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Engine basics => Engine set up tips => Topic started by: Chris Fretz on April 13, 2016, 11:24:18 AM
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A local hobby shop has 10% Wildcat Fuel that I was going to run into a LA46. How much castor oil would you add to a gallon for that engine? They list having Omega but I never see it there. They also have Cool Power. I didn't see snyone running Wildcat in "list your La46 set up".
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IIRC Wildcat is 18% total oil -- I can't remember if it's all synthetic or a blend.
At any rate, if you're running an ABN or ABC engine, you should be able to get by if you bring the total oil content up to 22%. You can do this by adding one cup (8 ounces) of castor to the gallon. It gets pretty close if the stuff is 17% total oil. One cup should fit in the free space at the top of the jug, and it's easy to remember.
Folks say "don't use medical-grade castor!" I don't know why, and I've used it. But it's hugely expensive. If you're going to do this a lot it's probably worth it to buy a gallon or two of castor from Sig to have on hand -- you can top off a whole lot of gallons of cheap fuel with a gallon of castor.
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IIRC Wildcat is 18% total oil -- I can't remember if it's all synthetic or a blend.
At any rate, if you're running an ABN or ABC engine, you should be able to get by if you bring the total oil content up to 22%. You can do this by adding one cup (8 ounces) of castor to the gallon. It gets pretty close if the stuff is 17% total oil. One cup should fit in the free space at the top of the jug, and it's easy to remember.
Folks say "don't use medical-grade castor!" I don't know why, and I've used it. But it's hugely expensive. If you're going to do this a lot it's probably worth it to buy a gallon or two of castor from Sig to have on hand -- you can top off a whole lot of gallons of cheap fuel with a gallon of castor.
Would you run Wildcat in your LAs? One of my 46s the piston has a black tint to it, good bad ugly?
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Looks like the web site says its fully synthetic along with cool power, Omega looks to be the only one that is a blend on my chioces of fuel. I guess the blend would be a better choice?
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the jug of wild cat 10% nitro that i have has 16% oil, 80 syn & 20%caster
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Would you run Wildcat in your LAs? One of my 46s the piston has a black tint to it, good bad ugly?
Yes I would.
The black tint is probably carbon build up, and is probably OK if it's not too severe.
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Wildcat 10% Nitro, Premium Xtra is 18% oil, 80% of which is synthetic the rest castor. Opinions vary but, I've been using it in my ABN, ABC engines without any extra castor oil. Unless my LA's are different (kinda doubt it) they run just fine. My RoJetts have all loved it. In warmer weather I jump to 15%. Don't believe me? Come to Portland this weekend.
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Yes I would.
The black tint is probably carbon build up, and is probably OK if it's not too severe.
Ok hobby shop has the Omega an asked if I wanted Wildcat with or without castor but they only have the Wildcat without castor. Sooooo go with the Omega an add castor into that ???
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Ok hobby shop has the Omega an asked if I wanted Wildcat with or without castor but they only have the Wildcat without castor. Sooooo go with the Omega an add castor into that ???
Or you could be like Mike. I started adding castor to my fuel because the engines seemed to be happier with it, not because it's needed to make them last.
Mike was outflying me at the time, and even though he's gone over to the well-lit side, he still outflys me.
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In warmer weather I jump to 15%. Don't believe me? Come to Portland this weekend.
What does going to 15% in warmer weather do? I would think that would make them run hotter... Portland is kind of far for me or I would to learn a thing or fifty.
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What does going to 15% in warmer weather do? I would think that would make them run hotter... Portland is kind of far for me or I would to learn a thing or fifty.
Read Randy Smith's pinned post in the Engine Setup Tips forum -- in a nutshell, you set up the venturi size, prop, etc., for the run you want, and then when you need more power (i.e., in the summer when the air is thinner) you boost the nitro.
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Wildcat fuels has a nice website. Premium Xtra is the one you want. http://www.wildcatfuels.com/premiumXtraG.html If the hobby shop orders from them on a regular basis the can get it. I just picked up a jug today in Tacoma WA. $16.95. At one time the fuel of choice was Powermaster 10/22 or 10/18 but hasn't been available on a consistent basis. You can add castor if you wish, I tried it and caused inconsistencies for me.
Like Tim said, Randy Smith has an excellent explanation on fuel, nitro, prop etc. selections.
My "well lit" (electric airplanes) don't need any castor or nitro for that matter, but my classic models still throw slime around.
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You can add castor if you wish, I tried it and caused inconsistencies for me.
I tried not using castor, but when I added castor the inconsistencies went away.
There's a lesson in there someplace, if only I were smart enough to figure it out.
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I tried not using castor, but when I added castor the inconsistencies went away.
There's a lesson in there someplace, if only I were smart enough to figure it out.
The correct amount of castor, makes the run more stable/consistant on that type of plain bearing engine, you can even use it in FOX 35s with the addition of 12 to 14 ounce extra castor.. 15% would be better to buy when adding that much , or at the least 10%, it will not be near that after mixing
Randy
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Well... the premium xtra the hobby shop stopped ordering cause Byron bought them an raised the price. They checked for me to order is but its out of stock. Sooo back to either Cool Power or Omega i guess. Any different set up for Omega?
