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RE: Warning: RCGF 45 Owners!
Is there any kind of a V2 hub exchange program for the old hubs? I just purchased a V1 45cc engine from a BPH dealer local to me. It's got the old hub and I'm not interested in running a dangerous engine.
Posted on: 9/27/2011 8:28 AM by Author "umd pru"
in the forum "Gas Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10736484
RE: RCGF Engines
[quote]If carb has more than 3/8'' clearance, it's a non-issue for small gassies. Cutting a hole to firewall to add clearance is also a non-issue as far as firewall strength goes, so take your pick [/quote] Ok. I guess I had about a 1/4" of clearance on my PT-19 installation so I drilled a 1" hole clear through the firewall. I've heard these rear-carb engines can spray some fuel out the carbs into the plane while running. Is that true?
Posted on: 9/23/2011 10:55 AM by Author "umd pru"
in the forum "Gas Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10730606
RE: RCGF Engines
raydar is correct. the ignitions fire ONCE when the power is first switched on. Capt, I am also sure it's a function of the residual power left in any capacitors because I switched on an ignition that hadn't been powered up in a month or so and it didn't fire off. I cycled the power and it fired when power was turned on. I don't IN ANY WAY find this to be a major issue or affect the running of the engine. I just thought it was peculiar as I hadn't noticed it before. I also suppose that in some freak accident, there could be a chage in the combustion chamber with the cylinder at TDC when power is applied and the engine could come to life. Like I said, only in a freak scenario. If it can be fixed, that would be great. In other news, I ran my 20cc on my PT-19 for about 20 minutes in accordance with the break-in procedures in the manual. I'm hoping to fly it this weekend. So far so good as she idles really good and has good transition. I don't yet know about the top end because I haven't adjusted the needles yet and I probably won't tweak them out until she's broken in more. Are you guys with the rear-carb woes putting in holes in the firewall directly behind the carb intake? I've heard that not having adequate clearance for the air intake can really hurt performance. I've added a 1 inch hole behind the carb intake on both of my 20cc rear-carb installations.
Posted on: 9/23/2011 7:08 AM by Author "umd pru"
in the forum "Gas Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10730327
RE: RCGF Engines
gregg, I appreciate the offer. Perhaps I'll send them back in a few months after the flying season is over. I am just finishing up re-engineing this PT-19 and I'd like to fly it for a while. The same goes for the 1/4 scale cub that's getting the other 20cc. I'll likely just send them both in at the same time. Both ignitions have the serial number stickers still on them too. Thanks for getting back to me about this. I am concerned, though, that raydar his (her for all I know [:)]) reported his ignitions doing the same things... The bottom line, for me anyways, is that I will establish a routine (with all of my gas eninges) that the ignition doesn't get turned on until I'm ready to flip which means myself and everyone else is out of harms way.
Posted on: 9/22/2011 2:39 PM by Author "umd pru"
in the forum "Gas Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10729411
RE: RCGF Engines
gregg, I am using a 4.8V battery pack. It's also NOT freshly charged. Both of the ignition modules I have for my two 20cc engines do this. The interesting this is the second ignition hasn't been powered up in about a month. I plugged it in and it didn't discharged. I unplugged it and then plugged it back in and it discharged and continued to do so on subsequest de-mate/mate cycles. What should I do about this ignitions? They were both purchased within the year. The first one this past summer and the second one about a month and half ago. Both were purchased at Hanson Hobbies in Hanson, MA. I believe they are a BP dealer as they carry some of your electric gear too. It doesn't bother me as I am always careful when I start it, I'd just be worried about the one time I do forget, and the cylinder is sitting just after TDC (where it could still combust) and she pops and starts. I seem to recall another manufacturers engine doing this and they put out a warning?? I can't recall who it was. About the 20cc not priming, it stopped raining for a bit so I went outside and I got the carb diaphram wet and she fired right up. Hopefully she keeps running this way.
Posted on: 9/22/2011 11:45 AM by Author "umd pru"
in the forum "Gas Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10729154
RE: RCGF Engines
It's a rear carb. I'll try that priming method once I can get back outside. It's raining now. Also, I noticed that the ignitions discharges (spark plug sparks) when the switch is turned on on the ignition. This happens regardless whether or not the magnet is under the sensor. It will do it with the magnet 180º away from the sensor. This seems to be a big safety issue! Do I have a faulty ignition?
