glow plug Starter... Noob Question
 

Is there an alternative way of removing the GP Starter than using my hands??
Recently got into Flying Planes & I caught my finger in the prop & it got minced pretty bad (3 gashes above the knuckle, 1 through the the base of the nail & another took off the tip of my nail & finger :D).

Just wondering if theres an Alt. Tool or Tip that other people use. As it is, Im a little hesitent to putting my hand near a running Engine again!

RE: glow plug Starter... Noob Question
 

Choice 1: Install a remote glow connector. One end stays attached to your plug, the other mounts further back on fuselage, or wherever you decide to install it.

Choice 2: Several engines have the glow plug pointed back at an angle, which would position your hand further back

Choice 3: Leave everything the way it is and just learn to be careful! This is the preferred method as you will always have need to be near the finger chewing end of your plane from time to time!

RE: glow plug Starter... Noob Question
 

Egg,
stuk at work has given you good alternatives......I would just like to add to #3. Buy a glow plug ignitor that is easy to remove....one that you don't have to wiggle, etc. to get off of the plug. Ask around at the field and see what others are using.....and ask if you can try theirs one time to see if it's simple enough to remove.

RE: glow plug Starter... Noob Question
 

I don't know what you did, but I personally remove the glow clip from behind the prop. I'll start the engine, then get up, and walk around behind the plane and remove the clip rather than trying to reach over the top of the spinning prop to get it. I also set the needle from behind as well.

Beyond that, a remote glow connection or an on-board glow setup are going to be your best options.

RE: glow plug Starter... Noob Question
 

Good points above that I forgot. The only thing you cannot do from behind the prop is start the engine. EVERYTHING ELSE should be done behind the prop, where it is safest. Don't forget to always wear eye protection too.

I think the "twist-on" lock type igniters are worse that the "pull-ring" to lock type igniters for the problem mentioned because to twist you have to move one part of your hand closer to the prop. The neck of the igniter should also be as short as possible, as all igniters tend to lean a bit when attached, and a longer necked igniter will be closer to the prop than a short necked igniter if both are leaning forward at the same angle. The one I typically use has a 2.5" (65cm) extension.

RE: glow plug Starter... Noob Question
 

I just installed a remote glow connector in my new 2nd plane and it was $8.
I found it very nice and think it really worth the safety you get.

Nilo

RE: glow plug Starter... Noob Question
 

To add a comment to stuk_at_works post....I started building R/C and flying when I was ten years old. My instructor pounded in my head to do all adjustments from behind and it saved my fingers at one time. I was adjusting high speed on a Butterfly glider for a student pilot and couldnt figure out what that noise was, lol. Twas my nuckles getting "rejected" from the back side of the prop. Scared the crap out of me (was probably about 14 or 15 at the time) but I will always do any adjusting, etc. from behind. Very good advice.

RE: glow plug Starter... Noob Question
 

thanks :D - Ill have a look for one of them extenders. My own fault for working over the prop., My Igniter is a pushdown type connector - maybr I can knock it off with a stick! Plenty of time to do the work around as its gonna take a few weeks to heal.

RE: glow plug Starter... Noob Question
 

I was running up my engine in the 'pits' yesterday and the prop was thrown off. I was working from behind the model. More importantly I had turned the model away from the rest of the guys so the prop was thrown onto a clear area of grass.

These engines can be dangerous if not treated with respect. Think about what you are doing and you will have great fun. Nobody wants to go home in an ambulance!

RE: glow plug Starter... Noob Question
 

There's a distinctive sound made when a prop cuts in to fingers or other body parts. I've heard it a few times too many, that's for sure. Personally, I've never actually been cut by a prop, but like it was mentioned above, I've had fingers knocked away from the back of the prop several times. It smarts, but it's never been a problem.

I definatly wouldn't go trying to knock the glow clip off the engine with a stick. You don't know which way that thing is going to bounce, but I'd put money on "in to the prop" as the most likely direction. At that point, you've got something fairly hard going in to the spinning prop, and it's going to come out moving pretty fast, going somewhere it shouldn't :D. Never mind the parts of the broken prop.

RE: glow plug Starter... Noob Question
 

Didnt think of that montauge!!!! Thanks for pointing it out! Guess it'll have to be an extender then.

For those who have a strong Stomach, Ill post a link of my accident (its been healing for 5 days)

Warning!! Contains Blood!
http://www.pcwshop.co.uk/finger.JPG

& I havent been picking my nose, Not sure how that jelly stuff formed. Think it has somthing to do with
the Dressing the Hospital put on it.

RE: glow plug Starter... Noob Question
 

OUCH!!! Consider yourself lucky...knew a guy years ago that lost half of his index finger same way. Seeing it happen, or having it happen, will definetely strengthen your resolve to pay attention to what you are doing. Hope you heal up ok.

RE: glow plug Starter... Noob Question
 

Ouch! Hope the finger heals up OK. I stuck my right ring finger into a drive chain a bunch of years ago, lost about 1/4 inch of the tip, but still have fingernail. There's another post, I can't remember what the subject of it is, about a gentleman who had his entire engine/firewall come off the plane. He tried hard not to catch it but didn't entirely succede. Maybee someone can help with the title of the post???