ORIGINAL: William Robison
Jpal:
The needle settings recommended are just a place to start. If your engine gets the proper mixture at 1½ turns open then go with it. Do check the high speed with the tank near empty and the nose pointed up – if all is well at 1½ turns fly and enjoy.
TC:
I’ll bet your buddy’s FA-125 engine doesn’t have the standard Saito “Click” when he turns the crank either. Most likely the whine is the timing gears set too tight. He can ignore it and hope it will go away (it wont for a long time), he can pull the cam out and put a thicker gasket on the cam box, or take it back to the source and have Saito fix it under warranty. Shouldn’t have a whine at all.
It is also possible that he has a bad bearing. Again, a warranty repair.
But whatever, he should have some castor oil in his fuel. I’m sure you’ve already told him.
Bill.
Thanks Bill,
I relayed the info (the philistine doesn't have web access) and he is going to go with the gasket thickness first. He also just told me it wasn't doing it right out of the box, but started after the first few flights. Bearing maybe? It definitely quitened down with the change to my fuel with castor added.
Yeah, he got the mesage loud and clear on the castor.
I also printed off your notes and presented him and another couple of other newbie Saito owners with
Professor Robison's Pearls of Saito Wisdom in booklet form.
Re warranty repairs: Our problem in the antipodes is that we are a long way from anywhere and shipping off for warranty takes forever. As this deprives you of the motor and may severly crimp flying activities, it is an absolute last resort. Most guys just bite the bullet and do the repairs/workarounds themselves.
Thanks again - I'll let you know how he goes.
TC [8D]