Fuel Filters???

[Paul Taylor]

So of the fuel filters on this page: http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0093p?&C=QCC&P=ML

Is there one you would prefer.
Was looking at the Thunder Tiger.

I am getting a Tower order and wanted to add on a few odds and ends.

Thanks.

[Brett Buck]

So of the fuel filters on this page: http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0093p?&C=QCC&P=ML

Is there one you would prefer.
Was looking at the Thunder Tiger.

I am getting a Tower order and wanted to add on a few odds and ends.

Thanks.

http://www3.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin/wti0001p?&I=LXFU76&P=ML

[Paul Taylor]

Thanks Brett,
Order placed!

[Doug Moon]

Yes that is the one.  Be sure to follow the flow direction properly.

[jim ivey]

Here's a fuel filter story. 3 days be fore Hi crashed. I stopped by his shop to see him and "midge". he was always trying to give me something. I told him I didn't need anything I was never going to fly again. he said you never know. Here how about a "fuel filter" Someday you may build something and find you need a fuel filter and you'll have one! so low and behold I finally finished that airplane that had been hanging around for 22 years.I tried to run the engine and the nva kept plugging up with lint from the tank. Then I remembered that fuel filter hi had given me26 years before. It saved the day ,I looked up at the sky and said thank you Hi. The airplane and filter burned up in a fire at my sons house.   Jim

[REX1945]

Paul,

    Although they take up space, the Hanger 9 filter (gold) works quite well
and is a take-apart that you can clean :

http://www.hangar-9.com/Search/Default.aspx?SearchTerm=Fuel+filter

[Chuck Feldman]

Brett is correct. We call it the Crap Trap. 

[Robert Zambelli]

Best filter I've used.

Brodak Item#BH-935

Bob Z.

[Douglas Ames]

Saito's filter...

[john e. holliday]

Best filter I've used.

Brodak Item#BH-935

Bob Z.

Used to get a filter very similar to this from MBS Model Supply.   He was told the guy was not making them anymore.   Do have to make sure they are tight when put back together.   Had one give me run problems until I took the wrenches to it.   

[Ward Van Duzer]

I never thought I'd say this, but, listen to Zambelli! These are about the smallest you can get. Yes, I always tighten ANY screw together filter I've used. (Vibration during shipping can unscrew anything). When I got these from Richie Blatt or, H & R, you used to be able to buy extra screens for them. Ask Brodak.

As for the Crappy Screens, I know many pros use them and rave about them. Me, I've changed two of these on planes with crappy runs and fixed their problems. One of these was on a Jr. Nats champs airplane. Secondly, they are LARGE. Apply the 'fix' to them to prevent their leaks, and they get bigger.

You pays your money, and takes your chances...


W.

[dankar]

Sullivan crap trap works well but it is long.

[Brett Buck]

Sullivan crap trap works well but it is long.

    The biggest issue I have with any of the other filters is that they are too big around. Both the Sullivan and the other one I routinely use (the tiny one sold by Jett, among others) are about the diameter of fuel tubing. Any bigger and it won't fit side-to-side. I make the pickup tube come out the side of the wedge instead of the front of the tank, so I don't have an issue with the length. The small-diameter filters with flat filter media can clog very quickly if there is anything to filter. The Sullivan is by far the most effective at filtering and the least likely to get clogged for the diameter.

     Any screw-together filter needs to be sealed with silicone sealant or it will leak. The incidence of leaks with the screw-together filters is about 100x that of the Sullivan filters leaking. Occasionally, there will be a defective Sullivan that leaks but it is extremely rare. You can find them by inspection - check where the end fittings are pushed into the clear tube. If the tube is folded under or the plug is not seated, it will leak, and discard it. I have had or seen about 200 of these filters over the years and I have found two leakers, both due to the tube folding under.

    Once they do clog, there's no effective way to clean it, so toss them. They will last a very long time unless you do something silly with your fuel, or crash.

     Brett

   

[Ward Van Duzer]

The H&R (or Brodak) filters take a 5/16 wrench to undo. Larger than the Jett filters for sure, but smaller than most others as needed in our stunt ships.
25 years, at least, no leaks. They're cheap enough, worth a look...Again, ask John if he carries extra screens. I was lucky enough to have ordered a bunch from Richie years ago when he sold out.

W.

[Brett Buck]

The H&R (or Brodak) filters take a 5/16 wrench to undo. Larger than the Jett filters for sure, but smaller than most others as needed in our stunt ships.

