Nitro RC car

Get Rev'd Up With a Nitro RC Car Today
(All links open new windows)

How To Get Started With a Nitro RC Car Even if You Are a Total Beginner!
By Joel Mangilit
Note - this is a very long and very informative article folks!
About the Author:

Hello Friend,
My name is Joel Mangilit and I have loved
nitro RC cars

since I was 7 years old. Starting out with toy models, my parents eventually bought me my first hobby quality RC car in 1981. It was a Tamiya Ford Ranger XLT electric powered RC car. My first electric RC car was so much fun, that my collection started to grow Tamiya Wild Willy 1, Tamiya
HotShot I, Team Associated RC10, Bolink 10, Tamiya Lamborghini Tamtech,
and Tamiya Ferrari Testarrosa Tamtech.

Although I was enjoying electric RC cars, it was during the early
90s when I read about gas powered RC cars. I became
fascinated and excited at the though of owning gas powered RC cars
because of the realism and speed of the 2-stroke engine. I wanted to
buy one. So I looked at a lot of models, compared prices, and
eventually bought a 1/10 scale Kyosho Rampage. It was an off-road buggy
similar to my RC10, except that it had a .12 size 2-stroke engine.

Being new to gas RC cars, I made a lot of mistakes, especially when it
came to tuning the 2-stroke engine. I encountered
various problems. There where days when the engine simply refused to
start. And when it did start, the car ran very slowly, sputtered, and
stopped. It was frustrating at times, but when the car ran properly, I
had a lot of fun. And as I gained more experience, I no longer had
problems with the 2-stroke engine. I bought two more gas powered RC
cars. One was an OFNA Touring Car (1997), and the last was a NEO
Touring Car (1999). It was the NEO Touring Car which I used to luckily
win two major RC racing events in the Philippines: the 1999 Neo Gas
Touring Championships, and the 1999 Futaba Open Gas Car
Championship.

Today, 25 years later since my first RC car, I still enjoy and have
fun, especially with my gas powered RC touring cars. I wrote this eBook
Secrets of Nitro RC Cars to help you have a
trouble free experience, and have lots of fun with nitro RC cars. Enjoy!

Joel Mangilit

{~~~~~~ O ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ O ~~~~}

Equipment for Nitro RC Cars
Nitro RC cars are actually simpler and require less equipment than electric RC cars. All you need to buy are the following:
1. Car
2. 2-stroke engine
3. Radio control system
4. Glow plug igniter
5. Glow plug (included in the engine)
6. Fuel
7. Fuel bottle
8. AA-size batteries
The best part is companies are now selling ready-to-run (rtr) gas RC
cars that come complete with all the equipment mentioned above. Simply
open the box, put fuel, start the engine, and enjoy playing!

Cars
There are many types of gas powered RC cars to choose from. You can
start out with the fast 1/10th scale gas cars, and as you gain
experience, move on to the even faster 1/8th scale category. 1/10th
scale nitro RC cars are usually powered by .12 size engines that have
around to 1 horsepower. Normal speeds are in the range of
30 mph, but some are capable of
speeds in excess of 50 mph.

1/10th scale Neo Nitro Touring Car
.21 size engines that have 2 to 3 horsepower power 1/8th scale gas
cars. Twice the power of 1/10th scale, these cars are capable of racing
speeds in excess of 70 mph! Definitely not for beginners.

2-Stroke Engine
A nitro RC car uses a 2-stroke engine. This use specially blended fuel,
and will not run on regular gasoline. There are two major sizes. There
is the .12 size engine commonly used in 1/10th scale, and the bigger
and more powerful .21 size engine commonly used in 1/8th scale.

O.S. CV 2-stroke engine
Engine Parts:
1. Air filter
2. Gears
3. Flywheel
4. Carburetor idle adjustment screw
5. Carburetor low-end adjustment screw
6. Heatsink
7. Pull-start mechanism

Air filter - the air filter on a nitro RC cars is used to prevent dirt from entering and
damaging the engine. For maximum power, it is important to clean,
lubricate, and replace the air filter on a regular basis.

Gears - gears are connected to the engine via a clutch system. The
gears are used to transfer power from the engine to the transmission of nitro RC car.

Flywheel - Used in a bump start system and houses the clutch system.

Carburetor Idle adjustment screw - Rotating the screw clockwise or counter-clockwise increases or decreases the idling
speed of the engine.

