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Tractor Talk Discussion Forum

Marvel Mystery Oil

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Steve Roush

11-02-2004 07:21:12




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Saw some discussions about Oil of Wintergreen and MMO. Thought you might like this post from a Model T forum I read occasionally.. Ties the whole thing together..and i love the MMO also!

Story about Marvel Mystery Oil: During the summer of 2000 we were cruising through the Central Adirondacks of New York State in our mostly original '23 Touring. We stopped for gas at a local station, and a gentleman who appeared to be about 80 yrs old, in coveralls, came out to the pumps. I noticed he had a thick New York City accent. He admired the T, and we talked about old Fords for a few minutes. I finished gassing up, and topped off the tank with a 4 oz. baby-jar full of MMO. He said, "Why do you use that stuff?" I replied, I'd been using it(I'm 53 yrs old) for over 30 yrs in all my flathead V-8s, Model As and Ts, good upper cyl lube, etc, etc. He said, "I'll tell you a story: During the Depression, when I was in high school, I worked as a mechanic in a sewing shop in the Garment District in NYC. Those old sewing machines had visible oilers on top, and when it got hot the oil would stink, and the ladies who ran the machines would complain. The owner, whose name was Marvel, (pronounced Mar-VELL) told me to go down a few doors to the candy factory-I think it was a 'LifeSaver' type candy- and get a couple of gallons of Oil of Wintergreen and some food coloring. We mixed it with the 10 wt. sewing machine oil to make it less offensive to the ladies. It became popular with the other shops, and Marvel made more money with that oil, than with the sewing. Whenever anyone asked what was in the oil, Marvel said, 'Don't ask... It's a MYSTERY!' and that's how the name came about!"

Just thought you may be interested..NO, I am not a rep, for MMO..just an old guy who likes old cars and tractors...stuck in the 60's with an old XKE, Ford 3000, and a 31 Model A. Cheers

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Nolan

11-04-2004 03:18:22




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 Re: Marvel Mystery Oil in reply to Steve Roush, 11-02-2004 07:21:12  
Cute story. May have once been true, but not today. MMO is simply a mixture of 30% stodard solvent and 70% naptha.



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Red Dave

11-04-2004 07:03:26




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 Re: Marvel Mystery Oil in reply to Nolan, 11-04-2004 03:18:22  
You may be right. The MSDS lists as ingredients:

MINERAL SPIRITS cas# 64742-88-7, 30.00%

NAPTHENIC BASE OIL DISTILLATE cas# 64742-34-3, 67.00%

Doesn't account for the missing 3%, probably the oderant.



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Steve Roush

11-04-2004 05:44:37




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 Naphtha in reply to Nolan, 11-04-2004 03:18:22  
Is the naphtha what gives it that smell?



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Mark - IN.

11-02-2004 21:16:59




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 Re: Marvel Mystery Oil in reply to Steve Roush, 11-02-2004 07:21:12  
I honestly used to put a few drops down the barrels of my M16's whenever had to go out to the range and qualify when was in the Army. I had this theory that it would make the barrels easier to clean afterwards. Every few rounds, a few drops down the barrel. Don't know if it really worked or not, but had the only rifles out on the range smokin', burnin', and belching fire. Probably lucky I didn't explode a barrel. Today I only use it in neumatic tools.

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Rockin' Farmer

11-02-2004 18:19:14




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 Re: Marvel Mystery Oil in reply to Steve Roush, 11-02-2004 07:21:12  
Never used the stuff. When I was little I remember dad telling me about the time he put MMO in the oil injection in his 2 stroke Yamaha motorcycle, thinking it was the real deal. Made it less than a mile and the engine froze up solid at 50 MPH. Always said the "mystery" was why anyone would put that stuff in anything.

.02

Rockin' Farmer



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sod

11-03-2004 10:24:19




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 Re: Marvel Mystery Oil in reply to Rockin' Farmer, 11-02-2004 18:19:14  
It froze up because it's not injector oil... put it in the gas.
good luck
sod



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Phil Tibbetts

11-02-2004 16:29:33




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 Re: Marvel Mystery Oil in reply to Steve Roush, 11-02-2004 07:21:12  
This stuff is fantastic. I used it in my 1947 Champ airplane to help lubricate the valves for years. When I sold it I told the buyer to use it...he didn"t and froze up the valves. You see the old engines were made to run with leaded aviation gas, and when it became legal to use auto gas the auto gas soon was made without lead, so something was needed to lube the valves. I also use it in my 4 cycle power units as it seems to prevent the corrosive effect of the gas setting, and as a lube for air tools.

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Ray,IN

11-02-2004 20:25:59




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 Re: Marvel Mystery Oil in reply to Phil Tibbetts, 11-02-2004 16:29:33  
Tetra-ethyl lead was never used to lubricate the valve or protect the valve seats. It was used to raise the octane of gasoline. A search of the subject will discover the technical articles. I tried MMO in my diesel truck once as suggested by others. When my engine began to appear to need a tune-up I took it to a Cummins repair center. The injectors were gummed up and required cleaning. I said I was adding lubrication and received this reply: "Cummins engines are already certified to run on ultra-low sulfur diesel fuel and require no additives."

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Dean Barker

11-02-2004 15:52:11




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 Re: Marvel Mystery Oil in reply to Steve Roush, 11-02-2004 07:21:12  
Back in 1954, we purchased a new 1953 DC Case which the dealer updated with factory aluminum pistons and oversize sleeves. It was our "big" tractor which we used in the winter to grind feed and move snow. It had a cast iron oil filler cap for the crankcase which got all covered with rust on the inside from the condensation. The second winter, I added a quart of MMO to the crankcase along with the regular 10W oil. One of the differences I noticed was that the cast iron oil filler cap did not get rusty at all with the MMO. It seemed to coat everything so it didn't rust.

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sammy the RED

11-02-2004 14:55:09




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 Re: Marvel Mystery Oil in reply to Steve Roush, 11-02-2004 07:21:12  
Use it all the time.
In the gas and oil on all my air cooled 4 cycle motors.



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Kevin (FL)

11-02-2004 09:30:44




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 Re: Marvel Mystery Oil in reply to Steve Roush, 11-02-2004 07:21:12  
In all our air cooled engines (lawnmowers, air compressors, generators, go karts), we add a small amount of outboard motor oil to each tank full. Figure it won't hurt the valves and upper end parts since we're using unleaded gas. One of our portable air compressors (used mostly for light sandblasting) is a 10 HP B&S over 20 years old and it has quite a lot of time on it. Still runs like a new one. We also use OB motor oil in our Cub tractors too. Marvel oil is used in all our air tools and also used as soaking oil in stuck engines.

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Cosmo

11-02-2004 08:17:31




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 Re: Marvel Mystery Oil in reply to Steve Roush, 11-02-2004 07:21:12  
About five years ago I had a couple of valves sticking in my MF35. when I finally freed them up I began adding a couple of ounces every time I gassed up. I also substitute one quart at oil change with MMO. No more problems with valves. Coincidence? Maybe. Cosmo



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