  The one nice thing about the screw-apart filters is you can both clean them and change to alternate filter media. I used to use the old Hi Johnson filters, but replaced the screen with a much finer mesh. The original was probably fine for McCoy/Fox/Johnson and other 50's-era spraybars but with the ST46 "sprinkler" types the passage were much smaller so you had to exclude smaller particles that the stock mesh would permit to pass. They clogged faster, of course. That's why I like the dual-element large-area filter, it never clogs but has a very fine secondary mesh. It also does better than the others with "fiber" contamination because you have a sort of circuitous path through it and it's more likely to catch the fiber. Not bulletproof, of course.

    Brett

[RandySmith]

I have bought tried most every filter out there, My opinion the Sullivan is the best there is period.
fit most anywhere, is not much larger than fuel line, double filtration, cleanable, will not unscrew, you can see inside of it....etc..

Randy

[PJ Rowland]

Randy - Cleanable??? Due to not being able to unscrew it - I just replace them..

How do you clean them ?

How often are you replacing it ?

I use the sullivan's and replace it every 6 months to be sure.

 

[Dick Pacini]

Can't you clean the C/T by back flushing?

[Steve Helmick]

Can't you clean the C/T by back flushing?

I use the CrapTraps, like them, and I would not try to clean a CrapTrap except as a last minute, last resort. The two filter screens make a complete cleaning pretty dubious. Remember that the coarse filter screen goes on the tank side.  

The big Arcee car filter that Rex posted about is great for a fueling rig, but it would take a major engineering planning effort to use one in the plane. Not that the thought hasn't occurred to me...I'd run the tube outside to the filter, then back into the cowl to the engine. Lash the filter down with wire ties and put a cool looking scoop over the filter to hide it. A good use for some 0-80 screws.  

[Paul Taylor]

One thing I learned from my coach is to put a drop of asotone on the nipples and you get a tight seal.

[Brett Buck]

One thing I learned from my coach is to put a drop of asotone on the nipples and you get a tight seal.

     Who's your coach, Jenna Jameson?

    Brett

[Brad Smith]

she is hot lol

[Chris Wilson]

I assume that we are talking exclusively about on board filters as the decision making parameters change significantly otherwise.

But I do like the 'Crap Trap' also and have easily cleaned them with a reverse flow or as mentioned 'back flushing' from a syringe using kerosene.

[John Rist]

Anything called a Crap Trap has to be cool!!!       

[RandySmith]

Randy - Cleanable??? Due to not being able to unscrew it - I just replace them..

How do you clean them ?

How often are you replacing it ?

I use the sullivan's and replace it every 6 months to be sure.

 

Backflushhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh

[Chuck Feldman]

If you want to flush a crap trap it is easy. The fine screen is the end you flush from. anything that is on the small screen had to come through the large screen. Therefore if you flush fine to coarse it should clean out.  Another point;  I have filters on my fuel spring and clean them once in a while. I over fill the spring as I draw fuel from the fuel can. Then I push the plunger in till the proper amount of fuel is in the syringe. Next I fill the tank on the plane. Now here is my point. I do not use a filter on the plane itself. Why? First I have filtered the fuel in the tank many times before I put it in the tank. So there should be no problem and there seldom or never is. If you have a filter on your plane and it collects debris it will effect the engine run. The engine run will go lean and you could suffer an overheat or an over run of the allowed time limit. None of these things are good. So it is my feeling that an on board filter can only cause you trouble. If your using an on board filter on your ship and having no trouble then that only proves you do not need one. However there is one other issue. Profile's have an inherent problem with bubbles on the fuel line. this comes from vibration from the profile engine mount. So the fuel filter (crap trap) does work to eliminate the bubbles by collapsing the fuel back to solid liquid. There is some science involved to explaining this that I will not go into. It has to due with vapor pressues and other technical stuff.

[Chris Wilson]

If you want to flush a crap trap it is easy. The fine screen is the end you flush from. anything that is on the small screen had to come through the large screen. Therefore if you flush fine to coarse it should clean out.  Another point;  I have filters on my fuel spring and clean them once in a while. I over fill the spring as I draw fuel from the fuel can. Then I push the plunger in till the proper amount of fuel is in the syringe. Next I fill the tank on the plane. Now here is my point. I do not use a filter on the plane itself. Why? First I have filtered the fuel in the tank many times before I put it in the tank. So there should be no problem and there seldom or never is. If you have a filter on your plane and it collects debris it will effect the engine run. The engine run will go lean and you could suffer an overheat or an over run of the allowed time limit. None of these things are good. So it is my feeling that an on board filter can only cause you trouble. If your using an on board filter on your ship and having no trouble then that only proves you do not need one. However there is one other issue. Profile's have an inherent problem with bubbles on the fuel line. this comes from vibration from the profile engine mount. So the fuel filter (crap trap) does work to eliminate the bubbles by collapsing the fuel back to solid liquid. There is some science involved to explaining this that I will not go into. It has to due with vapor pressues and other technical stuff.

