I would really love to put a smoke system on one of my gas planes. I think it would be really awesome on my 27% Bipe, but not sure what all is needed to run one and how much weight one would add?



I know you need the pump itself, i guess a separate battery to run it? the Tank for smoke oil.

anything else?

what ones today are really good and what would be the min tank size? I guess depends how long you want to go, is there a good site that sells all the stuff needed and maybe explains it some..


Thanks

Pump assembly
Tank assembly
Smoke muffler
Check valve depending on what smoke pump
Extra battery is dependent on what pump your using I use a power box smoke pump and it runs off my flight packs so no extra battery
my pump is about 4.5 ounces I run a 32oz tank on a da100 so when it’s full of oil that’s almost 2 pounds of oil but a smaller tank will weigh less

Tank size is dependent on how much run time you want I have found a good rule of thumb is you will burn 1oz of oil per minute per 10cc of engine size so with my 100 I burn right at 10oz a minute and I have very little left over residue on the plane when I land

On my Decathlon with a 55cc I have the following;

Bad Dog smoke nozzle (a must have)
RCEXL smoke pump.
20oz tank
Check valve
Wheel collar regulator.

Makes great smoke for about 5-6 min with no residue.

The RCEXL smoke pump is pretty inexpensive and just plugs into a spare RX channel so no extra battery needed.

Originally Posted by epoweredrc

I would really love to put a smoke system on one of my gas planes. I think it would be really awesome on my 27% Bipe, but not sure what all is needed to run one and how much weight one would add?



I know you need the pump itself, i guess a separate battery to run it? the Tank for smoke oil.

anything else?

what ones today are really good and what would be the min tank size? I guess depends how long you want to go, is there a good site that sells all the stuff needed and maybe explains it some..


Thanks

Yup, there are a few options and setups you could go with as already mentioned. Your choice of smoke pump can be the most costly part of the system as well as dictate power and battery options or plumbing differences. A variable speed pump will allow you to slave the pump to your throttle and then create a pump rate to throttle curve mix program. Do your research or more discussion here can assure you get a pump that fits your needs.

I would say with a variable speed pump, 3-4 ounces per minute per cylinder at WOT is a good rough calculation for determining tank capacity. Using a variable speed pump and throttle management along with your flying style can stretch your smoke time when smoking at reduced throttle levels for instance.

With regard to weight and space, 20cc smoke setups are even possible.

Check out the resources pages or the Faq's for setups, tips and tricks. We carry everything to get you smoking except pumps & tanks and smoke oil which you need to source.
https://baddogsmokes.com

For lowest weight (and I think best pump), the Holy Smokes pump is the lightest: 1.95oz.
It needs no dedicated battery (but a lead is installed for those who want a dedicated battery), and has been used by most of the top pilots at XFC, Tucson Shootout.
I use it on my jet as well.


Available here: https://flypau.com/index.php?main_pa...d0k42kugr63f17

Here's a link to another thread on this forum with some good general smoke info as well as experiences with pumps and setups from a few other modelers.

https://www.flyinggiants.com/forums/...d.php?t=230357

WOW thats everyone for the replies. so they have cheap pumps and really high priced ones.

someone said a smoke muffler? so you can't just add it to the muffler you already have?

or i guess the Nozzle does go in your muffler? My bipe has a DA50 with a Pitts muffler. guess i will try to read more about it.
I had smoke on a glow plane many many years ago my dad rigged up. it didnt even use a pump it had a vavle that we worked with a 5th channel. on and off. it was tapped into the muffler this was on a OS91 4 stroke.

Originally Posted by epoweredrc

WOW thats everyone for the replies. so they have cheap pumps and really high priced ones.

someone said a smoke muffler? so you can't just add it to the muffler you already have?

or i guess the Nozzle does go in your muffler? My bipe has a DA50 with a Pitts muffler. guess i will try to read more about it.
I had smoke on a glow plane many many years ago my dad rigged up. it didnt even use a pump it had a vavle that we worked with a 5th channel. on and off. it was tapped into the muffler this was on a OS91 4 stroke.

Pumps on the low end can go for as low as $40 to over $190 and up..

Rcexl
https://www.valleyviewrc.com/rcexl-smoke-pump

Miracle
http://www.redwingrc.com/product.php?productid=329

Sullivan Skywriter
http://sullivanproducts.com/product/s753/

Powerbox
https://powerbox-systems.com/produkt...smokepump.html

Holy smokes
https://holysmokesrc.com/

This is nowhere a complete list. The bottom two are quality built variable speed pumps that you will most likely see at the flying field these days.

A smoke muffler is a replacement muffler with a copper inlet tube and usually an internal coil of wrapped copper tubing to preheat the oil before it is dripped or injected into the hot exhaust gas and then vaporizing into smoke.

Stock mufflers or header and canister exhaust systems that you already have can be fitted with nozzles or injector fittings as well just by drilling and tapping a threaded hole to accept the fitting.

A well tuned smoke system can be very rewarding and impressive. It will require a little fine tuning or tinkering to really get it dialed in. Just like motors and batteries have advanced over the years, smoke systems and related accessories have advanced as well.

