Office of Steam Forum for Model & Toy Steam Gas & Hot Air Engines

I’m just a broke a.. redneck, used to having no warranty or seller backing on anything I buy, so I run toward self help as a first, second, and umpteenth resort  it irritates me to read an offer for sale, pick apart the terms, find lots to like, and pull the trigger sight unseen, knowing full well presale means I’m financing their adventure along with the 44 others who did so, only to get screwed on a rejiggered deal.  When a seller intentionally  misleads, they’re done. When they try to reason their way out of their own words, they’re all done.  I used to sell cars, worked my way to sales manager. I preached constantly, if you promise floor mats, give ‘em the damned mats. I can’t tell you how many customers were alienated over stupid stuff, while I was spending ten grand a month of the store’s money on radio ads to get customers.  It’s penny wise, pound foolish.  This company could have taken the bath on the initial run, flat out lost money, but bent over backward to make fifty perfect units, made fifty presale customers, (super fans?) happy, and sold 500 units off the happy videos.  They’re being nickel and dime foolish.

How far out are you turning the needle to try it on gas? The silly instructions say two turns, but I don’t necessarily believe it.  That it ran on glow fuel at all is a clue that it’s a pretty rich carb. From rc I can say alcohol engines gobble fuel compared to the same engine on gas. If it were me (and soon will be), I’d insure you’ve got spark at all, set the ignition advance dead straight up (it essentially mirrors piston position), set the needle to the two turns they prescribe, or less if your experience with glow fuel tells you it’s a rich running carb needing less, and go from there.  I note most have set them up with the fuel tank elevated so it’s siphoning, the carb slightly below tank pickup level, so I’d go with that until you get it running, then experiment and see how much suckage you’re working with, har!  I wouldn’t mess with point gap. Generally, small adjustments on needle valve, and timing anywhere from TDC to a tiny hair after and I wouldn’t mess with the timing until I got it to run, however ragged. Put a volt meter across your battery, where it feeds the ignition, and make plenty sure it’s happy.
I’ve got a mental image of one home brew whippet being spun like the dickens with an rc starter as the needle valve is twisted a ways before it pops.  I’m sure you’ve seen that one. Two guys plus a cameraman spinning it up.  It ran great once they got it lit, but would’ve been a long day with a rope getting it dialed.

As to my little transmixer, I’m reworking lots of build ideas these days to account for my legally blind eyes.  An organic shape rather than straight lines is less likely to seem crooked, lol.