Break-in for .46 engine?

[Rolex]

A friend is doing the Truckzilla conversion on his Savage, and I'll be breaking it in for him tomorrow. He has no info on the proper procedure. Anyone know? Anyone have a link maybe? I only do break-ins according to the manufacturer's recommendations. When it's someone else's engine, and it's under warranty, I only do it their way.

 

[kwong2001]

Man, i've had two of those engines go out on me. And i've never gotten passed break-in. I still need to send mine in for warranty but i've been lazy

 

[Rolex]

Man, i've had two of those engines go out on me. And i've never gotten passed break-in. I still need to send mine in for warranty but i've been lazy

Funny you should say that, kwong2001. The original owner bought the Truckzilla conversion, and the engine went out REAL quick. I opened it up, and there was a brass stripe about 1/4" wide in the chrome sleeve. He sent it in, changed the truck back to stock, and now sold the Truckzilla kit and the new replacement engine to the guy I'll be breaking it in for. I broke in his stock Savage engine, and it's still running strong.
Is there a defect in these engines that you know of?

What's factory break in procedure for the .46?

 

[kwong2001]

I've heard the first batch of engines were hit or miss...mostly miss. My first engine had like 5 tanks before compression went to hell. Second engine had a part of the crankshaft break off and it tore into the combustion chamber and did serious damage...that was after like 2 or 3 tanks.

I know Hot Bodies did try to re-designe the engine a bit.

Okay, for break-in. This's from my manual. But I bought it like a year and half ago so I dunno if the recommendation has changed. btw, i'll just quote it so you can get their exact words.

1) Use a box or a stand to elevate the vehicle so that all four wheels can spin freely without contact to the ground.

2) Fill the tank completely with fuel. Use only 20% Nitro content fuel. Use only good quality branded model car fuel. Using the wrong fuel could void your warranty.

3) Never pull the starter cord more than 12 inches (30cm) as this can cause damage to the pull starter. If pull-starter becomes hard to pull, engine may be flooded. See tip section to remove excess fuel from the engine

4) Prime the caruretor by holding your finger over the exhaust and pulling the starter cord 4 to 8 times, or until line is full of fuel all the way up to the caruretor.

5) Make sure receiver switch is off. Manuall turn the throttle servo until the carburetor is 1/3 of the way open. Always have the air filter in place before running engine.

6) Attach glow igniter to the glow plug and turn a half turn to lock it in. Pull the starter cord using quick short pulls. Once the engine is running turn the throttle servo so that (it)the runs fast enough to turn the tires slowly. Remove the glow igniter as soon as the engine is running. Run the engine one tank of gas Repeat steps 4-6 if engien stalls

7)Turn on the transmistter and receiver, re-fill the fuel tank and follow steps, 3-6. With the tires off the ground, use the radio to slowly increase the throttle until it reaches full speed. This will help clean the excess oil out of the engine. Since the initial break-in settings are very rich, the motor needs to periodically be "cleaned out." If it is not, the left-over oil will load-up the motor and it may shut down.

8) Place vehicle on ground. The vehicle should not move while idling. If it does, adjust the trim setting on the transmistter so the vehicle does not move. Drive the vehicle in a 20 foot (6m) oval applying throttle, and then coasting. The idea is to use throttle, then coast to let the engine cool, give more throttle and coast more to cool. Repeat this process for a total of 2 tanks of fuel.

If your friend doesn't have an aftermarket air filter like a motorsaver, you might wanna tell him to get one. I doubt the stock savage filter will work all that well. I know when I bought my savage 21, I couldnt' get it to run with the stocker.

 

[Rolex]

kwong2001, thanks so much for getting me that info. I'll print it for future reference.
Hopefully the new .46 will do better than the one it replaced. I don't think the first owner had more than 5 or 6 tanks through it either.

 

[kwong2001]

Keep me updated on how it goes. Maybe it'll get me inspired to get a new engine...lol

 

[Rolex]

He's building it now, and should have it ready for me tomorrow.
I'll get back to you in about 6 tanks.

 

[Sgt Blamo]

Those instructions are identical to my mini Savage break-in manual that came with my RTR kit yesterday!

 

[nitrohead3000]

Go to http://www.meganitro.com for the updated breakin procedure for the zilla.46 engine. Personally I followed a heat cycle technique with my .46 and had no problems with it. The motor is slow breaking in. I believed mine was broken in after 6 tanks of fuel.......I was wrong on tank 15 it went buck wild!! It would pop a wheelie every time I punched it from a standstill all the way over on its top. I have had my motor for over a year now and I still have alot of compression.

 

[Rolex]

I saved your link for future reference. Thanks nitrohead3000.
Had a few problems with his setups that took some time, but all in all, it went well. Did 4 tanks today before it got too dark.
I'll be seeing him again tomorrow to finish it, so I'll get back to you.

 

[Sgt Blamo]

Nitro,
Could you post the "heat cycle" method, I want to know if I'm doing it right for future use.

 

[nitrohead3000]

SgtBlamo, go to http://www.affordablenitrotech.com for a explanation of heat cycling. It will be listed under tech support the thread is call technique for breaking in an abc motor. Make sure you idle thru the first tank the way he describes! The main thing with this technique is to keep the motor at operating temps, I wrapped the heat sink head so the motor stayed at operating temps . I used alumnium foil wrapped around the head to keep it at operating temps and I monitored the temps . Also when you shut down the engine make sure that the piston is at B.D.C.

 

[Rolex]

Here's the update. It's had a total of 7 tanks through it now. I still have it a bit rich. I tend to extend the break in and ease them towards performance through about 10 tanks.
On the 6th tank it would fire on the 2nd pull from a cold start. Consistency is excellent, and it never stalled. It's currently running at 245. I think it's gonna' be a good one.
After tomorrow he'll be good to go, and it will be tuned for performance.

 

[vbgagnon]

I heard to run heli fuel in it.

 

[Rolex]

I heard to run heli fuel in it.

There was some talk about that in a thread a while back, and I even posted that I has a Thunder Tiger .46 in my heli, and a gallon and a half of Byron's 15% heli fuel. The fuel has an 18% blend of castor/synthetic.
I'm sure it would run, but it's not available in the LHS.
Note that it's also 15%, so going to another fuel would mean another partial break in. I've always heard that you should break them in with the fuel you plan to run.

 

[nitrohead3000]

Rolex sounds like you have a good motor. Gradually lean it in and you should have a torque monster. Question......is it cold were you live?

 

[Rolex]

When I break them in, I only lean them out every 2 tanks, then after 10 they get the performance tuning.
Today was around 50 degrees.

 

[nitrohead3000]

Sounds like a plan!! When the motor completly breaks in look out there should be a big jump in performance. Good luck and have fun backyard bashing.

 

[Rolex]

Update.......9 tanks now. Flawless. Tweaking it slightly with each tank, but still keeping it slightly rich. RPMs are building nicely. Never stalled yet, no more than 2 or 3 pulls from cold start. Last temp check was 245.
Tomorrow it will get it's final tuning for performance.

 

[nitrohead3000]

Break in for .46

All right!!