Okay... I'm TRYING to start this thing for the first time and all I've been able to do is gowge my spinner.

• I fueled it up...
• I somehow managed to hold the glo-plug (ingniter) on the glo-plug...
• And somehow (tried) to use the starter on the spinner... :stupid:

Nothing happened and now I feel like a complete retard! The engine didn't turn over, it came no where near starting, it just dug and dug and dug. Hell, it even smelt burned!

And now I have gashes in my brand new, unstarted, first plane. Boy, if this is how hard it is to start, I'll find something else to do.

I think I even heard a "crack" while squeezing the fuselage. G•dD@#* m•Ý·´®f¨ç°´® ßø˜øƒå*ˆÝç·ç¨˜Ý*·ø®´åßß ´å݈˜' *ˆç° ߨ簈˜' 箥 *å*¥ åßß ç®å˜°ˆ˜' *å© øƒ *ˆ˜© øƒ *ˆ˜* ç®å* ßøø݈˜æµø˜´¥ ¬ø*´®!

PLEASE HELP! :cry:

MacAir (soon to be MacGrounded)

Suonds to me like you got it flooded.Try to turn the engine over by hand without the ignighter on it to push some of the fuel out.Then clip on your ignighter and with the starter running bump the nosecone,it should start right up.

Flooded is possible but did you turn the plane and controller on? If everything was turned on was the throttle a tad bit open? Make sure you have your glow plug in snug, if it is mis-threaded it might not be seated properly or be bad. Is everything charged, including your glow plug igniter? Don't be frustrated, there are a number of things it could be and because you are excited to get started you might be missing some steps. If none of these suggestions work you can always take it to your hobby shop or local field for some help.

Settle down,get a glass of milk,my method,one thing about this site is lots of free advice,gas up,open needle valve 2 1/2 turns open,open throttle.put finger over carb.turn prop over by hand till see fuel at carb,close throttle to 1/4 open,move prop to left,away from compression,conn.igniter,put starter to spinner and crank up ,if to much fuel on choking, the engine will lock and the starter will not turn engine over,tilt plane on edge and excess fuel will pour out of muffler.Once cleared start engine,starting engine is easy after having experience, but until then can be a problem,as a last resort carry it to the club and let an experienced person do it the first time.

Have a goodun,John.

make sure you glow plug is good and your glow starter is fully charged, or has a new battery in it. to check the glow plug just take it out and put it on the glow starter, if the plug doesnt glow, try another one, or change the battery in your glow starter (if it takes batteries) for the glow starter, it should clip on the plug, push it down and urn it to the right just a little to make it stay.

check your fuel lines, make sure they are not pinched shut, you should only have 2 lines.. one from the muffler to the tank and from the tank to the engine. some fuel tank instruction call for 3 lines, you just need 2 (I made this mistake).

the needle valve on the engine... screw it in tight, then turn it out 2 turns, start from there, still wont start.. screw it out some more.

you'll get it, I had the same problem.. those are just some of the things I did to get it running.

Make sure you have your plane restrained so that when it does start you don't get a vasectomy, sounds like you're still young enough that you may still need your family jewels!

Learning to operate a glow engine is as much art as science. Until you get some experience with them, things can be challenging. TerrellFlyer gave you great advice on starting the engine. I'm gonna chip in just a bit more.

Make sure the plane (I'm assuming you're running it already mounted in the plane) is secure. I use a couple of stakes in front of the tail. Other guys use a rope looped around the tail tied to a tree or post. Don't try to start it without a hold down of some sort.

If it doesn't fire after a few seconds of having the starter applied, you need to make an adjustment. Don't just hold the starter on in hopes that it'll start. Next time, if it doesn't turn over don't hold it on. You'll damage either the starter, the engine, or... the spinner.

Calm down. Engines sometimes can be a pain, but a level head is necessary when running them. That prop is going to be moving when it fires up, and you don't want to be in its way. Always be aware of the prop. Always!

