flytilbroke Posted March 2, 2012 Share Posted March 2, 2012 I have mentioned before that the condensate drips in the fuel container are alcohol, which others have also stated. The alcohol evaporates much more readily than water and is a clear substance. Any colour you see in new fuel is in the additives, either the oil and its constituents, or deliberate colour added by the manufacturer. The amount of water in a litre of air is not likely to be very much, so water content in "our" fuel tends to be much exagerated and never proven. Much like the Flat Earhers claims used to be. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Beeney Posted March 2, 2012 Share Posted March 2, 2012 Bob, I’d certainly go along with the aged fuel experience, I too was given half a gallon of fuel so old the owner couldn’t remember when he bought it. The label had also become discoloured and faded but it ran in an engine ok. Re. the water/methanol fuel, was this a mixture to go in the carburettor, or separate injection, assuming a piston type engine? Myron, I never owned a Gold Star, but one of the older lads did, circa 1953-54. There was one version with a high first gear, so lots of clutch slipping as I remember. All in all, I suspect they were not that easy to ride; and although me and my friend used to go to many motor cycle race meetings, by pedal cycle then, not old enough for a license, I never really did get to like the smell of Castrol R! I can remember seeing John Surtees when he was starting his racing career, on a Zundapp I believe. Then quickly onto a Norton, and then to the mighty MV Augusta. I’m not sure about the volumetric efficiency though, I thought that was the ratio of the cylinder at BDC to TDC? In other words, the compression ratio. But I will merrily go along with the narrow rev band you speak of, it very nicely illustrates the point I was trying to make recently in another thread. The torque curve might be relatively flatter for a performance engine, as opposed to the cooking variety, it’s only out and out performance we’re after here, but the maximum BHP will only be at one point, and that still may not be at the engine’s maximum speed. And like ftb, I will also ignore any ‘water in the fuel’ stories, along with a few other aeromodelling myths, certainly I’ve never experienced any problems, so it’s unlikely to start now. PB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Myron Beaumont Posted March 2, 2012 Share Posted March 2, 2012 Peter Slightly off thread I know but my Gold Star was a BB32 & you're dead right about the narrow power band .I had to slip the clutch til 30 mph in first gear .Great fun at the time plus the sound of the "twittering" ramp cam /exhaust combination .Ahh Nostalgia keeps creeping in doesn't it ? In those days it was all Mills 75's &1.3's.ED comp specials etc . I'll get mi coat after I've put my batteries on & off charge regime for tomorrow .Bet the weather turns ! I have a couple of photos of said Goldstar (black & white of course) chrome plated & enamelled at RR . Is there a way of putting them on the forum ? Getting back to the thread title ,lots of us tried water injection of sorts .There was a noticeable boost at certain revs and atmospheric conditions but not worth using on a normal drive to the nearest coffee bar in north Derbyshire (Matlock)from Nottingham most sundays Edited By Myron Beaumont on 02/03/2012 21:11:23 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martin Harris - Moderator Posted March 2, 2012 Share Posted March 2, 2012 Posted by Peter Beeney on 02/03/2012 14:05:35: I’ve always been extremely fussy about dirt in my fuel, after my mistakes when I first started with model engines, so my test is a clean dry two litre lemonade bottle, about a third full of any suspect fuel. Hold it up to the light on it’s side and after a while you can see the smallest of foreign particles, if there are any in there, of course. I’ve done this many times and I’ve never seen any white flaky calcium deposits. It’s certainly sorted out some fellow modellers engine problems, though! I suspect you've hit the nail pretty squarely on the head here, Peter. Watching the way some people handle their fuel, leaving the lids off for the duration od a flying session, letting the end of the pump tubing lie in the grass before dunking it into the fuel, lack of filters etc. etc. it's not a total surprise that a new gallon of fuel can cause a (usually temporary) cure to their engine ills. I've used old fuel (5 or 6 years old) from a half used bottle with no apparent effects. I'm sure that the WOO has 100 times the practical experience of most of us and gives us the benefits of them but I do agree that some of his explanations can be a little empirical and he's uncorked the genie a bit with his defence of his interpretation of Newton's theories. I've been subjected to accelleration inside commercial airliners on many occasions but once at cruising speed everything appears to have settled to a normal state of equilibrium once a ground speed of 500 mph or so has been reached. According to WOO's interpretation, I should rapidly be pinned to the rear bulkhead with an assortment of glamorous flight attendants if I dared unbuckle my seatbelt to relieve myself during flight - perhaps it's a pity that some theories don't work! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Myron Beaumont Posted March 2, 2012 Share Posted March 2, 2012 Clunk Click? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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