rsquared Posted November 14, 2016 Share Posted November 14, 2016 Ok....after all the research I have done, I was confident that I could narrow down to what machine I would end up with. After 4 years of waiting until I could have enough "bugs bunny" to pursue my dreams....I knew that 2 stroke engines were not my expertise or favourite hobby at all. I really leaned towards the 4 stroke...reliable, economical,...and heavy. So now I have finally completed my PPG course, I have arranged to purchase my kit through my instructor....who I respect and actually like the guy. He suggested the Polini 130 because he uses the Polini 100 as his school machine and has had no trouble at all with it. His theory is that if a machine can withstand the abuse as a school machine....then it can withstand the use of a caring owner. Plus he can provide all parts and labour once it needs service.....hard to argue that. So my question to my fellow enthusiasts...(to put my mind at ease)...is, who else has experience with the Polini 130?....good points, bad points.....anything I need to be careful with. Much appreciation in advance for any replies....Cheers. Rsquared Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GR002 Posted November 14, 2016 Share Posted November 14, 2016 We have a Polini 100 up here in Scotland and its been very reliable and has good fuel economy. After 5 years we have only had to fit new exhaust as it cracked. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rsquared Posted November 18, 2016 Author Share Posted November 18, 2016 Many thanks for your feedback GR002.....I guess there aren't that many Polini owners out there.....Cheers. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aljken Posted November 23, 2016 Share Posted November 23, 2016 Hi RSquared, Me and my friend Martin bought polini thor 130s over 3 years ago. We both are about 70 or 75 kg body weight, and the power is just right flying 22m reflex wings. Positives: Reliable - especially given the number of hours we've both put on. Martin's exhaust cracked at about 60 hrs so he put on a new one. It sustains the revs we use flying trimmers out most of the time. Efficient enough - does over 2 hours on a full tank (I get bored and cold at 1 hour usually). Easy to fix. Walbro carb easy to change diaphragm and clean yourself. All parts easy to get hold of in UK. No engine outs...... so far. Been around a while to be low risk. The walbro carb it comes with doesn't come with a high screw (to tune high end) - you might see this as a negative, but I'm actually glad it's preset and works fine as it is without any faffing! Flash start is fantastic, easy starts. it just wears out (see negatives). Negatives: The flash starter wears out after about 2-3 years or so (depending on use). It's the plastic teeth which go, and costs about £5 and 30-45 mins to change them. Slightly oil stained around exhaust to cylinder join (apparently this is common). It doesn't affect performance. A paramotorist I once met said Polini have a reputation for this - I don't know though. The crank shaft bearing had to be changed to a stronger version - compared to the initial one it came with on my engine ( I have one of the original 130 engines). I think the new engines come with the new strong crank shaft bearing though - you would want to check this though. I flew mine for well over a year with the old bearing and nothing went wrong, but it's not worth risking it. Polini customer support is rubbish apparently (See the problems that the thor 200 had). I'm not saying that your local dealer isn't any good, it's the customer support from Italy which is apparently rubbish. I fortunately haven't had to contact them and the thor 130 has seemed to be reliable. Going back both me and my friend would have definitely bought the 130 again. We took a risk when it first came out as it was a brand new model, but it seems to have turned out to be a reliable model with few issues. Now it's been around a while I think it's been well tested and seems reliable. Hope this helps. 2 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rsquared Posted November 24, 2016 Author Share Posted November 24, 2016 aljken......Thank you so much for your time in answering my query. I am not that mechanically apt, but you have put my mind at ease. I am 85kg body weight and will be getting the Dudek Nucleon XX 24.....so hopefully should be plenty of power for me. Cheers. 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nabam Posted November 25, 2016 Share Posted November 25, 2016 Flying a Polini Thor 130 as my first footlaunch machine.Used to fly a trike with Simonini mini 3 engine.Still do.11 hours on the polini and no issues whatsoever yet.Touchwood!!A sweet little motor.I find the Vibration n sound is next to nothing,especially after flying the 270 cc mini 3..lol 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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