dartmoor
Well-Known Member
Has anyone got one?
I bought one on the strength of the Yachting World report on 2.5hp outboards.
At first my impression was it was well built.....BUT
1. Its the noisiest engine ever! Makes a Honda 2.3 sound quiet (I even think a seagull might be quieter). I know air cooled engines are noisy, but this one takes the prize! Its only bearable at tick over - after that it sounds like a Honda amplified!
2. I can foresee loads of design issues. Its just too clever - and rather like an Alfa Romeo, seems build to run well....briefly! Firstly, the fuel system. There is no gravity feed, no fuel vent on the fuel cap, no fuel tap. Upside is no smells or leaks possible. It relies on a diaphram, and a fuel bulb, that you can only get at by removing the cowling! Downside - you cannot run the carb dry. With our EC formula for petrol we all know that a) it goes off after a month, b)goes gummy and blocks jets if left in the carb, and c) eats anything not made of high quality metal. So no doubt it will eat the diaphram, the priming bulb, and the little rubber pipe that mixes fuel with two stroke oil. I have just had to rebuild a chain saw carb for all these very reasons, and it was a Husquvana, not a cheap Chinese one!
3. The centrifugal clutch only kicks in at moderately high revs, and then the gears run at speed. It seems that the engine is not designed to allow slow forward running - its just on or off. Much much worse in this respect than the Honda. So coming alongside will be...er...interesting.
4. The idea of having a four stroke cycle, but mixing petrol and two stroke oil worries me. It does sound a clattery engine - both clutch rattle at the point just prior to engagement, and valve clatter. Tiny pipe taking the oil to the carb. So apart from maybe the design not enough oil getting around the engine for any durability, if the oil pump fails, the pipe fall apart or blocks, its curtains!
5. The recoil works by a heavy spring which stores the energy from two or three pulls and then releases, so that the engine supposedly starts itself. Just what is the point of that on a 2.5hp?? It just puts the cord under extreme tension as you pull it - so can't see that lasting forever!
I decided this was a bad buy. Now it seems an even worse buy as I can't get any interest in it when trying to sell it. Even dealers won't look at it, even on brokerage, as their response is "unknown make in UK, nobody buys them, parts very difficult to get..."
So I may have to live with this complex noisy little Italian designed disaster waiting to happen.
Just trying to seek solace from anyone who might have one, and can tell me that they love it! Even more impressive if it is several years old, and still works!
Mine is unloved in my garage at the minute with me wishing I had bought a Honda....
I bought one on the strength of the Yachting World report on 2.5hp outboards.
At first my impression was it was well built.....BUT
1. Its the noisiest engine ever! Makes a Honda 2.3 sound quiet (I even think a seagull might be quieter). I know air cooled engines are noisy, but this one takes the prize! Its only bearable at tick over - after that it sounds like a Honda amplified!
2. I can foresee loads of design issues. Its just too clever - and rather like an Alfa Romeo, seems build to run well....briefly! Firstly, the fuel system. There is no gravity feed, no fuel vent on the fuel cap, no fuel tap. Upside is no smells or leaks possible. It relies on a diaphram, and a fuel bulb, that you can only get at by removing the cowling! Downside - you cannot run the carb dry. With our EC formula for petrol we all know that a) it goes off after a month, b)goes gummy and blocks jets if left in the carb, and c) eats anything not made of high quality metal. So no doubt it will eat the diaphram, the priming bulb, and the little rubber pipe that mixes fuel with two stroke oil. I have just had to rebuild a chain saw carb for all these very reasons, and it was a Husquvana, not a cheap Chinese one!
3. The centrifugal clutch only kicks in at moderately high revs, and then the gears run at speed. It seems that the engine is not designed to allow slow forward running - its just on or off. Much much worse in this respect than the Honda. So coming alongside will be...er...interesting.
4. The idea of having a four stroke cycle, but mixing petrol and two stroke oil worries me. It does sound a clattery engine - both clutch rattle at the point just prior to engagement, and valve clatter. Tiny pipe taking the oil to the carb. So apart from maybe the design not enough oil getting around the engine for any durability, if the oil pump fails, the pipe fall apart or blocks, its curtains!
5. The recoil works by a heavy spring which stores the energy from two or three pulls and then releases, so that the engine supposedly starts itself. Just what is the point of that on a 2.5hp?? It just puts the cord under extreme tension as you pull it - so can't see that lasting forever!
I decided this was a bad buy. Now it seems an even worse buy as I can't get any interest in it when trying to sell it. Even dealers won't look at it, even on brokerage, as their response is "unknown make in UK, nobody buys them, parts very difficult to get..."
So I may have to live with this complex noisy little Italian designed disaster waiting to happen.
Just trying to seek solace from anyone who might have one, and can tell me that they love it! Even more impressive if it is several years old, and still works!
Mine is unloved in my garage at the minute with me wishing I had bought a Honda....
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