Gas Engine set up
 

Ok guys I did a search and wow all sorts of stuff came up except what I was looking for. I'm thinking of going to gas but I would like to know how to go about setting it up, I know nothing about gas engines. I've heard you need extra batteries for the electronic ignitions and so forth but again I don't know a whole lot about gas engines. I have a few warbirds that I've been thinking of putting DLE 20's in and want to make sure I don't miss anything. Thanks in advance...

RE: Gas Engine set up
 

Well here goes;
You will need a fuel tank with a gasoline stopper and either Tygon or neoprene lines inside and out. Three line/fuel dot, or valve....your choice.
Most of the gassers don't require pressured tanks however the smaller ones from Evolution do.
Gassers with electronic ignitions can use a separate battery or they can use the main receiver battery. Depends on certain factors and personal preference.
You should have a mechanical kill switch for the ignition and for added safety a transmitter controlled kill switch.
Here is a recent thread outlining the battery and kill switches

The carbs are different from glow and tuning them is a bit different as well. Once you get a gasser tuned with the prop you will be using, you rarely have to touch it again as opposed to glow.

Mount the ignition as far away from the receiver as possible and don't run the ignition battery wire along/next to servo wires or metal control rods. Also avoid metal to metal connections between the engine throttle and the throttle servo arm.

Some gassers can be a little heavier than their same size glow engine so keep that in mind as well. For warbirds that's usually a good thing.

RE: Gas Engine set up
 

Brian seemed to cover it all. The DLE 20 is a great engine and very easy to run. I think you'll like the convenience of it. Since I started flying gas, I don't care to fly glow any more. What I like the most about gas is once you get it tuned, you really don't have to touch it after that unlike glow where you almost need to tune it every flight. Good luck, Steve.

RE: Gas Engine set up
 

Great just what I need, a thread for helping glow people move into gas. Thanks for all the info so far but I have another couple of questions. You mentioned a choice of using the main receiver battery or an additional one. What would be the smallest battery you can use for the ignition and can it be a small Lipo? Also with the kill switches is there a particular type to use? How do you set up a kill switch through the radio?

I'll probably think of more questions so I'm giving you fair warning Lol<br type="_moz" />

RE: Gas Engine set up
 

If you are limited by space or weight you put the largest capacity battery in for the ignition that will fit . The larger the milliamp(capacity) the more flights you will get before the ignition quits. The ignition for the engine will limit what voltage(s) can be used. Older ones may only use 4.8v while newer ones can support 9v. Some like to use regulators or diodes to drop the battery voltage for ignitions that can't handle higher voltages.
A mechanical kill switch can be any good gold plated switch with or without a charge jack. Reciever controlled kill switchs are made by a few manufacturers. You connect it to a spare channel and program that channel to a 2-position switch.
Read through the linked post in the second reply above.

RE: Gas Engine set up
 

For a DLE with electronics ignition you can either use an opto kill switch that's controlled by your tx, or you can use any slide switch mounted right next to a servo where the arm moves the switch to kill it. As for the ign pack, a 4.8 or 6.0 volt NIMH is good, or if you use lipo you need a regulator set up. NIMH is easier and works great. I fly mine for a solid weekend with no prob. What plane do you want to use it on?

RE: Gas Engine set up
 

I plan on using the dle20 in my top flite p47 arf, i figure if the dle20 can fit n the top flite corsair it should fit in the p47.

RE: Gas Engine set up
 

Since the P-47 is a warbird I would like to use a 3 blade prop, I wish I could use a 4 bladed prop but I haven't heard anything good about them so would it be the same as using a 3 bladed prop on a glow engine just go down an inch and one degree on the pitch so if it calls for a 15/7 could I use a 14/6 3 blade?

RE: Gas Engine set up
 

I had a 16*8 on it and was making just about 14 lbs of thrust. With a 15*7 three blade it's making 14 lbs even. I haven't flown it yet, but I don't expect it to run too hot or anything. Looks and sounds great too.btw, that will be a perfect fit in the p47.

RE: Gas Engine set up
 

Steve, I dont plan on going crazy with it I've got a couple other planes that I can do that with lol. My plan is to get into even bigger planes and this will be my tester plane. If everything works out the way I want it I'd love to get a nice B17 and drop those dle 20's in it along with even bigger p47's and p51's.

RE: Gas Engine set up
 

An optic kill switch is not the same as a switch hooked up to a servo to kill the ignition. IMHO a kill switch is a must. It will kill the motor if you loose power to the airplane keeps you from having a run away

RE: Gas Engine set up
 

Agreed, I would prefer an opto, but I have done the servo kill in the past. Regardless, it's a MUST. A lot of clubs won't let you fly without one, if they were to enforce it.

RE: Gas Engine set up
 

I have one in my H9 60 sized P51 that I'm building "as I go" ... with a pitts muffler all that sticks out is the side of the muffler, and the spark plug/ignition cap. After all said and done, it is only a 1.20 (20cc) size motor, but is still more powerful than most 1.20 4 stroke nitro motors at 2.5hp.
As the corsair was a radial, The DLE20 should fit without issue as I have herd this is the case with similar sized P47, which I understand NOTHING sticks out the cowl.

RE: Gas Engine set up
 

Well I sure hope so, I ordered the DLE20 today with the stuff needed to get it going. Hopefully by this weekend it will be here and we will see how it goes. I'll keep everyone informed as it goes...