Yesterday I had my first Deadstick. I was very proud of myself. Considfering at my field we fly over water, I stayed VERY calm and brought her in. Probably the best landing ever. Looks like the Clunk line moved down the tube a bit and then got caught at the top of the tank. Has anyone ever used a ziptie inside of a glow tank to keep the line in place? Will the Ziptie hold up to the glow fuel without deteriorating?


Thanks!

There are some small spring clips that are made for just this situation.

You have to be careful what you put in the fuel tank. You don't konw how it will react to / with the fuel. The metal spring clips work just fine. I think Dubro makes them, but I am not sure.

Actually i think i have those and never used them. Good thinking. They are made by dubro. Thanks!

My pleasure, RO.

I have them too.. and, like you, keep forgetting to use them..

i've found those metal clips cut through the line after a while,if you use the right size line for the clunk and it's on 3/4 of an inch or so then it won't come off.

I do two things to prevent this. For one a take a phillips screwdrive and slightly flare both ends of the brass. I also cut a 1/8" piece of fuel line and put it over the end of the line as a doubler. I do this in and out of the tank.

David

Rotate some 220 sandpaper on the brass tube to roughen it slightly; never had one fail. Remember to leave about 3/8" space from the rear of the tank to the clunk.

SCRATCH & DAVE: BOTH EXCELLENT SUGGESTIONS!

dave has the answer ...won't hurt to roughen up the tube either

Be cautious when using zip ties insdie a fuel tank. A guy at our filed crashed his 40% plane with a DA-150 on the front of it because he used zip ties that weren't compatable with gas and completly disolved inside the tank. The clunk line fell off the tube and engine starved for fuel. When he opened the tank he found no zip ties at all, and yes, he knows he put them in there. Not sure what would happen with glow fuel.

I have been using zip-ties on the inside and outside of glow fuel tanks for years with no ill effect. It sure prevents the clunk line from coming off and having to pull the tank.

Roland,
Did you dead stick your Pulse? I ran mine out of fuel last month and probably had my best landing.
Peter

NO IT WAS MY AVISTAR....THANKFULLY.....THE THING JUST FLOATED IN...I WAS QUITE A WAYS OUT TRYING A FLAT SPIN.


WOUND UP CRASHING THE AVISTAR TODAY(I LOVE THAT PLANE!).....BROKE THE ENGINE MOUNT ON IMPACT. COMING IN FOR A LANDING....EITHER THE PROP OR THE LANDING GEAR SNAGGED A TALL WEED ABOUT 50 FEET FROM THE EDGE OF OUR RUNWAY AND JUST CARTWHEELED. THANKFULLY ITS A PRETTY EASY FIX. I WAS GIVING THE PULSE A BREAK, BUT THAT DIDNT LAST VERY LONG(2 DAYS)! its good to have a back up!

Great idea, Dave. Looks like one of those that I just may adopt in my building techniques. There is a small brass tube cutting tool with a gizmo on the thing that will flare the end of metal tubes. Some of the clunks that come with models have a pretty thick metal tube. I use the ones from Dubro that say they eliminate bubbling in the tank and they have a brass tube that can be easily flared. You might take a look at that one. http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...&I=LXD741&P=SM

Silicone tubing that fits the pipes won't work off the pipe if the pipe is long enough.

Silicone tubing that suits the job will not only hold onto the pipe until hell freezes over, but won't fold on itself or kink shut.

Pick the correct flex tubing for the job. It's a firm fit over the aluminum, brass, or plastic pipe and the pipe is long enough for the job.

There must be a billion sizes of silicone tubing sold. It's dead simple to find stuff that fits the tubing that's used in the vast majority of the tanks sold today. The only thing left to do then, is to insure there is enough of that tubing sticking out inside the tank for the silicone tubing to hold onto.

When you assemble the tank, try this. After you've pushed the silicone tubing over the pipe as far as it will go, give the silicone a tug. If it even comes close to slipping off, you've got the wrong size silicone or not enough overlap.

I use zip ties and have never had a problem............

I have never had that happen in 10 years using a Sullivan tanks, stock brass tubes and normal medium blue fuel line. No clips or springs either. You know, thats something I have never sen is crash videos of R/C planes getting stuffed in the water. That should look rather good.

I use zip ties in my tank. I had a clunk slide off in my tank and put a zip tie on and have never lost a clunk line yet and no problems with the glow fuel deteriorating them.

I should add that I have never lost a clunk. Knock on wood. I flare the brass and double up the line cause I'm anal. I also will not use the line that comes with the tank for the same reason. Some are OK but some of it is junk. Throw it away or use it for a doubler on your clevises.

CGRetired, I have seen those clunks but never used one. I did not realize thet were made to reduce bubbles. As a rule I use the clunk that comes with the tank. I just take a Dremmel and cut an X in the bottom of them first. Most have a slot already. It's just another one of those anal things.

David