Engines 101

It is often the fear of the unknown that prevents people from trying out new things. That flutter in your stomach, that vague discomfort when you get close to the edge of familiarity. That was how i felt when i decided to get a nitro heli. I m not familiar with engines. How do you tune the engine? What fuel to use? and many more questions popped up.

So i asked around and read up on the forums, often i see general replies like " oh use this and this engine with this n this fuel , try turning the high speed needle 5 clicks anti-clockwise, use a hotter glow plug...". They sounded more like trial n error experiences, there must be more science to it. It is important to know exactly how each part works to be able to fly the heli around with confidence and safety. So back to basics, engines 101.

Engines convert energy stored in fuel to mechanical energy to turn the blades through 4 processes characterized by movements of a piston in a cylinder: 1. intake stroke 2. compression stroke 3. power stroke 4. exhaust stroke known as the Otto cycle. 2-strokes engines accomplish the Otto cycle in 2 strokes and are commonly used in helis. Animation below courtesy of Marshall Brain. "How Two-stroke Engines Work". April 01, 2000 http://science.howstuffworks.com/two-stroke.htm (March 17, 2007)



Can refer to here for more details. Or see below
For the titan,I m going to put in a TT50 Pro engine as oppose to the more widely used OS50hyper. Although it maybe harder to tune and less powerful, TT50 gives better fuel economy and more flight time (14mins to 8mins on hyper). It will be lighter on the pockets and serves well as a good beginner engine.
The unfamiliar becomes familiar and it became less daunting after reading up abit. More on tuning later...