Cool Power bad rep?
 

I have never used Cool Power before. My LHS said I should try it for my Saitos. He sold me 15%
heli full synthetic. I don't want to start a caster vs synthetic debate. I have been running Rich's Brew. Supply is greater than demand and we can't get it here anymore. Who has some real world time with Cool Power. Can anybody tell me why some call it Cruel Power? I can't imagine the LHS running it if is that bad.

David

RE: Cool Power bad rep?
 

I have been using Cool Power for years and I like it a lot. But since I use the cheapest fuel that I can find locally, lately I have been using Wild Cat. Use whatever you find locally, just make sure you tune the engine properly and you will not have any problems.

After running a few gallons of cool power through an engine, the insides will turn a nice green color. Very cool.

RE: Cool Power bad rep?
 

Look at what the Major Competitors are using at the big events. You will see many using Cool Power or one of CP's "parent companies" other brands. (The parent company of Cool Power has several different brands) Anyway, I have used a number of different fuels and found that most are very good. More a matter of personal preference, price, and availability. Just my two cents.[8D]

RE: Cool Power bad rep?
 

Thanks guys. I didn't think the LHS would ever steer me wrong but I wanted a little reassurance.

thanks again, david

RE: Cool Power bad rep?
 

Read your Saito manual. Cool power would void the warrenty! Don't use fuel without some castor! It is called cruel power because it is cruel to your engine. But really not that bad for ringed two strokes, if you keep it on the rich side. And it may not be that bad for the Saito, but it will void the warrenty. And they can tell if there has been no castor in the engine. With castor the inside of the case will have a nice rusty gold color.

RE: Cool Power bad rep?
 

Sport Pilot,

The manual of my Saito 91 does not mention anything about castor oil. In the fuel section it says to use "a high quality 2-cycle fuel like, Omega, Cool Power, K&B, Power Master, etc." Omega has some castor oil in it, but Cool Power doesn't. So, I use whatever I find locally and make sure that it is not lean.

Happy flying.

RE: Cool Power bad rep?
 

In the heli world, I am getting some reports of bearing failures (OEM and mine) by people using Cool Power 30% heli mix. I attibute this to it haveing an extremely low viscosity oil (somewhere near 5W). Most other fuels use oils with viscosities in the 20-40W range.

RE: Cool Power bad rep?
 

Castor is as thick as 50W motor oil when cold. I don't know how much it thins out hot, but have a hunch it does very well.

RE: Cool Power bad rep?
 

Castor is the only oil allowed in both FAI Pylon and FAI CL speed where engines are turning upwards of 40K revs and fully peaked out. These are the most extreme conditions our engines can ever run in and no one complains about the oil.

In CL stunt where engines live a very easy life running in a 4 stroke all the time no one will even consider using Cruel Power (or one other brand known as the Red Death) because very long and consistent engine life is needed.

RE: Cool Power bad rep?
 

I run and fly mostly small engines. The last few years mostly 1/2A and mostly Norvels. My experience with fuel in the smaller engines is that yes, castor is necessary in SOME engines, notably the Cox line and the VAs from Russia. The issue is the shrouded wrist pin with the VA and the ball socket rod with Cox. In both cases, there's much less fresh fuel/oil circulating in these areas because of the design. If you DON'T use lots of castor in these engines, you'll have premature wear.

HOWEVER, in the Norvels, I've run Cool Power 25% for a few years now and have not had any problems. In fact, I've found superior power, idling and acceleration with Cool Power.

The worst fuel, at least for 1/2A, was Byrons 1/2A formula. Same day, same prop, same engine and the CP was far superior. In fact, the Byron was the worst fuel these engines had ever seen. On top of that, the Byron was specified for 1/2A and the CP is NOT. But Norvels are unique, won't say the same thing for any other brand of small engine.

On the same note, I had run, for years, Morgan's 25% Sidewinder fuel on small engines with no problems whatsoever. And many of these were Cox engines. Go figure, especially in that Sidewinder fuel is for CARS and has only 10% oil. And recent flying with Sidewinder on a Norvel .074 has shown good power and good throttling. ??? Beats me.

