I`d struggled with my late Fathers rather small prop balancer. The props I`m now using are generally between 13" and 18". Clearly a decent balancer was required. Choice is somewhat limited and prices are not so cheap. In the end I plumped for a Dubro unit which generally retails at about £36. Justin at Rapid RC knocked the price down by £3 probably due to the volume of mail order business I`ve pushed his way during this lockdown period and the inability to get over to Robs emporium. In any case Robs shop is closed for the duration but he has just started sending goods out via the economical and fairly quick My Hermes carrier.

So the Dubro balancer arrived next day and what a useful piece of kit it is. Every prop I own needed some work as a result of being placed on the Dubro unit. It is simple and straight forward to build up and use. Before use, you should level your working table to ensure utmost balancing accuracy. Yes, its not cheap but it is a precision tool. You get what you pay for.

This link is useful for ensuring you are fitting the correct size prop to any i/c engine. Its most useful. Prop Charts For Model Airplane Engines - Model Flight

Mike

I have six and a half available Ultra Stick examples in The Hangar presently. The half model is accounted for as its scratch built fuselage is a near copy of the kit version but is devoid of its own dedicated wing. It therefore shares one borrowed wing from one of the original Hangar 9 kits. Chosen as a flying engine test bed, my No 3 example is a genuine Horizon Hangar 9 example complete with its own genuine wing and has previously been fitted with servos fitted at the tail of the fuselage together with extra large fuel tankage. As originally built, I`d fitted an inverted, hardly used, ASP 1.08 two stroke glow motor bought at one of our Club auctions for just £15. Although constructed over a year ago, this No 3 air-frame has never been flown.

Two new to me, four stroke engines have arrived here over the last couple of days. Destined for a Seagull Bucker Jungmeister, it is a great lightly used condition pumped Yamada140FZ four stroke lump. What a cracking engine it is. Constructed in Japan, it looks like a cross between a motor bike and the contents of a Bentley car engine bay. Its a stunning piece of top level engineering which is built like a tank!  Also purchased was a cheap and cheerful SC120FS unit. Japan meets China! The SC looks like a Yugo when compared with the YS 140. I`m not sure where that SC120 is due to finish up, but it certainly fills a gap in my engine stock.

Last night saw the 1.08 two stroke torn off the front of No 3. I flipped the motor mount over 180 degrees and fitted a new throttle rod arrangement to suit the YS140. Space was very tight between the rear mounted carburettor and the bulkhead but a workable solution is now in place. Good enough for a Government job!

I need a suitable propeller before sorting the C of G position. The rear mounted servos will help with that. In the fuselage, apart from the throttle servo fitted towards the nose of the model, I have a free canvass on which to mount the receiver and probably a 2600NiMh to power the radio gear. The battery can if required be mounted right back against the rear bulk head. The receiver can go anywhere to get a C of G that is best placed on a central position between the fore and aft C of G markings. This model is pretty uncritical as regards the C of G so that is a bonus point for this type of air-frame. From my experience flying my electric No 1 air-frame, even at the aft limit, the model is still reasonably docile provided you keep up air speed on the landing approach. The docile nature of the Ultra Stick makes it a very versatile model generally with great potential to handle a variety of engines of differing weights.

The YS140 mounted in upright position on the Ultra Stick looks quite outrageous. The carb spray bar is well above the centre line of the fuel tank. With a normally aspirated non pumped engine, fuel flow issues would no doubt become apparent. That is not an issue with this pumped YS unit as a running motor produces a puff of air from the crank case on every fourth cycle stroke. A simple fuel pipe fitted with a non-return valve leads to the fuel tank to provide a pressurized flow of fuel to the carburettor. Its probably as close as you can get to having a fuel injected engine! It is not necessary to provide a pressure feed from the exhaust as is needed with a conventional two or four stroke set up.

Here are a few images of Ultra Stick No3 now fitted with the YS motor. All I need now is to find a spare receiver, a 2600NiMh battery, an exhaust and a 16x10 propeller to make the thing flyable. If anyone has any large (15-17 inch) high pitch (10-14 inch pitch) propellers they wish to sell, please let me know.

Mike

I`m in the market for a good, top quality, new or used, 120 or 150 four stroke motor. Does anyone have one they wish to sell?  (Date of this posting, 23/01/2020)

Please contact me if you have something suitable to sell.

