|
|
From the Editor – February 2025
Like many others in Canada and elsewhere, I’m watching the display of sabre-rattling, aggressive hostility and naked intolerance currently emanating from the “New US” with growing dismay. When governments begin to overtly threaten other nations who are long-time friends, allies and trading partners, seemingly with the support of many American citizens whom we’ve always seen as friends and welcomed to our countries and our homes, it’s definitely unsettling for those (like me and many of my non-American friends) in the firing line. Behaving like an adolescent and insecure schoolyard bully is no way to make any country great again! Seeing a Nazi salute at the inauguration did nothing to ease our fears …………… our fathers and grandfathers fought and died standing shoulder to shoulder with their American comrades against those ideals 80 years ago .............what happened?!? Closer to home, the medical issues which have dominated my life for the past year or more appear to have been dealt with very effectively, at least for now. My latest post-surgery scans and tests showed nothing untoward. I’m told that the 5-year survival rate for people who have undergone successful surgery for the type of tumor that I had is around 93%, so the odds look pretty good! I’m pretty much back to normal at this point, the one difference being that my capacity for food at a single sitting has diminished somewhat – perhaps not a bad thing! I was warned that this would happen, since my stomach is now slightly smaller. To compensate to some extent, the gastronomic appeal of food in general is also a bit depressed – appetite suppression is an anticipated side effect of the anti-cancer medication that I have to keep taking for almost another 3 years to minimize the chance of a recurrence. That medication also results in a pretty crook immune system, so I have to remain vigilant against infections. But otherwise, life is pretty much back to normal, for which I’m deeply thankful. Onwards and upwards!! I hope to resume testing soon once the weather warms up a little! As many of you will be aware, most of the stuff that I put up here is intended solely for the entertainment or enlightenment of my readers, to be read or not as they see fit. However, once in a while something crops up that I really think all of you should read. This stems from a recent bad experience with eBay’s Global Shipping Program (GSP), which I find that an increasing number of sellers are now using. Please read on.... it's in your best interests to do so!
Imagine my chagrin (and that of the seller) when I subsequently received the following message from eBay: “We are writing to inform you that your recent purchase through the Global Shipping Program cannot be completed. The item in question has been deemed restricted. This could be due to import/shipping restrictions or eligibility requirements within the Global Shipping Program. The item will not be shipped to you nor returned to your seller (my emphasis). Don’t worry! Your full refund will be processed back to the original payment method within 72 hours. You may notice two separate refunds: a refund for the item, and a refund for the shipping and import costs. No further action is needed". In other words, the GSP hijacked the shipment and kept it! My money was refunded, and the seller was able to keep my payment, so no-one was harmed financially – I guess the GSP ended up owning the items. But that’s hardly the point, is it? This was a transaction between model engine enthusiasts who knew each other and shared a mutually-desired outcome – that I (and no-one else, certainly not the GSP!) would end up with these engines. Now the engines have disappeared into the GSP, presumable to be either kept by some unknown individual or sold to whoever. The entire transaction has been hijacked!
It turns out that this issue is pretty chronic with the GSP, and not just for model engines. Most frustratingly, the restrictions are not applied consistently - many shipments sent through GSP go through just fine. It seems to be a periodic issue, hence highly unpredictable. Instances are more prevalent with goods destined for certain countries than for others, but no destination country seems to be immune. Check out this thread for a very informative discussion of this issue. As far as I’m concerned, this all means that using the GSP by any seller of model engines who is willing to ship internationally is more than a little chancy. In future, I'll be stating my preference for the use of an alternative service, even if it costs more. How many engines can we afford to have hijacked in this way?!?
In common with many interest groups in the hands-on modelling movement, AMRCA membership has declined in recent years. Could the electric take-over have anything to do with this?!? Regardless, a decline in any branch of the hobby is not a good thing for any of us - such declines can have a synergistic effect. For hands-on craftsmanship-based modelling to survive, we have to support each other! Speaking personally, although being primarily a lifelong aeromodeller, I’ve always found tethered car (and hydroplane) racing to be a fascinating aspect of people’s involvement with modelling and model I/C engines. If I had lived in areas in which opportunities to run such models existed, I have no doubt at all that I’d have been a participant!
Accordingly, I’d urge any of you who have even a peripheral interest in tethered car racing to consider supporting AMRCA by becoming a member, as I have done myself. Even if like me you have no local opportunity to run these fascinating little technological marvels, your membership will both sustain the organization and keep you up to date on what’s happening in the world of tethered car racing! The organization offers a range of membership categories from US$60 for a full one-year US Membership through a US$30 Associate Membership to a US$35 Foreign Membership. There’s a category for everyone, wherever you live and regardless of your level of involvement! If interested, go to AMRCA’s website through the link provided.
