Killing glowplugs after every stall!!! WTF

[Buggyracer28]

This is retarded.... My Novarossi BS21SB has never done this, and all the sudden its being really terrible to me ever since coming back from Arizona. I went through 4 glow plugs in about 3 tanks. One of them I just got yesterday, brand new and killed it in 3/4 tank. This HAS TO STOP. I am running out of money and patience.

Does anyone have a suggestion about what to do to stop this? I inspected and cleaned the engine twice. Before, it was too rich and it was loading up the plug not allowing it to fire, but I leaned it out some and it actually starts now, but I only get less than 1 tank per glowplug which is not going well. It idles fine, starts up OK, but when it stalls (when either I, or it runs out of fuel) it kills the plug. Am I missing something? It is running great at 220, awesome low and high end. I don't know what the problem is. This has never, ever happened to me. btw, I'm using 2 shims if that helps.

 

[Plaidfish]

What do the plug coils look like?
you may be running too lean/rich on the bottom but be tuned right for the top........If it's blowing on a stall chances are you're too lean on the bottom.....it's running hotter at lower speeds and the cooling too quickly......and make sure your ignitor is charged fully.....

 

[Buggyracer28]

The coil actually BREAKS off near the end of the glow plug. It might be too lean, but if its even a little bit richer, the engine doesn't even start. Its pitiful. it used to be BAM! grrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrrr but now all you hear is the starter box going and the flywheel spinning..... I ran out of glow plugs or I'd try it again... it has to be right the first time though. When I get another plug, should I take out the plug while the engine is still going so it doesn't kill it? or would that be bad? Just too see if its too lean or too rich (grey bottom, or wet bottom of the plug). arghhhhhh

 

[beason]

have you had it apart lately? i ask because you may have missed a head shim. that would make you pop glo plugs.

 

[olds97_lss]

Just curious, did you change brand/style of plug or fuel lately? Even still, I've had bad runs with the same brand/model of plug before. I'd burn through 2 or 3 in a day, then I'd have one that lasts 2 gallons before getting hard to start.

I usually buy OS #8 @ $7 a pop. Gets really aggrivating when you blow $30 worth of glow plugs in one weekend... I feel your pain.

 

[Buggyracer28]

Just took it apart yesterday and cleaned everything, made sure everything was right, and put the 2 head shims on. This problem happened with O'donnell 30% and Sidewinder 30%, a Novarossi, o'donnell, A3 and a brand new mc-59 were destroyed. I'm getting another mc-59 in the mail, so ill try it.... hopefully i dont break it.

 

[rocknbil]

Buggyracer I'm no expert but I know when you alter the squeeze band all kinds of things can go wonky. I only see where you've mentioned your plug and % in the last post, have you tried a hot or cold plug? I'm conjecturing that with the altered compression ratio the ignition timing point has changed and it's either igniting too soon and blowing the plug or more likely igniting too late and the down-stroke is literally sucking the coil out of the plug. In either case, if you've always used a medium or MC-59, since you're throwing plugs at it trying a cold or a hot plug wouldn't hurt (much.)

The possible reason it's doing it now where it wasn't before is the engine is changing as it ages, it has a different compression than it did when you set it up.

EDIT OOP: see you've tried the A3. So you could give the cold plug a shot.

 

[Buggyracer28]

thanks bil, it almost seems like the coil is being pushed into the plug... because it breaks of at the last coil, and the rest looks like it was pushed in. Anyone have any ideas?

 

[olds97_lss]

Did you always use 30% nitro? Usually, a compressed spring/coil like that is indicative of to much compression due to to high of nitro content and not enough shims.

 

[SkyMaxx]

A couple of things that occurred to me while reading this thread...
1. When you say you returned from Arizona...was this from a short trip and the car always fired up in Portland and suddenly does not? Or it fired up great in Arizona and now in Portland it does not?
2. If you run too rich too long, you will end up crushing the coil purely out of trying to start it. This is caused by unburnt fuel being forced into the chamber of the plug during the compression stroke. So this leads me to ask, fresh batteries in the glo-ignitor? Perhaps it is time for a new glo ignitor.
3. If the thing is not firing up the way it used to in Arizona and you are now in Portland...then a rich condition in Arizona is going to be way too rich for running in Portland...that is just plain physics due to ambient conditions and fuel/air mixtures. Perhaps you need to re-baseline your tuning of the engine.
4. New plugs? New Fuel? Did you make major changes when you returned from Arizona? Perhaps you need a different temperature plug (hotter plug, colder plug, etc). Perhaps you grabbed long plugs and your engine only like short plugs.
5. If it is not firing up right away, are you leaving it on the starter box longer in hopes of kindling a light off? If so, the extra time could be putting undo strain on the plugs...causing them to go after a gallon of fuel.
6. If none of the above applies, then perhaps you just grabbed a bad card of glo plugs. Quality control being what it is with these things...you just might have the misfortune of grabbing the ones that should have got away.

Just some thoughts...perhaps they will help resolve the issue.

-SkyMaxx