September 2011 117
I HAVE FLOWN Combat for many years and have had many
types of airplanes. Among those I have flown is the Avenger, which
is a good airplane. However, at a contest in Florida earlier this year,
I had trouble getting the engine to run well. I have used the O.S. .15
LA for many years. These are good engines, but have developed
problems throughout the years.
After talking with other pilots, I decided it was time to replace all
my Slow Survivable Combat (SSC) engines. I found that more
pilots have moved from the O.S. engine to the Magnum XLS .15.
The Magnum engine has many of the same features as the larger
ones, such as dual-ball-bearing and aluminum brass chrome
construction. Both weigh roughly the same, although the O.S. is
slightly lighter. Magnum is roughly $10 less than the O.S. engine.
After purchasing the new engines, I installed them on some new
SSC Falcon airplanes that I built. In the past, I flew these but had
trouble getting the models in the air because of engine problems.
The Falcons are also hard to launch in the wind since they are
flying-wing aircraft.
One of the first things I learned was that these engines need
castor oil, so I decided to run Omega 14% fuel during the break-in.
After break-in, the manual states that you can run 15-30% fuel but I
was able to run 15%, getting roughly 17,300 rpm.
One problem I discovered with the Magnum was its needle valve
location. The fuel nipple connected to the carburetor can easily be
knocked off if you have a crash, so it’s good to keep a spare. My
other concern was that the fuel line going to the carburetor must be
pinched or the engine will flood.
I had this problem at the first contest where I used these engines.
One of the pilots handed me some clamps to clinch the line until it
was time to run the engine. Overall, the Magnum appears to be a
good engine and a good alternative to the O.S. .15.
Earlier this year, I made my annual trip to the Battle for Beantown
in Lima, Ohio. It is hosted by the Lima Area Radio Kontrol Society
(LARKS).
This event is near the home of Bob Loescher. During the
gathering, he invites the pilots to stay at his house instead of a
hotel. With fuel prices so high, this helps the turnout. Of the
16 pilots who attended, there was at least one representative
from 11 states. Driving 10 hours to the event, I expected
to be the pilot from farthest away, but I was not even
close. Court Jarrett arrived from Emory, Texas.
The event kicked off Saturday morning with SSC
Combat. The 16 pilots flew two heats per round. A
lot of rain in the area recently made the field very
wet. We were able to fly with normal streamers, but
you had to avoid dropping anything on the ground
because it would get wet and muddy.
The contest was a wet one, but fun
[[email protected]]
Radio Control Combat Don Grissom
Left: The Magnum
engine works well
for SSC and Limited
B Combat. It had no
difficulty reaching
17,300 rpm during
my most recent
contest.
Below: This device
signals the start of
Combat and the
timing with a series
of beeps. In the
past, the CD timed
the rounds.
David Smithgall brought his multiuse flight
stand to the event, which helped keep
everything dry.
Also included in this column:
• Replacing Slow Survivable
Combat engines
• Magnum XLS engine
• More engine problems
• Battle for Beantown event
09sig4.QXD_00MSTRPG.QXD 7/22/11 11:47 AM Page 117
Since this was Bob’s contest, we
renamed the contest “Sponge Bob”. I
bought some flip-flops because I could
not keep my shoes dry.
From the beginning, William Drumm
III looked strong, and he ended up
having some of the highest-scoring
rounds of the day. William was flying an
airplane of his own design, which was
fast and durable. He had been running
electrics, but the speed controllers kept
burning up.
William decided to put some gas
engines together and still had a good
contest. Jason Yoder came in second,
with Chris Gunter in third place.
118 MODEL AVIATION
Later in the day, we began Scale
2548 Combat. Since Eric and Brian
Gilkey could not make it (or were too
scared to fly against us), we only had
four pilots for Scale. We had planned to
fly eight rounds but only flew three
Saturday and another three on Sunday.
Keith and I could not avoid hitting
each other, and had one of the hardest
hits of the meet with an engine-onengine
hit. As for Bob Loscher, all I
remember is hearing, “There goes Bob
again,” when he would fly his aircraft
right onto the ground.
The final event of the weekend was
Limited B. In the past few years, this
has become popular because it slows
down the airplanes but still allows the
aircraft to reach higher speeds than SSC.
I had some problems with my
Limited B airplanes. However, after
thinking I was going to be out of the
event, I decided to fly my SSC
airplanes. Even with the engine size
difference I was able to perform better
than with my Limited B airplanes.
William Drumm, once again, won the
event by scoring 1,500 points more than
second-place finisher Donald Veres.
Kelly Bryant took third place.
It was once again a great event and
it’s a good example of how to run a
contest. MA
Sources:
O.S. Engines
(217) 398-8970
www.osengines.com
Magnum Engines/Global Hobby
(714) 963-0329
http://magnum.globalhobby.com
Lima Area Radio Kontrol Society
http://larksclub.homestead.com
Radio Control Combat
Edition: Model Aviation - 2011/09
Page Numbers: 117,118
Edition: Model Aviation - 2011/09
Page Numbers: 117,118
September 2011 117
I HAVE FLOWN Combat for many years and have had many
types of airplanes. Among those I have flown is the Avenger, which
is a good airplane. However, at a contest in Florida earlier this year,
I had trouble getting the engine to run well. I have used the O.S. .15
LA for many years. These are good engines, but have developed
problems throughout the years.