Carburetor Low-end adjustment screw - Rotating the screw clockwise or
counter-clockwise makes the low-end mixture leaner or richer.

Heatsink - These nitro RC cars engines are air-cooled. The heatsink is designed with fins to make the engine run cooler.

Pull-start mechanism - Used to start the engine, similar to a lawn mower.

Glow Plug - Similar in function to a spark plug.

Radio Control System
In hobby quality nitro RC cars the radio control system is fully
proportional. This means that the speed of the car can be finely
controlled. You can go at 0% to 100% full speed, and any speed in
between, just like a real car. The same goes for steering the car. You
can turn left gently, or turn left aggressively. You can turn right
gently, or turn right aggressively.

Radio control parts that are installed inside a nitro RC car:
1. Receiver
2. Fail safe
3. Servo for carburetor and brakes
4. Servo for steering
5. Receiver batteries
6. On/off switch

Transmitter - The transmitter is what you hold in your hand. Your left
hand is usually used to squeeze the trigger,
which controls the speed of the car. The more you squeeze, the faster
the car will go. If you want to stop or brake, push the trigger towards
the opposite direction. Your right hand controls the
steering wheel on the transmitter. This controls
the
direction of the car, whether to turn left, right, or just go straight.
The stick type used two sticks. The left stick is
used to control the speed of the car, and the right stick is used to
steer the car. The pistol type uses a trigger and
a steering wheel. The trigger is used to control the speed of the car,
the wheel to steer the nitro RC cars. The transmitter needs a 12-volt
supply to run, usually via eight AA sized batteries.

Receiver - The receiver is a small rectangular device mounted on the nitro RC car. It has a wire (usually 19) that acts as an
antenna to receive signals from the transmitter. Gas RC cars need a
2-channel radio control system. 2-channel means that there are 2 servos
connected to the receiver. The receiver needs a 6-volt supply to run,
usually via four AA sized
batteries.

Tips:
Never, ever, cut the antenna wire. I know the wire is long but still, resist the temptation to cut it.
To avoid radio glitches, keep the receiver and antenna as far away as possible from the 2-stroke engine.

Servos - The servos are small mechanical motors with decide the speed
and direction the car will travel. Nitro RC cars have two servos, one
connected to the carburetor, another to the steering mechanism. The
servo connected to the carburetor
controls the speed of the car. It also controls the braking mechanism. The second servo is connected to the
steering mechanism, controlling the direction of the cars front wheels.

Frequency Crystals - The transmitter sends signals to the receiver on a
specific frequency. Removable frequency crystals, located at both the
transmitter and receiver, determine this frequency.

Tip:
Be careful, the crystal with an Rx label is used for the receiver, and
the Tx label for the transmitter. The purpose of these frequency
crystals is to ensure that signals from the nitro RC cars do not interfere with
signals for another car. For example, if you are using a frequency of
27.255, make sure no one nearby is using the same frequency. Operating
two cars next to each other using the same frequency will cause loss of
control and cause the cars to crash. Make sure that the people you play
with are on a different frequency than what you are using.

Fail-Safe Unit - The fail-safe unit is inserted between the receiver
and a servo, usually the servo that controls the carburetor and brakes.
Its purpose is to set the servo in a pre-set position should the
receiver get signal interference. In other words, the fail safe will
help prevent your gas car from going out of control should the receiver
get interference (e.g. another person playing with the same frequency).
Or, if the transmitter batteries become weak, the fail-safe unit will
activate and the servo will go to a pre-set position. What is a good
pre-set position? In nitro RC cars, the servo should be pre-set to a
braking position.

Is it 100% fool proof? No. If the receiver batteries become weak, the
fail-safe will not set the servo in the pre-set position. High-end
radio control systems usually have a fail-safe unit integrated into the
design of the transmitter and receiver. However, entry-level radio
control systems do not have a fail-safe unit. Good news is that
fail-safe units are cheap, and I recommend you buy one.

Glow Plug Igniter - 2-stroke engines have a glow plug. The glow plug is
the one that creates a spark inside the engine, which ignites the
fuel/air mixture in the cylinder, causing the crankshaft to rotate. In
short, the glow plug is similar to the spark plug on a real engine. To
start a 2-stroke engine, 1.5 volts must be applied to the glow plug.
This will heat up
the coil, which will then ignite the fuel/air mixture. Once the engine
is running, the 1.5 volt supply is removed from the glow plug. The glow
plug igniter is the device that provides the 1.5-volt supply to the
glow plug. It can be as simple as a sub-C battery with alligator clips,
or can be a purpose made device powered by 1.5-volts.

