HObbico was the same way to me . I posted up here loking for advice, and in like 2days i had a PM from Mr. O himself.

Yeah, Steves GREAT GUY.....cant say much for Hobbico lol.

Well
 

I love the power band on this engine, but the rear bearing started ratteling like crazy after a half gallon. I took it apart and the piston had scratches up and down it, and the bearing was notchy and it's a small bearing for an engine to say the least. everything else looked brand new. I don't really know what to do about it. I could put a new bearing in it, but the piston looks bad. I've never seen this happen on an engine before. It looks like a billet piston though, nice machine work.

Same exact thing happened to me. Rear bearing went. Wrist pin went and scored my insides. I put 1.3 gallons on it. It was dialed till I changed plug. Then it went down hill from there. I think the bearings are cheap and I just see them going. This isn't the first or second time. But I must say the engine makes power. Guess we will see what happens.
Hobbico is not part of STeve. I fLoes to ateve. Je had no issue fixing my mil. Hobbico gets it and wanted 80. After a huge discount. But roughly wanted me to pay it. I didn't even had the egnine 30 days. Didn't understand why.
Overall this engine seems fast n powerful. But seems it has flaws

from what I can tell the bearings are from NTN....only one of the largest and best bearing manufacturers in the world......but no matter what you have, if it has moving parts that work at the speed and heat ranges that our motors do. your bound to have a couple failures

engine trouble
 

well first off this motor has been incredible for the 2 gallons i have run it, it holds a tune perfect and never has flamed out on me once... motor makes awesome power, is linear and very usable throughout the powerband, has always run around 220 to 230 and after the intitial tune it changed very little until this past weekend....

okay now for my sudden issues with the motor, i was out on the track practicing and the motor started bogging real bad down low, i had not run it in about 3 weeks so i thought maybe it needed a plug or had a lean bog since the weather has changed some, that didnt correct it, then i ran it again and it started to creep up on temps (240s) so i thought maybe it was a shoe hanging, took it off the track and replaced them, no luck, now its flaming out, couldnt get it started, then when it finally ran it was pouring fuel out the pipe at idle and wouldnt clear out, noticed a sound from the motor almost like a bearing that wasnt oiled...

i am not a nitro expert but i believe that a bearing went out, i took the backplate off and there are wear marks all over the backplate and the back of the rod,once i pulled the flywheel off i noticed seepage from the front bearing and the crank can be moved up and down ever so slightly, maybe only a few thousandths but its enough that you can tell, i noticed there are scratches up and down the back of the piston visible through the exhaust port...

so that being said im stuck and dont know what to do with it, i didnt take it apart because i would like to send it back to be looked at, i dont believe i did anything wrong but am unsure as to why it would have this premature failure,like i said i only have two gallons in it and it has run perfect until this outing, so if you guys have any info as to why or how this happens please let me know, also is if in fact the bearing did go is it better to just buy a motor or send this back to be fixed? i dont want to be without a motor for long so if it is something i did i will buy another because it did run so good... thanks

Honestly
 

Get a Novarossi or other Italian engine. this engine is not durable. I've been racing for 20 years and the engine is disposable. Fast but not going to last....

Wow...nice advice there! Go get a 3-400 dollar engine for comparable power to our 200 dollar engine. I know plenty of people that have well over 5 gallons on the OD motor. I myself am at about 3 on both of mine. It is a very durable engine. Every brand has some failures, due to human and manufacturing errors. I've seen Nova's fail prematurely...I've seen O.S. motors fail.

Engine still one of the best values for your money

Interesting statement...somewhat vague and generalized, but interesting.

You've been racing for 20 years, but how many SS.21's have you personally put multiple gallons of fuel through, running in similar or exact conditions? Unless you've run as many OD's as Nova's, preferrably in a lab environment, your position on the subject isn't exactly based on sound test methodology.

