RAK402
Veteran
Location: Alhambra, CA
| WD-40 is one of the worst things you can put in a model helicopter engine. It is, technically a solvent, not an oil.
I will probably dilute of remove all of the other chemicals in the engine, and will also prevent the oil in the fuel from getting where it needs to be when you start the engine(i.e. it prevents lubrication). One of the guys that I used to work with was a U-control speed/engine/pit man and used to compete in the Nationals on a regular basis. He taught me this.
Many people have ruined engines by using WD-40. Marvel mystery oil (probably not friendly to pump diaphragms either), is an appropriate lubricant/after run oil. I used to use it when rebuilding OS .40FSR's and FSRH's, many years ago.
Those motors, by the way, went forever on a set of bearings.
The best use for WD-40 on a model helicopter was taught to me many years ago. Vacuum-formed plastic canopies were sometimes taped together in the box. If the box sat for a long time, the gum from the tape was virtually impossible to get off of the windshield. WD-40 (again, being a solvent) would remove the gum without damaging the canopy.
LightningRC,
You are not talking to yourself. Your conclusion regarding bearing quality was pretty much the same as Finless's, and I agree with both of you. It is a quality issue (inappropriate materials) and possibly a size issue (bearing size inappropriate to handle the load) as, in many cases, people report that the balls themselves are simply pulverized. |