Glow Plug - 2-stroke engines have a glow plug. The purpose it to ignite
the fuel/air mixture inside the cylinder, similar to spark plugs. When
starting a nitro RC cars engine, the glow plug igniter provides 1.5
volts to heat up the glow plugs filament. Once the engine
has started, the glow plug igniter can be removed.

Tips:
A good glow plug will have a filament that heats up to a bright orange/yellow/red color.
Not all glow plugs are the same. Use only glow plugs specified in your engines manual.

Fuel - The fuel used for nitro RC cars are special type fuels which you
can buy at your local hobby shop. Be careful, fuel used by nitro RC
cars is different from gasoline and fuels for model airplane. Make sure
you buy fuel made specifically for RC cars. The fuel is made of methyl
alcohol, nitro methane (i.e. nitro), and lubricants. The percentages
used are normally guarded secrets, but in general it is 70% - 10% - 20%
respectively.

Fuel with higher percentages of nitro provides more power, and is also
more expensive. Beginners of nitro RC cars would do well with 10% nitro, while racers
would normally use fuel with 20% nitro. Some fuels are blue, others
pinkish. The color does not matter as long as it is fuel for nitro RC
cars. Be extra careful with gas RC car fuel. It is flammable and
poisonous. Avoid contact with eyes, do not drink, and store it in a
cool place. In case of eye contact, flush thoroughly with running
water. If swallowed, induce vomiting and call your physician. Keep out
of reach of children.

Fuel Bottle - The fuel bottle makes it easy to put fuel in the fuel
tank. They come with short and long nozzles, and what you buy depends
on the type of car you have. Some nitro RC cars have gas tanks that are hard to
reach, and require fuel bottles with long nozzles.

Fuel Tank System
The fuel delivery system of a RC nitro car:
1. Fuel tank
2. External fuel filter
3. Primer
4. Fuel line
5. Air pressure line

Fuel Tank - Fuel is stored in a fuel tank. Some fuel tanks have an
internal fuel filter while others do not. An external fuel filter
should be used with fuel tanks that do not have an internal fuel filter.

External Fuel Filter - To prevent debris from entering the engine, a
fuel filter is placed between the fuel tank and the carburetor. If the
tank has an internal fuel filter, there is no need to use an external
fuel filter.

Primer - To start an engine, it must have fuel in the carburetor. The
primer helps push fuel into the carburetor. This is done buy pushing
the primer up and down several times. You can actually see the fuel
inside the transparent fuel line move from the fuel tank to the
carburetor.

Fuel Line - This is a rubber tubing allowing fuel from the fuel tank to reach the carburetor.

Air Pressure Line - Rubber tubing coming from the tuned pipe going to
the top of the fuel tank. Exhaust air from the tuned pipe helps to
pressurize the fuel tank, helping fuel move from the fuel tank to the
carburetor.

Tip1:
To prevent confusion, try using different color tubing for the air
pressure line and the fuel line. For example, use orange for the air
pressure line and blue for the fuel line. This will help prevent
mistakes in connecting the line. For example, if you mix up the
connection, your car will not start.
Tip2:
I personally prefer a fuel tank with a primer because I can easily force fuel into the carburetor before starting the engine.
Some fuel tanks do not have a primer, and I find it takes a few pulls
on the pull-start to get fuel to even reach the carburetor.

Tuning 2-Stroke Engines

A finely tuned 2-stroke engine will provide power and reliability. That
means longer run times and parts, such as glow plug, piston, sleeve,
and rod will last longer. On the other hand, an out of tune 2-stroke
engine will run erratically. You might notice a loss of power and
decreased reliability. Glow plugs will burn out faster, and the piston
and sleeve will wear out quicker. A finely tuned 2-stroke nitro RC car engine is
therefore the most important item to achieve in order to have fun with
gas RC cars.

Starting the Engine - It is easy simply fill the fuel tank,
pump the tank so that a small amount of fuel is in the carburetor,
attach the glow plug igniter to the glow plug, then rotate the engine.
There are two ways to rotate the engine. The pull-start (ps) type of
engine has a pullstart mechanism built into the back of the engine.
Similar to a lawn mower engine, the
cord is pulled to rotate the engine. There are engines that do not have a pull-start mechanism. To rotate them, the flywheel
is bumped against a rotating rubber disk.

