Originally Posted by
Howard Handelman
A number of commenters, all more expert than I regarding 2-stroke engines, have gone off track a little here.
1. The original question was about LOP, not just leaner or more economical.
2. Yes, going to peak EGT is hotter and yes that is leaner than usual for a 2-stroke. However, actual LOP operations are, by definition, lower temperature than peak or rich of peak (ROP is where best power resides). Thus, the argument that LOP will kill the engine because it is too hot fails. It's the same erroneous argument that is often made against LOP in 4-strokes and it is equally wrong here.
3. Based on my sad but limited experience, an extra lean mixture, if you could even do it with a 2-stroke and a carb., would provide insufficient lubrication with most fuel-oil mixes. This cannot be a hard+fast rule because the ratio of oil to fuel varies a great deal with various oil products and user practices. If you want proof, run the engine on pure gas. I can assure you from personal experience that no matter how rich you run it, it will seize. So try it the other way and run the oil-gas mix with more oil to compensate for the leaner fuel-air mix and try for LOP. Even if this worked, I doubt it would provide economy as it does in a 4-stroke because the oil is costly and because the mix is simply not as powerful with extra oil.