Hello all!
Ineeded some help with glow engine selection for FAIfuel. My target range is .25 engine ( on a $60-$80 budget) , viz.

O.S 25 LA
Fox .25BB
Enya SS 25BB

Which one of these will be the best for 0% nitro use.( Iwill be flying Corospit, Corostang and such SPAD planes.) even with FAI fuel not withstanding , which of these will be more durable , and still be able to punch out decent power? Unlike diesels, they need glow plugs and Iwill appreciate ideal plug recommendation as well.

Thanks and Regards!

cosmo

You are buying an engine to match your fuel? Forgive me, but usually I buy fuel to match my engine. Is there a reason you are limited to FAI fuel? I have found that most small engines run best with a little nitro. But, whatever!

From that list I would get the O.S., mostly just for the ease of use. Next I would get the Enya. As for glowplugs, I use an O.S. #8 or a #A3.

Cosmo, I think all the engines you mentioned should run on no nitro fuel. However they
won't develope as much power, and they probably won't idle worth a flip. If your
application doesn't require that the engine must idle try the Enya. You might also improve
the power output by lowering the head. It would serve you well to find someone in your
area who is knowledgeable on glo engines, because all modern engines are designed to
run on fuel with nitro. The Super Tigre and Enya engines from 40 or more years ago ran
well on FAI fuel, but of course they didn't produce anywhere near the power of todays
engines. One side benefit is no nitro fuel is more economical. That is your engine will run
longer on the same amount of FAI fuel as it would on nitro fuel. Greg

Exactly, I always buy the engine first, then go by what the manual says to what % glow fuel to use, and then go from there. I never heard of anyone buying the fuel first- then engine?

Kind of like putting the cart before the horse, is it not?


Pete

MVVS engines run fine on no-nitro. Most European engines are set up that way. Other engines can be run that way by changing head gaskets to increase compression and using higher heat-range plugs. Given the cost of nitro, your choice of running this type of fuel is a good decision.

Hi!
Both the OS FP/LA 25 and Enya 25 engines are excelent engines that run and throttle just perfect on 80/20 fuel!
Suitable glow plugs are : OS 8 or Enya 3 ...or many others like Nova-Rossi 2, 3 or 4, Rossi 2, 3 or 4 ...and many others.

having the correct compression ratio for FAI fuel is the first step. From my experience most any engine will run just fine IF you take out the head gasket. IIRC you need about a 13:1 ratio. If you have a syringe, fill the head with any liquid. Record the volume. Calculate the cylinder volume and do the math to figure the C.R. Example; Head holds 1cc. Cylinder figures out to 10cc, you have a 10:1 C.R.

Ken

to the OP...

it shows that you are located in the US...

while 0% nitro fuel is quite common in Europe, it is not so much here.. and can be a challenge to find....

This is true, most LHS don't stock FAI but I fly with a couple of Moki guys and they just buy there own methanol and Castor oil then mix there own. Any glow engine will run with FAI but the higher the compression the better. It's just a mater of tuning for it. The low end can be a problem. I have one, maybe two little .25s that ran very well with FAI fuel. Been a while and I can't remember the make/brand. I know they are no longer imported here.

http://www.hobbypartz.com/72p-25a.html this guy will work just fine
i run asp/magnum engines on 0% nitro all the time

Morgan sells a 0-nitro Omega mix.

If you're just looking to save money it's false economy to do it on your fuel. There's a good reason why most of us (at least in the US) use 10% fuel- our engines run better on it. Having a good running engine will save you money in the long run by getting you out of tight spots, as will a good flying air frame.

You are right! all the rc shops have 5-15% min nitro mix.. but SIG has Champion FAI .. which has better economical advantage.. also a few friends
are ready to supply me with metahnol and castor oil at dirt cheap rate... Ihave checked the MSDS and it seems quite in order.

Ihave flown a bit of electrics(micro flyers) and diesel(corrocub) .. so glow is entirely new to me. I want to keep the costs at minimum , so Ican get good at glow before putting in some big dough.

cheers,
cosmo

I always run 10% in my 2-strokes and 15% in my 4.


Pete

Hi!
Then 5% nitro is all it takes to have both the OS and Enya run perfect! In this case 10% nitro is overkill!!!! And 15% nitro is just waisting your money!

No head shim should be removed when using 0% nitro when it comes to both of these engines! They tend to run just as good with the head shim on 80/20 fuel.

not bad i like 15% nitro in all my glow and 18% peanut oil[8D]

Years ago, Enya used to ship two heads with some of their engines. One was higher compression for FAI and the other lower compression head for fuels with nitro.

FAI fuel use does require some skill at engine tuning. I have never tried FAI in a small engine but if I can make it work in a big YS four stroke you should have no trouble. Not being a fan of Magnum engines I never even gave them a thought until I noticed them posted here. They may be a very good choice for FAI fuel. MDS out of Russia was a FAI motor too, no longer imported and I don't recall if they had a .25 or not. I do run into the .58 and .68 at swap meets all the time. Those were the only two sizes I had myself. Even with the head shim installed they didn't like nitro. A very high compression engine brand.

the smallest i have run on 0% is a .18 it runs well, i also have a .32 that runs well. i see no reason why a .25 would not work on 0%. magnum/asp engines love 0% nitro and tons of castor espically when new....if your mixing your own fuel mix 1/6 of it castor (16.6%) 1-2% synthetic to keep the gumming to a minimum and you asp/mangum/wallet will love you for it (costs about 7 bucks a gallon)

This is not among you list, but my Thunder Tiger GP28 runs well on zero nitro. My Enya 2-strokes also run well on zero, but they are larger engines.

I don't notice much power difference between 0% and 15%. The needle setting is a little more fussy on 0%.

Wow! That's a lot of info... thanks a lot guys !

I use FAI fuel in my Moki 1.80. Its usually in stock in my area, if not LHS will order it. I've also ran it in my ASP.61, and it runs good there too.. I've mixed my own before with Alky and Blendzal.. which is the same as they run in go-karts... I tried that to see if it was cheaper... I found costs to be slightly cheaper mixing it... but it was a neglible difference all things considered.. then the hobby shop started carrying it.. so its only about $10.00 a gallon ready-to-use.. it runs great.

As far as I know.. any high-compression engine of larger capacity uses FAI fuel well. SuperTigre2000-3000etc..series engines run very well on it too from what I understand. Larger bore MDS, and MVVS are in the category too.. if I'm not mistaken these are all "overbore", and definately high-compression engines.. dimensionally speaking of bore/stroke.