My Personal Experience

My first experience with a
2-stroke engine in my nitro RC car was not pleasant. First, the engine
refused to start. I kept pulling and pulling on the pull-start cord,
but the engine will not start. After several pulls, it became harder to
pull the cord because the engine was becoming flooded.

~Sidebar~: Pulling the cord of the pull start also causes fuel to enter the cylinder of the piston and sleeve.

If this fuel does not ignite, it will accumulate, causing the engine to
flood. Once this occurs, the only solution is to remove the glow plug,
and turn the engine upside down to drain the excess fuel. Then replace
the glow plug and try to start the nitro RC cars engine again.

What was the reason for the engine not to start? I found out that the
battery of the glow plug igniter was weak. So I replaced the battery
with a NEW battery. This has happened to me MANY times, as I assumed
that the battery I was using was freshly charged. However, the
rechargeable batteries lose their charge, so I suggest using alkaline
batteries for the glow plug igniter.

Another possible cause was that the glow plug was burnt out. This means
that the coil in the glow plug no longer produces enough heat to burn
the fuel/air mixture. So replace old glow plugs with NEW ones. Once I
fixed these items, the engine finally started. Everything seemed fine,
as puffs of blue smoke emitted from the exhaust pipe. Visible blue
smoke is desired. It is a rough indication that the engine is within
the correct setting.

~Sidebar:~ What is the correct setting? Well the engine must not run too lean or too rich.

Too lean means that there is too much air in the fuel/air mixture. This
will overheat the engine and cause MAJOR damage. Too rich means that
there is too much fuel in the fuel/air mixture. The means the engine
will run slowly or bog down. The reason is the engine is having
problems burning the excess fuel. A fine tuned engine is one that runs
in between the two extremes, not to lean, not too rich. But after a few
hours of fun, I noticed that the engine started to run hotter, and the
car ran slower. My assumption was that the engine was running lean, so
I adjusted the carburetor to a richer setting. It did not solve the
problem.

The problem was that the engine developed an air leak. That means
unwanted air was entering the cylinder, increasing the amount of air in
the fuel/air mixture. This caused the engine to run lean. The air leak
also occurred in the part between the cylinder and the exhaust chamber,
so adjusting the carburetor would not solve the problem. The only way
to solve the problem was to seal the air leak. So I removed the exhaust
chamber, applied sealant, and reassembled.
However, after a few minutes of running my nitro RC car , the engine
again started to overheat. The reason was that the
sealant I used was melting, causing the air leak
condition. I therefore replaced the sealant with a high-temperature
automotive sealant used to seal gaskets in a real engine. And this
finally solved the air leak problem.

So, to ensure a fine tuned engine, the fuel/air mixture must be
correct. The difficult part is that days are different, some days are
hot, and some days are cold. This means that a properly set carburetor
during hot conditions will be wrong for cold conditions. The goal is to
set the carburetor in a ballpark setting, then fine tune the setting on
the day you are running the engine.

Low-end High-end Settings - Some carburetors have single adjustment points to control the fuel/air mixture. Others
have two settings, one to control the low-end, another the high-end.
The low-end setting determines how fast your car will accelerate. The
high-end setting determines the top speed of the car. Both settings are
dependent on each other. Adjusting the low-end will also affect the
top-end, and vice versa.

Let me give you and example. Back in 1999, I was racing my gas touring
car. I already had years of experience with nitro RC cars, so I was
confident in my tuning skills. However, during my races, I noticed that
my car lacked top speed. So I kept on adjusting the top-end setting of
the carburetor. But no matter what I did, I could not get top end power
from the motor. Other gas RC cars were zooming past me in the long
straights. Eventually, I found out that my low-end setting was too
lean. So what I think happened was at high speeds, the engine ran too
lean, losing power. But I was adjusting the high-end setting, when I
should have been adjusting the low-end setting.

This happened to me in two major races. Fortunately, I still won despite my lack of engine tuning skills.

Troubleshooting - To begin, all 2-stroke engines are different. I
strongly advise you read and follow the manual that comes with the
engine. Assuming you have followed the manual, yet still have problems,
below are some common causes:

Problem 1: Engine Does Not Start
There are two main factors in making an engine start. First, the glow
plug must be working. This means that when 1.5 volt is applied, the
filament will burn a bright orange. A bad glow plug will not generate
enough heat to burn the fuel/air mixture in the cylinder. Second, the
engine cylinder must have the correct fuel/air mixture when cranking
the engine (via pull-start or bump start). If there is no fuel in the
cylinder, the glow plug has nothing to ignite. And if there is too much
fuel in the cylinder (i.e. flooding), even a new glow plug will not
have the energy to burn the excess fuel.

