Question for the Experienced
 

Hi, I was flying my plane today, (2 month old Hobbico NexStar) and i probally flown for about 12-13 minutes on full throttle...Anyway, when the plane finally ran out of gas...I waited about 10 min before refilling & trying to recrank it. Well, the plane just wouldn't crank back up. Also, i notice black oily stuff on the head of my .46 engine and on the side of my plane. This plane has been flown about 12 to 13 times. Anyone Know what may be the problem of why it won't re-crank?[sm=spinnyeyes.gif]

RE: Question for the Experienced
 

Did you check the glow plug??? Also are you hand cranking or do you have an electric starter? If your hand cranking it you may have to re prime it if you ran out of fuel. As for the black stuff im not sure but it doesnt sound good.

RE: Question for the Experienced
 

Might check to see that your head bolts are tight. also that the glow plug isn't leaking. Black oil means something is not right and needs to be taken care of before you run the engine again.

JIm

RE: Question for the Experienced
 

If you're using an electric starter, pull the back plate from the engine and see if it has rings in it from where the crankshaft rubs against it. Black stuff is bad. It means metal is wearing down from something.

RE: Question for the Experienced
 

I noticed when i run my engine too lean i get black oily stuff from the exhaust on my plane, more pinkish when its adjusted correctly. but i'm not that experienced yet, perhaps someone else on here might add more comments.

RE: Question for the Experienced
 

pink is rich or on the rich side of acceptable. tan is good. black is bad. is it a thick grease like stuff and does it look like metal flake paint when you look at it in the sun or is it just like burnt oil? it it looks like a fine metal flake paint, something (most likely at where it is coming from) is rubbing against something else. the little shiny parts are small metal particles that have come loose. when that stuff mixes with oil you get this stuff that has a texture like white lithium grease but is black with little shiny spots. it it is just burnt oil, you are running too lean and you have a leak somewhere. if it won't start back up, a basic rule of thumb to find out what is wrong (there are exeptions and this does not always work, but it works more often than not even on two strokes) assuming your engine has not self destructed and the timing is correct (you don't have to worry about that because it is a two stroke) than all engines need to run are three things. spark, fuel and compression. wihtout spark, the mixture will not ignite. without compression, all the fuel would do is sizzle if that. without fuel, what's the point in having it? so make sure you have spark, make sure you have nothing jamming up your fuel jets and make sure fuel gets to it, and make sure you have compression. a plug may look good but there is a decent chance it is not. usually the last half coil will not glow. much more than that and you will loose power, it won't rune right or it may not start if you are cold starting it. if all those things are present try spraying a touch of ether into the carb. it is already a vapor and will ignite on contact with the hot coil which will heat up the engine a bit for the next cycle to occur.