play in, and potential earn from, a peculiar blind structure?

[Khern]

I've been playing the 3-blind, Luxor 1/1/2, $50 buy-in for a while. I'm starting to question both my basic strategy and the potential earn from the game.

Once you lose $1(have under $50) you can buy another $50. This gives you either an 18 blind starting stack or 36 blind starting stack if you count it as a $2.65 big blind. Some people quickly rebuy at $49, others don't. If you get stuck somewhere in the middle, say $65, then your stuck for a while.

It seems to me that this is done to maximise the straight 10%/$4 rake. I play the game because they use an odd series of promotions to basically pay the locals $11/hr for the first 15 hours of play in a given week.

The format is becoming increasingly frustrating as I've been playing more 2/5($500 max) lately. I'm starting to question the actual return from the game itself, and whether the additional money makes the effort competitive with the 2/5 game.(unfortunately, my records are rather poor.)

I've been considering different methods of play. A $10 opening raise seems appropriate given the total blinds, but it sometimes makes it difficult for anyone to call. I've considered raising any playable hand to $8 and taking it from there, and pushing any A from the BB or first small bllind after 3 limpers(on the initial $50 or less, that is). After a recent change in the promotion structure a loophole has appeared where every third weekend, you can get $30+/hr over 9 hours, or you can run a 9 day rotation for $20/hr over 21 hours. (Don't ask for details unless you seriously plan on doing it... I think they use an overly complex promotion structure as a barrier to entry...)

Oh, well, comments on the potetial earn on a format with a severe cap are appreciated.

Thanks,
John