But I DO like Rich's Brew, especially in that he'll mix up any formula you want,, like 60% nitro with 25% castor. Just what I needed for TD .010s and TD .020s. Throttling is much improved with the increased nitro. Yes, expensive, but not on a per flight basis.

Here,

http://www.youtube.com/profile?user=hopeso

You can see a custom heli engine turning a 6 X 3 Grish prop at 19K plus on 25% Cool Power. Not bad. Same goes for a modified Brodak .049 in one of the other videos.

RE: Cool Power bad rep?
 

Thanks Andy. I have not used up the old fuel to start on the Cool Power yet. Next month I should be onto it. You and others have reassured me.

Thanks Again,
David

RE: Cool Power bad rep?
 

That's COOL Dave, ;)

Andy

RE: Cool Power bad rep?
 

My son and I have used CoolPower in our 14 engines for the last 2 years. We have 4 Saitos (1x91, 2x100, 1x180), 6 OS 2 stroke airplane (4x46AX, 1x50SX, 1x61FX) and 4 OS 2 stroke helis (2x32SX-H, 1x50SX-H, 1x91SX-H).

We use CoolPower 15% 4-stroke in the Saitos and regular 15% in the OS 2 strokes. There is no difference between the 15% and 15% heli (see the FAQ on [link=http://www.morganfuel.com/cp_faq.htm#8]Morgan's web site[/link]).

I switched to CoolPower after the 50SX burned its rings twice running 15% S&H. We were not running it lean. Since then, we have run easily 7 gallons through the 50SX alone and had absolutely no problems and great performance. The helis and the 4 strokes work beautifully. Two of the 4 strokes are in Funtanas. The 91 is in my Funtana 40 and the 100 is in my Funtana 90. The 91 has burned several gallons of gas as my primary plane.

No question - CoolPower is the only fuel I would use. Small problem, though. I have just moved to California from New Hampshire (more flying days) and I can't find a dealer in the Pasadena area that carries CoolPower. Anyone?

RE: Cool Power bad rep?
 

OS 1.60 Ringed engine. 1 gallon of 15% Coolpower sloppy rich OK

2nd Gallon of Coolpower, maybe ONE lean run and damage to both ring and sleeve -- NO MORE COOLPOWER for me.

Since then I have been running Wild Cat Xtra Premium 15% in ALL of my engines except 2 of them -- no problems at all. (I don't mind the castor varnish on my heads and mufflers)

I use FAI Omega on my Moki 180 -- it is not running well right now so school is out on it.

I used 50% Methonal and 50% Wilcat 15% Xtra Premium on my Super Tiger 3000 -- ran great.

RE: Cool Power bad rep?
 

I think your going to find the Saito likes nitro.

David

RE: Cool Power bad rep?
 

Jim,

I run 25% in my 1/2As and the like,,, small engines and these little guys kind of need the high nitro. Some of the 1/2A guys contend that 15% is good too as the more expensive 25% only gives you a few more hundred RPM.

So, how is it that you big engine guys are running such high nitro in such large engines? Is this normal? I've got a Fox .74 that runs gangbusters on 5% Omega. Never would have thought any need for as much as 15%.

It's my understanding that the higher the nitro, the lower the compression ratio you should have, all things being equal. Maybe your 1.60 ended up a bit overcompressed with such high nitro? Does OS recommend 15% for this engine?

RE: Cool Power bad rep?
 

If your LHS supplies Coolpower, do they supply Omega. Both Morgan Fuels. The Omega has 30% Castor / 70% Synthetic.
Coolpower 100% synthetic.

Good Compromise.

RE: Cool Power bad rep?
 

I've had great luck with Morgan Fuels Omega 15% in my Raptor 30. I've owned this helicopter for 6 years and have not found a spot of rust or corrosion anywhere in the engine even though it typically sits for several months between uses. I never use after run oil and I don't even bother to drain the fuel tank. I admit it, I'm a neglector. When it's time to go flying again I turn the engine over by hand and find that it's just as smooth as the day I put it away. Compression is always good and it fires right up with no fuss. I like that...

