I am not sure....but I think the type of exhaust can have a bad effect on the Gas/golw mix. If the heat escapes to fast like on open exhaust my Homelite 25cc would die a few seconds after throttle back with no glow power attached. I put the standard blower mufler on and it would idle great...no glow wire attached. Maybe some eperimentaion with different exhaust systems is needed. Just a Idea.....Capt,n

Thanks for the Homey 45cc numbers.

It's true, a little back pressure will help keep the glow plug warm, but of course you don't want so much as to kill power. These Gas/Glow engines really like a good quality four stroke plug as well.

Any good quality 10/10 glow fuel should work fine in the mix. I've used from two different manufacturers now with no problems.

We haven't tried this in all the available conversion engines as you can imagine. If an engine has too low of a static compression ratio, it might need more nitro in the mix. Another solution would be to install a "C" size NiMh battery and a micro switch on the throttle linkage to turn on glow power below say, quarter throttle. It would still be way lighter than magneto ignition and cheaper than electronic.

Good luck,
AV8TOR

I have been using the Hanger 9 4cycle super glow plug. Is there better? There are a lot of glow plugs new to the market !!!! Capt,n

i think that the OS plugs are a bit better, but alot higher price. at my LHS the hangar 9 plug is 7.50 and the OS plug is 13
if i had the extra cash on hand, i would probably buy the OS, but right now im on a tight budget so hangar 9 it is. But i havent had any problems with these plugs yet, so i guess time will tell. maybe someone should test these plugs with a tach and see if there is any difference in rpms. i would do this test, but i dont have a tach on hand right now

I think the high RPM with either plug will be the same...it is the Idle were the heat is needed. Capt,n

Has anyone tried to run this gas glow mix with a standard mag ignition, and do you have to richen the needles on the carb?

Gryohead
TLC Priceless!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Not sure why one would want to do it, but yes, it will run on mag or electronic (spark) ignition. You will have to richen the needles a bit, and you will see a bit more power than on straight gasoline.

AV8TOR

Just want to use it up before it goes sour or bad, and don't want it sitting around all winter long. The flying season here in eastern Ohio is about over. However we do have some indoor events for electric flyers.

Gryohead
TLC Priceless !!!!!!!!!!

I've used it in my blower.

When I first started messing with Gas/Glow and the mixture wasn't working just right I'd run it in my blower or ridding mower.
Works great.

I wont mention what state I was in at the time...

but I saw guys frequently put 'greengas' in their pickup cebause they kept plenty of Chainsaw mix in their truck, but no spare standard gas. Whats the most likely problems with running GasGlow in a truck- CatConverter clogs? Rubber problems? Fuel Injector unbolts itself & leaves you for a more caring driver?

It wouldn't be much different than pouring in the gas "anti-freeze" or "drier"; the products sold to absorb water in gasoline. Those products are mostly methanol, which is what is in the glow fuel. The nitro percentage would be so diluted it shouldn't be a factor. There's no lead in mix so it shouldn't hurt the oxygen sensor or catalytic converter. The 3% oil shouldn't hurt anything either. The one concern is when you guys put it in your other two stroke tools. If you don't richen the mixture up, you could seize the engine.

AV8TOR

yup...watch that to lean. I gained a lot more RPM on my MB290 Leaf blower after I cut a slot in the head of both needles. I had to richen it a 1/4 turn....it was way to lean at factory setings. I have put a lot of fuel through it now and it really screams. Capt,n

i have a crrc pro gf45i engine. it was originally a spark ignition engine. but i got tired of all the problems and converted to methanol and a glow plug. i made the glow plug adaptor myself and made a batch of 50:1 methanol and synthetic oil. it now runs great...HEAPS of power and a really good low idle. ( over 5hp with a 20x8 bolly prop 8200rpm full noise and 950rpm idle)

the carb is a walbro wt503 carb. not modified in any way at all. no enlarged holes...thats area not diameter right rcign?? and no i havent had any problems with the methanol "eating" my carb internals.

im of the opinion that why not try what you have first???....if it does work then you can go further and tune and sort the engine.
just because someone says no it wont work.....doesnt mean you cant at least have a go. sometimes you hafta go against the grain and be a little different.

if super tigre can get a 45cc engine to run on a single glow plug why cant we all do it too???