Holy smokes! $185 for a cheap outrunner/esc and a plastic pump?

Originally Posted by G.W.

Holy smokes! $185 for a cheap outrunner/esc and a plastic pump?

I can not confirm or deny that the actual pump head is the same unit on a Don Harris smoke pump. They look similar to me. I have not had a Don Harris pump in hand as of yet. I believe they are no longer manufactured. Link with photo here.

Don Harris
https://www.rcgroups.com/forums/show...ris-Smoke-Pump

And a couple more posts showing what you get with the PB pump versus the Holy Smokes pump.

PB pump
https://www.flyinggiants.com/forums/...&postcount=253

Holy Smokes pump
https://www.flyinggiants.com/forums/...&postcount=257

Okay guys so I ended up getting a HOLY Smokes pump for christmas. I need to know what Do i need to get it going on my 35% Edge 540 its got a 3W 106 twin on it. someone said something about a smoke muffler, but can you just tap into the stock muffler? Can anyone give tips on what all is needed. do smoke lines still need to be that black solid line or can you use fuel line? it came with a short piece i guessing to go from the pump to the fuel tank. I am thinking about maybe making a bracket to hold another tank over the top of the one i alrady have in the plane but will have to look.



i guess i need another fill line on the plane for the smoke. i noticed the tanks they suggest will probably order one of those.



also what is the best/cheapest ha ha those two words never go together smoke fuel, or do some guys make their own?


Thanks

Good questions and of course there are a few different ways that you can tackle this...

You can absolutely tap your existing mufflers. This will save you some cash. You just need a pair of injectors installed in the proper location.

Yes smoke oil lines near the muffler roughly the last 6"-8" up to the injectors need to be black high temperature rated tubing. The short piece of tubing that came with your pump may not be enough tubing for a twin setup so you will likely want some more. The black tubing is Viton or you can also use Versilion F-5500. Not to be confused with Buna or Neoprene which is also high temp rated, but not nearly as good. It is also common to use black tubing inside your fuel or smoke oil tanks as it will not harden as quickly as yellow Tygon in a submerged application.

Your pump will pull smoke fluid from anywhere in your airframe, so on or near the CG is ideal. Find a tank that fits your space. Figure roughly 3-4 ounces of smoke oil per nozzle per minute at wide open throttle to calculate tank volume. These numbers are on the high end of oil usage. You will likely have good smoke at lower delivery volumes. Injector selection can make a BIG difference here. If your mixing your smoke pump to your throttle and setting up a programmable pump curve mix you will gain smoke time per tank if smoking at reduced throttle levels.

Smoke oil selection is like premix oil. Everyone has their favorite. I like SuperDri or Sullivan Skysmoke off the shelf.

Originally Posted by crankcase

Good questions and of course there are a few different ways that you can tackle this...

You can absolutely tap your existing mufflers. This will save you some cash. You just need a pair of injectors installed in the proper location.

Yes smoke oil lines near the muffler roughly the last 6"-8" up to the injectors need to be black high temperature rated tubing. The short piece of tubing that came with your pump may not be enough tubing for a twin setup so you will likely want some more. The black tubing is Viton or you can also use Versilion F-5500. Not to be confused with Buna or Neoprene which is also high temp rated, but not nearly as good. It is also common to use black tubing inside your fuel or smoke oil tanks as it will not harden as quickly as yellow Tygon in a submerged application.

Your pump will pull smoke fluid from anywhere in your airframe, so on or near the CG is ideal. Find a tank that fits your space. Figure roughly 3-4 ounces of smoke oil per nozzle per minute at wide open throttle to calculate tank volume. These numbers are on the high end of oil usage. You will likely have good smoke at lower delivery volumes. Injector selection can make a BIG difference here. If your mixing your smoke pump to your throttle and setting up a programmable pump curve mix you will gain smoke time per tank if smoking at reduced throttle levels.

Smoke oil selection is like premix oil. Everyone has their favorite. I like SuperDri or Sullivan Skysmoke off the shelf.

Thanks for the info, so since mine is a twin do i need a injector in both mufflers?

I see a Y plug in the kit. is that what its used for? I also see 3 different filters, two look the same and one looks a little different not sure if it really is.

wow the Viton tubing isn't cheap at all. or do you know a good place to get it?
someone in this thread posted to this site for the nozzells

https://baddogsmokes.com/smoke-nozzles


Not sure what ones I would need. But i see they have the F-5500 tubing also, maybe i could get both from them. like to order as much from one place as i can.



At first was thinking about a 12 oz tank but not sure maybe i should go larger
https://www.3drchobbies.com/product/...moke-oil-tank/


I guess just like for fueling the plane any of these would work for putting the smoke oil in it. https://northwestrc.com/-NWRC-HD-Mag...ED_p_2374.html

Yes any fuel dot will work.. im pretty sure the kit you have has a one way check valve in it also.. thats probably the one that looks different.. and the Y fitting is to plum 2 mufflers. As mentioned above the bad dog nozzles are the best but are pricey!