Hi Chuck,
              the assumption seems to be that no further debris can be found once your pre-filtered fuel has entered the tank, but a source of debris can be inside the tank itself.

I have seen rust and very rarely coagulated castor sourced from inside a tank and I still see that preliminary filtering whilst decanting an adjunct to a final filtering just before use.

Sure a partially blocked onboard filter 'can' cause a lean run but the filter area is quite large compared to the line diameter so I am having trouble seeing any secondary filter actually causing in flight issues and especially so if the fuel is scrupulously clean before hand. But I can see a blocked jet or spraybar from tank debris if you don't have an onboard filter directly after this.

The profile issue I can't comment on.

[Lauri Malila]

 I'd say that the reason is bad castor oil. If the polymerizing of oil has started, the filtering will help ony temporarily. If fuel tank is well made, it should give no pollution to fuel. Unfortunatey many of the commercial tnks are badly made. L

[John Leidle]

  To me the only one to use is the brass coloered Hanger 9

[Chuck Feldman]

I have not used an on board fuel filter now for at least four years. I have not had any problems with debris in my fuel systems.  I use metal tanks with copper tubing. Run problems are caused mostly by cracks in the tubing in my case. I use Brodak tanks and also some from RSM. When I purchase used tanks I always take them appart and clean them if needed. If the inside of the tank is a real mess I just throw it away.

Remember the more parts that are used the probability of failure goes up.

[Bob Reeves]

What,s real sad is that Master Airscrew quit making these.. A piece of shrink tubing fixes the only issue they had. They are small, light and can be taken apart for cleaning. Wished I had stocked up when they were still available.

[Eric Viglione]

Hi Bob,

I used those for years from my Fox 35 days thru ST60's period. Eddy R turned me on to them, with the caveat that I had to wrap them with just about anything handy. I used to use anything from scraps of silkspan, glass cloth, carbon veil, just about anything was fine wrapped over that "spot welded" so to speak, seam, with a thin coat of epoxy. I liked their light weight and small size for sure.

I seem to remember the mesh was a little fine and they would clog more often and they could gel over with dried castor gum, but I was running a more open system back then too... I now keep my fuel jugs sealed once I open them and put on my cap with the fittings and a filter on the pickup in the jug, so no trash is prone to get in the jug at the field nowadays.

For the last several years I'm now a Cr@ptrap convert. Have to agree, I feel they are the best thing out there for a slim fit and double filtration, yeah, they are a little on the long side, but that's good since it keeps me on my toe's to keep my fuel tubing nice and short and neat.

Speaking of closed systems, I will note that I'm a stickler for capping my uniflow vent when I'm done flying for the day, and I truly believe it lowers the issues of junk and dried crud in the tank. An air intake filter helps keep grass, sand (bee's) etc out of your venturi too...

EricV

What,s real sad is that Master Airscrew quit making these.. A piece of shrink tubing fixes the only issue they had. They are small, light and can be taken apart for cleaning. Wished I had stocked up when they were still available.

[Larry Fernandez]

     Who's your coach, Jenna Jameson?

    Brett

Jenna told me she did'nt like acetone on the nipples. She said it burned like hell.

Larry, Buttafucco Stunt Team

[Brett Buck]

Jenna told me she did'nt like acetone on the nipples. She said it burned like hell.

  Thank you! 

   Now don't you go posting to the "where are the Johnson pictures?" thread.

    Brett

[REX1945]

Steve,

    The hanger 9 filters aren't as outrageously large as you think they are. And the added benefit is
how super-fine the filter element is.  With a 4s that is very important (I had all kinds of problems with
fuel purity before I started using them).

My Strathmoor (full fuselage), my Legacy, and the profile Strathmoore all seem to be able to
accommodate the geometry because it's not that large around and shorter than the crap trap :

[john e. holliday]

What,s real sad is that Master Airscrew quit making these.. A piece of shrink tubing fixes the only issue they had. They are small, light and can be taken apart for cleaning. Wished I had stocked up when they were still available.

Just came from the RSM Dist. site.  Eric shows them in the list.   He must know they are rare,  $34.95 for three of them.   Unless it is a misprint.   I have some that I take apart and clean, then put back together with a little silicon glue/sealer.

[Larry Fernandez]

  Thank you! 

   Now don't you go posting to the "where are the Johnson pictures?" thread.

    Brett

Actually, the thought did'nt even cross my mind. I guess I dont have your wit.
I am surprised that Howard did'nt post to it though.

Larry, Buttafucco Stunt Team