mystery Oil

[Safety Steve]

Has anyone every used Marvel Mystery Oil, I wes talking to someone who said that he uses it in his Valkyrie, pours some in this fuel tank he saids that it helps lube his fuel system and his bike starts up a lot easier and runs great.
Has anyone used this before, I have been on this formal for over a year and I have never heard of this product.

Thank you for any help

Steve

[Chrisj CMA]

I know people that swear by it.  I have tried it, didn't think it did a thing.  When I had an older bike that was designed to run on leaded gas I used it when I ran out of lead additive to lube the top end.  Still don't know if it did anything.

Valkyries don't need snake oils.  Now if you want to put something in the tank, and you use ethanol gas, a fuel stabilizer/ethanol treatment is a good idea.  I use a product made by Lucas oils and it seems to do a great job keeping the old gal running smoothly

[Gryphon Rider]

It's been discussed once or twice before.

Search results using "Marvel Mystery Oil" in the search tab above

[Windrider]

I've used the stuff, but it was more than 30 years ago. My son and I were in a YMCA program in which the kids built and raced small (18" long) wooden race cars powered by gravity. We used Marvel Mystrey Oil as an axle lube. It worked great for that. As I recall the product has been marketed as a top oil since the early 1920's. Sorry I can't speak to its use in gasoline engines.

[F6Dave]

I had a can in my garage once.  I'm not sure where it came from.  I used it for general lubricating, like on hinges, and it was fine for that.

I'd think it could cause problems if mixed with the fuel.  I can't see much of a benefit, unless the engine is a 2-stroke that needs a fuel/oil mix to provide some lubrication for the crank & rod bearings.  Wikipedia notes there was an aircraft engine failure that may have been caused by using it as a fuel additive.

[Farther]

"The product is composed of 74 percent mineral oil, 25 percent stoddard solvent, and 1 percent lard".  I seem to remember those same ingredients on some barbecue sauce while riding through Texas.  What else do you need to know!

[98valk]

just remember this, any type of oil/s u put in your gas tank will solidify into a hard black carbon substance on the back of that hot intake valve. this equates to bad mpg and HP.
MMO is 1950s maybe older technology, there are much much better modern additives out there.
above also applies to the seafoam which has low temp pale oil and why and engine smokes so bad when used.

[hubcapsc]

"The product is composed of 74 percent mineral oil, 25 percent stoddard solvent, and 1 percent lard".  I seem to remember those same ingredients on some barbecue sauce while riding through Texas.  What else do you need to know!

Mineral spirits, Napthenic Hydrocarbons and Chlorinated Hydrocarbons.... mmo msds...

Stoddard solvent is paint thinner, or Naptha, as my father used to call it...

-Mike "I think the Chlorinated Hydrocarbons is the lard..."

[Gavin_Sons]

People put xylene in their gas to boost the octane.  Lots of guys with built engines do this

[Patrick]

"The product is composed of 74 percent mineral oil, 25 percent stoddard solvent, and 1 percent lard".  I seem to remember those same ingredients on some barbecue sauce while riding through Texas.  What else do you need to know!

[Pete]

Used it one time on the recommendation of a mechanic.
He expected it to free carbon stuck ring pack.

Did not free the ring.

Months later I found old  bottle of Slick 50 cleaning out my dads garage.
Used it for the same purpose and it WORKED.

[slider]

bought a bottle of mechanic in a bottle and the stuff really impressed me..put it in my 1978 honda 125 ss that had sat for about 5 years and would barely idle..let it set for 2days flushed fuel system and carb  put it fresh fuel and started up,ran rough for about 10 minutes and smoothed out,still runs a little rough but much  better than before,added some to the valk and seemed to make a diffrence in smoothness and pick up...works better than mystery oil..any way thats my opinion

[Safety Steve]

Thanks for everyone who gave there comments, got to love this site, it is old tech and I had never heard of it before, I figure if it was good someone else would of talked about it.  Again thank you everyone for the info...

Steve

[hubcapsc]

Thanks for everyone who gave there comments, got to love this site, it is old tech and I had never heard of it before, I figure if it was good someone else would of talked about it.  Again thank you everyone for the info...

Steve

It is hard to ignore the objective evidence that it is made from paint thinner and lard... before this thread ends, I'll just mention that the best mechanic I know (a really good mechanic) thinks it is good stuff...

-Mike "maybe I'll ask him 'good for what?' next time I see him..."

[Bonzo]

There was a place that made the stuff in Portchester NY, They got almost constant deliveries of Kerosene.  In my old cars I used it all the time in the gas and oil. Now with the new HD oils or synthetics, with the removal of paraffin. I do not use it at all. It is good to squirt in cylinder heads when storing or starting up a stored engine

[Tailgate Tommy]

I've had a can of MMO for 25 years. I use it to lube my air tools. Put a little in the tool where the air hose hooks up. Seems to work fine for that.

[Patrick]

Its always been a mystery to me that folks marvel at the wonders of this oil.

Its tends to be used for upper lube on old vehicles to keep carbon softened up, valve stems free and rings loose as well as for storage.

Me, I just use plain old cheap [?] ATF.

[DK]

I use lard for cutting oil if I don't have the real stuff available.

Bacon grease works great. No kidding.

[Brian]

I had a few gas leaks at the O-rings between the carbs. 3 tanks of gas with the recommended mixture and the gas leaks stopped. This gave me the needed time to order the rebuild kits for the carbs while allowing the bike to stay inside. The one gas leak was bad enough to puddle on the floor. I now run a little through the gas a few times a season. I have not checked the intake valves to see if carbon is building up. I will the next time I complete the spline maintenance.

[Farther]

I have not checked the intake valves to see if carbon is building up. I will the next time I complete the spline maintenance.

What's the procedure for checking the intake valves?

[Savago]

Dear Friend

Since I bought my I/S, I tried the following products:

a) Techron

b) Seafoam

c) Marvel Mystery Oil

From all those, the worst results I've observed (i.e. worst gas consumption, bike having trouble to start cold, etc) was with MMO. I used the product per instructions in the bottle.

Regards


Adenilson

[98valk]

I have not checked the intake valves to see if carbon is building up. I will the next time I complete the spline maintenance.

What's the procedure for checking the intake valves?

pull intake manifolds and look down into the port.

[98valk]

Dear Friend

Since I bought my I/S, I tried the following products:

a) Techron

b) Seafoam

c) Marvel Mystery Oil

From all those, the worst results I've observed (i.e. worst gas consumption, bike having trouble to start cold, etc) was with MMO. I used the product per instructions in the bottle.

Regards


Adenilson

Techron was designed to not solidify on the intake valves and actually to clean them. I tend to remember it was one of the first to meet the BMW requirements (the first too specify) for valve intake cleanliness.

I have had great results with Chemtool B12. better mpg and performance.

[Brian]

I have not checked the intake valves to see if carbon is building up. I will the next time I complete the spline maintenance.

What's the procedure for checking the intake valves?

I was thinking about taking the intakes off , pull the plugs, turn engine by hand and look down in the head with a bright light and a small mirror. I suppose a compression test at this time would also be called for. Any other ideas is greatly appreciated.