I am wondering what sort of upgrades there are for a vertex .18 engine? I know its a cheapo, but I am wondering if you can upgrade engines without having to buy a new one. Can you change out the piston sleeves any piston head for a bigger size? Any help would be appreciated. Thank you!

When it comes to getting more power out of a nitro engine there are a couple ways. One way is the exhaust. The factory exhaust/tuned pipe may not be the best for the engine but finding something better can be trial and error. Tuned pipes are what their name implies, they are tuned to deliver specific pressure waves and back pressure. What the engine wants depends on the ports, port timing, etc.

Another way is what people commonly refer to as "modding" the engine. This entails enlarging the ports in the sleeve, altering their timing, smoothing the ports, cutting the crankshaft, etc. Some have claimed to see gains using their Dremel but professional builders use jewelers bits to achieve much smoother surfaces and have years of experience in trial and error. For some popular engines like the Traxxas 3.3 modders offer piston/sleeve combos and crankshafts that have already been modded that you can install in your engine. Your engine is not one of them unfortunately.

Which leaves us with the last way to increase the power of a nitro engine. It's a sure thing and you can do it yourself. Increase the nitro content of the fuel you run. Check the manual for your engine first to see what the maximum recommended nitro content is. It's usually 20% but you should be able to run 25% just fine if you go a glow plug that's a heat range or two colder. If you want a bigger increase in power you can go to 30% but with that big of a jump it's recommended you make another change. You'll want to change to a thicker head shim or add another to lower the compression and decrease the chance of detonation (preignition). Speaking of head shims, if your engine has two head shims you could take one out and stay with 20%. With two head shims you may be ok with 30% if you go with a colder heat range glow plug.

Just bear in mind what the Vertex .18 engine is. It's an inexpensive engine. It's made to run at lower power levels. Increasing the power too much doesn't usually bode well for these types of engines.

Wow, this was a great response to my question.

Looking at the response and thinking about it a while, with this sort of inexpensive engine, I think I will stay with the change in nitro percentage and a swap to a better tuned exhaust for the setup I am using. The knowledge of tuning the piston sleeve reaches beyond my capabilities for now. Plus as mentioned I do not have the tools nor the patience for that skill set. I am pretty limited with this engine. I plan to look into a nicer brand with a better quality name here soon. It may take a while before I settle on one,due to being such a picky person. I like to be sure of what I am investing in before I make a purchase. Thank you for the information. Very much appreciated!