Nitro engine heat generation

[Nxbilyea]

Hey everyone!!

I have a project that I am working on that I require some assistance in some information.

I have a Tamiya Freightiner Cascadia 1/14 Scale RC tractor trailer, I am wanting to convert the electric engine on it to a Nitro engine, I have already beefed up the 3 speed transmission on it to accept the more power and speed. The issue that I am having is how to disperse the heat in the engine bay without melting the plastic hood or cab. I have figured out how i am going to run the exhaust out the bottom to an aluminum stack on the back of the cab, i'm just concerned about radiant heat from the engine its self.

Any help would be greatly appreciated.

 

[Rolex]

These are cooling fans mounted on an ESC in a heli to help with cooling in an enclosed area. You really won't gain anything by converting that truck to nitro. It's not meant for speed or handling, just scale looks and performance. Moving at slower speeds will also cause excessive clutch heat. Just not worth it. You're almost guaranteed to wreck a great model.

 

[cbaker65]

Something like ,I personally would not do nitro .nitro is for balls out full throttle ,like all 2 stroke engines!

You can do a brushless cheap!..

 

[Certified Mike]

The exhaust is it's own issue as well. Nitro exhaust is tuned for the engine, the reverberations within the pipes are tuned to match the engines and create performance. In a case like this, it really is a necessary 'evil'. It CAN be done and I see some very cool 1 off fun. The labor, the design work, the trial and error all part of the fun of customization.
If this were my project, I would at least look into the building a water cooled system using boat engines for the water cooled head, pumps and maybe building a mini radiator with some high flow fans. While I've never built something like this, and I was dead set on using nitro for power, that would be my direction. Then, I would find a way to install ducting and high flow fans all thru the cab to keep that heat moving.
I guess it really depends on what goals are trying to be met and of course, how serious and dedicated it would all be. The nitro would certainly be unique and I believe I would expect some costly failures before the final 'win' was attained.
If this is about speed and power alone, I would go with an 1/8 scale motor and esc. If this is about the nitro specifically, carry on and PLEASE do a. 'build project' covering your work!!! This is really something I'd LOVE to see as it's happening!
I wish you the best of luck!

 

[k3mist]

Water cooled nitro is something I eventually want to do just for fun and to see how it goes. I started looking into it a month or so ago but I don't know what to put it on yet. Something slow moving but I'm not interested in crawlers. Part wise it does not look expensive. Here's a couple of my bookmarks.

micro water pump
https://www.amazon.com/Docooler-Ultra-quiet-DC12V-Brushless-Submersible/dp/B00JWJIC0K/
https://hobbyking.com/en_us/water-pump-for-gas-engine-boats.html

tubing
https://www.amazon.com/Learn-Brew-LLC-Grade-Tubing/dp/B000E62TCC/

intercooler
https://hobbyking.com/en_us/1-10-scale-alloy-intercooler.html

micro reservoir
https://www.amazon.com/Swiftech-MCRES-Micro-Revision-Reservoir/dp/B001UCMCFS

and a couple esc fans wire tired to the intercooler.

Only thing else as Mike mentioned would be a marine engine with water cooled head. Also the clutch is definitely a issue, but you could mount a fan that is constantly blowing cool air on the clutch.

 

[Certified Mike]

I am not into crawlers but I have read that ppl don't run nitro in them due to the braking and the clutch. It seems electric/brushless is the way to go.

 

[k3mist]

I am not into crawlers but I have read that ppl don't run nitro in them due to the braking and the clutch. It seems electric/brushless is the way to go.

Yeah electric is the way to go for sure. But I still think its fun to experiment.

You could use a separate servo for the brake which could maybe be controlled by a knob so its linear? This way you could be applying brake and throttle at the same time just like the real full size ones do. The issue I read was nitro doesn't create that much torque in low rpm and you have to use really low gearing to get the rpms up to generate torque which is what burns up the clutch and then obviously the heat issue.

 

[Certified Mike]

Yes, a separate drag brake channel would solve a good portion of that isssue, great idea!!!