Fox .15 Steel-Fin

roddie Mon Dec 29, 2014 3:54 pm

Hey Guys, This engine was my Grandfather's. It's in very good condition.. and he gave me a silencer with it. There are no identifying marks.. other than my Grandfathers initials/name scribed on it. I think it's an aftermarket silencer.. but I'm not sure. Anyone ever see one like this?

Fox .15 Steel-Fin Dsc02312

It would seem like a good muffler to run.. because it's a free-flow design.. with no baffle or evidence of ever having one.. but it does have screws to take it apart. I'm guessing that a tension-spring is used to mount it; wrapped around the back of the cylinder and attached to the hook-wire on the silencer? Is this a preferred way to mount it? I was thinking that a radiator hose-clamp could be attached to the silencer with small sheet metal screws which would be more secure. In either case, I would probably cut a strip of inner-tube rubber for around the cylinder to prevent the clamp or spring from scratching.

Ken Cook Mon Dec 29, 2014 7:18 pm

It depends on what your doing with the engine. If you concerned about noise, try it. It won't like it, but it will silence the engine. I would say in or around the 3 minute mark that engine would start to show signs of not being happy. I'm not a proponent of mufflers. They don't work well in control line. If your flying level the entire time and don't plan on maneuvering, then go for it. But once you start loading the engine, it will sag and overheat. The steelfin is not a powerhouse by any means and muffling it will certainly choke it's power down and retain heat. All the mufflers provided for control line engines work. They do what they were designed to do. That would be silencing the engine. In terms of serving a double standard and allowing a decent engine run from start to finish is another thing. Ken

One other thing I meant to mention, 2 screws hold that top end on. I wouldn't use a hose clamp to that cylinder. Even a ground strike in grass with the strap and weight of the muffler can result in breaking it off.

roddie Mon Dec 29, 2014 11:29 pm

Ken Cook wrote:It depends on what your doing with the engine. If you concerned about noise, try it. It won't like it, but it will silence the engine. I would say in or around the 3 minute mark that engine would start to show signs of not being happy. I'm not a proponent of mufflers. They don't work well in control line. If your flying level the entire time and don't plan on maneuvering, then go for it. But once you start loading the engine, it will sag and overheat. The steelfin is not a powerhouse by any means and muffling it will certainly choke it's power down and retain heat. All the mufflers provided for control line engines work. They do what they were designed to do. That would be silencing the engine. In terms of serving a double standard and allowing a decent engine run from start to finish is another thing. Ken

One other thing I meant to mention, 2 screws hold that top end on. I wouldn't use a hose clamp to that cylinder. Even a ground strike in grass with the strap and weight of the muffler can result in breaking it off.

OK.. Thank You Ken, If I do use the silencer.. I'll try it with a spring mount. I don't intend to fly over a hard-pack surface while stunt-training. No sense in tempting fate until I feel more confident.