Posted on: 9/22/2011 10:58 AM by Author "umd pru"
in the forum "Gas Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10729069
RE: RCGF Engines
Ok guys, and gringo especially! I just finished installation of a new RCGF 20cc in a Dynaflite PT-19 yesterday. I tried to start it and it absolutely WILL NOT draw fuel to the carb. I even tried pressurizing the fuel tank by blowing air into the vent line. Fuel goes right up to the carb inlet and doesn't go any further. I primed the engine via the spark plug hole and the engine roared to life for about a second then died down. Please tell me how I should go about priming the carb. I used an electric starter too and absolutely nothing would get that carb to draw fuel.
Posted on: 9/22/2011 9:19 AM by Author "umd pru"
in the forum "Gas Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10728912
RE: Hostetler Stinson SR 10 Build - 2008
hello, I noticed that you seemed to be doing the Dolittle SR-10 scheme. I am going to be starting a Top Flite Stinson kit soon and I also would like to do the Dolittle SR-10 version. I am looking for the shell logo on the side of the fuselage. It seems it's pretty tough to locate a representative graphic from which to create a decal. Thanks!
Posted on: 9/19/2011 7:24 AM by Author "umd pru"
in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10723866
RE: RCGF Engines
Capt, I'm looking for a suitable engine for a top flite stinson kit I will be starting soon. Recommended gas engine range is 28-35cc however reviews have stated a bigger engine is warranted if you are adding lots of scale detail or covering with fabric and painting. the 45cc engine was the right price and more than big enough although I'm sure I could easily make due with a32 cc. Plus the 45cc would be a tight fit. That 40cc Twin will be the perfect engine with two 20cc jugs! I'm VERY curious on pricing and availability. I'd like to put my name at the top of the"waiting" list [:)]
Posted on: 9/19/2011 4:04 AM by Author "umd pru"
in the forum "Gas Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10723094
RE: RCGF Engines
I'll beta test for you [:D]. I have a 1/4 scale Sopwith Baby with an Enya VT-240 in it that I've been looking to re-engine due to the Enya's collector's status [:D]
Posted on: 9/19/2011 4:00 AM by Author "umd pru"
in the forum "Gas Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10723628
RE: Club Enya
FWIW, There is an ENYA VT-240 along with LOTS of parts for sale in the classifieds on RCGroups for $850.00. I'd snap that up if I had the cash on hand! Would love to see it go to an Enya lover! You don't know what you are missing if you've never heard a VT-240 run with your own ears.
Posted on: 9/19/2011 3:58 AM by Author "umd pru"
in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10723625
RE: RCGF Engines
Gringo, Any idea on pricing for that 40cc twin? I might hold off on getting an engine. I actually placed an order for a 45cc today but emailed to cancel it because I think that 45cc is just too much engine. I was looking at the 32cc but I think that's not enough. I was looking for something 38ccish and that twin 40cc looks absolutely awesome! Captmicom, what is your website?
Posted on: 9/16/2011 2:11 PM by Author "umd pru"
in the forum "Gas Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10719891
RE: RCGF Engines
I just recently purchased a pitts style muffler for my RCGF 20cc and I was a bit disappointed that the muffler increased the length of the overall engine by over 1/4in. requiring me to modify my firewall. It seems to me that a muffler with a bit smaller can could have been used. Also, the muffler and the lower cylinder fins on the rear of the cylinder make contact and won't allow the muffler to fully seal on the gaskey. This was easily fixed with a file, though, but should have been avoided in the first place. I own two 20cc engines, though, and I have broken one in already. The other one is being installed on an airframe. So far, I'm pretty happy considering what I paid for these engines. They were on clearance from the dealer I bought them from! I'm now looking at buying a 45cc engine to put into a Top Flight Stinson SR-9 I will be building soon. Was hoping to get the rear intake but it's out of stock, so now I'm looking at the side intake which is still in stock at BPH. The problem is it's width. It looks like its going to stick out of the cowl a bit which is probably ok because the rear intake is a bit too long and would have required some firewall re-engineering. I hope my second 20cc and the 45cc engine I will be buying are as good as the first 20cc I have. Keeping my fingers crossed!
Posted on: 9/16/2011 5:00 AM by Author "umd pru"
in the forum "Gas Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10719169
RE: Club Enya
Boy, that's one gnarly exhaust. What does the plane look like??? [:D][:)]
Posted on: 7/25/2011 7:36 AM by Author "umd pru"
in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10637845
RE: Club Enya
the left cylinder from the pilots point of view or from the viewers point of view? Port or Starboard? I believe you are talking about the cylinder with the obviously higher amount of smoke lol. come to think of it, I did not even adjust the needle valves during that run. I've found adjusting the needle valves to be difficult as I can't easily distinguish between the two cylinders. I'm going to be sure to try again before I fly her this weekend.
