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General Nitro Engine Question

General Nitro Engine Question

Old 12-15-2008, 06:49 PM
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Default General Nitro Engine Question

OK, I know that this is going to sound silly to the experienced nitro folks here. I'm just returning to the RC hobby after a bunch of years, and am totally new to nitro. What I'm wanting to know is what are engine 'Ports' on a nitro engine? I see people talking about engines with 3 ports, 4 ports.....7 ports. What exactly are these ports, and are more better?

Thanks

Kris
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Old 12-15-2008, 07:12 PM
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"Ports" are the holes that are open in the nickel coated sleeve inside your engine. This is the sleeve that the piston slides up and down inside. More ports doesn't mean better, in fact one of the best motors out right now is a 3 port. Motors can have up to 9-11 ports for on-road.
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Old 12-15-2008, 07:20 PM
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Originally Posted by CaptCrunch
OK, I know that this is going to sound silly to the experienced nitro folks here. I'm just returning to the RC hobby after a bunch of years, and am totally new to nitro. What I'm wanting to know is what are engine 'Ports' on a nitro engine? I see people talking about engines with 3 ports, 4 ports.....7 ports. What exactly are these ports, and are more better?

Thanks

Kris
CC, it's very simple, the ports your are refering to are simply the number of hole's that are machined into the sleeve from the factory, there are 3, 4 5 6 and 7 ports, these are the most common in offroad, 8 and 9+ ports are most commenly found in onraod motors due to the higher RPM range that class demands.

What do ports do, well the general theiory is the lower port count engines produce more bottom end=tourque and a little less high RPM=topend.

5 port engines and 3 port engines seem to be the most common and most used motors due to the fact that they both put out very good power from low RPM to high RPM, the powerband will differ from one to the next, but will still produce similar power, just having a different begining and end.

5 and 7 port engines are able to produce smooth linier powerbands which are prefered by alot of people, the hit on bottom is so brutal, and makes the car easy to drive=easy to apply alot of throttle exiting corners with out looping out the car or blowing off tires.

There are many very good engines on the market, most brands seem to have there own way of tunning=one brand may tune different than another brand, and things like temps, pipes, plugs all change the way these engines run and opperate. There is alot of helpfull people and info on here so just look around and you will find what your looking for on just about every solid engine on the market, along with alot of opinions, so in the end, find what sounds good to you and just try it, if i can help with anything else, let me know.
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Old 12-15-2008, 08:19 PM
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Great! Thanks guys, that makes alot of sense now that you explained it.

Next question: What do you folks recommend for a beginner engine? I'm not planning on bashing, and I've picked up some reasonably good quality used rollers to learn with (Jammin X1 CR, Jammin X1 CRT and an Inferno MP-7.5). I figure it would be better for me to mangle a $150 used vehicle while I'm trying to learn than a $500+ new kit. I gather most people run .21's in the buggies and .28's in the truggies?

Thanks,

Kris
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Old 12-15-2008, 09:20 PM
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.21's are the enginge of choice. think of this as v4, v6, v8. the 21's are v'6's I know you may think well why not get .28 well the truth is. The 21's are race legal anywhere and will whip any 28 you can buy. 28's are to torquy even for some truggys. They don't produce near the top end of a .21

A good beginner motor would be a RB S5 thats a 5 port. It's a good all around engine thats easy to tune and long lasting. It will perform well in a buggy or a truggy. They are about $229 run the 2045 pipe with it you want be dissapointed. i also would recommend GO Techs they are good engines. You get alot of bang for the buck. A GO 7port is only $209 and its a very fast engine. Some will say they are a little more difficult to tune. I would tell you that it's not the engine it's the person trying to tune the engine. I said those engines because they are both relatively cheap and cheap is good when your a rookie. A rookie should not buy a $300 engine to learn heck. You don't need a $3-400 engine anyway's to be highly competive even if your a vet. Spend your money wisely buy quality tires which is the 1st point of setup and racing.
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Old 12-15-2008, 09:38 PM
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+1 for the rb s5. I run one in my buggy and it is an awesome engine. Has plenty of power for me and I have run some of the most powerful .21's out. I would definately stick with a .21 in buggy and truggy. I would also suggest looking at the novarossi limited edition 3 port. This engine would be perfect for a buggy and mabey even a truggy. The RB S5 would also be good in either buggy or truggy. There is also the RB S3 which is the 3 port version of the S5. The S5 normally sells for around $230 and the S3 $185. The novarossi limited edition is $150 I would seriously consider the nova. You cant beat it for that price. I actually almost bought one for my buggy for indoor racing this winter but decided to stick with my trusty S5.
Here are some links