Problem 2: Engine Starts but Immediately Stops When the Glow Plug Igniter is Removed
Replace the glow plug. Another possible cause is the fuel/air mixture is too rich. Readjust the carburetor.

Problem 3: Engine Temperature is Too Hot (Lean)
A lean engine will cause a lot of damage. An engine will run lean if
there is too much air or not enough fuel in the fuel/air mixture. The
carburetor controls the fuel/air mixture. Adjust according to the
instruction manual that comes with your engine. If adjusting the
carburetor does not solve the problem, chances are the engine has
developed an air leak. That means air is entering the nitro RC car engine in places it is not supposed to, such as the section between the cylinder and the exhaust manifold. Another common source of an air leak is the section between the body of the engine and the pull-start mechanism or back plate. Solving the air leak is easy. Disassemble the affected sections, apply a high quality, high temperature automotive gasket sealant, and then reassemble the sections. Make sure to read the instructions on how to use the gasket sealant.

A dirty fuel filter will also cause a lean setting. The dirty fuel filter will prevent fuel from reaching the carburetor. Solution is to clean the fuel filter. Binding in the nitro RC car itself will also cause an engine to overheat. Check that there is no binding in the car by checking how freely the transmission and wheels rotate. It should be easy to push the car by hand, and the car should roll a few feet.

Problem 4: Engine is Too Rich
An engine that has too much fuel in the fuel/air mixture has a rich setting. A rich engine setting will also have the tendency to flood the engine, causing it to die. A rich engine will consume a lot of fuel and not generate enough power. The car will run slowly. The solution is to readjust the carburetor per the instruction manual. A weak glow plug may also cause an engine to run rich. This is because the glow plug is too weak to burn all the fuel. Unburned fuel will accumulate in the cylinder, causing the engine to run rich.

Frequently Asked Questions
What is the best nitro RC car or truck for beginners?
Technology wise, almost all RC cars today are durable. So if you ask me, I would buy a model that is popular with my friends and with an external look that appeals to me. Today, the craze seems to be 1/8th scale nitro monster trucks and nitro on-road touring cars.

What are the best brands?
Associated, HPI, Kyosho, Losi, Mugen, OFNA, Neo, Tamiya, Serpent, and Schumacher are among the top of my list.

What model to choose from?
Beginners would do well to start with 1/10th scale, preferably off-road. You can choose from touring cars (on-road), to off-road models such as buggy, trucks, and monster trucks. 1/8th scale nitro RC cars are the ultimate RC cars in the hobby. Definitely for the experienced racers and not recommended for beginners.

What accessories do I need to buy?
If you buy a ready-to-run (rtr), you only need to buy minor items such as fuel, maybe paint for the body, and AA batteries for the radio system. If you buy kit versions, you are just buying the nitro RC car. You will need to buy the radio system, fuel, paint, glow plug igniter, and AA batteries. You might even need to buy the 2-stroke engine. For beginners, save yourself the hassle and buy ready-to-run models.

Where to buy?
At your local hobby shop, or http://www.rccartips.com/rc-store.htm .
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Secrets of Nitro RC Cars, 2003 by www.rccartips.com Joel Mangilit

You may freely distribute this e-book to your friends and give it away for free on your web site. You may use sections of this book as long as you cite the source as www.rccartips.com

Spread the Word
I wrote this eBook to help beginners get into the exciting hobby of nitro rc cars, while helping them avoid the costly mistakes I have made along the way.

Feel free to email this eBook to all your friends. You may post this book on your website, and give it away for free (as long as you do not modify the contents.)

Many thanks Joel.

More Info
If you want to know more, visit my web site. It currently has over 70 pages and 100 images to help beginner with electric and nitro RC cars and trucks.

The web site URL is: http://www.rccartips.com

Feedback
Your feedback regarding this eBook and the web site is very much appreciated. I do listen to you. In fact, this eBook is already in its second revision based on early feedback I have gotten from readers. And I think this second revision is more informative than the first release.

Disclaimer
All care has been taken to make sure that information in this document is accurate and will help beginners get started in gas powered RC cars. Advice and information in this document is the personal opinion and experience of Joel Mangilit.

Joel Mangilit and www.rccartips.com is
not responsible for any damages that might occur from following the advice in this document.