Howdy! I'm building an Eindecker 40 and I want to know which way I should mount the engine. The cowling covers about 3/4 of the nose and is naturally open on the bottom 1/4. (see [link=http://www.balsausa.com/kits/kit.htp?id=40&shopperid=]Balsa USA Eindecker 40[/link] for picture) So, do I mount the engine on it's side so the muffler comes out the bottom? But then, what about accessing the needle? Keep in mind, I'd like to keep from cutting holes in the cowling as much as possible to preserve appearances. Thanks for any suggestions!

BFS

I'd mount it inverted and get an inverted pitts muffler for it. But that's me

I agree with Ice Man, then you will only need one small hole in the side for the needle valve.
You may also want one of these
http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...?&I=LXBC35&P=7
Since your glow plug will be hard to get at.
I like the looks of the Eindecker and hopefully will build one some day.

Good ideas and, Missleman, cool attachment! [8D]

Another question...how often am I going to need to adjust the needle valve? Shouldn't I just be able to find the right setup for my engine/flying locale and then leave it alone?

BFS

You will have to tweek your high end needle valve a little whenever the temperature changes, so having access to your high end valve is important.

I saw one guy that had a piece of wire shoved in the end of the needle valve adjustment knob. I think there's a screw that held it in there. I can just let that tiny piece of wire protrude instead of cutting a big hole in the cowl, right? also, any special kind of wire to use that's small enough and sturdy enough to twist with?

BFS

theshummer,
Yes, you can use a piece of wire as an extention for the needle valve. A piece of scrap pushrod is all you need. Just bend a 90° angle in it.

Ken

Hi,

For what it is worth there is a fellow in the club I belong to that has an old OS Wankle in a 40 sized Eindeker. There isn't anything protruding from the cowl and it flys in a very scale like manner. Just a thought but you might still pick one of these up at a swap meet or e-bay. Certainly a good match for this model.

Cheers,

Colin

Sounds like a great idea, but I'm not sure what the advantage is to a Wankle (other than no holes). I'll look around though. If I find one, anyone interested in a very good condition used OS .41? Also, the instructions say to cut a few holes in the firewall for the fuel line and something else. How many should there be and how should they be oriented to the engine? As of now, the back of the OS sits very close to the firewall, so I was thinking on putting the fuel line on the opposite side of the firewall (left side) since the fuel connection is on the right side in order to avoid kinks.

Thanks for all the advice!! I live in an area with not too many experienced guys (and they don't speak english) so you guys are all I got!
BFS

Just dont forget, a wankle is a very thirsty little motor, it uses fuel like a 60 (or more).

I have, in the past, extended a needle valve with a piece of wooden dowel rod and some heat shrink tubing. worked great.
Holes in firewall? engine mounting holes (with blind nuts) a hole for your throttle connection and holes for your fuel lines, 1 more hole if you use the remote glow adapter I mentioned before (IF you want to mount it in your fuselage)

I Had an Eindecker several years ago with the engine inverted and the muffler pointed down (or is it up with an inverted engine? ) - anyway the system looked good - it didn't work that well but it looked good...

Personally; I do not like inverted engines, if they are not tuned properly they are hard to start and you have to reach under the plane passed the spinning prop to get the glow igniter etc ... I don't like them... [:'(]

IF you wish to keep the overall shape of the AC - fine rotate the engine 90 degrees and put the carb adjustments at the bottom... the key is to not have raw fuel collecting in the top of the engine and putting out the glow plug. [] IMO

Next is the Eindecker itself - I kept it for only one season and then got rid of it ASAP. Again - a personal preferance. I found that it was very scale like - read slow with very limited aerobatic capabilities.

Also it was very difficult to take off - and I have been flying since 1995. Due to the high lift design of the wing coupled with the high angle of attack of the AC (tail dragger) the plane wants to jump into the air before you have sufficient speed to actually 'FLY'. Therefore once at an altitude of about 20' the plane looses speed and tip stalls. The normal reaction is to apply more throttle (torque roll) and give it more Right aileron - which increases the amount of stall ... [][:'(] [&o] - Trust me... I just described a flight from 1999 - know...

The solution is to 'hold' the AC on the ground until you have good ground speed - and then gently pull back on the elevator and then off you go.

If you like Old Slow WW 1 AC - it is just fine - it was not the AC for "ME".

Good Luck.

I have the Eindecker you are building. Great little fun flyer. What engine are you using? I have a Magnum 52 4 stroke mounted inverted and it runs great. no problem starting, holds a good needle setting. plenty of power for plane. I built mine scale with the scale landing gear and tailskid. Ground handling leaves something to be desired, so if you don't care about scale looks, might consider a tailwheel. I painted the cowl with Krylon Fusion aluminum paint. It looks just like real aluminum, very impressed with finish. I don't have any of the tip stall charateristics that is mentioned in previous posts. as with any taildragger, once you start your takeoff run, ease off of the elevator, let the tail fly and she will takeoff when ready to fly. Climb outs with the magnum are good, and engine has more than enough power to fly the plane through basic barnstormer aerobatics.

Good luck and have fun

I'm using an OS .41 as mentioned earlier, but considering a bit bigger for the altitude at which I'm flying (9,000 feet).

bbbair - with the motor at 90 degrees and the carbs down, where's the muffler?

Missileman mentioned "holes for your fuel lines" (emphasis on plural). How many of those are there? I've also got a clever idea of where to put the glow extension....

mscic-RCU - do you have any info on the scale tailskid you made? That's the only mod I'm considering as a "must" and would be really interested to see how you did it and how you changed the rudder too. However, I have thought of a solution to the directional control problems. As soon as I saw the "tailskid" on the plans I knew it was going to difficult at best on the ground. So, I dreamed up a system to have differential brakes attached to the rudder servo. When I get 'er done, I'll put some pix up and let you know if the reality is as good as the dream. [8D]

Thanks!
BFS

I agree with Iceman, but that's me, too. A Saito .56 head sticking out from under would look good, and the muffler would still fit under the cowl, and you canuse a DuBro extension to route it back toward center. What I do on all my planes for the needle adjuster is take a short 2-56 hex head screw, grind the threads down just a little, and it will fit the hole in the end of the adjuster. Snug the set screw down and you can use a long ball-tip hex wrench to adjust your carb. I make a guide tube from brass (about 1/8 inch diameter) and glue it to a space that puts it at the proper distance from the firewall and aligns it with the screw in the adjuster and a small hole in the side of the cowl. All you see in the cowl is a 1/8 inch hole, hardly noticeable. See attached pics of two setups.

I'm currently building BUSA's Bristol M-1, your Eindecker would make a great dog-fighting partner.

Fuel lines? Most common is a 2 line setup. 1 to your carburator, 1 to your muffler to pressurize your fuel tank. Some people use a 3 line setup but I do not know how that works.

khodges - when you say the muffler would still fit under the cowl, are you talking the stock or the pitts?

Also, great answer and nice pics!

3 line:

One to muffler for pressure

One to carb

One to fuel

-------------------------------------------

A 3 line is much easier with a cowled in situation as you can have the line hanging out the bottom of the cowl, or in a fuel dot somewhere. It's plugged on the end, when you want to refuel, instead of taking the cqarb line off, simply unplug that line, use it to fuel, then replace plug and fly