Old tech glow engines

[ArchangelNovete]

Alright guys, i need someone who can tell me where to find an old radio to be able to use the electronics i have that i found in a bunch of old boxes. There are three sets that each came with one glow engine, what looks like a control board, and what appears to be some servo plates. Note, these have never been used, and only ever came out of their boxes for me to take pics of them. They also came with some four cell batteries that im not sure are even functional nor their milliamps.

 

[FDS]

That’s just an old receiver, probably a crystal type pre 2.4Ghz one. You could throw all that stuff away and just keep the servos, then run a modern 2.4 radio and receiver. The 4 cell packs were there to power the radio gear, they will be no use. Most modern stuff runs off lipo battery packs via a Battery Eliminator Circuit or BEC for short. You will probably want quite a big BEC for those old servos as they can be power hungry. A simple Flysky FSI6 radio would run all that stuff with a separate battery to power the servos and receivers.

 

[ArchangelNovete]

Do you know anything about the engines? I've never gotten to build or fly a plane before, I've flown plenty of helicopters but no planes.

 

[FDS]

I know absolutely nothing about the glow engines. They will likely need opening up and cleaning or at least thorough flushing out before you use them, especially if they had any old fuel in them. That’s about the complete extent of my RC engine know how!

 

[ArchangelNovete]

They haven't ever been used, I've opened one up to see and its as clean as the day it was made

 

[FDS]

Nice! Hopefully a glow engine expert will be along to help you with them. Are there makers names on them?
Made in Germany is usually a good sign.

 

[ArchangelNovete]

I didn't see any names i could read, the boxes were really degraded and there wasn't any name on the engines themselves. Idk any hobby stores in the area with knowledgeable people, that's one of the reasons i turned to you guys.

 

[FDS]

Is there a club near you? Those can be great places for help too.

 

[ArchangelNovete]

Looks like the closest club is about two hours a way from where i live.

 

[OliverW]

You should get a propeller on that engine, and see it's compression. Then you will need a
Starter
Glow driver
Glow plugs
Glow fuel
And there is more I am not posting about I'm sure lol

 

[ArchangelNovete]

I knew I was going to need a starter and some fuel. The boxes came with these props and a bunch of plugs that are also new.

 

[Andrew]

The engine brand is "HB" made by Helmut Bernhardt.

Not sure on the receiver, to me it looks like it's home built from a kit???

 

[ArchangelNovete]

The way they came it looked like it was individual kits. At least the propulsion systems of each.

 

[Merv]

The 12x5 prop looks about right for a 60 size motor. On the carburetor, the larger needle valve on the left sets the high speed mix, the smaller needle valve on the right set the idle or low speed mix. A tachometer is very useful to get the mixes right.

Th Rx is much older than 72 MHz crystal. The AMA museum may want it, it is definitely not worth using and may no longer be legal, in the US anyway. The ends on the servo will need to be changed, if you want to use them. I’m not sure they are worth the effort.

 

[ArchangelNovete]

I don't have any issue swapping the ends, that's easy, i don't know how to get a hold of the AMA museum. How do you set up a tachometer and do you recommend for the mixes?

 

[Merv]

I don't have any issue swapping the ends, that's easy, i don't know how to get a hold of the AMA museum. How do you set up a tachometer and do you recommend for the mixes?

Each brand of motors had their own starting place on the needle valve. Many were 2.5 turns from fully closed. I’m guessing, if this motor has never been run, the carb is set at the recommended start. You could close the needle valve, counting the turns as you go and record this number. I would not move the low speed needle for now.

 

[Bricks]

You might and I say might have an exceptional glow engine pull the front prop driver off and see if there is a bearing behind it if not you have a engine that could be worth a lot of money. Very rare as there were some of these engines made for the military for RCMAT`s Remote Controlled Military Ariel Target but they had no front bearing only prop drive spacer. There were thousands of these made for the military but a few did make it into civilian hands. so if by chance yours has no bearing do not run or use it SELL it. If it has a bearing then go ahead and use it.

If there is a bearing in the Front by the looks of the picture with the square cooling fins then you have an HB Gran Prix family engine.

 

[Merv]

The breaking in of a new engine is important, for most engines, you want to run it fat or rich for a the first tank of fuel. During the first tank, with the prop on, run it full throttle the whole time. Every 3 minutes or so, lean it out for 20 seconds or so, then go back to fat. You want a lot of oil coming out of the exhaust. Back in the day we call them slimmers.

During the second tank, you can start to dial in the carb. Start with the high side, with the throttle wide open, slowly lean out the engine until the rpms max out, then richen the carb until you reduce the rpms to 500 below the max. Now work on the low side, the goal is to have a low idle, that can go to full throttle without hesitation. Idle the motor for 30-45 second, then pop the throttle wide open. We are simulating a landing approach, then bailing out and going around. If the engine dies immediately, the low side is lean. If the engine goes blub, blub blub, the low side is too rich. Move the low side needle valve ONLY by 1/8 turn at a time, then retest. Once you get the low side close, go back and readjust the high side and come back to the low side. During this back and forth, you should be able to lower the idle speed, an idle around 1000 rpms is good, below 1000 is great. Once you get the low side dialed in, leave it alone, you should not have to change it. The high side is different, you will need a few clicks of adjustment as the temperature changes, even a few degrees during the day.

With needle values, turning the screw in is lean (closing gap, less fuel), out is fat or rich (more fuel). There was another type carb called an air bleed, it had a small hole that let in air during the idle. With an air bleed, closing the gap reduced the air, which made the mix fat.

Their was one type of engine that you had to run lean during the first tank. I can’t remember what it was called but before it was broken in, it was extremely stiff. A normal engine will kind of bounce when you flipped the prop, this kind did not move unless you cranked it.

 

[Andrew]

....
Their was one type of engine that you had to run lean during the first tank. I can’t remember what it was called but before it was broken in, it was extremely stiff. A normal engine will kind of bounce when you flipped the prop, this kind did not move unless you cranked it.

The type of engine your thinking of is called a ABC type non ringed engine, ABC stands for aluminium piston with a brass cylinder liner that's has hard crome, these engines do not have rings, also the cylinder is tapered in towards the top making it very tight on top dead centre when cold. I would not run it lean though, just a little rich and keep the revvs high for a tank or two, it needs to be hot to expand the top of the cylinder liner making the cylinder now parallel while it is hot.
A very common mistake is when people have a new engine and think it's a defect and try to hone it so it isn't tight, now it loses compression as it warm up, now the engines ruined.

 

[Merv]

The type of engine your thinking of is called a ABC type non ringed engine, ABC stands for aluminium piston with a brass cylinder liner that's has hard crome, these engines do not have rings, also the cylinder is tapered in towards the top making it very tight on top dead centre when cold. I would not run it lean though, just a little rich and keep the revvs high for a tank or two, it needs to be hot to expand the top of the cylinder liner making the cylinder now parallel while it is hot.
A very common mistake is when people have a new engine and think it's a defect and try to hone it so it isn't tight, now it loses compression as it warm up, now the engines ruined.

Yes, that is it.