Mike Kennedy 01883 625406

 

I couldn't find a specific price, but my estimate would probably be well north of £10,000, considering that a 7 cylinder OS radial sells for just under £5,000.

I've always gone by the principle that you don't empty your car tank when you finish your trip, and pilots don't empty a 172's tanks after a flight...

Discuss please? 

B  

My last cougar had a 36 and ran an 11x3 prop and could prop hang at 1/2 throttle, and my current cougar also has an 11x3, but yet I'm prophanging at full throttle with no reserve power. I don't think the engine is too small as I've seen the 35 pull up quite a few funfly planes vertically yet mine won't really go vertical at all.

Any suggestions as to what prop to go to? I considered a 12 but I don't want to over prop it. What difference would going down to a 10 make? Should I increase the pitch?

http://www.osengines.com/engines-airplane/osmg0545/index.html

OS say an 11x6 or 12x6 but is that what I want for a funfly plane?

cheers,

B  

Wow!

my tutor 40 trainer currently has a MDS 48 engine. 

I have been advised that these are not the best make to go for and so I am thinking of replacing it.

what I don't know is what is a suitable replacement engine.

i have tried google but it's not very helpful. Please could someone point me in the right direction without blinding me with science?

i was looking at Irvine 40 or 53 but can't find anywhere that has them in stock.

TIA

emma

Whilst flying my normally 100% fuss free wot trainer the engine cut, no biggie. On landing the engine was covered in black oil/gunk coming from the exhaust and cylinder head itself, and it won't re start. I'm bringing it up on Sunday, but any ideas until then?

B

Hey there,

I've only ever owned electric foamies in my RC life, but since I joined CAMFC, I've noticed that EVERYONE has gassers. For a while now, I've been thinking about getting one, but there's one big issue; they're dirty! There's always oil and fuel everywhere, and wherever you put the plane, some will drip down. This is bad for me as I live in a carpeted apartment with no garage, and fuel on the carpets is an absolute no-no.

What I really need is a clean setup. Something which is very closed up and won't drip everywhere. I don't know if this is determined my the engine type, engine quality, model type, cowling shape etc., but do you have any suggestions as to a good plane/engine combo for this? I'm a beginner- intermediate pilot, and have flown a gas trainer before so I'm not totally new to it, so while I don't want a huge 3D airframe, I also don't want a trainer. The wingspan has to be at least 1000mm, but no more than ≈1800mm (perhaps we could push 2000mm, ONLY if the wings can split into separate sections), and the wings must be removable.

Let me know if you've got any ideas. I'd be willing to take any suggestions

PS If there's a cub which suits the above requirements, I'd be more than happy to buy it immediately! I've wanted a cub for aaaaages

The recommended props for it are

10 x 6

10 x 7

11 x 6

12 x 7

I'm wondering which one is best for funfly?

Thanks

B

Anyone got an Idea? I have an 11x4 on it, and its quite revvy. A 12x4 has been suggested. Its on a 3D plane(Weston mini hype)

B

Has anyone got an idea for a prop for an APS 52. This is for a shoulder wing model(Ripmax Expression) http://www.modelflying.co.uk/reviews/product.asp?p=1421 and it would preferably have a bit of speed.

Thanks,

B

http://allrcflight.wordpress.com/2013/0 ... ne-safely/

Manual suggests 12x7, 12x7, 13x6, 13x7 but I've read mixed reports on RC Groups etc. about how well the engine performs on these with most suggesting that they are too much load - would be happy to hear all suggestions, esp. if backed up by experience! Perhaps an 11x7 or 11x8 might be good?

Cheers

After some digging I found that the main importer for the most common model 2/4 stroke engines into the UK is Just Engines who in turn gets supplied from a company called Sanye Precision Machinery based in China.

Having some spent some time out on the field, many members and modelers have a preference on what type of engine is best - ASP, RCV, SC, Evolution, OS, Irvine etc, and I suppose for the most part it's based on experience, the type of kit you fly with, available funds and personal choice.

From what I've seen, It's like they are all one in the same. Sayne appear to be branding engines depending on the distributor or the country It's being sent to. Super Custom, ASP, Magnum and Evolution engines appear to be made in the same factory, by the same robots and checked by the same people in one building thus, an SC .46 2-stroke is identical to an ASP .46 2-stroke. Also, from what I can tell, the Magnum XLS .46A is the exact same engine as the SC46A-S (Rear Needle). Furthermore, as OS recently bought out Irvine and are now also based in China - given that we appear to be in closed industry as far as engines are concerned, I wouldn't be at all surprised if some of their engines are also being made at the Sayne factory.

