Hi Everyone,

My question might be more directed to those of you in the northern States and us up here in Canada. I just received my Hangar 9 Arrow and have been running some fuel though it to tune and finish the break in. The exaust fills the shop where I work so to appease the whiners I go outside. The problem I think I'm having is an inability to maintain head temperatures. After five or ten minutes outside (at between -20 to -10C, 10 to 25 degrees F) I have trouble keeping the EVO trainer motor running...Eventually it gets to the point where it cools down enough that I can't get it started again. I bring it back inside for ten minutes and it fires right up. I'm running Power Master 5% at the moment. Anyone that can tell me more about cold weather tuning would be great.

Thanks
Ryan

http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_52...tm.htm#5208448

I had similar problems with my Evo motor that came with my Alpha. During the summer she flew fine without much adjustment but once the temps got below 30 degree's F it needed to be a little rich to run. Adjust the high speed needle a few clicks counter clockwise and it should take care of the problem.... atleast it did for me.

As for flying in the cold well.... it usually has a lot to do with your tolerance... i draw a line when my thumbs/fingers get too numb.

I was flying last week with my Evo.46 in about 25 degree F. Had a flame out with it. 15% cool power and a Hanger 9 Super plug.
Read a post somewhere here that the evo`s don`t care for the cold. Me either LOL

Thanks for the quick responses fellas. The weather looks still like it may be improving by the weekend and we have a fun fly at the feild so I am hoping to maiden then. All your help will be utilized to its maximun potential. Thanks for the link Stang. I was sure I'd seen something around about cold weather flying and that thread was it.

Later

More nitro helps in the cold. 5% is a bit low, try using 15%

Some guys use various ways to warm the engine up before starting which helps a lot.

ABC/N engines like the Evolution have that "pinch" at TDC. That pinch goes away when the engine heats up, but it gets a lot worse when it's cold. This also means that you'll wear the piston-liner fit faster in really cold weather when trying to start the engine or with rich/slow running. So the sooner you get the engine warmed up, the better.

Remember that batteries don't have as much capacity in the cold, so keep an eye on the RX pack.

We fly our float planes off snow here in Nevada, 4,750 feet altitude, antwhere from 25 degrees and up.

None of us has a problem with temp but I've heard of guy's in Canada taking a thermos of hot water to the field and pouring it over the cylinder head in order to get started.

Big 2-strokes like 150's and up use 5% nitro only but in cold weather the factory recommendation (Moki 2.10 and MDS 148) is 10% max.

I use YS 20/20 and Powermaster 15% in all my smaller engines summer and winter.

If its too cold to fly with out a light jacket then I don't bother. For me that means I want to see at least 50 F. If its colder than that I have ended up with very cold fingers from having a bit of fuel on them and adjusting the carb set screws behind the prop. There are 2 seasons for me, building season, and flying season. [8D]

Switch to electric in the winter and you won't have this problem. Then pop the glow back on in the warmer weather. Or better yet, fly slope gliders and you won't need a motor at all.

I have watched videos of slope flying and I would love to do that but the nearest location that might be suitable is thousands of miles away. I would also like to try flying from a pond or lake but the nearest club that does that is about 3 hours drive. [&o]

I have found that a few drops of lighter fluid (naptha) in the carb venturi does wonders for getting glow engines to start when the temps drop. Before discovering that trick, I nearly resorted to buying an electric starter just for cold weather use.
Cold affects electrics also. Lipos like to be at about 90 to 100 degrees for maximum performance. Keep them in a warm place until ready to fly and tape up some of the vent holes in the fuselage.

Fastsky,
You don't need a "slope" to fly a sailplane, just enough wind and a gliger with a low wing loading.
I once saw Hobi Alter flying a Hobi Hawk at a beach in southern California in the on-shore wind.

Also check out "Time aloft" events at glider contests for hand launched gliders using the "discus" launch method just to see what you can do on your own.