Loosing prime suggestions

[Friedclutch]

Hi. Having fun with my new smoke system. "Smart Smoker". However, I get air in the system very easily when I run the smoke tank down to 3/4 tank and 1/2 tank. My problem is being caused from the clunk sucking air inside the smoke tank. I am using tygon tubing in the tank. Is there a smoke oil safe tubing that is more flexible that I can use in the tank? Maybe I should just try a really heavy clunk?

Also.. Has anyone used a "Header tank" set up like the Heli pilots use on their smoke system with any sucess. It would be nice to have smoke on down lines and/or slight down lines.

Thanks,

Robert

Check out my testing video from yesterday....  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=OO1ODVlwu7Q

[tmenet]

Robert,

You video looks nice. That is a lot of smoke considering the speed you are going at. A lower pitch prop will  slow you down a bit at full throttle to give you even more smoke as long as the planes performance is not compromised.

Yes Tygon (yellow gas line) tubing is not the best to use to hold the clunk line. Not only is it stiff now but it will become slightly harder over time. Black neoprene or certain types of Fluoroelastomers are the tubing of choice here. Both Dubro and Sullivan include them in their gasoline compatible tanks. I am sure your local hobby shop can recommend a brand they carry. In the case of neoprene the thinner the wall the more flexible it is so try not to get one that is very thick or it will be slightly stiff as well. The good news is that it will not harden in the future like the yellow tubing will.

The reason we like the yellow gas tubing is because you can visibly spot problems if things go wrong by displaying bubbles. When it comes to connecting to the muffler only neoprene works to withstand the heat. Some people use silicone tubing at the muffler but the petroleum compounds causes it to puff up and fall apart so it needs to be changed daily. You need flexibility and have more options inside a gas tank since it only needs to be resistant to gasoline and not heat.

Hope that helps ! Nice job!


Al