Ziggmiester

I was so happy to see this thread was revived! Spent alot of time on this thread quite a few years ago after getting my Sav .25 so many years ago. Good to see you're back online and in the hobby ashburg!

Congrats on your purchase battyone! I bet you're pumped to really get it going. Have you read about the break-in procedure yet? You want to make sure you break that engine to ensure the engine has a good long life. You're going to want leave that glow plug in the engine. Make sure the plug isn't overtightened, but you're not going to want it cracked. Just make sure the plug is nice and snug. Otherwise, your engine will lose all sorts of compression. Make your truck even harder to start for the first time. Just fuel it up, cover the tuning pipe until the fuel just feeds into the carb. Then throw that glow ignitor and rotostart it up! You might have to play with the throttle a bit to get it to fire up. Doesn't hurt to have a second set hands around until you get a hang of it.

Spare parts: Extra glow plugs. You'll burn one out during break in or shortly after. An extra one-way bearing is a big one. My first one started to slip shortly after break in due to being coated in oil. Spur gears don't hurt, I've melted a couple.

Let me know if you need break in steps. My brother and I and have done a number of break ins and we have good results with our system.

-Mike

battyone

Thanks   ziggy,

first  start   and  break-in  went   well  without  a  hitch.

All  the   points  of  spur gear mesh and tuning   was  without  any issues. have  a  couple   spare   spur  gears  on  the  way.  

Will  put   spare  glow plugs on my   list  too. Roto starter  is   having  no  issues  either.  Dont  know  why  so many   complain  with  these  problems.  Although im nearly   50  years  old  i  guess  its  just   simple  matter of  following  procedure and  being   patient.  Hardly  needed  to  adjust   carby   except  about  1/2  turn in  HSN  and   1/4 on LSN idile is  still a little   high  but leaving  it for  now  as  clutch is  handeling   without  turning   wheels. have a  bit  of  slop in  bearing  carriages  on  back  wheels   will  shim  and re- seat  with thin strips of beer   can aluminum and some  sort of   cement... only   problem  now  is  i  ran outta  fuel only have  enough  for 1 more tank full  and  is  an hour  drive  to  one  and only  hobby   shop here.  

Ziggmiester

Congrats on the break in! It's always fun to get a new nitro up and running. Nothing like being able to pull that throttle all the way down and smelling that nitro! Sucks about the fuel man! Bigger engines can sure guzzle down that stuff real fast. Another thing you might consider getting is a temp gauge. It never hurts to makes sure your engine is hitting the right temps. I've never had all that many problems with my rotostart. My first one lasted years and years. Finally broke in the hands of my brother-in-law as he is getting hardcore in the hobby. The button on the rotostart just stopped working. Just bought a rotostart 2 on ebay for cheap to replace it. No worries. A question: What color is the smoke pumping out of the tuned pipe?

-Mike

SerpentCT4S

My Feedback: (1)

I just got done installing my FLM TVPs and mid tank mod.

I just have to run my new fuel lines and it will be done. Can't wait to run it tomorrow!

Here are some pics!

battyone

thanks zigg, seems only smoke i seem to get is with acceration and is greyish white and only faint smoke on idle. apparently is should smoke slightly from the lubricant in fuel. not too different than a standard 2 stroke cord trimmer for lawns (am a semi retired mowing contractor) my kawasaki trimmer is almost 15 years old so am aware of small engine maintenance. On that note however, can i just use straight 2 stroke oil to recoat inner air cleaner? 

was  also  suggested  i  can  use   singer  sewing  machine  oil to  re-coat inner  foam  element to  trap  dirt  and  dust  particals

jcmiller05

Just bought a Savage X 4.6 and have it broken in. This is an awesome truck and I am stoked to own it.

Only problem so far was the throttle servo going out. Bought a new one at the LHS and ran it again today with no problems. This thing screams!!!

It runs great at about 280 degrees though. Looks like that might be normal from what others are posting.

1ne8ighty2wo

My Feedback: (2)

I just bought a used Savage 21 that's in pretty good condition, but I want to switch out the roto start to a pull start. Will I only need to buy the pull start assembly (http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXDLN5&P=V) and use the back plate that's on there, or will I need to buy a new back plate as well?

In case you're wondering, it's because I don't have a battery charger and I'd rather have to worry about charging as few items as necessary rather than buying a charger for it.

Ziggmiester

Battyone, I would suggest making that engine a bit more rich. The smoke should be a nice blue color. If you have temp gauge, make sure you're only hitting around 280 max. I shoot for 240 on my non-race engines. If you're racing, you might choose to run a bit hotter, but for just general bashing I'd keep it cool. It'll make the piston and sleeve last a whole lot longer!

Jcmiller05, Glad you've joined the Savage crew! Only problem looks to be an easily solved one. Temp is okay! Keep enjoying it! I personally aim for 240 though.

