I had a strong gas smell from the oil when I change it. I read that the leading cause is leaving the fuel shutoff valve open in storage. So I changed the oil and made sure to always close the valve. After a few cuttings, I have a gas smell again in the oil which is translucent brown, not black. So I am wondering what the second leading cause of gas in oil? Here are my observations:
The engine has 1000 hrs on it
Two, maybe three years ago one of the pushrods bent like a hockey stick. Don't know what caused that, the valve moved freely and hasn't reoccured.
The compression is 100 psi in one cylinder and 90 psi in the other. The manual says 57psi and that higher readings could be from carbon buildup.
Under no load, the engine runs fine on the 100 psi cylinder only and runs poorly on the 90 psi cylinder only.
Sparkplugs from both cylinders look normal, dry with no oil or other deposits.
Any suggestions on what to look at would be great. I'll probably change the oil and adjust the valves in the meantime.
