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Rally_Rebel
06-19-2014, 04:38 PM
Greetings all! Recently acquired an unbuilt Maxair Drifter XP503 with a new-in-box 0-time Xenoah 40HP engine so will be lurking posts and pickin' brains. My biggest issue for now is this engine, seems Xenoah is long gone and I haven't yet managed to dredge up much info for it. It's 440cc, liquid cooled, recoil start and that's about all I know. Still tagged but it's faded and the model number is illegible, so any information such as redrive options and suitable carbs would be great.

Thanks!

Joe

1600vw
06-20-2014, 06:28 AM
From the silence or lack of post this should tell you something.

With a two stroke it does not matter if the engine is unused. What matters is time since built. These engines need a tight or sealed induction system. This relies on such things as seals and o-rings or gaskets. When these engines sit for long periods with no use these seals, o- rings and gaskets dry out and shrink. Because of this Rotax has a shelf life for their engines. Anything 5 years old needs to go back to the factory to have such parts replaced. Then you have all those needle bearings. A little surface rust or corrosion and these will not last very long.

If you just have to use this engine, I would send it to a service facility somewhere and have it opened up. Have the seals replaced and check the bearings. On these bearings they put an inspection hole in them. You slowly spin the bearing and look at each roller.

The other option, sell the engine and buy something else.

Tony

Rally_Rebel
06-20-2014, 08:12 AM
Thanks Tony, the shop I work at specializes in vintage aircraft going back 100+ years so I kinda figured on going through it even though it's still factory sealed. Air and moisture tend to get in over the years! I have no experience with modern 2-stroke aircraft engines such as the Rotax/Xenoah/Cuyuna variety and it's obvious in my research that Rotax has come out on top since the heyday of the ultralight. They are spendy though! I'd like to fly this Xenoah for the time being after going through it so I can determine what best to upgrade with. I'm really leaning towards the BMW R100 or R1100 units but need to make certain they'd be suitable for this airframe. On the Xenoah though I'm beginning to think I'll have to get creative with carbs, jetting and redrive if no one is currently flying these or an old timer chimes in. Any recommendations for simple and robust belt reductions?

1600vw
06-20-2014, 05:01 PM
If it was me I would scrap the idea of using that engine. If it had everything on it needed like carbs and all maybe then look it over an maybe use it, but it does not. Myself I would call Rotax Rick out of Florida and have him build you an engine. He stands behind everything he sells and does very good work. I have purchased an engine from him and was very pleased.
A friend of mine built this really nice airplane. He then stuck a old used 503 on it. He said..I went through it and replaced everything. To make a long story short. He purchased an engine from Rotax Rick. He would have had about 1500 bucks in his pocket if he would have called Rick from the get go. I tried to tell him. Some must learn the hard way.

Tony

Rally_Rebel
06-20-2014, 05:30 PM
LOL guess I might be one that learns the hard way! I have a hard time paying someone else to do my work for me (where qualified) and as an A&P and vintage engine restorer will probably give the Xenoah a shot. Carbs are cheap and I can make a redrive if I can't find one, the hardest part is the eccentrics for belt tension. Actually I just had a conversation with a friend and turns out he's got a MCCulloch drone engine. Now that'd be a hoot on the Drifter! 70 or 90HP at less than 100lbs and that 2-stroke snarl could be interesting. We'll see, plenty of time to mull powerplants without throwing my life savings at Rotax while I build the aircraft. ;-)

1600vw
06-21-2014, 05:13 AM
LOL guess I might be one that learns the hard way! I have a hard time paying someone else to do my work for me (where qualified) and as an A&P and vintage engine restorer will probably give the Xenoah a shot. Carbs are cheap and I can make a redrive if I can't find one, the hardest part is the eccentrics for belt tension. Actually I just had a conversation with a friend and turns out he's got a MCCulloch drone engine. Now that'd be a hoot on the Drifter! 70 or 90HP at less than 100lbs and that 2-stroke snarl could be interesting. We'll see, plenty of time to mull powerplants without throwing my life savings at Rotax while I build the aircraft. ;-)

Go for it. I myself will not fly behind anything not proven to work. To many times I have come out of the sky from a bad power plant. This buddy of mine I was speaking of built this awesome airplane, then stuck a used engine on it he did not trust. He would not fly this airplane because of the engine. He spent all this time and money building and painting this awesome airplane then skimped on the engine because it was just to much to invest in a good engine. Today he flies GA. He is building a Zenith 750 but learned a hard lesson. He installed a newly rebuilt 0-200 in that.

Rotax Rick charged me under 2 grand for my 503 DCDI with gear box. I think that was a bargain. Hard to build one any cheaper. I did trade in a seized 447 engine for this 503. Great engine Rick built me. But like my buddy, by this time I was done with two strokes. I sold the airplane shortly after the engine went on.

Tony