Marvel Mystery Oil

I think the best thing about MMO is that it aids in lubrication and reduces wear.

That is exactly what oil does! All oils!

But how does anyone say it is this MMO stuff rather than their engine oil? It seems to me you are basically adding a viscosifier (low viscosity) to your oil. Why not use lighter oil? Logic is missing here.

The word "mystery" in the label would make me suspicious from the outset. All oil is a mystery to most of us. There are volumes on these fora about it with not so much fact getting in the way coz not many of us understand the subject. When I was studying hydraulic engineering the boundary layer theory confused me so I didn't do that part of the exam. I sure wish I had persevered with it.

Speaking only for myself, I use it for it's ability to dissolve varnish and carbon, not for it's lubricating qualities. Obviously it is thin and not to be used as a primary lubricant, too much added to the crankcase can cause lubrication failure just like adding gasoline to the oil. When dribbled into the intake or carburetor, it can free up gummy valve stems while providing some lubrication as well.

I use mmo in my old cars along with the newer daily drivers some in oil and in the gas along with seafoam sometimes sucked in a vacuum port then let sit for 10 min . Let the smoke roll from the tail pipe .

Many years ago at the annual convention in Philadelphia, one of the seminars was about oils. The presenters were chemical engineers from an oil company. They discussed oil additives in detail. They pointed out that oils were blended with a specific purpose in mind and that the engineers had already put in additives. When you put additives in you change the chemical make up of the original oil product. The line I remember was "The best you can hope fore when mixing in another additive is that nothing bad results". It makes sense. What is in that oil can has been refined with chemicals added. I don't know what else besides oil is in that can. How do I know what effect an additive will have?

MMO is 75% mineral oil, 24 % Stoddard Solvent and 1% lard.

I will have to wash my hands better after using it - that 1% lard went straight to my gut . ============

I've been reading through this thread, trying to understand the pros and cons, but have yet to see anyone post that, "Marvel Oil ruined my engine".

A real shame that the petroleum gasoline companies couldn't make that statement!

Actually MMO was implicated in the crash of a small airplane in 2002 or so. Try the Google machine for details.

I've been reading through this thread, trying to understand the pros and cons, but have yet to see anyone post that, "Marvel Oil ruined my engine".

A real shame that the petroleum gasoline companies couldn't make that statement!

Wear is slow. All one's oil and lubrication choices will affect its rate. How would you know if you are increasing wear? And do we all change the oil frequently enough anyway? People jump to conclusions about things like this all the time, without much evidence. Me included, according to my wife!

White spirits in one's oil? No thanks. It is pretty similar to adding gasoline. Animal fat in one's oil? No thanks.

In my experience, the label is not very good and anyway, I don't know what I need to know to understand what is there and what is not there.

There is a great deal of misinformation about oils out there. How many realize that the number before the W is for low temperature (i.e. start-up) performance and thus has the biggest affect on engine wear?

Personally, I wouldn't add penetrating oil to my engine oil. I'll stick with the oil company formulations, which are well researched. The hard part is to know which formulation to chose!

Spinney, I think the most important thing spoken here on this thread was the post about trying to prevent the gasoline storage problem. Personally I have a '29 Essex that endured a broken piston. Needless to say, the carburetor now has ethanol remnants in it, so that will need attention too during the rebuild. I usually burn that out after tours, and refill with non-ethy, but, well it wasn't running too good.

BillP, was that you standing on the Enterprise deck off the coast of Korea in February 1968? I was on that funny looking CVL with the antennae bristling out, the Arlington.

Wasn't the MMO stored right between the Line-A-Way Nontwist and the relative bearing grease? No spawning problems here either.