Posted on: 7/8/2011 8:02 AM by Author "umd pru"
in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10611712
RE: Club Enya
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=q1G9AN5681k[/youtube] Here is my Enya in the plane after I installed the new cylinder head and on-board glow system. I still get some funky stuff from one cylinder or the other but I attribute that to the "Y" fuel feed system supplied with the engine. As you can see, the engine runs and accelerates nicely! [quote]Will the Enya VT 240 pull a 13-14.5 Airplane with authority? The plane is a Great Planes Giant Super Sportster. Also where do you get rebuild parts? [/quote] Uh, yeah. My Sopwith Baby about 20-22 lbs ( I can't remember exactly) and the VT-240 hauls it's draggy butt around with authority! Take-off is easily at 1/2-2/3 throttle. I got my parts from Enya directly in Japan by emailing Ken Enya at info@enya-engine.com. His responses were nearly immediate and I can say that dealing with them was an A+_ experience! He even did a custom payment for me via paypal, howeve, he will accept payment directly through the website via credit card. I may pick up some more spare parts soon just to have on hand!
Posted on: 7/7/2011 6:47 AM by Author "umd pru"
in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10609934
RE: Club Enya
I've thought about that. I can't honestly explain what is going on. In operation on the airplane, the carbs are within a cowling that is open on the bottom. They sit about a foot off of the ground. I don't really think what did the damage came from the environment. If something were loose in the engine, I don't think it would find it's way into the combustion chamber either. I think something in the crank case would go out the breather vents.
Posted on: 7/1/2011 3:31 PM by Author "umd pru"
in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10601854
RE: Club Enya
I can report that my Enya VT-240 is in good health once more! I just got done running it and she ticked over at 1700 with no glow on and even lower with it with near instant acceleration to full throttle! I couldn't get below 3500 before without dropping the bad cylinder and with glow it would "run" quite low, however, the engine simply had ZERO acceleration and would quit if you weren't gentle with her. Now she's back to her former 3.2HP powerful self! I can't wait to get the Sopwith Baby back in the air! Maybe tomorrow!
Posted on: 7/1/2011 8:03 AM by Author "umd pru"
in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10601285
RE: Club Enya
well, good news and bad news. The good news is I got the cylinder head changed out and got some REAL good close ups of the damaged head. The bad news is, in my rush to get the head swapped, I completely forgot the leak test. Check out the pictures. You can clearly see up to three nicks right across the valve seat on the one valve seal.
Posted on: 6/30/2011 7:06 PM by Author "umd pru"
in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10600611
RE: Club Enya
I received my parts yesterday from Ken Enya. One brand spanking new cylinder head, one valve, one piston ring (for spare) and 4 new crankcase gaskets. For now, I'm going to remove the cylinder head and valve and replace them with new parts. I'll monkey around with it later. I'll post up some pictures of the offending head when I get it all apart. What kind of compound would you recommend if not automotive valve lapping compound? I realize it wouldn't take much to get the job done. I've read that toothpaste acts as a VERY mild abrasive and will clean the seal up. Also, I wouldn't use cigarette ash as I don't smoke. I'm going to perform a leak test on the suspect valve before deciding on anything though.
