The Killer Bee Family

Killer Bee 049.jpg (14016 Byte) Killer Bee .049 (0.8 cm³)
Manufactured in 1996(?) (#340)

Advertised as a high performance competition engine, this engine is also available with a displacement of .051 cubic inches. The cylinder has the double slotted exhaust ports of the Texaco and Babe Bee. The needle extension of this run of Killer Bees was made from a piece of plastic tube. This was lightweight, cheap and reduced vibration loads on the needle thread.

Wow, a real Killer! Killer Bee .051 (0.8 cm³)
Manufactured in 1997 (#360)

The larger brother of the .049 Killer Bee came also without a mesh screen on the intake to improve performance. Both Killer Bees have the old style spring starter, which completely disengages to avoid friction losses. The two models differ in cylinder/piston and back plate only.

The two .049 engines shown above are both sold as under the name Killer Bee. Careful inspections shows some differences, though.

Both engines have a sub induction cylinder, which means that the upper slow works as an exhaust slot and the lower slots are open at top dead center to draw some cool air into the crankcase. So the fuel air mixture coming through the carburetor (with narrow passages and associated pressure loss) can be rich and additional fresh air is sucked in through the open slots which have a lower flow resistance. This is why sub induction engines do not work well with a muffler or inside a cowling - they start to breath their own exhaust gases.

The initial production of the Killer Bee used gold anodized crankcase and a plastic needle extension whereas the later models came with a plain anodized crankcase and the standard needle valve having a black plastic cap.

Another difference is the material of the reed valve: the older engine has a transparent plastic reed while the later engine has a steel reed valve. In both cases the plastic reed retainer is used.

The main difference between the two engines can be seen here. The early engine has a crankshaft with a completely different web style. It has been cut to improve the balancing and the crank pin has been drilled to remove unnecessary weight. Additionally the piston has been made thinner and thus lighter than a standard piston.

The later Estes engine came with a standard Babe Bee type crankshaft without these improvements. I have not checked the piston, but I doubt whether it includes the improvements. So it seems more close to a basic Babe Bee with a sub induction cylinder and a different propeller drive washer and spring starter.

Last modification of this page: 21.05.18

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