1802, I think you need a new backplate as well. I've never converted mine over to pullstart though, plus I have .25. No hands on with the NS .21 I would suggest just buying a cheaper charger and using the rotostart to be honest. You're going to want a receiver battery in there before too long. AA's go pretty quick. Even a cheaper charger can be had for 50 bucks, and make your nitro life way cheaper in the long run. Converting over is going to cost about that anyway. The hobby requires a decent charger sooner or later! Just my opinion.

Serpent, I love that mod. My NitroStar is broken it's seals again, so I've had everything I can deal with it. When I get a new engine this summer, I'm going to convert my Savvy in just this fashion. I love this. Thanks for the pics.

-Mike

1ne8ighty2wo

My Feedback: (2)

Thank you for the suggestion. I'll consider that. It came with an rx pack but it just uses a wall charger. I'll copy over my post from the general forum to here (I didn't even think to post it in this thread originally):

I found a deal on here for a Savage 21 with new-ish engine (12 tanks according to seller, 6 break in 6 running), 2.4 ghz radio, upgraded chassis and air filter, and a bag full of extra parts (shocks, arms, pipe, hubs, 2 extra wheels) for 2 and a quarter. I just got a chance to open it up the other night and it looks pretty good to me.

I've noticed so far that I need an arm for the brake linkage that's snapped and a charger for the roto start. From looking at pictures online, it looks like the roto start rod is missing an o-ring... would that explain why the rod doesn't stay in the handle very well?

Also, a couple of questions:
-It came with a hump pack, and is the plug that's in the side of the battery box for charging the pack without having to take anything out? Or is that for something else?
-Is that the correct way to put the antenna for a 2.4 system? (I've only had am/fm before) Does it even need to stick out at all?
-It came with about a third of a tank of gas in the tank, but I pulled out the line from the carb and it seemed dry. Should I be concerned or is it probably fine?

I plan to do a teardown over the next week to check if there's anything wrong that I haven't noticed and to locktite it all. In the meantime I'll have to figure out how to work the radio, seeing as the only button I know on it is the power button

Ziggmiester

Looks like the truck is in good shape! Good deal too. My roto start has never had an oring on it. I the rod keeps shaking out, it might be wear on the unit itself. The rotostart themselves are prone to a couple of problems, so I wouldn't blame you switching to pullstart. I'd prefer just to use a bumpbox on my Savage if I could! Wall chargers typically charge really slow. Even a cheap charger would be able to charge the rx and roto batt in under two hours combined...and that's going slow.

It would be a dream if you could charge the rx batt without removing it, but you need the cable that plugs in to connect it to the truck, in order to charge the battery. The receiver box might be the biggest complaint about the Savage. After a few times, you'll get quick at opening the thing up.

2.4's can be tricky depending on the receiver. Just turn the truck tx and rx on and have friend stand with the truck. Keep walking while periodically going left to right and using the throttle. That's the best way to check to make sure you have good range. If it starts to twitch or not respond, you'll know you have to mess with the receiver. Some of the receivers require the antenna to be straight up and down. Haha, and I mean straight!

Dump the gas from the tank. Other than that, it should be fine.

You'll want to square the brake linkage away. Double check to see if you have a failsafe and a throttle return spring on there too! Never can have too many steps to prevent a runaway. Enjoy!

-Mike

1ne8ighty2wo

My Feedback: (2)

I'll take a pic of the inside of the battery box in the morning, but it's basically one wire that runs from the switch to the side of the box, one that runs to the battery, and one that runs to the rx. I don't know why I didn't try it before, but when I plug the charger in the light on the charger turns red (which usually means it's charging, right? I'll see if it turns green at some point tomorrow after I get a chance to charge it).

I found a manual for the radio online, but it's in shady-translated english, so that should be fun to learn how to use and set up properly .

I plan to see if I can pick up an o-ring that's the right size in the next few days to see if that does the trick.

Also, this truck didn't come with a body... Where would you recommend a cheap place to buy one? I'm not really into painting, but do you think a body that's spray-painted one color and with decals look bad? Does anyone have a picture of one so I could get an idea?

1ne8ighty2wo

My Feedback: (2)

Sorry for the double post, but I have an update:

The o ring was no help at all. The wand is so close to being a snug fit that not even tape can wrap around the wand to make it tighter, but loose enough so that it doesn't stay in. It still rotates when I press the button, but if I hold it vertically or almost vertically is slides right out. So i guess it's not so much of a problem as it is an inconvenience.