I'm running a Poulan 42cc on the gas/glow mix. Sure, you can run one on methanol/oil. Some carbs however will need modified to flow enough fuel with straight methanol as the engine needs around double the fuel as it does with gasoline. These low compression conversion engines like a little nitro too however. The gas/glow setup is a good all around compromise, at least for me.

AV8TOR

hardtop, when you say you made a batch of 50:1 methanol/oil . do you use any nitro in the fuel?

because, i realy have a hard time finding nitro, or any premixed fuel in my area. and i was wondering if i could run my engine with only castor and methanol.

i'm currently only using .15 and below engine but next summer i'll definatly try the idea of flying a weed wacker engine.


thanks alot

Small engines like yours generally like some nitro. You can try it, but you may find a fairly large drop in rpms when you remove the glow heat, (battery), and poor throttling. You can try hotter glow plugs to help.

It also would be a good idea to check under the head to see if it has more than one head shim, (gasket). If so, remove them and run only one. This will increase the compression and help the engine run better on no nitro.

AV8TOR

av8tor, what is the best fuel mix at this time? I no there have been many tried.
Ken

By the way....it is a lot colder here in Michigan now. How will cold weather effect this gas/glow fuel mix? Has anyone had cold weather experience with this mix? Thanks Capt,n[:-]

The mix that seems to work the best for everyone is 1 part 10% oil & 10% nitro glow fuel to 2 parts high test gasoline, and a good quality four stroke glow plug.

If you encounter any problems in cold weather, I would suggest trying the same mix, but with 10% oil & 15% nitro glow fuel. Remember though, that these engines are larger than most glow engines, (a lot more metal) and have a ton of cooling area, (fins.) As such, they need more of a warm up than the usual model glow engine; obviously more so in cold weather. Make sure the engine is completely warmed up before blaming any problems on the setup.

AV8TOR

I just wanted to show all of you guy's pics of my H9 Showtime. I put a Stihl 26cc converted to GAS/Glow with a 15-4 prop. The engine has alot of power. I havn't flown it yet do to wheather[&o]. But when I do I will post a video of it. I wish I had a tach to give you more info on performance. I figure the engine is turning around 8500 or more rpms. Thanks for all of your input and knowledge you guy's share!

----------------


What kind of glow plug are you using, captinjohn? I'm sure you have thought about using a four-stroke plug with lots of persistence, right?


Ed Cregger

Ed: I an using a 4 cycle Super plug from Horizon. For what its worth...One of the last runs on my Homelite 25cc engine (on test stand) I covered the front top portion of cyl with tin foil. It helped. I have a heat sensing gun to read temps. It would be neat to have a air inlet controlled by a temp sensor to keep engines running at a desired level. Some air cooled Auto engines did have this feature. I guess you can see a water cooled engine would run at a more even temp. Too Heavy for aircraft...darn. Thanks Capt,n

i've seen this thread and I want to convert to a gas/glow engine. I know people are concerned with the fact that there is no timing and that may rob power due to pre-ignition. Do you think it would be a big difference if there was timing? Can someone compare the glow conversion with a spark ignition ? I assume it would not be too difficult to get a comparison. If the power difference is not significant I will not work on any timing mechanisms for the glow version.

Guys...do you remember the old style glow engine that had a plate that would cover the exhaust port as you closed the throttle. What I did was to experiment as I throttled down my 25cc gas/glow engine I covered the exhaust port with my finger (with heavy leather glove) and I could idle the engine right down to a very low RPM. Same as with a gas engine like a chain-saw engine. Try it!! I am thinking a exhaust throttle should be made and tried. Problem is...I cannot come up with a good design. I am sure it would really help transition and idle. Any comments? Capt,n

Hi,

The only one that had any pre-ignition that I've heard about was one aeronut was playing with. (Was it a Ryobi?) When he went to high test gasoline in his mix, it went away.

My Echo and Homelite engines turn about 2 to 300 rpms faster on the Gas/Glow than with regular gas and ignition. My Poulan 42cc has a slight drop in rpms when removing the glow heat, indicating it could use the timing advanced a touch, the nitro increased a bit, or the compression increased, but it runs so well I'm just not going to fool with it. All my Gas/Glow engines also idle so smooth and slow that I'm not concerned about that either. They also start easier than ignition engines! (They will occasionally start backwards on a hand flip though.)

AV8TOR