Larry, I am a very strong supporter of the O-200 on the KR. I think it is an excellent engine for this aircraft.
I have become a stronger supporter of the Corvair on the KR, than I used to be. Given my current experience with the 2700 cc engine built by Roy Szarafinski, I would not trade it for any other engine, but if I did not have it, would be seriously considering the O-200. Regarding recent crank failures with the VW, well, that may be telling on your age. I believe those problems were solved many years ago. And, you would think that the Corvair world would have incorporated their solutions many years ago. I flew 200 hours behind a VW with no such failure. I do agree that the VW does require a lot of attention. I will say that my Corvair 2700 has been trouble free and maintenance free. I changed the oil once to put in Roy's recommended oil, check the oil now and then and rarely have to add oil, and have no oil leaks. All my temps are well within range. The engine starts almost instantly and with the 54 X 54 prop, the plane will climb at 1200 FPM. But, in the Corvair world, it is much like the KR world, there are few of them built the same. I, like you, finally came to the realization that I no longer wanted to be in the experimental building business. Thus, why I had Roy build my engine. I think building an aircraft is enough, at least for me. Even in that regard, I have been relying a lot on the RV world for parts and ideas on how to do things. They have the largest base of experience in the world and my motto is that if it works for them and will fit on my KR, then that is the way I go. See N64KR at http://KRBuilder.org - Then click on the pics? See you Oct. 4 and 5, 2013 - KR Gathering in Mt. Vernon, Il ? MVN Daniel R. Heath -?Lexington, SC -----Original Message----- From: KRnet [mailto:krnet-bounces at list.krnet.org] On Behalf Of Larry&Sallie Flesner Sent: Sunday, May 05, 2013 10:00 AM To: KRnet Subject: KR> Interesting info, Corvair torque At 06:49 AM 5/5/2013, you wrote: >When I had the 2700cc (stock displacement) Corvair engine in N56ML, >Larry Flesner's plane and mine were almost a dead match for each other, >until I got wheel pants on my plane. ++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ +++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++ Since that time I've replaced the 2 into 1 exhaust with a 4 tube exhaust and get noticeably better performance from my 0-200. My engine now has 2300+ hours on it since factory overhaul and still performs well. While building my KR, I was excited about the Subaru and the Corvair (I once had three Corvair engines) but not being an engine mechanic, I didn't want to go through the "experimental" phase of getting all the bugs out. I kept my 0-200 as stock as possible for reliability. I've had one problem in 470 hours on an 1800 hour engine. That was an intake valve seat that was getting beat out of round. A low time used cylinder took care of the problem. I've been a bit skeptical of auto conversions from the start. Subarus seem to be a bit heavy for their power, VW's and Corvairs with their crank problems and their need for what seems like constant attention. How many of you have flown a Cessna 150 and even given a problem with the engine a second thought? Several Corvair fliers seem to have worked out the reliability problems and that is great. Maybe at this years Gathering we can have a run-off between the various engines. Mark indicated my 0-200 performed similar to his 2700. His KR did not have wheel pants but did have the new wing which should be faster in cruise. We took off together and my KR climbed right along with his on it's shorter (20' 8") RAF48 wing, longer gear legs and raised canopy. Every KR is different so it's hard to make a head to head comparison. As every KR is different, so is every builder. Go with what you are comfortable with and go flying. Larry Flesner _______________________________________________ Search the KRnet Archives at http://tugantek.com/archmailv2-kr/search. To UNsubscribe from KRnet, send a message to KRnet-leave at list.krnet.org please see other KRnet info at http://www.krnet.org/info.html see http://list.krnet.org/mailman/listinfo/krnet_list.krnet.org to change options
