I recently acquired an airplane that has an HB (Helmut Bernhardt) engine mounted in it
I know they were manufactured in Germany and are no longer made
I don't really know much more than that, other than that they are somewhat of a collectors item, or something that is sought after
If anyone could give me some advice or information concerning this engine I sure would appreciate it.
the engine runs very strong and smooth, and never fails to start, it's overal size is just a little larger than an averge size 40 engine
thanks in advance for all of your replies

Mecoa has the tooling and has parts. They may still make them occasionally in Monrovia California

I had one, a Perry Ported 40 and also the 60. User-friendly engines with adequate power. The 40 was a little bulky, wider crankcase than most 40s but was a nice engine. Fly it and enjoy it. Mecoa does have parts, I understand.

Clair

I recently got some parts for my pair of HB 0.25 engines from MECoA. Good engines, good service.

Bill.

can anybbody tell me where i can find more info on this engine??ie; are they bearinged or bushed?and just any other general info on them..thanx

Townboy:

The Helmut Bernhardt (HB) Feinmechanik delivered engines in eight sizes; 0.12, 0.15, 0.20, 0.21, 0.25, 0.40, 0.50, and 0.61 cid. The 0.12, 0.15, and 0.20 engines had lapped pistons, all larger sizes, from 0.21 up, were ringed. The 0.21 and 0.25 had Dykes rings, I'm not sure if the larger ones had Dykes or conventional rings. All HB engines had double ball bearings on the crankshaft.

Chromed cylinder sleeves were available for the 0.21 and 0.61 engines, PDP porting could be had on the 0.21, 0.40, and 0.61 engines.

The engines up to 0.25 came with muffler, the 0.40 and larger had none, exhaust to be user supplied.

All sizes and options could be had in a marine version with water cooling jackets. Additiionally, there was an oil seperator available for the marine versions.

The 0.21 also was sold set up for r/c car use.

Finally, the 0.61 was sold in a "StaMo" (Stationary Motor) version with a cooling fan and shroud attached.

Most service parts are available from RJL/MECoA.

I have the specifictions and parts listings for all these engines, if you have any further questions.

Bill.

great info bill !thanx alot.i just purchased one of these engines online tonight and should have it by weeks end.i had just never heard of this make before,but the engine is new and comes with pipe as well..price on it was $58canadian which is about $45us so i couldnt refuse.the one i purchased is the hb40. could you please tell me what kinda power output it would have,would it be like most 40's..i'm just curious as to what the specs are i guess as i love this type of info..also what fuel would be best?do they like a low percentage of nitro like rossi or mvvs?thanx alot for your time.

I have 9 HB PDP motors at this time. Some are marine and some are aero. The company made a
"Blitz" version of the PDP motors also. These have chromed sleeves and timing is increased. They are quite powerful and have conventional rings. I have a few of the Blitzs and with a pipe they will hang with a non piped ABC all day long!!
All PDP motors are Dykes ringed. As has been mentioned earlier they are a 2 ball bearing motor, outstanding fit and finish and have great carbs. They start usually the first try and idle as good as any motor made bar none!!!! If you ever need rings for these motors try Frank Bowman in Farmington NM. He MAKES a hardened steel replacement ring that is far better than the one sold by MECOA. The original bearings last for ever and should be saved if possible. I have cleaned up several of them that seemed gumed up and they work great. Replacement bearings can be had at any good bearing supply house but cannot match the quality of the german originals including Boca!! One other thing I am doing with them now, is shimming the cylinders 10-15 thousands on the PDPs to increase timing and putting a pipe on them. They respond to this change very well. Remember you must also ad shimming to the head button also. They do well on 20% nitro this way too.

Finally, although they fall behind some of the newer ABC motors for power by a bit, they have GREAT torque, ie bigger prop, and will outlast the ABC motors if you compare ring vs ABC by a mile. I have one that is 25 years old and on the original ring still.

I plan to continue to build my collection of these fine motors so if anyone has a PDP out there they want to get rid of let me know.

Regards Curt Risner

Townboy:

The HB engines are loop scavenged and mildly timed, so they aren't the really high powered engines available with the Schneurle porting system. With some careful port work the power can be greatly increased, but engine life and fuel economy will suffer.

HB 40 - 0.79hp @ 13,000 rpm
HB 40 PDP - 1.18hp @17,000 rpm
HB 61 - 1.43hp @ 13,800 rpm
HB 61 PDP - 1.80hp @ 16,000 rpm

These are from the factory spec sheet.

Bill.