posted
This post is an update of the one I made earlier. I took the engine out of the vehicle and took the pullstarter off. The one way bearing is fine. I was able to loosen it up enough to start it, then I ran it for one more tank, richening the main needle one full turn like the instructions said and gave it a little rpm, but mostly idled it. It shut down when I pushed the brake, which closed the carb too much, killing the engine. The engine immediately siezed. It was siezed instantly, before I could even try to turn the flywheel to get the piston to the bottom. I have since taken the engine out of the vehicle again, put WD40 in the whole thing, let it soak, drained it, tried to move it with pliers, but it will not move. I took the head off and the back plate off. The crank moves freely in the small amount of play it has with the connecting rod. But the piston is seized tight in the sleeve near the top. Pliers will not even budge the crank. I think the only way to push this piston down is with a press of some kind, which I dont have, or possibly placing a piece of wood over the top of the piston and hitting it with a hammer. Im not sure what that will do to the connecting rod or crank pin though. This is a terrible experience for the 200 dollars I spent. I wish I never would have bought this engine. If I send it to the manufacturer, will they fix it?
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RB Products-USA
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posted
If you have stuck your piston in the sleeve, the easiest way to free it is to heat up the crankcase (around the outside of the sleeve area) with a hair dryer, and then carefully back down the piston from its stuck location...do not turn it past the top, but down from where it is stuck...
The fit on the piston/sleeve assemblies is very tight when the engine is new, which is why the engine provide so much power and last longer...it takes a bit longer to break these engines in, but the results are definitely worth it.
If you are still having problems, visit the shop where you purchased the engine as this is something they can help you with...
posted
glen be careful when you heat up the engine it will get HOT. if the hair dryer doesn't work you can the engine apart and place it in the oven for a short period of time. but it will still get hot not so much that it will damage your engine though. good luck. i know how annoying a stuck piston can be it happened to me with my sbk.
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<Glen>
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Thanks for your reply RB. Before you replied, I took the engine apart, pressed the piston down the sleeve with a c-clamp, took out the sleeve and piston, cleaned both with laquer thinner (there was a varnish film on both), polished the piston with Brasso metal polish so it would fit back in the sleeve (snugly), lubed the parts with WD40, put it all back together. The pull start turns the motor fine now. I havent re-started it. Is the Traxxas 20% fuel ok to use in this engine? Am I going to have to take this engine apart every time to start it?
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RB Products-USA
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We are unfamiliar with the Traxxas fuel, so we cannot comment, but different fuels will leave different residues in an engine...you could try a different brand if you are worried (Byrons Race fuels work very well and are easy on the engine).
Normally, you do not want to clean these residues off the side of the piston, nor do you want to polish these parts with anything, as this can reduce the compression of the engine, and ultimately the power and the life...if you want to clean them, just do so with some denatured alcohol and a soft rag, and be very careful not to remove any of the actual metal on the piston and sleeve.
You should normally not have to clean these pieces between engine runs...
posted
Thanks again for your reply. There are only 3 fuels available here locally: Traxxas, Blue Thunder, and O'Donnels. If the other 2 are not any better than the Traxxas, then I will continue using the 2 gallons of Traxxas I already have. Today I was able run the engine through the 3rd tank untill I stalled it and it siezed again. This time I took the engine out and was able to get it turning again by using pliers on the flywheel after having soaked it in after-run oil for a while. Seems like some progress is being made, at least I didnt have to tear down the engine this time. The moral of this story: never stall the RB engine or the days' fun will be over.
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RB Products-USA
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Of the fuels you have listed, we would suggest either the Blue Thunder Race Formula 20% or the O'Donnell 20%...both work very well and do not seem to leave the residues you are encountering...
If you switch fuels, be sure to run all of the old stuff out of your fuel tank and engine, and then we think it would be a good idea to carefully clean the internals of your engine with denatured alcohol to avoid this problem...we had this very same thing happen to a .21 engine many years ago, and it turned out to be some strange reaction between our fuel and an after run that we were using...
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