New Savage XL

[PopinFRESH]

Hey guys,
Just wanted to clarify a few things after reading your newbie guides at the top. The engine sealing, I'm curious what you are using to clean the parts with in the bucket (WD40)? I just got a new SavageXL and it seems like it has an engine leak somewhere (may just be in the fuel line) so I haven't been able to even start breaking it in. I tried to get the first tank of nitro through it but it barley puts out smoke and temps climb really quick approaching 250 so I pinch it off. Also I was wondering if there are any good sets of tools with all the tools you had listed or if I should just go to some place like ACE hardware and buy those sizes. Lastly I've seen several replacement heads that say they reduce temps by up to 40%?? that just doesn't seem right and wanted to get some responses from here. I mean @ 230F, 40% would drop temps down to where it would be running too cool. now I get that it would allow you to run the engine leaner but I'm not really buying that the aluminum head would drop temps that much. I'm sure I'll have more questions. Thanks in advance for any help.

-Patrick

 

[Kingie07]

if its new send it back, i wound get a replacement. savage XL's are a pain it the ass! I've had 4 all of them caused my problems (2nd gear, one way bearing in engine, Etc Etc) so i just took them all back and got a savage x 4.6 and its fine lol

 

[Racer 1966]

Your temps spiking quickly could mean a leak but it could also just be the needle setting needs to be richened a bit more. Factory settings won't be perfect on every engine and minor adjustments are usually needed fro my experience.

The larger cooling heads aren't really needed but I have used them and they do drops temps. I just adjust the engine to maintain the temp I like.

 

[PopinFRESH]

Your temps spiking quickly could mean a leak but it could also just be the needle setting needs to be richened a bit more. Factory settings won't be perfect on every engine and minor adjustments are usually needed fro my experience.

The larger cooling heads aren't really needed but I have used them and they do drops temps. I just adjust the engine to maintain the temp I like.

Yeah thats what I thought too. I already gone a 3/4 turn richer on the HSN. I'm not completely new to Nitro RC's, I've had an original T-Maxx but that pretty much worked right out of the RTR box and I let it just idle around in a circle for the first few tanks during break-in and then started tuning the idle until I got it perfect so it wouldn't engage and after the fifth tank I started leaning out the HSN. Needless to say I never really needed to delve into the maintenance of them very much. So I'm sort of glad this didn't just start right up because then I wouldn't have started to educate myself. I'm still looking for tools.

 

[olds97_lss]

I use denatured alcohol to clean my parts. You can get it in 1/2 gallon tins at any hardware store for a few bucks. Get a cheap spray bottle and load it up. Denatured alcohol (DA) doesn't have water in it like rubbing alcohol, so it's less likely to cause corrosion/rust on our sensitive engine parts.

Soak the engine with DA, hit it with a tooth brush, then drench it with DA to rinse. Either let air dry or forced air dry. DA dries up pretty quick.

 

[Jmacca]

I use denatured alcohol to clean my parts. You can get it in 1/2 gallon tins at any hardware store for a few bucks. Get a cheap spray bottle and load it up. Denatured alcohol (DA) doesn't have water in it like rubbing alcohol, so it's less likely to cause corrosion/rust on our sensitive engine parts.

Soak the engine with DA, hit it with a tooth brush, then drench it with DA to rinse. Either let air dry or forced air dry. DA dries up pretty quick.

Only thing i found with DA is it kills glow plugs, i used DA for about 3 engine rebuilds and after ever one I needed a new plug which was fine before I cleaned it..

I now use nitro fuel, and I have not seen a problem with it, great way to use old fuel as well.

 

[PopinFRESH]

I'm still doing a ton of reading on the forums and have found several people saying they run the K5.9 at around 260F - 280F? I replaced my fuel lines to make sure they didn't have a leak in them, but still hitting temps of 250F+ and it still seems like I can't get it idling low enough to not engage the clutch. I haven't found a place locally that has Ultra Copper silicone sealant, so I'm going to order that and try sealing the engine when that comes in. Other than that, has anyone had luck with the Nova cooling heads on the K5.9? I've read tons of mixed reviews. Some say they dropped their temps by 40F, they described a very similar situation as mine and they were running consistently around 270F and after they switched to the Nova head it dropped temps down to ~230F. I also noticed that people mentioned that the K4.6 has a 1 piece head/button so you need a new button if you are getting an aftermarket head, I'm guessing the K5.9 is the same way? Thanks again for the help. I'm really looking forward to getting this all tuned up for some nice bashing.

 

[olds97_lss]

Only thing i found with DA is it kills glow plugs, i used DA for about 3 engine rebuilds and after ever one I needed a new plug which was fine before I cleaned it..

I now use nitro fuel, and I have not seen a problem with it, great way to use old fuel as well.

Did you soak the plug coil with it? I've been using DA for years to clean pretty much everything RC without issues.

 

[PopinFRESH]

Ok, so got a little bit of an update, HPI replied to my email about the issues I was having with the K5.9 and they seemed to agree that there may be an air leak in the carb so they are sending me out a new carb. I finally got some Ultra Copper and have started sealing up the engine. I cleaned the backplate and back of the crank case and sealed that yesterday. I'm waiting on the new carb to seal that up while I'm changing it out. I'm also still waiting on some Green Slime grease to seal up any leaky O rings on the needles, but that should be here by the time I get the new carb. HPI also said that the K5.9 tends to run hot especially during break-in. He said it's not uncommon to have temps in the 260F - 270F range. I found a decent deal on some dynamite hex tools. I'm still working on putting together a nice little tool set that has everything I might need to do regular maintenance and repairs. If anyone has any suggestions beyond what was in the noob list please let me know! thanks again for the forum.

 

[PopinFRESH]

So I got the new carb and finished sealing everything up the other day. I let everything cure for almost 50 hours as I've been working non-stop the last few days. I also decided to pick up some Dynamite BlueThunder First Run nitro. Lastly I got an aluminum engine mount and mounting plate to help dissipate heat better. After doing this the engine ran great right around 220F for 3 tanks of static break-in (with ~10-15 min of cool down between letting the temps get down to <100F). I think the 2 main issues were the fuel and the other carb likely had a faulty seal on the HSN. Seeing that I just wanted to get working on breaking this in, in the short amount of time I have free right now, I didn't do this very scientifically. I do think the aluminum mount and engine plate also help with the temp; because after the engine cuts, the temps seem to drop significantly faster than before. Now on to finding a solution to the half-tank leaning out issue I've seen discussed.

 

[olds97_lss]

Sounds like you could now be well on your way to finally having some fun with the thing! Good luck!