We were recently sent some of Optifuels new Super SLV 30% mix to give it a good testing and see what the verdict was, First and foremost we would like to thank Andy from Optifuel for providing the fuel for the test and secondly to Grant Cooper for testing it for us, cheers mate :)

The testing was set to take place at the Park Hall Helicopter Club last weekend when they were holding there anual fun fly so at this point ill hand over to Grant, This is what he thought about this new “super fuel”…………………….

              I tried to gather as much information about this new “super fuel” before I did any testing so i knew what I should expect.  This new fuel contains newly developed oil’s created by Klotz specifically for Optifuel. With a lower viscosity to allow smoother, faster delivery of fuel through the engine, this fuel should, in theory should give increased throttle response throughout the entire rev range and higher power where it’s needed!

I don’t believe hype, So I’ve been pretty sceptical about this new fuel. I was told i should notice a major difference during 3D with absolutely no needle changes from standard optifuel 30%  we shall see..

Testing – TT Redline 53 engine – T rex 600n

After flushing out all the remains of previous fuel I started the engine and immediately noticed a slightly smoother idle without any major fluctuation in Idle speeds.

On spooling up, the change was even and smooth throughout the transitions. Normally with the Redline engine I get a little bit of spluttering during the transition from low to high speed so signs were looking good.

I run my t rex 600’s head speed fairly high, around 2200rpm in idle up. In general  sports flying and mild 3D it performed very similar to the standard optifuel 30%, producing good power throughout the range. Its not until you start really putting some load on the engine the differences become clear…

This is where the fuel really comes to life! I was trying to bog the engine as much as possible by repeated aileron tic-tocs.  Normal fuels begin to bog down here, and when you keep on the power without giving the engine time to breath it just keeps on bogging down.  

Optifuel SLV is a whole new beast here…  When the engine begins to bog down  it just stays on the power. You hear the RPM drop slightly, and it just refuses to budge. No amount of pitch would bog the engine speed too low. :-)

As soon as you let off the pitch, the engine revs recover incredibly quickly allowing pitch reversals almost instantly without worry.

The Verdict

Optifuel SLV is a big advancement forward for 3D pilots. Giving more power, and most importantly incredible performance under load due it’s greatly improved throttle response.

 Is it worth the extra £4 per bottle? If your a general sports pilot who doesn’t try and tune your engine to the absolute max I would say no, stick with Optimix 30%/20%. If your a 3D pilot looking for that that extra power then this is definitely worth it!

Grant Cooper. www.robochallenge.co.uk