What's old is new - again - don't I wish!
Sometimes it gets hard to come up with "new", after all there are only so many
ways of making a wheel round. The thing about ultralight aviation is that because we do so
much "R & D" - rip
 off
and duplicate, something that might be old in the real world can be brand new to ours.
 Case in
point a company called H & I Inc. from Warsaw Indiana introduced what looked to
be a neat little 4 cycle two cylinder opposed engine.
It was new, new to ultralight aircraft application. The engine was the 2 cylinder 602
Hemispherical Citroen car engine. This engine while not in production anymore is available
in large quantities in Europe. According to sources the engine has been produced,
relatively unchanged for the past 40 years. So what you say - I am not going to fly on a
40 year old engine! You don't have to the factory in Europe brings these engines back into
the plant and completely rebuilds them. They are then shipped off to H & I who install
an electronic ignition system, an integral dampened flywheel assembly, electric start,
alternator, carbs, exhaust manifold , exhaust stubs and hard points for mounting the
engine. The engine is available with either a belt drive system or with the 2si reduction
drive unit.
The engines are both oil and water cooled and are all run at the factory prior to
shipping. The engines come complete with manual and log book. For more information contact
H & I Inc. 332n 300e Warsaw in, 46580 - telephone 219-267-2217 email hproto@kconline.com
Another point that should be made is that the people behind this company are not new to
our sport having worked for TEAM aircraft for many years.
The 912 100 HP Stealth Rotax
Another engine that while not exactly in name was new in horsepower. Rotax unveiled - w ell they didn't actually
officially unveil the new 912 S. I just sort of new about it and put out a few feelers. I
found that Lockwood Aviation, South Mississippi, and Progressive Aerodyne all had a couple
of TEST engines on their craft.
So what is so special about the 912 S? It puts out 100 HP rather than 80. This is
accomplished according to sources by using a different camshaft and other internal parts.
In fact from the outside the only way to tell the two engines apart is by their rocker
covers. I talked to two pilots who have been flying on the 912 S both commented on its
extra kick and indicated that it was a simpler installation and operating engine than the
914 and wasn't as "temperamental."
It would appear that Rotax has done their homework on this one getting a nearly 25%
increase in power with no additional weight. You would almost think that some of the new
comers who also were up and boasting about 80 HP now will have to go back to the drawing
boards. Or then again maybe not - no one could give me a price on the new engine. With
Rotax being the way they are they just might try to squeeze to much out our pocket books.
That and their rather smug attitude could prompt more pilots to look for other
alternatives. The feeling I get from talking to pilots is they don't really care whether
it costs more for an alternative engine, they won't put up with the "we are the best
- pay us for it" attitude. For more information you can contact L'il Hustler
Ultralight Aviation Services at LilHustler@ultralightnews.com
 Motavia-so
where are all the engines?
A company that has been trying to bring an alternate power plant onto the market finally
showed up with a running prototype. Several years ago Motavia was at Sun N Fun with
something that if it was true would have at least peaked Rotax's attention - an 80 Hp 2
cylinder 4 stroke developed using Ford production engine components..
Unfortunately things just haven't worked out quite the way they were planned. But Mike
Brown the U.S. distributor is someone that I believe has set his mind to getting it out
onto the market. Mike will be flying the first official test engine on his plane by the
end of August. Many pilots have put down cold hard cash to get an
 engine -
the good thing about it is that Motavia has been up front with them and while taking
deposits - done it in a very business like and honorable way - the deposits are put into
an escrow account with AOPA. Thus no deposit money can be spent by the company, and if
something does happen the pilots are protected.
The good news is that while the manufacturers has been moving ahead they have been
doing their homework. In the brief time I had to talk to Mike he pointed out many changes.
Some a result of bench testing to extents well beyond the normal realm of use of the
engine, others such as the integration of the oil tank into the belt cover from customer
input. While this company might be small, a good thing they have going for them is that
they are in touch with the people they are trying to serve. Just average people trying to
make a good product better, and not willing to sacrifice the integrity of their product
and ideals for the fast buck. This philosophy should make them a success - if they can
just get some *&^%$) engines out there flying. For more information contact:Motavia
 David vs. Goliath
(Rotax)
Over the years I have flown on many different brands of engines - the majority were not
"aircraft engines." That is they weren't until they were put on an ultralight -
then of course they became aircraft engines - sort of. Due to liability especially in the
U.S. manufacturers have shied away from openly supplying us at their front door. Through
the back door we have been able to obtain just about anything we wanted to use. Japanese
manufacturers have been the most "openly" against selling us engines, while for
some reason we are still able to get new engines parts etc. I won't go into naming names -
however a new engine to the U.S. was introduced at Oshkosh - The David engine.
The first manufacturer to install the David engine on his plane was Mark Bierle owner and
manufacturer of the Thunder Gull line of aircraft. Mark is a great guy, down to earth easy
to talk to and always open to new ideas. Another thing about Mark is that he has never
trailered a plane to the show, he always flies them in. Mark has made the trips from home
base the Rotax 277, the 503, 582, and 912. Last year he flew in on the HKS 60 HP four
stroke. So if you want to get an honest comparison on an engine Mark is a good guy to talk
to.
At Sun N Fun Mark gave the HKS a good rating, saying that it was a little more powerful
than the 503 while not quite up to the power of a 582. He also said it was quieter and a
little stingier on fuel than the Rotax line of engines.
