Which octane fuel for a 86 VT500? Plus bonus fuel question

[Offday]

I work in the oil industry and I've been making fuel for over 23 years now.
Octane is, yes a detonation inhibitor but don't confuse what that means.
Higher octane fuels are used in engines with higher compression because
It is able to withstand the higher compression pressures without detonation.
Lower octane fuel will pre detonate in a high compression engine.
Which means the force of compression alone can light it before the
Spark plugs fire.
Lower compression engines don't have the compression force to ignite
The fuel before the spark plug fires it off.
So running high octane fuel in a low compression engine will not
Inhibit performance. But. The higher octane fuel will in fact burn more
efficiently. And burn cleaner with less carbon build up.
Remember. Cars today are run by computers. The have a laundry list
Of sensors regulating your engine timing curve, air flow intake temperature.
and exhaust gas 02 just to effectively burn the gas you get today.
Everyone is probably familiar with the term EGR (exhaust gas re-circulation)
Yes it's sole purpose is to run unburned fuel in your exhaust back through the engine.
That's because it doesn't burn efficiently.

High octane isn't more refined. All gas is made from blend stock. Its the ratio of components used to make a particular grade of fuel. And the additives used to make
fuel efficient and meet government clean air regulations. There's regional blends. Seasonal blends. You never see of at the pump. All you see is the octane rating.
And more alcohol (ethanol) is being added all the time
Some companies more than others.
The gasoline of today doesn't even come close to the gasoline
Of yesteryear. The fact your motorcycle or car is made to run on
"Regular" gas is a marketing tool. Nobody thinks they're saving
Money if they "have" to use premium.
Yes its made to run regular. Or be satisfied burning regular.
It has all the computer aided technology to do it.
Bikes for the most part don't.
Will you get more bang for your Buck running premium if you can
Get by on regular. No. Not in any noticeable amount.
Your bike doesn't have the compression to take advantage of it.
Will premium burn cleaner and leave less carbon residue in your
Engine? You bet.
The "premium" of today is about equal to the regular gas that was available
in the 70's
The gas made today, because of government regulations is all
Crap. Case in point. I have a 66 Ford big block running dual carbs
11.5 to 1 compression putting out close to 500 HP.
It was built to run on pump gas (30 years ago) it's been gone
through a few times since. But now "pump gas" requires me
To run octane boost designed for off-road racing and not
legal for street use just to make her run like she's supposed to.

You can run whatever gas you want. But if my only choice
At the pump is crap, for the extra few cents I'm going to
At least buy the best crap. So I run premium.