There will be always arguments both for and against ANY brand / cost of motor. Longevity comes down to owner tuning ability, how much the motor is stressed at each run, component material selection, and manufacturing precision / consistency....pretty much in that order. Depending on who you speak to, you can find situations where a $150 Alpha outlasts a $400 Nova.

The fundamental design of the SS.21 is as sound as any of the "big name" motors on the market. The materials selected are top of the line, and are based on Steve's 30+ years in engine design. As with any mass produced product, there will be variations in manufacturing tolerances, or quality issues with purchased components (i.e. bearings). Those issues obviously will make the owner of the motor that fails early dissatisfied with his or her specific unit, but it does not mean that the entire population is either of poor quality, or inferior design. The original goal of the motor was to be a competitive, quality product, at a reasonable price point. That goal has indeed been met.

I work as a Product Testing / Reliability Engineer, and I experience folks on a regular basis who have a negative view of one of the products I'm responsible for, not because of any failure they had personally, but because of some failure "they heard about". It's unfortunate, but true.

Everytime something "new" is introduced, there's always a rash of early failures, it's called "infant mortality" (google reliability bathtub curve, or just click this LINK). This is completely independent of the brand, cost, or quality...it's just a nature of the statistics. Over time, as processes stabilize, quality improves further, and early design issues are resolved, failures stabilize. The problem is, if it's a "big name" company that puts out a new product, there will still be the infant failures, but folks will accept it because there's history with those companies. (I like OS motors, but do you really think the V-Spec replacement isn't going to have issues when it's introduced? :sneaky:)

There's less forgiveness for a new product from a company that's putting out a first offering (such as the SS.21), or has a limited product portfolio. The problem with that logic is, sometimes those lesser known companies can actually put out a product that meets or exceeds the widely accepted "benchmark", but folks won't take a chance on it . That's understandable though, it's a gamble worth hundreds of dollars, and hearing negative comments makes that gamble harder to commit to.

So, while I understand your opinion on the matter, I hope that people will understand that it's just an opinion. I'm also not posting this to single out your comment specifically, but more to hopefully educate folks, and give them sound decision making tools. Nova's are indeed great motors, as are OS, Sirio, RB, etc..., but the likes of Werks, Alpha, EBMods, & O'Donnell are all just as capable, and worthy of being purchased.

Great post Stubbs. Excellent for those who like to Bash a product.... For the Racers who do know about this, we know where to start where to go and where to begin... Great Post!

Would this be the INFAMOUS Meredith Roach? The amain hobbies reviewer extraordanaire?:lol::eek:

I dont run OD but one thing I can say is that I've watched(not really because he moves in silence...like a ninja) Steve O take care of OD issues. He refuses to let his name equal Garbage Products. HAve faith in anything you buy that says OD. IF its not right... Steve will contact you and make it right...

Thrown under a bus OUCH!

guys please keep on track.. this thread has alot of good info.. please keep it that way.. everyone has the right to praise and complain... without failure you would not have a good product... bad things are sometimes the best news... you get to correct and make the product better... all companies have errors.. it is how fast they correct the errors... hobbico or steve will take care of any and all issues you may have... pleae contact 1 of them for all warranty concerns... jeremy

ok so back on track, do you agree or disagree that the issues i am having with my motor were probably caused by premature bearing failure? since you and stubbs are part of team o donnell do you guys have any information that would be beneficial to the problem i had posted about and what is the best way to take care of it... thanks


guys , please refrain from telling me to go buy a nova,o.s. etc. this motor had run perfect for me and i would like to keep using the od motor, i fully understand that there are defects and human error thats why i am not trash talking the motor, i just want the problem taken care of if it is in fact a manufacturers issue

give tower hobbies a call and get a return shipping label... send it in with receipt and have them look at it.. that is going to be the best way unless steve chimes in and takes over... if the there was noise possible could be the rear bearing but without hearing it we all could be guessing. get it sent in for a definite answer......jeremy