Rat Clanger!

Some real props are due to my dear friend Jeff out in northern Georgia.

Jeff is not a hobbyist, but he enjoys the work and the blogs I do here and elsewhere and he coined an interesting new synonym for an R/C model plane.

"Clanger." After all, do model planes not crash - or clang - on occasion?

Therefore, it's my pleasure to update my blog with a progress report on the newly christened Rat Clanger.

The engine was a wee bit gummy, although some WD-40 and a bit of exercise with an electric starter loosened it up. The glow plug was good, compression nice and high and the carburetor worked freely.

The engine is an O.S. Max 28F two-stroke from the 1980s. Most of the patina is likely from sitting rather than use and it looks perfect on this model. I've had it for about four years and heaven only knows when it had last run. Today would be the day that I would connect the fuel tank and throttle rod from my test stand, set the carb and give 'er a go.

That little O.S. fired up with a small blip of the starter and idled beautifully! It even ran up to full throttle perfectly. Here was an engine which was at least thirty years old returning to life as if nothing had happened. That's a real testament to the quality of O.S. engines and now I feel confident to proceed!