Newbie unable to start concerns...

[WillyMcFly]

Hi All,

I am new to the sport so I apologize if any my questions are redundant. I bought a RTR from a hobby shop which was closing. The kit was on the shelf for some time and therefore is not the latest hardware; however the price made it seem like a good bargain. The first time starting it took some work but I did get it started. I ran it at less than half throttle until the tank was empty. It was getting dark so I packed it up with the intention of running a few more tanks the next day to break the engine in. Unfortunately the next day out I couldn't get the engine started at all. So the car is sitting with a full tank and I'm looking for advice on what I might consider as the reason (or reasons) it won't start. I'm also concerned about leaving the fuel in the car. The handbook seems to indicate that it's not a good idea to leave any fuel in the car for a long period of time. I'm guessing the problem might be glow plug related. Unfortunately it might be a few days before I can get replacement plugs and therefore I wanted to ask the experts what I should do until I can get replacements? Should I dump the fuel and if so how? Any advice would be greatly appreciated. Thanks!

 

[Metalhead Matt]

Your fuel should be fine for a week or two. At least. If it bothers you to leave it in the tank, dump it out somwhere suitable. Don't harm the enviorment. Describe how the engine was running and we can help you to not burn through glow plugs so fast. Though glow plug failure is common during break in.

 

[REVO-5309]

If its a new motor have u tried heating up the block before u try start it? With a hair dryer.

 

[Phins Fan]

What rig are we talking about anyway?

 

[WillyMcFly]

What rig are we talking about anyway?

This is what I bought. From what I've read on this forum CEN isn't really the best choice but I got it so I'll make the best of it.

http://www.cenracing.com/cars/nx/subaru.html

---------- Post added at 7:54 PM ---------- Previous post was at 7:52 PM ----------

If its a new motor have u tried heating up the block before u try start it? With a hair dryer.

Thanks for the advice. I'll give it a try.

---------- Post added at 8:02 PM ---------- Previous post was at 7:54 PM ----------

Your fuel should be fine for a week or two. At least. If it bothers you to leave it in the tank, dump it out somwhere suitable. Don't harm the enviorment. Describe how the engine was running and we can help you to not burn through glow plugs so fast. Though glow plug failure is common during break in.

That's good news. I didn't want to dump the fuel. I can try again in a couple of days with new glow plugs. The first day out it took a while to start but when it started it seemed to run fine. If you let off the throttle it would stop running so it didn't really idle unless I pulled on the throttle about a quarter of the way. I ran it around in circles for what seemed like 10 minutes or so and then it ran out of fuel. Then today, no luck starting at all.

A couple of other questions come to mind if you have a moment. I was wondering what type of glow plug I should consider purchasing. The manual says it comes with "short cold" plugs. I checked online and there seems to be a whole range of plugs (although "short cold" doesn't appear to be very common). Not sure if I should get the same or if something else would be better. Also, I've seen some suggestion that I should cut a big hole in the windshield of the body. It's a Subaru WRX body and I would hate to cut a hole in it but if it's required for cooling then I'll do it. Not sure what to use though--would an Xacto knife work?

Thanks again!

 

[Phins Fan]

I use OS #8's in most of my motors which is a medium plug as opposed to a cold plug. Have you invested in a heat gun to check temps on your motor? While I dont like to tune for temp it does give you a good reference to where your motor likes to run. Anything over 290 degrees is probably to warm IMO. Yes cutting a hole in the windshield and rear window will help in keeping the motor from overheating. I use an exactoknife and typically trace out the bottom of a cup for a crisp line.

 

[Greywolf74]

As long as the plug doesn't say long, xlong, or turbo on it you should be fine with whatever cold plug you choose. I would check the glowplug first....take it out of the engine and put it on your glow ignitor. If it lights up and glows nice and red hot then the plug is most likely fine. If it doesn't then you either have something wrong with your plug or your ignitor. Test with a known working glow plug to verify.

+1 for the temp gun.....you dont want to try to tune your engine with it but as Phins said its good for keeping tabs on your engine to make sure its not getting too hot.

If you messed with the stock needle settings at all I would return them to their factory default positions.

I would take the time to seal the engine.

Once you do get it started Id make sure you follow proper breakin methods. There are various break in methods for nitro engines out there.

Here is a series of videos that I would watch if I were you that covers a lot of basic information. Fuel and glow plugs, sealing nitro engines, 3 different breakin methods including Squirrels personal breakin method which is what I like to use. Tons of useful info here.

[ame="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pAggkhHqEkw"]How to break in a Nitro RC engine Part 1 Fuel + Plugs - YouTube[/ame]

 

[WillyMcFly]

Thanks for your informative response. Lots of good information. I did as you suggested and sure enough when I put the glow plug in the igniter I get nothing. I was wonder if the igniter is bad? It's the rechargeable type and it may have been sitting around as long as the car (Among the paperwork in the box was a CEN catalogue from 2004-2005). I can't be sure though because I did get the car started on the first day out. It just wouldn't start the second day.

I'm also a little worried that I may not have followed the break-in procedure correctly. I found some documentation in the box that suggests I should have just let it run at idle for at least 3-4 tanks of fuel. I actually drove it around a little with my tank of fuel (I had my son with me and he was all excited). I didn't go full throttle but I did drive it. I hope I didn't damage the engine long term.

Lastly, in terms of glow plugs, would "Novarossi C7S" be acceptable? It says it's a cold filament glow plug. I need to familiar myself with the difference between hot and cold and which would be more appropriate for me.

Thanks again. I appreciate your time to share this info with me.

As long as the plug doesn't say long, xlong, or turbo on it you should be fine with whatever cold plug you choose. I would check the glowplug first....take it out of the engine and put it on your glow ignitor. If it lights up and glows nice and red hot then the plug is most likely fine. If it doesn't then you either have something wrong with your plug or your ignitor. Test with a known working glow plug to verify.

+1 for the temp gun.....you dont want to try to tune your engine with it but as Phins said its good for keeping tabs on your engine to make sure its not getting too hot.

If you messed with the stock needle settings at all I would return them to their factory default positions.

I would take the time to seal the engine.

Once you do get it started Id make sure you follow proper breakin methods. There are various break in methods for nitro engines out there.

Here is a series of videos that I would watch if I were you that covers a lot of basic information. Fuel and glow plugs, sealing nitro engines, 3 different breakin methods including Squirrels personal breakin method which is what I like to use. Tons of useful info here.

How to break in a Nitro RC engine Part 1 Fuel + Plugs - YouTube

 

[MotoGod]

If it's a brand new glow ignitor, I would recommend tossing it on the charger overnight and trying again the next day. As far as cold versus hot plugs.....hot plugs are WAY easier for new hobbyists to tune. Cold plugs will make more power in the end, but they are VERY finicky to tune unless you've got good tuning skills.

 

[Greywolf74]

The kit you are using I'm assuming has a smaller nitro engine. I'm assuming a .15 or a .18 so I would say go with a hot plug especially if you are using 20-25% nitro fuel.

You can test if your glow ignitor is work either by trying to light a new plug with it or testing the voltage out put with a voltmeter. Should be putting out about 1.2Vs

As for hurting your engine in the long run you probably didnt hurt it to much. Check out the videos I posted above and check out Squirrels method. his method you start out by driving the car around gently at first keeping the engine temp between 200-210F. I dont know if it the most effective method but it works for Squirrel and so far its worked well for me and its the least boring method I've found to break in a nitro engine.