RickVB

My Feedback: (24)

Another question, has anyone mounted this in a plane upright? Any thoughts as to whether that would make any difference in its operation?

rhd-RCU

My Feedback: (36)

Works fine.

Heli-NuBee

I have a Saito FG-21 in my Sig Mustang B and I had a bad experience yesterday. The plug wire came off of the spark plug and caused serious interference with the radio. Fortunately, I had a lot of altitude and the radio came back in a few seconds and I was able to dead stick the plane with only minor damage. This is the second engine with the 1/4" spark plug that I have had difficulty keeping the plug wire on. Has anyone else experienced difficulty with the 1/4" spark plug caps?

Best wishes and good safe flying.

Heli-NuBee (AKA Roger the radial rabbit)

jaav

Does your plug cap have a wire lock ring at the base? Once its locked in I cant remove the cap without closing the ring...Ive never had one come off.

RickVB

My Feedback: (24)

I don't know about the Saito, because I haven't done anything meaningful with mine yet, but the old RCS singles had a similar plug cap, and the SOP was to put a hose clamp on it out of the box...

Heli-NuBee

Both the Saito FG-21 and the EVO-10 CC engine spark plug caps have the wire lock ring on the cap. Both come off easily. There is not enough room on the Saito FG-21 head to use a hose clamp. I will have to safety wire it on just as I had to do with the EVO-10 CC engine.

Best wishes and good safe flying.

Heli-NuBee (AKA Roger the radial rabbit)

labebe

Hi, I have a brand new FG-20.
planning to install on a GP Waco, But I'm afraid it would be underpower. Does any one have flown the GP Waco with this engine??
thanks
Alex

Mustang314

My Feedback: (1)

I am using a FG21 for my 16 lb. Hanger9 J3 Cub, plenty of power. One caution DO NOT ATEMPT TO HOVER!
Frede

rhd-RCU

My Feedback: (36)

I don't believe that would be enough power. That plane was designed for a 30cc gasser.

labebe

Thanks for your comment. I agree with you. But the manual recommend a 1.2 glow four stroke engine.
I'm thinking not to install it
thanks
Alex

acdii

Here is what I found out on my FG-11, baby version of the 21. Since there is no choke on the carb, when in cowl, I was trying to figure out how to prime the carb. So what I did was set the throttle to WOT, had the ignition off, and the tank I use is soft sided and easy to get to since the nose comes off the plane(T-Clips). So I took my starter and spun the engine for about 45 seconds while squeezing the tank a bit. Turned the ignition on and the engine fired right off.

I have not touched the LSN on it, it is still factory set, and after the initial starts with 1 turn out of the HSN, I have the carb adjusted for peak minus 200, and have not touched it for 6 flights of 20+ minutes each, and finally cowled the engine. Last night I got a 10 minute flight in, with 48* temps, cowled and did not touch the needle.

MDavis28

Hey Guys, I haven't had a chance to read all the way thru this thread or thru the "Club Saito" thread. But I have encountered a problem with my FG-20. The engine runs great for about (2)7min runs then about 3-4 min I get bad radio interference.
I got the engine second hand. It ran great when I first got it. I put it in my plane and still ran great then it started running ruff and then wouldn't start at all then as I continued to try and start it I started to see radio interference. I thought I had fowled the (Saito) plug and so after removing it a few times to check it, it broke. I went to my LHS and picked up a new (Saito) plug and moved my rx further away from the Ignition. Started just fine and ran great. Plus no more radio interference. ( I am using a DX8 with a 8000 rx 2.4ghz.) I took my plane to the field and did numerous range checks at all different angles while it was running and had no problems, I lined it up, took off, flew and landed. fantastic! I did one more all good. Then I decided on a third flight. 4 min in and I lost signal. In the trees it goes and then it was back into a kit. Got it home an put it back on the bench and it ran ok but I was still getting radio interference. I ordered an IBEC from Aero-Tech and installed it a few days later. I tried to start it again but still had radio glitching. I know that if the plug cap is not on it will cause interference so I checked it and still the same. I remembered that the last time this happed I replaced the plug and all was well. So I went to my LHC and picked up an Evolution plug and installed that. Put the starter to it and it was singing that saito song, no radio glitch or anything. Last night I decided to do a test and simulate 3 flights. 5 min each. The first 2 went great, no quits or restarts ran the whole time. I started it the third time and it ran for 2 min and there is that glitch again! It went crazy but I was able to hit the kill switch and it did in fact quit and I immediately had radio control back. I turned off the radio turned it back on, restart and still had radio glitch. Moved the RX and tried a restart, same thing. I turned it off, checked cap it seemed on all the way and tried a restart and it purred for about 30 seconds then got the glitching again. Turned it all off, cleared the carb and called it a night. I'm not comfortable putting an engine in my plane or selling it knowing it can put people in danger. Any advice?
Thanks, so for the long post.

