Roger Dyke

Thanks for all your valued replies. The engine is run in and runs very well. I just don't want to ruin it by operating it with the wrong mix. Roger

Manish, Have you any idea where would I obtain a small amount of suitable castor oil to add to the mix?

Don, The fuel is reasonably fresh (this year). In 1973 (approx.) I purchased the engine but it only did a couple of 5 minute flights.The two years represents the time it took me to learn to fly in 1994, plus about 12 months afterwards. It's not been used since until about two weeks ago when I re-joined a club. It's now had 4 flights in the last couple of weeks or so. Roger Edited By Roger Dyke on 27/10/2018 19:29:14

The engine in question is an Enya 15-III of about 1973 vintage when I purchased it new. It's in good condition and has had about 2 years in total run time. The reason for the request comes from the original instructions which states 20% castor oil. I understand that the engine has a steel piston and liner which is not the same as the more modern engines. I know that models do get very gluey with this amount of oil. I just want to be fair to the engine. Roger

Hi All, I have about 4 litres of fuel which consists of:- 9% synthetic oil 6% castor oil 5% nitro 80% methanol I wish to increase the total oil content from 15% to 20% What sort of oil can I add to the mix to increase the oil content? Roger

Thanks John. I was amazed just how much work was needed to bring it back into flying condition.

Hi onetenor, That's a good tip. Thanks for that. Model now covered.

Yes indeed. It's an Enya 15-III. I purchased it about the same time as the kit in the early 70's. The engine has been completely stripped, cleaned and reassembled. It ran very well indeed on my test stand so hopefully it will be okay.

Hi All, Just an update. My Mercury Galahad repaired/refurbed and final covered. Aerial still to be fixed to the fin. Thanks to you all for your tips. Now for the interesting bit...…. Roger

Good advice. Thanks John.

Hi All, Managed to get some Solarfilm in the colours of my choice. I think it was the last of the stock. The instructions from Solarfilm say to cover the fuselage (box type) top and bottom first, followed by the sides last. What is the reason for this? I would have thought bottom first, then sides, and top last. What do you think? Roger Edited By Roger Dyke on 09/09/2018 21:05:28

Hi Peter, It certainly looks good. Is that the solid colour film on the wings and fin, or the transparent? Roger

Hi Nigel, Thanks for that. Perhaps Solarfilm was a bit thinner making it a bit more pliable. Just a guess. Roger

Hi John, Many thanks, I'll have a look and may be the way to go. As you say "at the price.....". Roger

Hi David, It's a 45 year old 'Galahad'. I need a solid colour as there is a lot of paint residue from the adhesive left behind from the old Solarfilm on the wood. I have removed as much as is possible but still need a very solid colour to prevent it showing through. Great video of the Junior 60 though. What a beautiful model. Roger

Hi Peter, Thanks for the info. Roger

Dwain: Great looking aircraft. So expertly covered too. Love it. Dave: A tick in the box for oracover (or profilm). Many thanks. John: Thanks for your reply. Martin: Thanks for the info. Supertigrefan: I have tried acetone etc., but doesn't touch it. Probably because it's been on for 45 years. It seems to be soaked into the wood. Might look at Solarspan. David: Amongst others, I am looking at HK film but I am unsure as to whether it will cover show the old paint patches. Roger Edited By Roger Dyke on 24/08/2018 09:07:46

Hi Peter, Thanks for the info. Roger

Hi RC Plane Flyer, John, and Dwain, Many thanks for your replies. The model I want it for is an old model recently stripped of it's old Solarfilm covering. Because of this there is lots of left behind coloured paint out of the adhesive on the wings and fuselage. I have removed what I can but the new covering has got to be solid enough for it not to show through. The two left behind colours are orange (fuselage) and sky blue (wings). I was thinking red to cover the orange and medium blue to cover the sky blue. Will the HK film do this? Roger Edited By Roger Dyke on 23/08/2018 20:59:07

Hi RC Plane Flyer, On the 5th February the Solarfilm company issued a statement saying that they would be ceasing production and would not be supplying wholesalers after 12th February. They then went on to thank all their loyal customers of the past etc., etc. I know that they may have their own depleting stock and that many of the retail outlets still have stocks but that's about it. With this in mind, I would rather at this point change to another make, hence the question. I will have a look at the Hobby King film as suggested. Many thanks. Roger

Hi All, Returning to model building and flying after many years I read that the Solarfilm company has ceased manufacture earlier this year. I always used Solarfilm in the past so am now looking for an alternative. What would be the closest replacement please? I was thinking of Monokote. What do you think? Roger

Hi Alex, Just one more before you go. I'm a newbie on here and as a retired electronics engineer was very interested in your thread. For what it's worth I too would have your problem down the bad servo. As the motor starts to seize it will start to take a lot more current and as it seizes will be like a short across the battery. If there are any connections slightly loose, dirty, or slightly oxidised even, in the power circuit there will be an increasing voltage drop across that connection. This would lead to a reducing voltage being supplied to the receiver. So much so that at some point the receiver would fail to operate. At that point it may be unpredictable as to what the other servos would do. This also ties in with the time period between switch-on and flying too as the servo would take the same time to heat up from switch-on to hot and seizing. I think your kit is propbably perfectly okay (no guarantees though). Just my thoughts. Roger Edited By Roger Dyke on 23/08/2018 14:47:18

Hi Onetenor, Thanks for your reply. I do intend to stick with my 35MHz kit initially but as it's very, very old, and it did see a lot of service, I don't know how reliable it will be. I'm sorry for getting technical, but as a retired electronics engineer I know that certain electronic components age with time (especially electrolytic capacitors). This aging process can severely impair the operation of equipment. I'll see how it goes. It's a one step at a time thing at the moment. Roger