Two questions...Cleaning and Heat

[ImageFX]

I believe when it comes to heat, you don't want to go over 270F. Atleast that's what I was told. Well, I ran my car...and after 3 tanks of gas, I put my temp monitor up to it, and it was only 150 sum degrees. So this tells me I'm doing something wrong when checking the temps, or my car isn't tuned right, so the motor isn't doing much work to heat up.

Next, my car picks up a good amount of dirt. I can't blow enough air on it to get rid of the dirt because it gets on the fuel that gets on the engine. How do I clean my ride right?

 

[sweetdiesel]

Where are you temping the engine? At 150 degrees I know any one of my engines would barely putter around. You need to check the temp by aiming the temp gun right down the heatsink head at the glowplug, while the engine is running. Did you follow the steps to find your max power with the HSN while watching for a steady trail of smoke?

Here are some good ways to clean your ride.

https://www.rcnitrotalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=39560&highlight=cleaning

IMO this is the best way to clean your nitro, but you need an ultrasonic cleaner. I'm hoping to get one for X-mas.

https://www.rcnitrotalk.com/forum/showthread.php?t=23378&highlight=ultrasonic

 

[ImageFX]

Ah, that's my problem. I'm checking the temp right after I stop running it. And I'm aiming it at the heatsink. Sheesh. You would think my temp gun would say, "NEWBIE, AIM ME HERE!!!"
Ok, so let me relate this to computers since that is what I know. If my temp is say...220 and I want my ride not to go over 270. Can I add air to get more power out of my car? Then maybe my temps would be like 250? In a computer, if it's running cool, you can add more volts to it and clock it faster but your temps will go up also.
Another question, in a computer, it is better to use a copper heatsink rather than aluminum. Are all heatsinks for cars made of aluminum? I don't think they can make them copper because they aren't has strong.

 

[sweetdiesel]

Yes, you would lean it out until you reach your desired temperature and power. Always make sure there is good smoke. Can I reiterate this enough? lol

Good smoke means there is plenty of oil to lubricate your engine. No smoke means no lubricaton and very fast engine wear and possible damage.

Most all heatsinks I've seen are made of aluminum, factory heads are often cast aluminum to cut down on cost, and aftermarket heads are usually CNC'd. Stick with the factory head until you learn to tune your engine. You can add a nicer aftermarket head later to keep things a little cooler. I say do this later than sooner because with a cooler head you get cooler temps, and that can be misleading as to how lean you are running. Learn the tuning part first.