CH Ignitions

My Feedback: (11)

Try to check spark plug cap connection.
Is this the original Saito ignition?
What could happen is after 2 flights the engine, ignition get "hot" and some where you getting a weak connection .
When you have radio interference do you notice a different engine run behavior?
I seen you mentioned the IBEC , we always suggested to use 2 batteries. 1 for receiver and second for ignition.

Check spark plug boot connection, look inside,make sure the cap is fully engaged and clip on.
Use 2 batteries.
if not...we have a conversion kit for the FG20 that will use CH ignition .
CH Ignition 1/4-32 120 degree 6-7.4v
CH Sensor holder that will replace original.
1 1/4-32 Spark Plug


Thanks
Adrian

MDavis28

Adrian, Thanks for your reply. CH was the next step for me, so with you chiming in is a real+.
1) The ignition is (as far as I can tell) original, it says SAITO on it.
2) I was running it on two separate batteries when I was flying and it went in.
3) I am using the IBEC because it is suppose to remove the RF noise from the ignition.
I did check the cap, but to me it looks funny on the inside. When I get home I will try and upload some pics. I am use to automotive spark plug wires and small engine, well ok, small as in lawn equipment small, plug wires and it doesn't look the same. It looks like it has a Z in the bottom of it. Like it would rest on the top of the plug. The cap does snap on tight. I will get a light on it and look closer.

MD

CH Ignitions

My Feedback: (11)

What could be done first is to replace the cap ...but you will need to change the spark plug also.
Saito SPK is a bit longer.

Adrian

acdii

If you have an AM radio, put it by the engine and turn it on between stations so you hear some white noise. When the engine has run for a while and your RX starts to glitch, if it is the ignition causing it, your AM radio will pick it up and you will hear it. If you hear anything while the engine is running that is different than when not running, you definitely have an insulation issue with the ignition.

MDavis28

Hi Guys, Happy Halloween! So I got home and decided I wasn't going to mess with the FG-20. But curiosity killed the cat right? So I went over and started to wiggle the cap and it SEEMED to be all the way on but as I was about to stop it slid on to the plug more. So I took it out and refueled the tank and put the starter on it and it fired right up and purred just fine. So looks like I need to wire tie the cap on. Thanks for all your advise. I plan on putting this in my TF .60 P-51. Can't wait!

solarwindsusa

My Feedback: (3)