Posted on: 6/30/2011 10:17 AM by Author "umd pru"
in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10599929
RE: Club Enya
Thanks for the insight gentlemen. My VT-240 is a VERY low time engine. I'd estimate a MAXIMUM of 20 hours of run time so it's not a matter of the valve/seat being worn out. Something either went through the engine or the defect has been there since it was manufacutured. The head on the VT-240 is NOT the same head as on the 120 engines due to the intake manifold geometry and design. both heads on the VT-240 are identical and interchangable and both valves are interchangable. I took apart a friends Enya 120 on Wednesday and found the intake valve is bigger than the exhaust valve as is usually the case. My VT-240 needs a new cylinder head because I felt that the nick in the valve seat wouldn't be repairable. It's a VERY VERY small nick but one which crosses the seat boundary and **could** allow for a bad compression seal. I don't have any means of measuring the compression, however, I can tell you that the cylinder with the nicked seat head skips badly at idle but it still runs fine at higher throttle settings. Another data point is the exhaust manifold temperature is higher on the nicked seat head than on the other head. My father, who has been in aviation all his life, told me that higher exhaust gas temperatures on a particular cylinder usually indicates an exhaust valve problem. Now, the difference is small - the bad cylinder runs about 20-30 ºF hotter than the other good cylinder and it still runs and produces good power at mid-high throttle which leads me to believe that it would be worth while to attempt to lap the valve seat with some compound before turning this cylinder head into an office desk decoration. I'm going to get some regular automotive valve lapping comound at autozone and attempt to lapp this sucker in by hand. It can't hurt at this point. Ken Enya processed my order last night and a new cylinder head is winging it's way eastward (or westward? I don't know). The valves in the VT-240 DO have slots in them such that a screw driver could be used to rotate them. I was considering that approach but was apprehensive about damaging these small - and seemingly fragile - valves. I really like the fuel tubing/dremel idea and will probably go with that. [quote]If the cylinder with the nicked valve seat isn't obviously less powerful than the other cylinder, then you are worrying for naught. Just fly it and don't worry about it. [/quote] I'd love to just forget about it and fly it, however, I HATE having an engine that is not 100%. I've flown my fair share of A/C with finicky engines and I was never able to completely trust the engine and enjoy the airplane. [quote]Tere are another possibility for the leak: a bent valve...[/quote] I've considered that too and I ordered a valve along with the cylinder head. I should have been clearer in my description of the issue. I *CAN* see the defect with my naked eye, however, you can REALLY see it with the small eye loupe. I'll see about pulling the cylinder head tonight or tomorrow morning and getting a picture of the problem.
Posted on: 6/17/2011 9:29 AM by Author "umd pru"
in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10578776
RE: Club Enya
Holm, Did you lapp those valve seats with some compound? I'd like to try that on my cylinder head that has the nicked exhaust valve seat. I'd love to show you a picture, however, the engine is all assembled at this point. It's a real pain in the butt to get the valves out of the VT-240 cylinder head because the design uses split clips to hold the valve spring on. It took me nealry 45 minutes to get the two clips on. I did it inside of a plastic bag in case they sprung off. I will try and take a picture when I take it apart to replace the cylinder head. The nicks are VERY small though and I had to use a 10x power eye loop to see them.
Posted on: 6/16/2011 11:20 AM by Author "umd pru"
in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10577250
RE: Club Enya
[quote]I think your problem could be intake manifold leaks. It happen to me with a Saito 182TD last Summer and it was hard to find. Repaired the issue and it now runs great. I run the Saito 182TD twin with 2 fuel tanks or 1 tank per cylinder. I also utilize the 2 tank system with a rebuilt Enya VT-240 and glow driver. The VT-240 is mounted on a 28% Sopwith Pup and it is a good performer at 25lbs. I'm running the Saito twin and the VT-240 on 20/20 fuel and I do use after run-in oil after each session. [/quote] Thanks for the insight. I have considered intake leaks as a possible problem. I have not experimented with that yet. I believe I found my problem though and it was a two part head-ache. I removed the cylinder head on the offending jug (the right one) and found that the exhaust valve seat had a VERY small nick in it that appeared to go through the seat such that a full valve seal would be impossible. To experiment with this, I swapped cylinder heads and ran the engine. The engine behaved exactly the same - the right cylinder would drop out every time the throttle was brought down to a VERY high idle (~3,500 rpm). So, I removed the engine from the plane and decided to start bench running it in a test stand. When I removed it, I looked the engine over and found out that my carbeurators were not set equally and low and behold, the right cylinder carb was set at a "lower" setting such that it would be more closed at any given position than the left cylinder. I fixed this condition and ran the engine. Now, the left cylinder was dropping out and running erratically (remember this cylinder now has the "nicked exhaust valve seat" cylinder head. I ended up fiddling with it a bit more and found that I really needed to have glow on at low throttle for a reliable idle because the right cylinder was combusting erratically due to the exhaust valve seat. So, at the end of the day, I was able to get the engine to idle at 1,200 rpm. At one point, the idle dropped down to about 900 rpm but went back up to 1,200 rpm. I also found that I could audibly hear the right cylinder missing by putting a piece of wood under the exhaust manifold to reflect the sounds back at me. You could clearly hear a "pop, pop, miss, miss ,miss, pop, miss, miss, etc" firing from the right cylinder with the iffy head on it. Conversely, I did the same thing to the left cylinder with the good cylinder head on it and that cylinder was hitting EVERY time consistently. So, I contacted Mr. Enya at enya-engines and got pricing for some parts. I've now got a cylinder head on order as well as a valve a piston ring and a few gasket sets. The prices were VERY reasonable considering they are coming registered airmail. The total price for these parts including shipping was only $116.00!! The cylinder head was $75.00. I'm going to install the new cylinder head and hopefully have myself a beautiful running VT-240 again. I'll see about uploading and posting the video of the engine testing I did yesterday. I also plan on installing an MPI 9900 glow driver system for a more reliable running engine. There's nothing worse than an engine that is balky!