Nova limited
http://www.amainhobbies.com/product_...ducts_id/31073
S5
http://www.amainhobbies.com/product_...ducts_id/23021
S3
http://www.amainhobbies.com/product_...ducts_id/23736

Also if you are willing to spend a little more I would reccomend the novarossi plus 21-5k. This is one of the smoothest, most powerful, longest lasting engines I have ever owned. It can be had right now for $270 which is incredible as it normally sells for $335. You can also find them new on ebay for $260 and i believe free shipping.

Here is the plus 21-5k
http://www.amainhobbies.com/product_...oducts_id/4864
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Old 12-15-2008, 10:01 PM
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Thanks for the info guys, this is exactly the kind of data I need. I won't be buying an expensive engine for quite a while anyway. Heck, not only do I need to relarn how to drive, but I have to learn from SCRATCH how to tune. I'm a total VIRGIN when it comes to nitro. I'd just as likely destroy an expensive engine before I figure out how to tune it properly. Plus, I won't have the driving skills to take advantage of a high performance engine for a while anyway. I figure that at first, the wheels will be facing up as much time as the body is. I'd look for decent USED engines to start, but I don't have the experience to determine which would be a good buy, and which would just be best to let die.

That's the advantage of restarting a hobby when you're older. I don't expect to be winning A mains in 2 weeks like I would have expected 20 years ago. LOL, the testosterone and ego are totally under control now. Now I just want to ease into it and learn properly before I buy any pro level equipment.

Thanks again for the advice, and expect to see further silly questions from me as they seep out of my brain!

Kris
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Old 12-15-2008, 10:14 PM
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Originally Posted by CaptCrunch
Thanks for the info guys, this is exactly the kind of data I need. I won't be buying an expensive engine for quite a while anyway. Heck, not only do I need to relarn how to drive, but I have to learn from SCRATCH how to tune. I'm a total VIRGIN when it comes to nitro. I'd just as likely destroy an expensive engine before I figure out how to tune it properly. Plus, I won't have the driving skills to take advantage of a high performance engine for a while anyway. I figure that at first, the wheels will be facing up as much time as the body is. I'd look for decent USED engines to start, but I don't have the experience to determine which would be a good buy, and which would just be best to let die.

That's the advantage of restarting a hobby when you're older. I don't expect to be winning A mains in 2 weeks like I would have expected 20 years ago. LOL, the testosterone and ego are totally under control now. Now I just want to ease into it and learn properly before I buy any pro level equipment.

Thanks again for the advice, and expect to see further silly questions from me as they seep out of my brain!

Kris
Kris, if you need any help with motor stuff feel free to give us a shout, not trying to sell ya a motor, but if you need any help, just give us a call I would be happy to supply you with info you may be looking for on a particular engine to get you going. Good luck bud.
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Old 12-15-2008, 10:39 PM
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Thanks Brian I appreciate that.
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Old 12-16-2008, 05:47 AM
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Kris,

I think you're headed in the right direction. Get used to running your first engine with confidance and practice driving. Then, later when you think you need more speed, hook up with someone who knows engine tuning (I'm not talking porting & milling) but knows pipe set-up, plugs, fuel & needle settings. I think a lot of drivers are leaving untapped potential behind in their old engines. I've got an OLD O.S. .18 that would positively STOMP many .21s being run out there. This isn't because this old engine is a superior engine, it's because I've taken the time to find the engine's full potential.

chunk
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