Purchased a used Saito 20 that the owner could not keep running. When I got it I tried starting it but it would not fire. I checked the valve lash and one valve had no gap and the other valves conrod came out of the guide cup. I adjusted them and tried to start the engine. It did fire but only ran above 5500 RPM's. I found that the ignition plug was not seating properly. I ended up taking a needle nose pliers and modifying the retainer clip so that the wire stayed seated. I then noticed that the compression was almost non-existent ( I now know this is normal for a Saito engine.) so I decided to disassemble the cylinder from the crankcase so I could examine the piston, cylinder, and valves. When I separated the cylinder the gasket was destroyed. Examination found no problems with the cylinder and piston however, there was a considerable amount of carbon on the valves. I sprayed WD40 into the cylinder and worked the valves and removed the carbon build up. I reassembled the engine but had to use Triple-Bond form-a-gasket since the original was destroyed. I set the carb to the default new settings and tried starting the engine. It fired immediately. High speed was 10600 and I adjusted the HS needle to 10400 slightly rich only about 3 clicks from factory suggested setting. I then started working on the LS screw and had to richen the mixture approximately one full turn more or counter clockwise. The engine idles smoothly at 1700 RPM with a 14/6 prop. The engine now has very smooth transitions without stumbling at all. I have idled it for over 30 minutes and then pushed to WOT without stumbling. The first tank of gas was a 20:1 mix with Klotz full synthetic and there was quite a bit of black oil discharge and my garage had a fair amount of smoke. The second tank of gas I mixed 25:1 and most of the black oil is gone and virtually no smoke in my garage. The engine now starts up immediately and idles @ 3400 RPM approximately two hours on 8ounces of gas. I use a NiCad pack 4.8V 1300 MaH. My concern is that the WOT is 10600 and the LS idle is 1700 RPM. The engine starts and runs absolutely flawless and has a wonderful thwup thwup sound at idle and sounds like a lumbering warbird at mid-low throttle. Any thoughts?

alan0899

G'day Mate,
Prop it for under 10,000RPM, a 14x6 is a 90 size prop, I use a 16x8 or a 17x6 on my FG21, & I found the best oil is Morgan's Coolpower Blue, mixed at 20:1.
I know you & most of the other people on this forum that read this will say that a 17x6 is too much prop, but, this is a 20cc gas four stroke, it has lots of torque, & can easily handle larger props.
Also, I have found mine runs better using a 6volt, eneloop battery, @ 2000 Mah. 4.8volts is a bit low, to get consistent running.

Cheers

acdii

Second the 16X8 or 17X6 prop. Way too small a prop for that motor. I run a 14X6 on the FG-11.

solarwindsusa

My Feedback: (3)

My thoughts exactly on the steeper prop. I initially installed the 14/6 because I thought I read somewhere to use a smaller prop for break in. I also used my infrared temperature gun and the hottest spot on the engine was 125 degrees F on the exhaust side of the cylinder. I am now on my fourth tank of gas and it is performing flawlessly. I have ceased using the electric starter and switched to a chicken stick with only one or two tries to get it to start. I am really happy with this engine. Funny how the last owner could not stand it because he could not get it to run. It makes me wonder about all of the other people who are having problems with the Saito FG series.

w1nd6urfa

My Feedback: (4)

Solarwind
Well done on getting it tuned, but beware if its an old FG-20 there is an inherent issue with the exhaust valve seat and possibly with the carb too.

Read page 44 and contact Horizon about possibility of upgrade

acdii

I had a similar situation with a glow FA-100 GK, owner could not get it to run. Sent it to Horizon, they did something to it, sent it back and he still could not get it to run. After 10 minutes of fiddling I found it was just too rich on the LSN, did a factory reset on it, and it fired right off. Its the only glow one I can start with a flip or three. Best $180 I spent so far.
I use a heavy glove with padding on the tops of the fingers, the 100 tends to bite back if you dont flip it fast enough and can crack the back of the knuckles. The FG-11 fires off in a few flips, however I still need to use the starter on it for the first start in order to prime the carb, or I would be there all day flipping it.

solarwindsusa

My Feedback: (3)

Ran a couple more tanks of gas through the motor today. It is absolutely perfect! I let it idle at 1750 RPM's for about forty minutes and then went to WOT and not even a hint of a stutter. I then would idle it for ten seconds and go to WOT without a stutter at all many numerous times. Also the black stuff from the crankcase breather is at a minimum. I really wish everyone else could have an engine that runs like this. It just sips petrol and sounds really great-like a WWII airplane lumbering in the distant sky.

acdii

I dont mind the black stuff, its residual oil. I use a scavenge system on the FG11. I have a short fuel line connected to a brass tube the end at the exhaust opening. The exhaust flow draws the waste oil out of the crank.