JT

All sorted - removed plug, used a heat gun directed at plug hole with piston at the bottom of its cycle.  Fired up and ran pretty well, although the longer than standard tubing for the remote needle has meant taking longer to tune.

I have recently bought an SC36.  This is my third and smallest SC engine, the other two are great and have given me no problems whatsoever.  Problem now is that the new engine is tighter at TDC than you might expect and I'm struggling to get my starter to turn it over to start - maybe goes through one or two revolutions but then stops.  If remove the plug is will spill alright, so I think all's reasonably OK, just the addition of compression is combining with the tight fit to cause the problem.  Also I've had to extend the tube for the remote needle - should this cause any trouble?  Hard to tell when it won't start at all!  Does anyone have some serious suggestions on this??

Al,  I like your idea a lot - never thought of opening one of those up, but shoud work well.  Thanks - J  Also interested if anyone else has sourced a wheelchair battery for this purpose.

I prefer to use an electric starter and so purchased this along with a basic field battery from my local model shop. As I have progressed and gone on to higher compression engines the starter has begun to struggle.  I initially blamed the starter until I borrowed a field battery from someone which made the world of difference.   They say it's a battery from one of those granny scooters you see terrying the town folk and that it cost around £25.  So far I haven't been able to find anything for less that £60 that appears to come close.  Does anyone use something similar and if so where did you get it from?

That's the way theey are - mine's the same.  Does anyone need more accuracy than the nearest 10 rpm?

I believe you just add a zero to the end.

Anyone looking for an air compressor suitable for the workshop?   Aldi, are selling a compressor, with hoses and accessories, including an airbrush kit for £69.99.  Additonal accessories start from £9.99 including impact wrenches at £14.99 so helpful for any work you need to do on the car too.  I bought one yesterday and I'm pretty impressed so far.

At last year's Wings and Wheels there was a group flying something called a Voodoo, a picture of which is in the latest BMFA magazine.  Reminded by this I tried to find more information on the web, but only drew blanks....  Does anyone have any details on these planes, setup and potential suppliers?

Soaring sounds great, but given that I'm berried in the flatlands of Suffolk and our site is surrounded by trees so turbulence is unavoidable.....  I like to hear from anyone who flys in similar conditions.

Given the season's typically windy conditions......  What do you tend to fly (if at all) on windier days?  I'm not talking gale force winds or extreme gusts - just those days when the wind is up but it's otherwise nice outside.

Timbo - you say:  "Therefore get an ESC that will handle 25A as minimum, better still, get a 35 or even 40A one, then, when you eventually see the light and get a proper motor , you will have bags of room to spare, and the cost will be only slightly more than a 25A anyway. " and then: "Incidentally, I am pretty certain that brushless speed controllers are actually now cheaper than brushed ones ( you do know you cant mix them dont you ? )" Is this a contradiction or am I missing something?

Is this really such a great deal?? £75 once you've paid for delivery!  Our local model shop will bundle a Seagull Boomerang and SC46 for £80.  Ok it's a bigger model (61" wingspan), but it's so much better than the Arising Star which the Jumper seems to be based on.  I started with this combo earlier this year and it was great, extrememly capable and in the instructors hands I've seen it fly more aerobatics than you might think it could - all aided by the semi-symetrical wing design.  A cheap model, but pretty good quality.

Any info on the CoG would be great!!

Thanks - off to the local shop for a new SC91 asap.

Reuben,  With the SC91 up front, do you stick with the recommended CoG?