I wouldn't be too concerned about the spinner. Trainers have a habbit of picking up all sorts of bumps and bruises, as do most everyday fliers. Just wait until you get the engine running--there'll be oil residue all over.

Was anybody there helping you? Are you able to fly on your own? Im not trying to be a smarty pants I just dont want to see you tear your plane up. Take your glow plug out and then spin it. Now....Start all over again and try Terrels methood......AND Davids....heheee.........John

Yeah.......

It took me weeks after I soloed to get the hang of starting and tweeking the carb on my engine.

I'd highly recommend you get someone experienced to help you for the first few sessions (not flights).

It'd be a shame to trash an engine because it was hydro locked and you didn't know.

GB

Try this;
Remove glow plug and connect to your plug battery. you are using a 1.5 volt battery( nicads are 1.25). does the filament lite up brightly? It should if battery is good and filament is not burned out.

While you have the plug out disconnect the fuel lines and motor the engine with your starter, watch out for the small copper gasket that the plug seats on it will blow out if you left it in the mount hole for the plug, this should clear out the engine if it was grossly flooded. Also note that the starter is turning the propeller counter clock wise from the front of the plane, it should be. If it is not, reverse you starter leads

Connect your fuel pump to the line that came off of the muffler pressure port, pump some fuel into the tank, you should get fuel immediately , even if tank is empty. If you do not get fuel do the same thing to the other line. If you get fuel out of the now open line, then you will need to hook them up so that the previous muffler line goes to the engine inlet. Note if the airplane stopped abruptly while moving forward the fuel pick up line (clunk) in the tank may have flipped to the front of the tank. Take a look at the tank!

Put it all back together, fuel it up, back the needle valve out a few turns and then screw it in until you just feel it stop moving, never crank it down as this may put a small grove around the needle or the seat and you will not be able to adjust the engine properly, now back the needle out 2.5 to 3 turns, Note: some engines need more or less turns! Experiment!

With the airplane held securely (in case it starts unexpedly)rotate the prop clock wise by hand until you feel resistance. Connect the glow battery and bump the spinner with the starter, (turn the starter on and then touch the spinner momentarly and remove starter), you should be able to hold the starter on the spinner if the engine turns over easily after this bump.

You did not say what kind of engine this is but a non ringed engine needs to be broken in at a high RPM to bring the operating temp up fast so the the proper expansion and seating of the piston will occur. Some folks will differ with this but 45 years exp sez it works. Run 3 to 4 tanks of fuel through the engine on the ground before you attempt to fly. Get an expirenced pilot to help before you try to fly on your own.

Seek help at a local clib if none of this works.
Good Luck and Happy Flying

To all: rcspud, ELSBP, TerrellFlyer, Hypter, David_Moen, MikeL, jmulder, Steve Guinn, Ghostbear, Sky-jacker, and dBow,

Thank you all for your calming words of wisdom and understanding in my frustration. The cause was a total "lack of experience, guidance and instruction".

While the manual(s) that came with the brand new Hobbico Avistar MkII ARF and the OS .46FX, no instructions or guidance was available to me through any type of reading material or otherwise, when it came to actually setting up the glo-plug, battery and power panel and prepping the carb., non of which were done correctly (well, the battery was okay).

A new (local) friend, "dBow", came to my rescue and showed me the ways.

My mistakes would have NEVER gotten this plane started. Here is the list of (my) mistakes:
1. Failed to "prime" the carb.
Action: Cover the carb with your finger and rotate the prop to get fuel into the chamber. (I must have thought that magic would do this for me.)
2. Glo-plug igniter was improperly used.
Action: Push onto glo-plug, pressing downward and rotating slightly past the "hex" and turn to lock. (I was simply touching the two together. This would explain why I thought I was retarded.)
3. Improper use of the power panel.
Action: To get an actual "reading" from the panel, one must properly connect the darn glo-plug ignitor - otherwise, no reading will be available. A "Homer" quote: "DaOh!"
Important Safety Tip: Don't allow the two battery clamps to become connected.
The effect (after the fact): Sparks, burning insulation, exposing raw panel wires, and nearly ruining the brand new power panel assembly!
AND: Don't keep your "WildCat" 15% NITRO anywhere near the frying cables in the power panel.