When asked about the new David engine Mark was again honest and straight forward. While
the engine is suppose to put out 60 HP he was not able to get that out of it with the
reduction drive and prop supplied. He did say that he believed this was just time. His
impression of the engine was that it would indeed pull 60 hp. Noise came in about the same
as the HKS, with fuel about the same. The engine is a V twin design, adapted from an
industrial engine concept with the addition of some formula racing technology. Looking
very close at the engine I would swear that it was a dual overhead cam Honda generator
engine - but then what does a little short sighted, bald headed Canadian know. If this
thing does come out on the market, and is priced right, and is in fact produced by a
"major manufacturer" with world wide parts and service it will certainly fill an
opening in the ultralight 4 stroke power hunt.
For more info contact Barry Jones at Maxi Thrust LLC 1-800-991-9777 email:maxithrust@oro.net
HKS-the numbers are growing!
Speaking of HKS they haven't been sitting on their laurels either. This little 60
HP twin cylinder 4 stroke is starting to make waves in the market with several additional
manufacturers, including powered parachutes climbing on the band wagon.
According to the American distributor several changes have been made to the design
including a new gear reduction ratio. Listening from the ground and comparing the old
ratio flying machines to the new ones there was a marked difference in the quietness of
the new drive ratio.
For more information contact:http://www.hks-power.co.jp/hks_aviation/
 Never to much power! 3
cylinder 138 HP
A helicopter pilot friend of mine once told me there was never "to much
horsepower" when it came to helicopter application. Well it appears he might have a
point. While looking around the area I came across Dennis Fetter's new Voyager Helicopter.
In the past his Mini 500 has been powered by the 582/618 Rotax - of 65/75 hp. The new
Voyager was introduced with a 3 cylinder two stroke engine from U.S. Air Power Inc. which
according to company brochures would normally put out 165 HP - but has been derated for
longer life and reliability to only 138 HP at 5500 RPM. The engine appeared to be
"reed valve inducted" with dual ignition, liquid cooled and oil injected. I was
unable to find out any more info but you could try their website for more info: www.revolutionhelicopter.com
4 stroke JPX 90 HP-Leroy Enterprises
In the early days of ultralight aviation we searched for reliable engines, in doing so we
searched the world, one engine we came upon was the JPX - a French engine. Unfortunately
while it w as lightweight, and compact it
generally wasn't reliable and hard to get parts and service for.
But that was some 15 years ago and a lot changes in 15 years. The JPX engine produced
today has been making a name for itself in all of the areas that it was black listed for
back in the 80's. In fact the company has produces engines for several major paraglider
manufacturers and has expanded its line of aircraft engines to include several 4
stroke models. The latest of these was on display at Oshkosh 98. Leroy Enterprises showed
off the new 90 HP, direct drive, 4 cylinder JPX. Some of the feature of the engine
include:90 HP @ 3000 RPM - 149 lbs. complete* - Power/weight ratio:
0.75, Dual electronic ignition system (self generating) with
standard auto spark plugs, new intake manifolds and rocker
cover castings, reinforced new generation, high strength
magnesium alloy crankcase.
2 years or 1000 hours
Factory Warranty on the 4TX engines. For more info contact Leroy Enterprises, Inc. Leroy Airport, HC Route 3 Box 7150, Willcox,
AZ 85643 (520) 384-2611, or by FAX at
(520) 384-2612
How about fuel injection for your Rotax?
Several after market companies are setting up shop to help pilots get more
horsepower out of their Rotax engines, while not sacrificing on reliability. At Sun N Fun a company
showed up with an expansion style exhaust which seemed to deliver more power (drop into to
our Sun N Fun coverage for more info).
At Oshkosh a company showed up with a "Pulse jet Electronic Fuel Injection system.
According to the manufacturer the system compensates and adjusts for varying temperatures,
altitude, RPM and throttle body opening. All this can should mean increased
efficiency and reduced fuel consumption. The system is apparently available for both two
and four stroke engines.
The one downfall from my point of view was that I can buy a carb from Rotax - who are not
know for their "thrifty" prices for about $200 - the fuel injection system
prices quoted started around $1500 - mind you big boys do pay to play with their big toys.
For more information contact Triton Engineering & manufacturing Co. Inc. at 5420
Arapahoe Ave. Boulder CO 80303 telephone 303-442-0885
Volkswagen power that works!
Over the years I have seen many different variations of the Volkswagen engine
used. To date I haven't really found one that would pull the skin of of rise pudding! You
get spoiled flying on Rotax 2 strokes with their power to weight ratio. Well for the first
time I did see something that worked, a 2200 cc Volkswagen engine that had been reworked -
as most of them are, with a very compact belt drive reduction system installed on it. The
difference in this engine direct drive vs. belt drive has to be seen to be appreciated. On
the Smith trainer that it was installed on - which came in at around 600 lbs. the plane
leapt, and I do mean leapt into the air in about 50 feet and climbed to circuit height
faster than a Kolb Slingshot. If you have ever seen a Kolb climb skyward then you know
what I mean. For more information on the system contact
Smith Valley Engineering
19975 Co. Rd. 8280 Rolla Missouri 65401 - Telephone Gene or Larry Smith at 573-762-2882.
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