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Well... the premium xtra the hobby shop stopped ordering cause Byron bought them an raised the price. They checked for me to order is but its out of stock. Sooo back to either Cool Power or Omega i guess. Any different set up for Omega?
In my opinion the most important thing is to use the same thing every time. So pick something and only change because you want to.
I order cases of GMA from my LHS; as long as he sells an order of fuel often enough that my case doesn't run out, I'm golden. When I can't get GMA I'll get cases of something else, and doctor it up identically if it's something like Omega. The last thing I want to do is change fuel right before a contest.
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In my opinion the most important thing is to use the same thing every time. So pick something and only change because you want to.
I order cases of GMA from my LHS; as long as he sells an order of fuel often enough that my case doesn't run out, I'm golden. When I can't get GMA I'll get cases of something else, and doctor it up identically if it's something like Omega. The last thing I want to do is change fuel right before a contest.
Would you still put a cup of castor in the Omega an go from there?
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Would you still put a cup of castor in the Omega an go from there?
Yes, but I'd make sure that I had at least an extra gallon in storage in case my LHS didn't have the exact same stuff in stock the next time I waltzed in.
In fact, if I can't get GMA from my LHS, I'll probably get Omega in cases, or I'll start mixing my own.
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I've been running Wildcat 10% Premium Xtra for several years now. Like Mike Haverly wrote, the Wildcat Premium Xtra has castor in addition to the synthetic oil. It's also pink, but I haven't seen any discoloration on my plane, if that is a concern. The only engine I've run it in is an OS .46VF AAC. If I was going to run it in a .46LA, I'd add castor to bring it up to 22%-25% oil, and more like 30% for old technology engines (McCoy/Fox, etc.).
There used to be a fuel modification calculator on the TGD site, but I can't find it anymore. Has it been moved or is it just gone? ??? Steve
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You can get Byron Lube Booster. It has a chart on the bottle that tells you how much to add to x% nitro to get y% oil.
http://www.byronfuels.com/pages/products.html#chart_anchor
I started using the fuel and even called Byron and got my LHS setup as a dealer. Great prices and got a case. My LA's love it!
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Would you still put a cup of castor in the Omega an go from there?
You should put at least 9 to 10 ounces in OMEGA, Morgan fuels, like Byons is measured by weight and not volume, so the oil percent is slack
Randy
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I've been running Wildcat 10% Premium Xtra for several years now. Like Mike Haverly wrote, the Wildcat Premium Xtra has castor in addition to the synthetic oil. It's also pink, but I haven't seen any discoloration on my plane, if that is a concern. The only engine I've run it in is an OS .46VF AAC. If I was going to run it in a .46LA, I'd add castor to bring it up to 22%-25% oil, and more like 30% for old technology engines (McCoy/Fox, etc.).
There used to be a fuel modification calculator on the TGD site, but I can't find it anymore. Has it been moved or is it just gone? ??? Steve
How much castor do you add to bring it up to 30% for the old stuff?
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Fuel mixture calculator.
http://www.nitrorc.com/fuelws/oilonly.asp
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So if Omega is 17% oil which 70% of that is Synthetic an 30% is castor I take it there is about 6% castor in the gallon? And plug in 6% on the muxture calculator to shoot for %30 castot to make a Fox happy? Im guessing using %17 in the calculator would not make a Fox happy since some of it is synthetic, yes no?
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ON the recommendation of many who have decades more Fox 35 stunt experience than I
I blend to have 3%~%5 synthetic and 25%~28% total oil using Castor
But I suspect a lot depends on if a new in service engine vs one with 4 decades of 100% Castor running
I have Never experienced this, ( with my low Synth %) but the web mentors caution that a well worn Castor only engine now fed synthetic (don't know how much) will clean off the Castor varnish and further reduce piston seal
I know several across the web forums who claim they use 50/50 Castor synth with no problems in their Iron engines
I recently put a NIB Green head Torp and Two NIB Fox 35S in service for first tiem
I blended for 15% N and 25%total oil using 3% UCON LB625 synth. Unless I have trouble I suspect is fuel related I intend to use this blend on these three for their life with me
I don't compete and should not have to adjust % N for weather or altitude
I tried 5%N and 10%N and found that with my plug and prop choice they start and needle better with the 15%
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So if Omega is 17% oil which 70% of that is Synthetic an 30% is castor I take it there is about 6% castor in the gallon? And plug in 6% on the muxture calculator to shoot for %30 castot to make a Fox happy? Im guessing using %17 in the calculator would not make a Fox happy since some of it is synthetic, yes no?
You want to figure it with all the oil in the fuel, NOT just the CASTOR, and yes you can run a blend in the FOX or any other motor, unless it is very heavy built up with burned on castor, I DO NOT recommend going over 29% total oil, that is plenty for them... if you run so lean you damage the engine 33% oil would not help you anyway. I have ran FOX 35s and OS 35s engines with as low as 25% oil blend Castor Synth and it worked very well, ran great and protected the engines.. both of those engines have very weal points, the upper part of the rod and piston boss are two of them
Randy
Randy
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Your best bet is take a trip to brodak and get your fuel there. You are close and could get it on a saterday, and I think the club flys that day, you could give them a call. I have use brodak fuel and it good fuel, it's made by s&w.
Steve