RE: Cool Power bad rep?
 

At one time I ran Coolpower in a K&B 4011, several gallons worth. No engine damage, but it stained my airplane green and my flying buddies made fun of me so I switched to Sig. :D

RE: Cool Power bad rep?
 

After 1 gallon of CP I have a few thoughts. First off my Saito 72s love the stuff. I have had no problems with them. My ST 90 is a another story. It has 5-6 gallons through it on a Ult bipe. It has never given me any trouble. On the first tank of CP it did loose a few hundred RPM. Which is odd because the Saitos seam to run better. I have also had two dead sticks on the Tigre. It seams to run fine on the ground and then lean out in the air. I have had the needle all over the place and can not find the sweet spot. I suppose it's possible I have developed some other problem at the same time I switched fuels. It dose not seam likely though.

David

RE: Cool Power bad rep?
 

Hi David,
I got a new ST G90 for Christmas and put it on a Pizazz. It is running great on CP 10%. The only dead sticks I have had are when it runs out of fuel. Good luck getting it sorted out. Things like this can drive you crazy wondering why it is happening. I dropped you this one to let you know the big 90 will run good on 5 or 10% CP although I have heard some poeple say it doesn't particularly like higher nitro when swinging big wood. (Edge of detonation maybe?)[8D]

RE: Cool Power bad rep?
 

Dave,

If your ST has been run for a considerable time with a castor based fuel, then you suddenly switch to a fairly low-viscosity straight synthetic fuel....you might be inviting trouble.

The thinner oil, combined with the detergency of synthetics may simply be exposing the fact that your motor is getting worn. I haven't any hard data to support the theory, but I really don't believe the metallurgy in an asian clone engine (ST) is going to match the long wearing characteristics of that found in your Saitos and others.

Might be a good idea to switch back to your old fuel, and enjoy the motor while it lasts.

RE: Cool Power bad rep?
 

Race, You may be right. I got an email saying basicly what you said. I can not get the fuel I was running before. I may try to add some castor to the Cool Power I have. It may or may not help but it can't hurt. If the weather ever clears out I will let you all know.

Thanks for the help,
David

RE: Cool Power bad rep?
 

I've seen it mentioned a few times in this thread and elsewhere, but to shed a little light on it, Cool Power 15% (both regular and the 'heli' are the exact same) has a very small quantity of Castor in it, this is the only Cool Power blend that does but none the less it has some Castor in it.

the comment "I am getting some reports of bearing failures (OEM and mine) by people using Cool Power 30% heli mix" i find a bit hard to believe other then if it was faulty bearings to start with. I've ran Cool Power 30% in every heli i own and have for the 18 yrs I've been flying them. i burn on average 2 gallon per weekend, and the only bearing failures I've EVER had were on an old OS 32 (flat head) that i got used and on it's last leg. in my X-cell and Raptor I've got OS 61SX WC's and they've both burned over a hundred gallon through each and are still using the bearings they were bought new with, I've also got a Kalt Barron 60 that has burned well over 200 gallon of 30% Cool Power and never missed a beat, i did have to replace the regulator plunger once, but never a bearing.

about 12 yrs ago i started flying heli's pretty much exclusively so i went to 'one fuel for all' and it just happened to be Cool Power 30% high performance heli fuel, i burn it in everything but my gassers and my Jett 90LX, the OS and Saito 4 bangers always ran great off it, and up till recently the Super Tigres did but I'm less then impressed with the Made In China versions.

kc

RE: Cool Power bad rep?
 

I have a new SuperTigre 2300 and a new SuperTigre .90 and I have to nearly bite my tongue off to say it but they are clearly better. I have used WildCat nearly as long as you've used the green stuff, I have two Saitos and an Enya .46 MKII that are 16 years old, I put a new cam in the high compression 1.50 (and that was because the exhaust cam got loose), but no bearings yet and I have about 15 Saitos now.