Posted on: 6/16/2011 5:52 AM by Author "umd pru"
in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10576734
RE: Club Enya
Hi guys, I have an Enya VT-240 that isn't running all that great at the moment. I believe that it's a fuel feed issue. I am running the aluminum "Y" that was supplied with the engine. The engine ran fine last summer, I took it out this year to fly again and now the engine just isn't happy. The problem is the right cylinder ALWAYS drops out at idle while the left cylinder runs great. When I first started the engine up this season, it ran somewhat rough and back-fired a bit. I attribute this to a stuck valve one one of the cylinders. I removed the heads and examined them and found the valves were in good condition and were not stuck. I reassembled the heads onto opposite cylinders to see if the head was the problem with the one cylinder always dropping out. It was not the problem as the left cylinder always runs great. I conducted an experiment where I clamped off the left cylinder fuel feed and idled the engine down. Low and behold, the right cylinder kept running after the left cylinder dropped out. I am now down to two options left. I have already removed the engine once and disassembled and cleaned the carbs for both cylinders. They were fine and not gooped up at all. I neglected to clean the "Y", however, it was completely disconnected. There's a remote chance it's plugged up, however, what are the chances that I connected it up the same way as it was disconnected such that the same cylinder has fuel problems? Anyways, my two options left are to remove the engine to get at the "Y" and be sure it's clean and second, to adopt a dual fuel feed to the cylinders so they both have their own fuel feed from the single tank. This will represent some fuel filling problems as I am running a dubro fuel filler currently. Any other thoughts out there? Another thing that leads me to believe it's a fuel feed problem is that I can not for the life of me richen up the right cylinder at full throttle. I've encountered this before with fuel feed problems. This sure is frustrating as I really want to fly this plane again. Here's a video my wife shot last summer after I replaced the bearings and gaskets in the engine. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eeuXHE60EhQ
Posted on: 6/14/2011 6:35 AM by Author "umd pru"
in the forum "Glow Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=10573219
RE: Grumman Widgeon
Avaiojet Roger, he did work at Cranland. He's since left that airport and operates out of a small shop in the same town. He recently finished this Widgeon: [img]http://www.runryder.com/helicopter/gallery/44060/Steve_s_Widgeon.jpg[/img] That's actually him standing at the far right. This Widgeon just won Reserve Grand Champion Seaplane at Airventure 2009. The judging was rigged though cause the plane that won was no where near the quality of this bird! His previous project won Grand Champion Seaplane and is owned by the same person that owns the one in the picture. Both are based in Michigan. I also found out that my father ordered a set of Bill Effinger plans. I can tell you after looking at those on the kitchen table that 78 inches is a BIG bird and just the right size. 10 foot would be TOO big! I'll be modeling my Widgeon after one of these birds. First, though, I have to finish a fiberglass Lake amphib I've had sitting around for a LONG time!
Posted on: 8/30/2009 11:19 AM by Author "umd pru"
in the forum "Seaplanes"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9056389
RE: Grumman Widgeon
FWIW. My father works on/ modified/restores Widgeons. He's the man responsible for Widgeons you may have seen flying around with Lycoming TSIO-540 engines. Through his work on Widgeons, he was able to acquire EVERY Grumman factory drawing of the plane from an archived micro fiche copy of the originals. We've been talking a LOT lately about getting started on a 1/4 scale Widgeon. I stumbled on this thread through a google search. Some here have claimed that a 1/4 scale Widgeon would be too big and expensive and you may just be right about that. It'll be one hell of a project but I think would be really worth it! I'll have to talk to my father about getting his drawings scanned to a digital format.
Posted on: 8/18/2009 10:20 AM by Author "umd pru"
in the forum "Seaplanes"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=9025292
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