Dan,

According to the specs I have, the Norvel .074 weighs 2.66 ounces and the TT .07 comes in at 3.7, both with muffler. But it's in the area of performance that the Norvel shines.

I've never owned the TT but according to an article in RCM&E, it'll only do about 16 to 17K on a 6 X 3 prop, depending on brand. Not much better than a Norvel .061 at twice the weight.

I've dabbled with head buttons to take stock plugs on the Norvel both in the .061 and the .074 sizes. They work well and in some cases allow for better throttling on the .06. But, the tradeoff, as in Cox engines, is that you give up enough power to make you go back to the stock plug. At least I did. Besides, Norvel plugs are well made and do last.

If you like, though, I can loan you the buttons to play with. You just might find/have a plug that doesn't rob too much power. And if there's a button that works well for you, you can keep it. I can always make more.

I suspect that once carefully broken in, you'll be amazed and delighted with the Norvel. And if you venture to dieselize it, all it takes is a stab with the starter and its off and running.

Rog,

Diesels CAN be maddening, frustrating, impossible, mysterious, troublesome, b*tchy and all around a pain in the arse, as the Brits would say. BUT, a dieselized Norvel is something else. It behaves no different from the glow version except that is has a nice masculine roar. And on a larger prop, with lower rpms, much less irritating to the folks walking around the park. I've flown the same plane, on the same afternoon, switching back and forth between glow and diesel and there's just something very appealing about the way that big lumber pulls it along.


And yeah, they stink and are oily but that oiliness is just extra protection for your engine. And, it doesn't have to be that oily. My mix only uses 20% oil and has run one Norvel for several years with nary a hiccup. The rod is the only weak link but even there, you can bend or break a rod on glow if you're not careful.

I'm rebuilding my .06 version and with a new piston and cylinder, I'm hoping to tame it. I still have that Balsa Prods. Tiger Moth and an .06 lugging an 8 X 4 would be scale in size, rpm and sound. And, not that much heavier than a Cox Texaco.