Testor/McCoy heros

rsv1cox Tue Jul 09, 2019 2:02 pm

Because they run and run well.

The last few days I have been in a run what you got mood. So I decided to give these two for $13.59 engines a try. Bought in a wooden box off ebay purchased partly for the unique box as much as the engines. Matched up the detached needles and powered up with Cox 35%, red head first.

I finally found the correct glow plug clip and it started easy running fast and strong at a little too lean pace. Richened it up a bit and she just hummed. After a few minutes I pinched the fuel feed off to a stop. I reattached the GPC and noticed no movement on the amp meter. Darn, another burned out glow plug.

I robbed the plug off the other engine and ran it again. Same thing, ran really nice. Went to start it again and ……. another burned out glow plug. Two in a row.

Still, I wanted to run the other engine so with nothing to lose and using a phillips jewelers screwdriver I gently compressed the glow plugs coil, reinstalled on the second engine and ... power. Flipped the second engine a couple of time and it ran as well as the first.

Notice the tapped intake.

soooo, happy I did the same with the other burned out head, and success, I had them both running with damaged glow heads...Heros!

Not so much luck with these two. The OK Cub ran at about, wild guess 250 rpm. You could stick your finger in there without damage. No change in rpm from lean to rich. The Cox out of a Corsair would not run at all. Engine has been trouble ever since I bought it. Finally replaced it with another engine to get the Corsair to fly.

NEW222 Tue Jul 09, 2019 3:33 pm

Glad you got out to have some fun and run a couple of engines. They look nice too. Do your spring starters on teh Testors work, or are they shot? I got mine this spring, then it broke shortly after....

rsv1cox Tue Jul 09, 2019 5:10 pm

NEW222 wrote:Glad you got out to have some fun and run a couple of engines. They look nice too. Do your spring starters on teh Testors work, or are they shot? I got mine this spring, then it broke shortly after....

They are both shot Chancey. On the broken one I took the front plate and made it the drive plate, works fine.

I still have a profile P-38 in their future. Can't let good engines go to waste.

I don't have much history with these Testors/McCoys although I have a few. Found two more on ebay yesterday, different. Trying to learn about them and catch up with Victor.

Bob

Mark Diedrichs Tue Jul 09, 2019 5:46 pm

The late 60s, early 70s and on Testors engines/vehicles were not made for longevity. The proof its in the pudding!!! Here's what I got left of a testors spitfire... Point of purchase stuff in a plastic hanging package, sad to see what it became of a once great McCoy brand... Mark

ticomareado Wed Jul 10, 2019 10:21 am

Well the stuff in plastic pegboard packages, in all fairness, only bore the Testor brand as I recall. Cox also tried the same packaging concept (although granted, Cox's engine was far better than a non-Model 8000 pipe bomb)-- but in reality, all of the pegboard hook planes from both companies were virtually unflyable rocks on a string. The efforts were both companies' last gasps at selling ass loads of product to chain discount stores. At the end of the day when the canvas bank deposit bag was zipped and locked, both companies got ass loads of unsellable product returned by the chain stores and ass loads of unpaid and uncollectable invoices from same.

Mark Diedrichs Wed Jul 10, 2019 4:16 pm

Now that you mention it, you are spot on with your assessment. All (toy) products in general went down hill during those times. Still hoping for a resurgence, hope I live that long!!!!

rsv1cox Wed Jul 10, 2019 5:47 pm

ticomareado wrote:Well the stuff in plastic pegboard packages, in all fairness, only bore the Testor brand as I recall. Cox also tried the same packaging concept (although granted, Cox's engine was far better than a non-Model 8000 pipe bomb)-- but in reality, all of the pegboard hook planes from both companies were virtually unflyable rocks on a string. The efforts were both companies' last gasps at selling ass loads of product to chain discount stores. At the end of the day when the canvas bank deposit bag was zipped and locked, both companies got ass loads of unsellable product returned by the chain stores and ass loads of unpaid and uncollectable invoices from same.

Still, that doesn't take away the fact that both of these engines started easily and ran very well. Certainly much better than the two Cox .049s I spent most of the day trying to run with no joy what-so-ever. One the infamous Corsair engine that has been a pain ever since I got it and today earned "hurler" cred. The other an equally infamous Cox Mercedes engine that first saw my door step in old aptly named #2. Some engines are just destined for the trash heap.

I could gather any one of my other Cox engines, give them a flip and enjoy that wonderful sound, just not those two.

I would agree on the blister packed Testors planes though. I have four, Zeros and P-40's. No way would I waste my time trying to fly them. But the Cox Corsair is not far behind. After a re-engine it flew with a little whipping.

I have flown a Cox Pt-19 and it flew very well, just not like a balsa equivalent.

ticomareado Wed Jul 10, 2019 6:22 pm

Your engines are Testor-McCoy FRV Wen-Mac derivatives with only top end and Rotomatic starter common to Pipe Bombs.

rsv1cox Wed Jul 10, 2019 6:23 pm

ticomareado wrote:Your engines are Testor-McCoy FRV Wen-Mac derivatives with only top end and Rotomatic starter common to Pipe Bombs.