I ran into an odd problem with the carb and the LSN, though. The factory setting says 3 1/2 turns from closed, but if I turn the needle in any more than it is in the picture, the carb locks up to the point of me not being able to open it even by hand (without forcing it at least, as I don't want to break anything). However, the needle still screws in much further easily. Any ideas on what could be causing it? If someone could check for me, how far in is full closed from the needle being flush with the casing?

battyone

Seating  the  needle  is  a  risky  idea being that damage  may  result  however  if  you  r  worried  about   binding in the   screw  setting  due  to a  dry  o  ring  take  it  all  the  way out   and inspect  condition of o  ring. if it  looks  ok use  a   bit of  silcone  lube   and   reinsert. but  first   take off  air  cleaner intake and  make  sure  you maintain a  1 mm gap from  fully   shut. Someone   i saw  b 4  suggested  using  he  wire diameter of  a large paper clip to  check  but   take  care  not  to score  workings   to achieve  that   gap. apparently  that  is  what  the  standard  factory  settings   are  based  upon..hope  that  helps  

battyone

"Battyone, I would suggest making that engine a bit more rich. The smoke should be a nice blue color. If you have temp gauge, make sure you're only hitting around 280 max. I shoot for 240 on my non-race engines. If you're racing, you might choose to run a bit hotter, but for just general bashing I'd keep it cool. It'll make the piston and sleeve last a whole lot longer!

Thanks for that ziggy.

For the short term till i aquire a temp gauge ill be running a bit on the rich side but i will attempt to re-tune on 1/2 tank to achieve proper tune. may i ask however that when storingor in betweenrunning times why ishould set piston to BDC?

1ne8ighty2wo

My Feedback: (2)

Sorry, what is seating a needle?

battyone

"Seating a fuel mixture needle means to screw all the way closed but DONOTTIGHTEN! you will damage the delicate needle inside of the carby. facrtroy settings are usually where head of needle screw is flush with the housing it screws into.

1ne8ighty2wo

My Feedback: (2)

Oh okay. But my question remains, what is going on with my carb locking up? Is my needle going past seated somehow?

Is there any way I could check for damage?

battyone

go  o  this  link..lotta  step  by  step info  with  engines  and  rebuilds  as  since your  crc  is   snd  hand  and  used  you really  need  to  tear  down  and  look  for  any  worn/ damaged  components...

.http://www.hpisavageforum.com/forums...splay.php?f=16

quietnas1

Hey everyone. I don't pop in here much cuz my Savage is pretty much trouble free. I do need a little help deciding if I should paint my frame red or keep it stock. Here are a couple of pics let me know what you think. Thanks.

nitro-rob

You don't just have to come in here if you have problems, you are welcome to help others out as well.  If your truck is trouble free you likely can be helpful.

1ne8ighty2wo

My Feedback: (2)

Hmm alright I'll investigate it some more when I get a chance. Just for reference, about how many turns in from flush should closed be?

nitro-rob

I've never run that engine and I don't know the carb.  I think my k4.6 had the needle head flush with the housing.  All of my nitro carbs low speed needles turned in 3-4 turns from flush and when it got tight you could feel is progressing easily and it was obvious when to stop.

1ne8ighty2wo

My Feedback: (2)

Well I seemed to have tracked down my needle problem. As per [link=http://www.hpieurope.com/walk.php?lang=en&id=1]THIS TUTORIAL[/link], I was supposed to hold the MSN in place as I adjust the LSN. I've only had a 2 needle carb before so I was just doing it the only way I knew how. It's set right, but I don't know if I damaged anything in the process. I'll have to either take the carb apart or see if it tunes once I get it started. Which brings me to a second question...

Is it a bad idea to use a cordless drill in place of a roto start? I need to get a charger for the battery for the roto start, but in the mean time at least would putting the wand in a cordless drill do the trick? Or would it be too powerful or something for the engine?

thef@st1

cordless drill is fine. one thing that ive noticed is my drill dosnt turn the engine over very fast. i find it alot easier to use a roto start just cause it turns the engine over quick and starts a little easier for me.

quietnas1

Well my truck is pretty much all stock except for the shocks and bullet proof diffs. So the Savage is still pretty new to me even though I have had it for a couple of years now I feel I'm not knowledge enough with this particular truck to really give good advice.

As far as engine tuning I'm pretty good but old school. I don't use a temp gun due to the fact that I got into the hobby way before temp guns or readers were used. I tune by sound, sight, and performance. Some of the newer guys like to poke fun and insist on using a temp gun so I have kind of backed away from giving tuning advise as well. Seems to me that tuning in this manner is a dying art. When someone asks what temperature should my engine be at and I can't answer they just stop listening.

Stadium Trucks is what I started with way back in 1994. RC10GT Tub Chassis. Had 2 of them. Then RC10GT Flat Chassis. Also had 2 of them. And now I have a Jato 3.3 since 2007. I can give advise all day on those without missing a beat. Once I gain some more knowledge with the Savage I will give my advise as well. I just don't know it like the back of my hand yet but I will.