Bernie

Restorer 32,

The Google search which you suggested accesses the NTSB Full Narrative Report which discusses accident factors but does not list a probable cause. The accident occurred on September 03, 2002, and the Accident Probable Cause Report can be accessed at the NTSB site. If you're interested (I find this site to be extremely interesting), you can access the report by doing the following: Go to the NTSB site; click on the "Aviation Accident Database" button, which brings you to the "Accident Database & Synopses" page; click on "Monthly Lists", then scroll down to the accident date of 09/03/2002. Or, you can just click on this link:

http://www.ntsb.gov/aviationquery/brief.aspx?ev_id=20020916X01610&key=1

Note the NTSB's Probable Cause of the accident:

"The National Transportation Safety Board determines the probable cause(s) of this accident to be: The improper use of an fuel additive which resulted in a power loss. A factor was the lack of suitable terrain."

The NTSB cites the IMPROPER use of the fuel additive, Marvel Mystery Oil, not the actual use of MMO itself.

I don't use MMO very often, but do keep a can in the shop for odd jobs. I did use it one time years ago to free up a frozen Perkins 4-236 marine diesel, and it worked very well for that. Most of my friends use MMO and are very supportive of its use. I would NEVER use it as a fuel additive in an aircraft.

Cheers,

Grog

Personally, I wouldn't add penetrating oil to my engine oil. I'll stick with the oil company formulations, which are well researched. The hard part is to know which formulation to chose!

Again, speaking only for myself.

I think you miss the point. Most users seem to rely on it for bringing an engine back into service after an extended time of storage or neglect. To that end, it works well as a treatment used once or twice to unstick, decarbon or dissolve varnish on pistons, rings, valves, lifters, etc. I personally don't use it after the engine has been brought back to a reliable operating state. I also do not use it in my more modern daily drivers unless something develops that might be corrected with a treatment.

I have never been one to randomly use additives in the oil or gasoline except Sta-bil for gasoline storage. Most additives marketed do little except drive up the cost of maintenance and offer some folks a little peace of mind. A "placebo" of sorts. Just my opinion.

Rub some gasoline between your fingers and see how it feels.

That is why I add MMO to the gas in all my old cars.

I figure SOME lubricant to the valve stems, as little as it may be, is better than none.

If I could get it, I might use it to free stuck valves too. But not in the engine oil as some have suggested.

Why use MMO in the fuel, why not just a little light sticky engine oil? Or half and half ATF and acetone? Or two stroke oil? What is magic about this stuff? It is just a thinned oil with fat added. Not sure about the lubricity properties of fat or the pressures it can withstand as a lubricant. Or even how it burns in an engine.

Spinney, it works exactly like this special rock I have here on my desk. It was given to me by a tribal shaman from India who imbued it with an enchantment to prevent tiger attacks. Since receiving the rock, I have not been attacked by a tiger. Not even once! I'm a believer...

Yes, Mr. Top, that was me. That was a memorable trip. Knock off work in the calm, very hot & humid Tonkin Gulf and wake up next morning to a rolling deck and this boat is moving fast! Went out to the flight deck and it was real cold and nearly thirty US ships around us (and probably a few under us), all going north through the Straits of Japan at high speed, sampans roiling in our wakes.

This brief nautical memory was brought to you by the good folks at Marvel Oil Company. Have you had yours today?

Matt, I have one of those rocks but the shaman said that I needed more excitement in my life so the magic he used was to cause Tiger attacks. So far, nothing. As a test of this shaman's power, maybe we should swap rocks.

Bill, there were only 30? It looked like the whole 7th Fleet to me at 19 years old. We did a double on Yankee Station (56 days) and crossed the equator for R&R in Sidney early June, weather changes enough to crack your teeth.

Matt, I raffle those rocks every payday. 100 tickets from $0.01 to $1.00, you'll never risk more than a buck. That sales method might work with MMO.

Bernie

All of the above discussion makes it obvious why we never recommend nor recommend against any additives, leaving that decision entirely up to the car owner. Same reason we never venture even a guess as to what a car will be worth after restoration. It's a no win situation in either case.

All of the above discussion makes it obvious why we never recommend nor recommend against any additives, leaving that decision entirely up to the car owner. Same reason we never venture even a guess as to what a car will be worth after restoration. It's a no win situation in either case.

Like!

