Chuck,

Yessir . . . I figured that out 1.5 seconds after the first time I ran it up to full power. The coupler slipped off the header (BWWWAAAAAAA!!! - you know the sound!!) and then I went into the garage and got the zip-ties. The pipe was still sliding around a bit so I added another zip tie to the pipe holder help hold that. All part of the learning curve and I'm glad I'm learning them on the test stand.
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It's good to hear that the coupler will seat. I don't think I'll need to remove the pipe on this plane once I get it set the way I need. I ran two OS 1.40 RX's on Icepoints for a couple years. . . I have become a big fan of piped two-strokes. Once those OS's were set up, all I ever did was add fuel, light the plug and bump the prop. From what I've seen so far, this engine is going to be just as good.
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I've already found a couple really great features of this engine. The needle valve is a separate assembly from the engine. I have the needle valve mounted right now to the "firewall" of the test stand, and I still have to find a place for it in the plane, but it is nice to have the needle mounted to a solid surface and let the engine shake away on the Hyde mount. I guess "shake away" was a bad term. . . this engine is actually very smooth at all RPM's. The only movement I could see was the cylinder tilting left as it ran up to full power due to the torque from turning the prop.
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Another neat thing is the prop mounting bolt has a recess in the end for a hex wrench. You can hold the prop shaft in place so you can really get some torque on the prop nut. I can't really describe all of the other differences forward of the front bearings, but there are many as compared to an O.S. The spinner backplate is a replacement for the usual thrust washer, so you don't have the slipping when they are two separate pieces.



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