Cold weather running

[Vmansavage]

Hi, being new to the hobby I have been told that in the winter I will have to run a warmer glow plug is this true or necessary I know I will have to retune for weather conditions but wasn’t sure about the plug range....thanks for all the help or input...

 

[Jam Racing 1]

No stay with a medium plug, wrap the head with some tinfoil to keep in the heat is about all you need to do.....

 

[Vmansavage]

Awsome thanks so much I was afraid my bashin season was gonna b over cuz one of my buddies told me u have to change plugs n change tune and all kinds of stuff n I am really into the hobby I now have my bullet a like new Savage 21 that has been started 2x that’s it and just picked up a very nice HPI Nitro monster king just waitin for it to arrive and I am itchin to run the 21 just didn’t want to tune them then have to retune all over again not that it’s hard to do lol sorry for the rambling but thanks again

 

[olds97_lss]

Plugs change the engine timing. Doesn't have really anything to do with ambient temps.

Regardless, running nitro in the cold isn't that fun, or never really was for me. It's hard on the engine and hard on your patience. If I had to run in the winter, I'd keep a "winter" engine and a "not winter" engine. Especially if snow is involved. Regardless what you do, you will end up with snow on the engine, which will drop it's temp dramatically over and over as your running. This impacts tune and general wear. So, if you have an old tired engine, go with that. Keep your good engine for when it's warmer or at least dry out.

I typically don't bother running nitro when it's below 45F. It's tough to keep the tune consistent. Kind of why I got into electric after 17 years of nitro. So I could run in the winter. Way less annoying, just got to keep it waterproofed.

 

[Jam Racing 1]

Yep I agree with Olds also, just was too lazy to type out all the negatives

 

[Vmansavage]

Thank ya guys I think I will not be running mine in the winter cuz I wanna keep my trucks in the best reliable condition as possiable so I will take winter time to upgrade n go over my rigs thanks again really am glad I joined this forum

 

[olds97_lss]

For what it's worth, when I did run nitro in the winter, I found that my small blocks were a lot easier to deal with. Like a revo with the 3.3 in it. Probably because there was less surface area to cool it so much when snow hit it... or could be because I never gave a rats butt about my 3.3's and ran them like I stole them. They did seem less fussy compared to big blocks in snow though.

With a big block, once you get it wrapped and tuned to run right when dry, as soon as snow hit it, it would go pig rich because it was too cold. Then it would warm up again after 3-4 minutes if you kept it dry. The same would happen with the small block, but the wait time seemed shorter. Pretty sure it's the surface area.

I suppose if your a die hard and want to run, you could always get a second cooling head and cut off half of it so there was less surface area for snow to hit. Then wrap it still with foil. Still though, the crank case is a big heat sink too, so getting snow on that will impact it more than a SB.

I still bashed nitro in snow quite a bit many years ago.

I'd used a piece of a bicycle innertube wrapped around the head with a couple zips holding it on. It would shed the water and not hold it against the head like a sock top does. I never used foil. I'm sure it works fine too.

 

[Vmansavage]

Awsome pics man I would like to say I wanna b die hard but I am not to found of the cold but then again if it’s a Awsome place to run ya never know just the idea of tune then retune sounds like a pain in the rear

 

[X]

Unless you have a well groomed place to drive, most RCs tend to just get stuck. I've always wanted to gets some paddles and skis on an RC and try it out though.

 

[olds97_lss]

When doing winter bashing, I find that parking lots are your best bet after being plowed and the snow melts down a bit behind the piles. Then you can shape the pile easily and land behind it without getting stuck. But yeah, more than 2-3 inches of snow on grass means you spend a lot of time getting it unstuck. Even for a MT like a savage, revo or t-maxx.

Now that I have a proper camera that I don't have to worry about getting wet, I'll probably venture out more around the holidays if there's snow around.

Don't get me wrong, snow is a blast. Especially if your limited in where you can bash like I am during the non-snow months. All the parking lots I drove by all summer suddenly become a bash location!

I found that running electric was way more fun than fighting with nitro. You spend all your time bashing instead of being annoyed at tuning or living with constantly fluctuating tune.

 

[Vmansavage]

I prolly wouldn’t have a hard time finding a place to run the beasts and I also see where electric would b a lil less agervateing but I just love the sound and the feeling I get when the lil nitro engine is running lol but I prolly wouldn’t mind havein a good elec. basher for winter months but just getting into hobby want all my coin going to upgrades and nitro stuff but do understand what ur saying thanks for your guys input...

 

[ELWOOD]

Snow what's that. Here in the desert it's too hot to run in the summer when it is 121. I'd have to drive 2 hours to get to the snow in the winter and would have to retune just because of the change in altitude. But in the winter it's 68 out , perfect for bashing and lots of SAND. ??

 

[Nadboo]

I live in Alaska and there is no way I’m going to be messing with nitro in the winter, in fact it’s already packed away. I ended up converting on of my nitro to electric so that I could play in the winter. My savage has a set of paddle tires on it and I highly recommend it for anyone playing in the snow. I go to the local baseball fields and plenty of open space to drive. The savage floats across the surface even soft powder. Snow burms make excellent ramps and snow softens the landing lol. No matter the power supply if you are running in snow, get paddle tires.

 

[ELWOOD]

Snow is just Frozen Sand, I concur on the Paddles -