I've never owned a bottle of MMO, but I do own a John Deere swather with a Chrysler slant six and a very basic carburetor that tends to stick on rough ground no matter how many kits we put in it. I put about a half cup of engine oil in the tank every 2nd fill and it works fine. I suspect that the "benefits" being claimed are also the result of a small amount of lubrication in the gas. It's not enough to foul plugs and probably helps the valve guides as well.

Matt, I have one of those rocks but the shaman said that I needed more excitement in my life so the magic he used was to cause Tiger attacks. So far, nothing. As a test of this shaman's power, maybe we should swap rocks.

Maybe if you poured MMO on it...?

Now we have gone from a discussion of the perceived benefits of a fuel/oil additive to one of pouring it on your magic stones to see how tigers react. I bet bacon grease would get more attention from a tiger and that there would have to be powerful magic involved to save your stones.

Thats the Tiger in your tank,,,,Ben

And he's not lion either.

Regardless of what one's feelings are about the product, I for one was impressed by the stunning red, white, and black design that was used on their cans unchanged many years, dating back to at least 1931.

except now is in a plastic bottle

My car had a Marvel Mystery Inverse Oiler mounted to it when I got it. It was put on by the previous owner who was a mechanic. It is my understanding that the older engines were not that good at lubricating the top side of the engine and that is what this oil does. Whether added to the gas tank or dripped into the gas with an inverse oiler, it provides a little extra lubrication where the engines need it most. My car sat for 32 years and everything was free and it started right up. Was that the MMO or just luck, who knows. The first tank afterward I accidentally bumped the drip rate screw and I went through a quart in about 12 gallons. Smoked pretty good but I swear we did not have mosquitos in the neighborhood that summer. Now I go through a quart every few years and the car does not smoke unless I sit idling for a real long time, then one small puff.

These oilers were sensitive to the manifold vacuum,,

The higher the vacuum the less oil it fed,,hence the term inverse,,

Does anyone have the instruction sheet,or was it printed on the box

With the oils that got sludgie,,and varnish,as on the long stem

Packard valve,,I think it was a good idea,,Cheers,,Ben

Dad's '40 Cadillac had a MMO oiler on the fire wall.

Dad also used MMO in his flathead Fords (and all his other cars)

There was thinking that valves on the flathead engines neede the extra lube of MMO

I recently found the oldest bottle of Marvel Mystery Oil that I have ever seen. The one gallon bottle was manufactured by the Owens-Illinois Glass Company at the Clarksburg, WV plant in 1942. What is interesting is the Label on the bottle still has the old address which they moved out of in 1941. They may have continued to use the old labels because of "make do for the war effort", attitude. Printing new labels would have been wasteful.

[ATTACH=CONFIG]292945[/ATTACH]

I recently found the oldest bottle of Marvel Mystery Oil that I have ever seen. The one gallon bottle was manufactured by the Owens-Illinois Glass Company at the Clarksbug, WV plant in 1942. What is interesting is the Label on the bottle still has the old address which they moved out of in 1941. They may have continued to use the old labels because of "make do for the war effort", attitude. Printing new labels would have been wasteful.

I am thinking Mike and Frank would pay good money for that. Especially Frank.

Many products previously sold in tin cans, changed to glass bottles during WW2 in order to conserve metal for the war effort. Up until now I thought it was only food and grocery items but it seems MMO did their bit too.

Paper was in short supply too. It was almost as popular in scrap drives as metal and rubber.

you can add a few once of 2 stroke oil per tank

And he's not lion either.

Stop lyin' tiger

I use it in a Yamaha Roadstar M/C. This engine has the propensity to get sticky valves. Yamaha refuses to recall the engine. I swear it has kept my bike from going sour. Carry the small bottle in my saddlebag.

I use it in a Yamaha Roadstar M/C. This engine has the propensity to get sticky valves. Yamaha refuses to recall the engine. I swear it has kept my bike from going sour. Carry the small bottle in my saddlebag.

it's a wondrous concoction

it's Marvelous

I use it to free up stuck engines, or a can of automatic trans fluid.