Yes

F4D Phantom II Mon Jan 20, 2020 9:19 pm

I was looking thru my boxes of engines and decided to look at a Testor Mcoy.049 that looked unused. On close inspection noticed that as the piston went down the engine got tight. I took it apart to look at the cylinder.I slid the piston up and down and as I had noted it was tight. Using my dremel and a polishing buff I started polishing the lower part of the cylinder up to a hair past the exhaust port until I was able to slide the piston easy. I tested the glow plug and was good. Using a Top Flite 6x3 nylon prop and 15/22 synt/castor fuel I got it to run. The starting clutch works fine and the engine ran up to 14.700 Rpm in one of the runs. I had to replace the factory Needle valve with one from a Wen Mac .049 as I could not lean the engine the first time I ran it. I have some 30/20 all castor but I have not tried using it on the engine.
Juan

ticomareado Mon Jan 20, 2020 9:42 pm

You should be able to get 16-17K with a Cox 5-3 gray prop.

aspeed Mon Jan 20, 2020 11:02 pm

My Wen Mac example was revving up a bit better than a Medallian but less than a TD. Far ahead of the single port reedies. I used the APC 4 1/4 - 4" for all the tests on 10% just to compare. 19,500. Glad I did not go with higher nitro if the plugs are a weak point. I guess they are unobtanium now, and they would need to be drilled and tapped for a turbo plug or standard one and lose performance. Wonder if there is enough meat left for that and to still use a wrench. I never put one in a plane yet. Seen some buddies use them in the 1970s but never in person since.

ticomareado Tue Jan 21, 2020 5:10 am

I have one that a fellow in Illinois modified for me. He modified stock glow head to clamp a Merlin insert. The Merlin really is too small diameter for perfect fit in cylinder and there is very little engaged cylinder to head (now a clamp ring) thread area. It uses a single Cox copper gasket, again too sm. diameter. But the damn thing works and works well.

ticomareado Tue Jan 21, 2020 5:43 am

This guy is the creator of the Merlin modification:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=X67pikIKj14

getback Tue Jan 21, 2020 7:05 am

Good run Juan , that insert giving an extra 1000 Rs is pretty darn cool for these old engines . Old Bugger

F4D Phantom II Tue Jan 21, 2020 5:37 pm

Well guys I will have to try the Merlin insert. Thanks for the video Tico. I bought 2 inserts from an ebay vendor today. I tried the drilling of the head and tapping it to 1/4-32 and tried to run the engine but the ones that it ran it lost a lot of Rpm and it would not lean out. The plugs I used protruded a little into the chamber so I made a few soft aluminum gaskets that were a little bit thicker. I tried an OS A3,Fox short idle bar,Rossi 8, and a fireball red but Rpm`s were in the 10-11K. I will play with my Wen Mac K II R/c to see If I can make it run.
Juan

ticomareado Tue Jan 21, 2020 5:41 pm

The adapter head that Mecoa sells is best for standard plugs.

https://www.mecoa.biz/shopexd.asp?id=1646

Mark Diedrichs Tue Jan 21, 2020 5:51 pm

Tico, You must have taken your meds! (just jok'in) ... All good info man!!!! Mark Very Happy

ticomareado Tue Jan 21, 2020 6:13 pm

No worries mate; just a matter of time until I'm "non-compliant" and in need of an adjustment again.

Mark Diedrichs Tue Jan 21, 2020 6:25 pm

Tico, Are you talking about cash for Cox??? Maybe that's what's next, who knows!! Hope not, Mark Babe Bee .049

roddie Tue Jan 21, 2020 7:54 pm

I haven't run any of my .049 Wen-Mac/McCoy/Testors .049 glow/FRV engines.. and I've sourced a handful of them over the last couple of years.. most from Robert; this post's author.. but a couple I got in a consignment-lot from a hobby-shop in Sturbridge, MA. Winter of 2017/2018. That lot cost me $50.. and yielded (X1) Cox Tee Dee .09, (X1) Tee Dee .049, (X1) Medallion .049, (X2) Golden Bee .049, X3 "290" Product-engine and (X2) Testors/McCoy FRV .049 engines. Well-worth my $50....

That's $5/engine.. Smile

Regarding the FRV "Hero's".. the subject of this thread; we should prolly be running a "stock/OEM" engine.. using a lower-nitro fuel than we would run in a Cox engine. 10/15% nitro was likely the blend of glow-fuel that these engines were designed to run on.

Choose the aero-model and propeller to suit... but always consider the limitations.

Oldenginerod Tue Jan 21, 2020 11:02 pm

roddie wrote:
Regarding the FRV "Hero's".. the subject of this thread; we should prolly be running a "stock/OEM" engine.. using a lower-nitro fuel than we would run in a Cox engine. 10/15% nitro was likely the blend of glow-fuel that these engines were designed to run on.

My first Testors .049 wouldn't start on anything less than the standard (red can) Cox fuel at 25% nitro. That's what they were built to run on as the original Testors fuel (which I couldn't buy in AU at that time) was 25% nitro as well I believe.

rsv1cox Wed Jan 22, 2020 10:16 am

I will have to scout out those two engines again and run them.

I still think it's amazing that they ran as well with those crushed glow coils as they did before they burned out. But no one else thought that strange, or at least there was no comment regarding it.

I still want to build a profile P-38 for them, got all the lumber to do so.

Bob

Oldenginerod Wed Jan 22, 2020 3:08 pm

Bob. I guess all it needs is the coil to make enough contact for current to flow up until the first ignition, then the coil will continue to glow via catalytic reaction for the duration of the run- No need for electrical continuity once it's running.

rsv1cox Wed Jan 22, 2020 5:20 pm

Oldenginerod wrote:Bob. I guess all it needs is the coil to make enough contact for current to flow up until the first ignition, then the coil will continue to glow via catalytic reaction for the duration of the run- No need for electrical continuity once it's running.

True, but the coil was crushed essentially becoming a straight albeit wide wire. Seems that would degrade rpm's over a well lit coil. Might have been a one and done event, won't know until I light them off again. Should I ever power a plane with them, I would replace both. But they come dear. Maybe MECOA has them, will have to check. Or I could rob a couple off my others.

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