It is Peter’s intention to create a second edition of René's book with both German and English text. I will be serving as Editor of the English text, a task to which I look forward with great enthusiasm! I’m posting this information here for two reasons. Firstly, this will be a very limited-edition publication which will quickly acquire an elevated collector status. This being the case, Peter needs to get a handle on the level of interest among my readers in supporting such a project through purchase so that he can set the printing run size and the price per copy accordingly. If you foresee yourself being interested in acquiring a copy when available, please let me know. My own hand is up!!
Accordingly, if you have an original Dyno (copies and replicas are very common), it would be very much appreciated if you could provide me with its serial number. The original units display their serial numbers stamped neatly onto the lower front face of the crankcase, as seen in the accompanying images. If you are able to assist in this effort, it would be extremely helpful if you could also provide side and front views of your engine(s), since there are a number of variations which should if possible be tied in to the serial number sequence. For instance, some examples have a "bridge" above the top of the exhaust opening in the central block, giving the opening an oval shape (see attached images), while others have the top of the central block milled lower, thus eliminating the bridge and opening the top of the exhaust aperture in the central block. Any such assistance will be greatly appreciated!
The other Japanese series to receive attention this month is the succession of Enya .06 cuin. (1 cc) diesel (and glow-plug) models offered by the famous Tokyo company. These very useful little engines were the first Enya models not to be designed primarily by Saburo Enya – rather, they were designed by Saburo’s younger brother Yoshiro, presumably under Saburo’s oversight. Their design stood in stark contrast to the larger Enya The above articles were to have been my additions to the website for this month. However, as so often happens, a few good friends put in a lot of effort to create another article for inclusion. My valued mates Maris Dislers of Australia and Peter Valicek of the Netherlands put their heads together with a few others to come up with a very interesting review of the Jaguar engines from 1950’s/1960’s West Germany. These engines replaced the earlier RGU Universa sideport diesel which was the Jaguar manufacturers’ initial market entry, as described in a previous article. They constituted perhaps the most successful second-tier German range behind Webra and Taifun. Their story is well worth recording – thanks, guys!! That’s about it for this month, fellow enthusiasts. All being well, I plan on returning in March with a few more reviews for your reading pleasure. In the meantime, I really appreciate all the expressions of support that I’ve continued to receive from so many of you! Adrian Duncan British Columbia, Canada ___________________________________ Note regarding material to be found on this site - unless specifically otherwise noted, all images and text which appear on this site are my own work, and I hereby assert my right to be recognized as the originator of this material. For the record, this material is made freely available to all upon two firm conditions:
|
Greetings to one and all, and a belated Happy New Year! Well, happy for some. I'd like to express my deepest sympathy for those of my readers caught up in the disastrous fire situation in California and the anomalous snowfall event in the South-East US. I feel for those at risk from similar situations in the future, particularly since climate change has now been removed from the US agenda, making further such situations inevitable. A new Golden Age?!? For these folks and for the rest of us, it's a new Dark Age............... 
I recently won auctions for three collectible engines being offered by a highly reputable English seller with whom I'd dealt previously and who offered worldwide combined shipping through the GSP. I paid up, and the seller sent the engines on their way. The GSP accepted the shipment without comment.
Being mightily pissed off, I did some research on this issue. I began by checking eBay’s 
As it is, regular readers of this website will be well aware that quite a few of the engine articles to be found here touch upon the sports of tethered car and hydroplane racing to varying degrees. I’ve also been quite consistent in directing my readers’ attention to the outstanding 
Changing topics, I also heard from my good mate Peter Valicek, who had news of a very exciting project. Through contact with a number of friends in Switzerland, Peter has become privy to an amazing amount of authoritative first-hand information on the start-to-finish history of the iconic Dyno diesel engines from WW2-era Switzerland. His Swiss friend René Biber has assembled this information into a very limited edition German-language book. I’ve seen a sample, and with the remarkable illustrations now available this will be an essential reference for anyone interested in the early development of the model diesel engine. Much of this information has never been chronicled previously. 
Secondly, Peter and his colleagues are very keen to improve their current estimate of the total number of engines produced in the Dyno series. They have some serial numbers, but could really use more to add authority to present estimates. Current indications are that total production may have reached 3,000 units, but more serial numbers are needed to confirm or refute this.
We continue with evaluations of two of the more iconic ranges to emerge from Japan during the classic era. The first such article deals with the corporate history of the 
Fujis
designs developed by Saburo Enya. As you’ll learn, they represented the Enya marque very well in the small-displacement category.| |