alcoholhelps

Alright so I'm fueled up in my garage trying to start up my .61 Thunder Tiger, and the fuel is just not drawing through the line....I can suck the fuel through the fuel line, and I can blow it through the muffler line, but it is not sucking on engine alone for the life of me, please any help would be great!....This is one a Giles G202 Great Planes....engine is mounted sideways if that matters.....

I went back out and when I open up the carb and plug it, the fuel draws perfectly, but as soon as I back my finger off and try to flip it the fuel just isn't coming out.....frustrating.....let me know if hand flipping it is the problem...I charged up my starter (it's a portable one)...but it's for whatever reasons it can turn over the engine...so I'm trying to hand flip it...

DMcQuinn

My Feedback: (13)

Glow engines can be hard to start by flipping. especially for beginners with new engines that may not be adjusted right. Your best bet is to get some help from someone that has a heavy duty starter and a large battery. The starters with built-in batteries sometimes do not work on larger glow engines. Once the engine is properly adjusted and broken in, it may start with a flipping technique. I have been running glow engines for over 30 years and still find that some of them need the electric starter to get running.

jaka

Hi!
If you have throttle open and hold the thumb over the intake it sucks fuel...but not when you remove the thumb and flip the prop...is that correct?
If you flip the prop with the carb set at idle position ( throttle drum open 2mm )...does it suck fuel then?

You have tank mounted correctly with the center of the tank inline with the carb intake orifice?

Regards!
Jan K
Sweden

alcoholhelps

This will be my third glow engine that I've broken in, one of which was a Thunder Tiger 42....I think I will have to find some way to get a starter to work over it...and I am assuming that the tank is mounted right, I built everything according to plans, I'll just have to try again tomorrow I guess and see if my luck changes then...thanks again guys.

piper_chuck

My Feedback: (12)

Sometimes the fuel will not stay in the line when the engine is not running. When this happens, the key to get it to start is to be sure you've got it primed well. Once the engine fires, it will pull the fuel up the line really fast. To prime it, just do what you've been doing, open the throttle, cover the carb and flip it several times. Be sure to get in one or two good flips after you see the fuel come up to the carb. When you are sure it's primed, attach the glow ignitor and try starting it again. If it doesn't fire within a few flips, and it's not flooded, prime it some more.

kdheath

Try this from a cold start: Open the throttle. Thumb over intake, pull the engine through 3 to 5 times, until you know you got some fuel in it. Connect the glow driver. Grab (firmly) a prop blade and pull the engine through compression. Feel a "bump"? If you do, flip it over hard. It should at least try to start. A lot of times, once it fires it'll go fine. Each engine has it's own MO for hand starting, so you may have to futz with it some to find the right combo. If you find yourself grinding on it with a starter, something is wrong. Even when I use a starter (on larger engines) I still do the bump routine.

Do check the tank, lines, carb, and connections very carefully for leaks. And check the backplate screws and gasket. If the backplate is leaky, you'll lose all your suction. Causes all kinds of weird problems. This is a problem more often than a lot of people realize.

alcoholhelps

Thanks for the help guys....welp I took off the glow plug and was able to turn over the engine that way and got it loose enough for the starter to turn the prop with the glow plug in. It's now running perfectly, it's cooling down as we speak, thanks again guys...I love this site, fast on hand information!