ffkiwi

Yes Dave I'm aware of what the Mk2 VA looks like-I have one as well. I was just idly speculating that my #5 might have represented an intermediary-the crankcase casting form is similar to the Mk2, and some aspects of the crankcase shape also resemble the Mk2 slightly. Now that you've confirmed that #5 is a pre-production model, that eliminates that theory......... Both my 'production' Mk1s crankcases look as though they were cast in beach sand......

#2 was obtained from a well known British Ebay vendor-and came exactly as you see it in my posted photos. There was no box or any accompanying history with it. The glowhead fitted to it appears to be a late model OK 049 one...........

ChrisM
'ffkiwi'

MJD

My Feedback: (1)

Only about 100 were ever made so I was informed, glad I snagged one when they were available. Sweet little engine.

ffkiwi

100 of the Mk1 preproduction? or 100 of the Mk2?

ChrisM
'ffkiwi'

MJD

My Feedback: (1)

The MkII - not sure if that was 100 R/C versions or 100 total. I think it referred to R/C.

Now that I've pulled it out of the Blink it needs a home in a 1/2A sport aerobatic model.

ffkiwi

Hmmn-not a lot then-there don't seem to be a lot of Mk2 VA's around period-either std or R/C-judging by both by the lack of magazine pics of them in models and the few times they ever pop up on Ebay (compared with the Mk1).[and even fewer VA 020s!] I would have purchased my Mk2 in either 1999 or early 2000 from the UK agent, Dave Banks. My only regret now is that I didn't get the diesel head accessory as well, only the Nelson plug adaptor. Dirty Dan (Dan Rutherford) held the torch for the Mk1's in the US-but I don't know whether he was involved in the marketing of the Mk2-I think Larry Driskill had an involvement with that-and someone else whose name currently escapes me, sold VA's in Canada.

ChrisM
'ffkiwi'

MJD

My Feedback: (1)

I got mine from Larry Driskill (and a few of those trick combat props). I didn't know someone had them up here. It's been a while but I think it sold at the time for around $100 US? The biggest prop I've run on it is a 5x3, but I only remember the tach reading on the 4.2x4 APC (25.3k on 35% fuel).

DeviousDave

IIRC, there were somewhere around 35 VA Mk2 R/C motors from a post Larry made a long while back, don't remember how many Combat motors were made. This was back before the internet got really big so the most exposure most modellers in the USA had with the VA was if they happened to read the small print ads in the AMA magazine where Larry's ad showed them available for about $70. That was a lot of money for what most people assumed would be not a lot better than their TD that didn't get used much-it's too bad because the Mk2 was the Way Forward until the Cyclons came out and shut the door on plain bearing motors for good.

ffkiwi

I think I paid about 45 pounds for my Mk2-so that's probably roughly equivalent to your US $70. Dave Banks -the UK vendor- of course was instrumental in getting a lot of the miniature diesel VA replicas done, so overall a lot of VA production would have passed through his hands from the mid 1990s onwards. I think I became aware of the Mk2 from a passing mention-and photos in the 'new items/products' section of AMI sometime in late 1999. I don't recall him offering the R/C version though-or even a muffler-I think these components were only made for the US market. [though a throttle was available from him for the 0.25 cc and 0.4 cc Mills models-and a larger one for the Mills 1.3, which I have fitted to one of my original Mills 1.3s]
I suspect the accessories may have varied depending on the market-and there were effectively three major markets-Europe-including the UK, North America, and Australasia (Aust and NZ) and there were designated suppliers in each, who no doubt knew their specific markets better than VA.

ChrisM
'ffkiwi'

DeviousDave

Getting VA to make an R/C Carb was a challenge from all the way back to the early days of the Mk1. When they asked the factory, the response was "Why on earth would anyone want to put a throttle on an .049?". About the time they got serious with it the mold for the Mk1 case was destroyed-or so they say, my guess is that there was more money to be made in vintage repros. While the Mk1 was a neat engine, if I were making engines I would be looking for excuses to not make them too-there are more machining operations and fixturing would be a pain in the @$$.

I do wish the castings on the Mk1's were better-mine look like they were made with beach sand too, some of them have voids in the cylinder walls too... doesn't hurt anything but dang....

Oddly, I have two VA mk2 carbs-one came on a Mk1 I bought that looked like it had the AndyW treatment.

ffkiwi

FWIW I remembered the name of the guy in Canada I couldn't recall earlier who handled VA sales there-it was Dave Larkin.

ChrisM
'ffkiwi'