All in all, after a "How to properly get your engine safely started 1.0.1"... the engine was successfully broken in.

Oh yeah, after balancing your prop 100%, DON'T FORGET to apply more pressure on the prop nut than you think, or your prop WILL COME OFF! "DaOh!" It's a damn good thing it came off during start up of the second tank, or I may not be here to thank you all.

I also found out that old cloths are better to wear than new cloths - especially when fuel goes squirting out the top of the carb.! Daaaah. "It's a boy!"

After a few more adjustments with the pushrods and a full charge of the batteries, I should be ready to fly this weekend for it's maiden voyage.

Thank you all very much for your assistance, guidance, and support!

Jon "MacAir" Ý

I hope you have someone to instruct you on flying? If not find a local club that has a newbie night and have a seasoned pilot check over your aircraft and fly it for you to adjust and make sure all is working ok.

I highly suggest also using same seasond pilot with a "buddy cord". It will save you countless hours and money, and avoid a madien crash that so many have done, and end up quiting the hobby over frustration and disapointment.

Good luck and fly safe!

MacAir,
Consider it a learning experience!!

I wish all of the newbies could read this thread. Especially those who think they can fly without help. It just goes to show that the simplest things can become so complicated when you are dealing with something that you're not familliar with.

Good luck MacAir! And welcome to our wonderful hobby!

Don't wear good shoes.

I fuel soaked my right shoe from standing with the tail feathers hitting me behind the ankles, and haven't been able to get the smell out yet.

But, between fiddling with a tach and trying the pinch method, I've finally gotten the hang of adjusting the carb.

GB

A good pair of tinted saftey glasses is a good idea also,(fuel, flying parts, sand, dirt, and other F.O.D. from the ground). Can't fly what you can't see...

MrDHEJ, glowplug, MinnFlyer, Ghostbear, and vegas mossie,

Thanks, I do consider that a very valuable lesson. (And was thinking of going up alone... NOT!)
I do have an instructor - thanks for keeping me in check!

I couldn't beleive just how complicated it became when first trying to start this on my own - thank goodness for new found friends ("dbow").

And the tip on the "good shoes"... I'll take your word for it.

It looks like tomorrow is the day, providing we have the weather for it, if not, Sunday! Finally.

Happy Flying!
"MacAir"

Hey Macair welcome to the club, for I too am/was a retard but graduated to a plain old dumb$@#t. thank god for the dbows of the world. I have been flying for about 4 years now and try to accept the role, but I must admit I don't know it all. But I'm always willing to help in any way I can. Garry

I had a student that tried to learn to fly on his own recently..with a Sig Somethin' Extra no less.....it didn't work!!!! After he crashed it several times..he FINALLY came to the club and talked to some of the members... He went home and ordered a trainer that day....

Not only that.....he even tried to fly a Helicopter by reading about it in a book.....it ended up with a bent tail rotor.....and they ain't cheap....coulda been worse I suppose........

I am proud to say that after working for him for several weeks he has become a pretty decent pilot........instead of a pile it.......

So many newbies tend to make the same mistake....try to fly on their own.....the sad thing is.....a lot of them get so frustrated that they just give up this hobby totally.......a real shame...because it can be so much FUN!!

I wish you the best on your flight training.....Listen and learn from your instructor.....

One more thing.....Have FUN....'cause if it ain't FUN....it ain't worth doin'......

Just a thought, new engines can be hard to start, and a lot of times will only run a few seconds at a time for the first few starts.
I had a student with an O.S. FP 25 that almost gave up because of this.
The engine was very tight, and though he had the needle valve set right, it would start and run just a couple of seconds, as if it were to lean. He would then richen it and flood it, and ruined his spinner too.
After a 1/2 hour of BREAKIN, it was fine, and he is still flying.
A burned spinner is your least of worrys at this point!
DON'T GIVE UP!-GET SOME HELP!

Jetts