After talking with other pilots, I decided it was time to replace all
my Slow Survivable Combat (SSC) engines. I found that more
pilots have moved from the O.S. engine to the Magnum XLS .15.
The Magnum engine has many of the same features as the larger
ones, such as dual-ball-bearing and aluminum brass chrome
construction. Both weigh roughly the same, although the O.S. is
slightly lighter. Magnum is roughly $10 less than the O.S. engine.
After purchasing the new engines, I installed them on some new
SSC Falcon airplanes that I built. In the past, I flew these but had
trouble getting the models in the air because of engine problems.
The Falcons are also hard to launch in the wind since they are
flying-wing aircraft.
One of the first things I learned was that these engines need
castor oil, so I decided to run Omega 14% fuel during the break-in.
After break-in, the manual states that you can run 15-30% fuel but I
was able to run 15%, getting roughly 17,300 rpm.
One problem I discovered with the Magnum was its needle valve
location. The fuel nipple connected to the carburetor can easily be
knocked off if you have a crash, so it’s good to keep a spare. My
other concern was that the fuel line going to the carburetor must be
pinched or the engine will flood.
I had this problem at the first contest where I used these engines.
One of the pilots handed me some clamps to clinch the line until it
was time to run the engine. Overall, the Magnum appears to be a
good engine and a good alternative to the O.S. .15.
Earlier this year, I made my annual trip to the Battle for Beantown
in Lima, Ohio. It is hosted by the Lima Area Radio Kontrol Society
(LARKS).
This event is near the home of Bob Loescher. During the
gathering, he invites the pilots to stay at his house instead of a
hotel. With fuel prices so high, this helps the turnout. Of the
16 pilots who attended, there was at least one representative
from 11 states. Driving 10 hours to the event, I expected
to be the pilot from farthest away, but I was not even
close. Court Jarrett arrived from Emory, Texas.
The event kicked off Saturday morning with SSC
Combat. The 16 pilots flew two heats per round. A
lot of rain in the area recently made the field very
wet. We were able to fly with normal streamers, but
you had to avoid dropping anything on the ground
because it would get wet and muddy.
The contest was a wet one, but fun
[[email protected]]
Radio Control Combat Don Grissom
Left: The Magnum
engine works well
for SSC and Limited
B Combat. It had no
difficulty reaching
17,300 rpm during
my most recent
contest.
Below: This device
signals the start of
Combat and the
timing with a series
of beeps. In the
past, the CD timed
the rounds.
David Smithgall brought his multiuse flight
stand to the event, which helped keep
everything dry.
Also included in this column:
• Replacing Slow Survivable
Combat engines
• Magnum XLS engine
• More engine problems
• Battle for Beantown event
09sig4.QXD_00MSTRPG.QXD 7/22/11 11:47 AM Page 117
Since this was Bob’s contest, we
renamed the contest “Sponge Bob”. I
bought some flip-flops because I could
not keep my shoes dry.
From the beginning, William Drumm
III looked strong, and he ended up
having some of the highest-scoring
rounds of the day. William was flying an
airplane of his own design, which was
fast and durable. He had been running
electrics, but the speed controllers kept
burning up.
William decided to put some gas
engines together and still had a good
contest. Jason Yoder came in second,
with Chris Gunter in third place.
118 MODEL AVIATION
Later in the day, we began Scale
2548 Combat. Since Eric and Brian
Gilkey could not make it (or were too
scared to fly against us), we only had
four pilots for Scale. We had planned to
fly eight rounds but only flew three
Saturday and another three on Sunday.
Keith and I could not avoid hitting
each other, and had one of the hardest
hits of the meet with an engine-onengine
hit. As for Bob Loscher, all I
remember is hearing, “There goes Bob
again,” when he would fly his aircraft
right onto the ground.
The final event of the weekend was
Limited B. In the past few years, this
has become popular because it slows
down the airplanes but still allows the
aircraft to reach higher speeds than SSC.
I had some problems with my
Limited B airplanes. However, after
thinking I was going to be out of the
event, I decided to fly my SSC
airplanes. Even with the engine size
difference I was able to perform better
than with my Limited B airplanes.
William Drumm, once again, won the
event by scoring 1,500 points more than
second-place finisher Donald Veres.
Kelly Bryant took third place.
It was once again a great event and
it’s a good example of how to run a
contest. MA
Sources:
O.S. Engines
(217) 398-8970
www.osengines.com
Magnum Engines/Global Hobby
(714) 963-0329
http://magnum.globalhobby.com
Lima Area Radio Kontrol Society
http://larksclub.homestead.com
Radio Control Combat