K&B Engines in a buggy . The good vs the Bad?

[Bridgeport]

I guess what it boils down to is you never see anything good or bad , looking to replace a SH .18 with a K&B .18
but what is the difference In the two heads one says "Bar Stock" the other is "Die Cast" do you have to run there glow plugs . Thanks for the help in advance .

 

[cbaker65]

I guess what it boils down to is you never see anything good or bad , looking to replace a SH .18 with a K&B .18
but what is the difference In the two heads one says "Bar Stock" the other is "Die Cast" do you have to run there glow plugs . Thanks for the help in advance .

Its weird that I'm seeing a K&b being used for car.Usually they are used for air or water!

Bar stock could mean milled aluminum an cast mean casted aluminum .
They may disipate the heat differently ,I wouldn't think the plugs matter!

This is just my thought so don't take it seriously ,get more info!

 

[WVNed]

Bar stock

Cast
http://www.mecoa.com/kb/88/88series.htm?id=1630

 

[GAJ]

Single needle carb would not be good.

 

[WVNed]

How would that work with a clutch?

 

[cbaker65]

That KB 18 looks pretty nice ,an also with that carb,,would easily fit in those old school rides that
people are having a hard time with the slide barrel carbs.

 

[Certified Mike]

Small for restoring and making things work in ways they weren't necessarily designed for... I question what the advantages of this particular motor might be in a car/buggy application. Is there any or is this a matter of convenience, something else? The cast head doesn't look like it Has particularly good cooling characteristics. Maybe great for a consistent rpm, but that's not likely in a buggy... Then again, I might be totally off base. I don't own one not do I have direct experience... Whatever the case, I'd love to hear more about what you do... Please post back! Good luck!!!

 

[Bridgeport]

I can see where the cast head would run hotter than the bar stock head . but as for as price 89.99 vs 129.99 and up it would be hard to beat . and i see the Low Speed needle being pre set and non adjustable as a plus .

 

[Certified Mike]

I am Def not arguing, I am curious as to why you would find that to be a plus?

 

[cbaker65]

I can see where the cast head would run hotter than the bar stock head . but as for as price 89.99 vs 129.99 and up it would be hard to beat . and i see the Low Speed needle being pre set and non adjustable as a plus .

I wouldn't worry about a single needle carb.,They were ok back in the day ,it should be ok now ,an yes ,it should be
easier to tune.
You can always change the carb later if you wanted to.
Lsn needle is for a finer low speed tune to transition to full throttle.

 

[Certified Mike]

And the full throttle setting is sufficient for cooling at wot? Interesting. Yes, for the $, a new carb would likely still keep your investment low. The only set up I've ever used like this was YEARS ago with the little COX motors. They were a different animal entirely. Good info! Thanks!

 

[cbaker65]

And the full throttle setting is sufficient for cooling at wot? Interesting. Yes, for the $, a new carb would likely still keep your investment low. The only set up I've ever used like this was YEARS ago with the little COX motors. They were a different animal entirely. Good info! Thanks!

Lol....When I started back up on rc's ,I didn't even know that some carbs had actually 3 set screws ,a mix meter screw.
I had actually though the mix meter one was the Lsn.,in which was part of what help blow my new 8.0 engine up...

But yea ,a single needle carb would help a person out if they are new to the nitro world ,an then
once they get some knowledge an experience ,they can change carbs.
I use to fly airplanes as well ,they were simple engines!

 

[Certified Mike]

Yeah, that's rough! Sometimes we learn the VERY hard way! Despite being VERY well educated in 1:1, I had a similar experience with a BRAND NEW rebuilt trans in my truck. Was all related to insufficient cooling and the install shop TOTALLY dropping the ball as far as letting me know mods would be required. I was fortunate in that case in that the installer also dropped the ball by letting me know that THEY knew there was a problem and didn't tell me. That was a brielf convo with the owner before it was built again under warranty!!! But a big lesson learned none the less!
Point is, so long as the K & B carb will be sufficient in the beginning, it all makes sense to me now. Again, interesting... Thanks!

 

[Bridgeport]

Its very nice to keep things simple, this is something that the grand kids and i like and less for pawpaw to have to fix when it does not run .

 

[TorC84]

Ok guys yes it is single needle but it has 3 adjustments one is a high speed needle two is a idle stop screw and three is an air bleed screw wich serves the same purpose as a low speed needle and must be adjusted properly in order for the engine to idle properly I own the aero .18 wich appears to be the same engine without pull start and a smaller cooling head and a shorter non swept up high speed needle the engine runs very well and it only turns a 8x6 prop or less with any authority and it doesn't have a great deal of power but I haven't run a whole quart of fuel through the engine yet so performance could improve as time goes on but if you don't apply much load to the engine like with small props or possibly low gear ratios this engine will rpm pretty well so in the right application it might be ok but don't expect to compare it to anything from OSor SH because the big name nitro engines are much better I would even expect a cheap dynamite engine to make more power except for maybe in a very small boat with a tuned pipe and very little load on the engine

 

[burnskevin58]

I have used the K&B .18 car engines with much success for marine use (We run air cooled engines in the .18 sized outrigger boats to allow the engine to reach operating temp), replacing HPI .18ss and Thunder Tiger .18 engines. (When the HPI SS engine wasn't available a few years back). Really wasn't that much of a power difference between the race ready HPI SS engine and the low buck K&B, there was, but not much considering it's a side exhaust engine. "The K&B will take higher temps better" meaning it will handle higher nitro content better.
And pretty much an exact match power wise to the Thunder Tiger .18 water cooled marine engines.
As far as K&B goes, they had a great following with on road 3.5cc racing engines back in the day and were a popular choice for the Associated RC nitro cars that were very popular, the design is still used today in ducted fan, aero, and outboard engines. "If you can get them"

But all in all, K&B engines are very good engines. I wish Mecoa would manufacture the 3.5 racing engines again. And even offering the .18 in a front or rear exhaust racing engine. But Mecoa doesn't really want to do much.