Welcome to Club SAITO !
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Good mate-up Dave. Any plane under the control of a green transmitter has to fly well. The Saito "Hobbsy Special" will serve proudly for you.
The LT-40 here is FA-72 powered, spent most of the last twenty years hauling around pontoons over a nearby lake. Plenty of power.
Now, get busy and start wearing it out!
The LT-40 here is FA-72 powered, spent most of the last twenty years hauling around pontoons over a nearby lake. Plenty of power.
Now, get busy and start wearing it out!
Last edited by Jesse Open; 03-28-2024 at 09:41 AM.
Spinner nut?
LASER 70
LA 25 and Saito 30
I know this is an old thread and all my fourstrokes bar one are Saito and on every plane I use them with an aluminium back plate spinner except one which I have a Saito 62 with 12x6 three blade prop, the exact set up youo have on your bright yellow plane here in the photograph. But can I ask you this question, in all my 38 years of flying rc planes I've never used a spinner nut on a Saito engine. But this particular plane I have now with the Saito 62 and three blade prop I have it secured with the prop nut and locking nut. It makes it a wee bit more difficult to use the electric starter. So do you go without using the locking nut and just screw on the spinner nut over the top of the prop nut? If so , is this a safe set up? Would it throw the prop? I'm very safety conscious and would like your opinion? Kind regards Aidan.
Saito 62 with 12 x 6 three blade.
When using a Spinner Nut I don't use the original prop nut or lock nut. I just tighten the spinner nut against the prop washer. Tight TIGHT!
There's little chance of it coming loose unless the engine is over primed at startup or run too lean at wot.
There's little chance of it coming loose unless the engine is over primed at startup or run too lean at wot.
Many thanks. I have my Saito 62 on the Calmato Sports 40. Flys it very well.
A couple of friendly tips:
It's a good idea to secure the crankcase vent tubing to something. Clamped to the firewall with an inch of tubing extending below the fuse works well. Some prefer to route that vent to the muffler tail piece, via a clamped on piece of brass tubing, so the exhaust stream carries away the oil.
For a better looking exhaust sealant, teflon based plumbers paste (cheap) works good as does Swak paste (more expensive). I actually prefer Swak but I've been having satisfactory results with plumber's paste (RectorSeal T plus 2"). The excess can be wiped off after the exhaust is tightened leaving a robust, leak free, tidy looking engine.
Nice looking setup. The Saito FA-62 is a good match for the Calmato 40. I like your use of ball links.
A couple of friendly tips:
It's a good idea to secure the crankcase vent tubing to something. Clamped to the firewall with an inch of tubing extending below the fuse works well. Some prefer to route that vent to the muffler tail piece, via a clamped on piece of brass tubing, so the exhaust stream carries away the oil.
For a better looking exhaust sealant, teflon based plumbers paste (cheap) works good as does Swak paste (more expensive). I actually prefer Swak but I've been having satisfactory results with plumber's paste (RectorSeal T plus 2"). The excess can be wiped off after the exhaust is tightened leaving a robust, leak free, tidy looking engine.
A couple of friendly tips:
It's a good idea to secure the crankcase vent tubing to something. Clamped to the firewall with an inch of tubing extending below the fuse works well. Some prefer to route that vent to the muffler tail piece, via a clamped on piece of brass tubing, so the exhaust stream carries away the oil.
For a better looking exhaust sealant, teflon based plumbers paste (cheap) works good as does Swak paste (more expensive). I actually prefer Swak but I've been having satisfactory results with plumber's paste (RectorSeal T plus 2"). The excess can be wiped off after the exhaust is tightened leaving a robust, leak free, tidy looking engine.
This is the Calmato flying just over a year ago with the Saito 62.
Senior Member
The 56 is a real torquer, I have images of one, (that I can't post) turning an HY 12 x 6 at 10,008 and a Xoar 12 x 6 at 10,001 rpm. Also one image of it idling at 1,370. Hooraw, I gottem to post.
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Last edited by 1200SportsterRider; 04-02-2024 at 03:01 AM.
Amazing speed with only an FA-56.
https://youtu.be/PBna9ExMvCk?feature=shared
https://youtu.be/PBna9ExMvCk?feature=shared
Saito 62
This float plane from 12 years ago has the Saito 62 on board. The same Saito 62 which is now on my Calmato 12 years later. In all those years ive never had to do a thing to the engine other than put fuel in it and start it up. Its still got the original glow plug .
Granted, most of my dozen or so Saitos are mounted to warbirds where I have a need for speed.
To be honest, I do run my Saitos a bit leaner, both needles, but still within an acceptable mixture range. I adjust the high speed needle as lean as I can without sagging on extended uplines. The low speed needle gets adjusted lean enough for 20-30 seconds of reliable idle before the rpm starts to drop. Both needle adjustment are performed with the engine at full operating temp. And guess what? The engines still last seemingly forever.
Granted, most of my dozen or so Saitos are mounted to warbirds where I have a need for speed.
Granted, most of my dozen or so Saitos are mounted to warbirds where I have a need for speed.