I later find via reading several online forums, engines of the same sizes across these brands (ASP, SC and Evolution etc), the carbs and heads appear to be interchangeable as the bores, ports, stroke, threads and fixings are identical. It has also been mentioned, as an example that the Irvine .46 and OS .46AX engines have the same bore and and stroke length hense, it would fit. The only difference being that Irvine has 6 head bolts, rather than OS's 4 head bolts.

This appears to makes sense because when the high speed needle was replaced in my SC engine, it was with an needle out of a .46 sized ASP engine. Perfect fit! So, does anyone else have have any experience or knowledge of this?? I'm curious now because unless you want a Saito or Irvine/OS - to my mind, you might as well just find the cheapest deal on whatever "brands" there are available ...

Shane

Propeller is a Graupner 13x7. Fuel is 15% nitro, 20% synthetic oil from Souther model craft.

I've followed the (extensive) run-in procedures to the letter, but in a nutshell I can't seem to get a nice reliable low-speed idle. The best I can manage is something that stutters and coughs, occasionally resulting in the engine backfiring and restarting backward!

I took a video of it showing speed through the range, effect of quick throttle change. At end of video (around 25 seconds in) you can see what happens when I close the throttle and let it idle ... not good.

Any advice where to go from here? I haven't touched the low-end needle at this point as was my understanding that is was fairly well set at factory. High-speed needle is open 3.5 turns which (with my unreliable tacho) gives my an RPM of around 9500.

Here is the video!

https://vimeo.com/63751899

Thanks in advance.

The high speed needle wouldn't fully shut off the fuel into the carb even when it was fully closed and as a result you could never properly tune the engine - always being far too rich or lean, often changing in mid flight!!!

Today, the high speed needle has been replaced and it has completely resolved the problem in its entirity. More power at the top end, more revs, more reliable performace (much to the neighbours pleasure .. ) with its optimum setting at about 3/4 of a turn from fully closed - exactly where I'd expect it to be.

If you have an SC series engine in your plane and are having problems like this, try replacing the high speed needle with one that has a slightly longer taper. It seems that some 2 stroke Super Custom engines are being suppied with the incorrect high speed needles or a 4 stroke needle as in my case. It seems to be a quality control problem at the factory where there made ...

Shane

I've tried putting solder wire and silicon wore inside the tube, and am using a proper bending tool. Sure I didn't have this issue last time...

So what is the normal approach with models setup like this - is it just a case of trying to get a finger inside the cowl, or do you just avoid priming and flick it over more etc. What are the tricks? Maybe you can close the needle valve all the way?

Same apparent problem applies on a Magnatilla I picked up cheaply on BMFA with a Saito 45 ...

[attachment=0]photo 2.JPG[/attachment]

Cheers

Arun

In the past with model cars I've always been quite particular about breaking in engines, running several tanks, no full throttle until the 2nd-3rd tank, let the engine run and cool in cycles up to maybe 5-6 tanks then finally, lots of fuel later change the glow plug then use it as I wished.

The reason why I'm asking is because this ritual seems now a little bit excessive and the details I can find seem very vague and about I'm wondering if it may be better (and cheaper!) to break in a couple of tanks instead, run it ritch, make sure its not overheating, ensure it idles OK then get it in the air! Is that advisable?

Seems there are a variety of other manifolds you can get at various angles, but presumably others have hit this problem before me - what tends to work best for side mounted four strokes to get the muffler in a sensible position without having too much effect on engine performance?

[attachment=0]photo (2).JPG[/attachment]

Thanks

I'm planning to test the following:

Graupner G-sonics recommended by Dave Wilshere (Motors & Rotors) - apparently this range loads up very differently to APC props. The suggested pitches are:

13x8

14x7

I also have an APC 14x4 wide - a few people seem to have had success with this.

Those of you that have run the Saito in the past - what props have you used?

I've managed over tighten the bung in my fuel tank and it developed a leak into the surrounding bay.

Rookie mistake I know

As they say success is built on a series of mistakes so it got me thinking about fuel proofing.

Just wanted to get an idea what other people do , I read about some proofing on the web , was also thinking about somethink I could lay in the bay like nitrile matting ?

What are your top tips ?

Ps thanks for all the help and advice getting the engine going yesterday

Cheers

Graham