http://www.immrace.com/

If you look at the banner that scrolls across near the top, they are advertising methanol drums for $110. I am assuming that it's a 55 gallon drum, so that works out to $2/gal, which is just about the cheapest I've seen it ANYWHERE lately. All of the mail order stuff I've seen is closer to $8 to $10/gal once you add in S&H and hazmat fees

I have an email in to the track to confirm that it's $110 for a 55 gallon drum. They are only about 45 minutes away from me so it would be real easy to drive the truck out there one day and haul a drum home.

A few questions:
Obviously, methanol is highly flammable. I have some reservations about storing 55 gallons of it in my garage. How safe are these containers? During the hurricanes last summer I stored 30-40 gallons of gasoline in 5 to 10 gallon containers for weeks without a problem (we were out of power for about a week, so I stocked up on fuel for the generator).

How long will 5 gallons of methanol last? FWIW I drive my car several times a week and like to hit the boost almost all the time. I guess I don't want to buy 55 gallons of it if I only need maybe 10 gallons every 3 months or so. Do you guys generally go through about a gallon every week or so?

Will methanol destabilize like gasoline and become useless after a period of time?

Would much rather buy it by the gallon and store 10-20 gallons in the garage, but I've been unsuccessful in locating a place that will sell it by the gallon anywhere near here.

 

find a dirt track shop in your area. most of them sell methanol by the gallon.

 

Dirt track shop? You mean like ATVs and bikes and stuff like that?

 

According the the folks at VP Racing, methanol can be kept for an indefinite period of time as long as it's in a sealed container.
I have noticed evaporation over a month in my WW bottle but it still appears to function fine.

 

no dirt track as in circle track auto racing.

 

I'm wondering if you could also get the meth from a hobby shop. Don't those little RC cars run meth?

Mark

 

hobby stores are expensive. dirt track shops are much cheaper.

 

Go to you local drag strip..

Its 2 bucks a gallon here..

I was filling up washer fuild containers there. and I asked the guy running the pump if that was OK.. (washerfluild is 50% methonol anyway)

He said..

"sh*t.. once it leaves here you can drink it for all I care"

 

Too funny!

 

I get it for around 2.25 a gallon at a local speed shop. I would not mind a 55 gallon drum. Stuff works good cleaning parts too...lol. Let us know how it works out for your Tony.

 

i worked at an air products plant in pace fl nw fl area . they make meth. an when a single drum was sold law was notifide. seems they use this stuff for some crystal stuff like just know law may stop by, if u buy...they busted some labs . doing this...

 

No worries, I am a law abiding citizen... unless the guys who check out who buys drums of methanol are the same guys who watch for traffic violations, in which case...

 

I found methanol for $5/gal not far from where I live (maybe 20 minutes). Guess I'll give that a shot and see how much meth I use and determine if I should buy a drum or not.

 

I'll fill you guys in on a little secret.

You can buy meth at Wal-Mart (or any auto parts store). It comes in a little yellow bottle called HEET (for fuel stabilization/anti freeze in the winter).

It is pure meth. Sells for about .59 per 12oz bottle. It is a bit more expensive this way, but I can never justify keeping gallons around the garage. The convenience is worth it.

I just pull into wal-mart and fill up.

Been doing this for 2 years now.

 

If you go through a gallon a week on your street driven car you need to see a doctor about those horrible cramps you obviously get in your right foot from mashing the pedal all of the time!

 

I do this as well, it works out to $4.72 / gal. Yeah, you pay a little more, but there's always a Wal-mart around and those little bottles are safe and easy to store. You can buy Heet at many gas stations or any auto parts store. I always leave a bottle in the car in case of an emergency!

 

I bet the guys who distribute HEET are trying to figure out why there sales are suddenly going through the roof.

I purchased 20 bottles one time.

 

Being in Florida where things rarely freeze, I wonder how available this stuff is... I'll check NAPA and Walmart later today.

 

The stuff for my RC Nitro truck is 20% Nitro Methanol, 12% Synthetic oil, 2% Castor Oil, and the balance is methanol, ethanol, and stabilzers. It would definately cool the intake charge, but may induce other issues due to the oils. I do not know enough about it to make an educated guess on how it would work in a 4 cycle V-8. My LST Truck operates in a 2 cycle mode similar to a 2 cycle diesel motor (runs off a glow plug).

On a side note, how come is the FI group moving towards alky instead of running a <35hp shot of N20? This would cool very well too, or is it a space/cost issue?

 

n20 is an accelerant, meth is a fuel. n20 is all about getting more o2 into the comubstion process, meth is more about stabalizing the combustion process. People tend to think it is all about cooling IATs, but that is really not why it works so well.