Outrage Hyper Rage OS90 Muffler

Written by Ashley Davis Wednesday, 02 September 2009 20:28

90 Muffler

Some time ago now Outrage released a pipe for the 50 sized engines on the market. I was lucky enough to come by one of these via Outrage-Tuning and we tested the pipe at the UK 3D Championship competition on Rob Turnbull's (competition organiser and competitor) T-Rex 600. The results were remarkable and the Outrage 50 pipe was a firm favourite with Rob for some time. More recently Outrage announced the new 90 pipe and this was somewhat more relevant for me as whilst I don't run a T-Rex 600 nitro (I prefer the electric version) I do have a 700N and was keen to give this new pipe a try.

Firstly let me say that I have until recently always run the Hatori 939 (USA name is Hatori SB18) on my OS91 HZ engine, so this new Outrage pipe would be directly compared against the Hatori for power and consistency. The tests would be performed on my 700N running with Torsion blades and using Optifuel Optimix 30%. I also run a CSM Carbsmart and CSM Revlock 30 so main needle settings will not feature heavily in this review.

Let's just back up a bit before we go running for the flight review and take a few moments to compare the hatori 939 and Outrage pipe on the bench. The Outrage pipe is certainly a more shiny and bling looking pipe, the hatori going for a more brushed aluminium look rather than the chromed Outrage pipe. The Outrage is also a fair bit smaller than the Hatori and looks compact. Those owners of the Outrage 50 pipe will remember the initial batch having baffle problems, no such issues with this new 90 pipe, the baffles are spot welded into place.

The Hatori has a vibration dampened manifold which sits on rubbers and then has internal o-rings which seal the main pipe onto the manifold. The Outrage takes a more traditional approach, the manifold welded directly onto the pipe and then the whole thing bolted to the engine.

This is where the first minor concern is raised in that the Outrage pipe is pretty solid, as is the manifold, so a crash onto the pipe itself could potentially result in crankcase damage to the engine. In contrast the Hatori is well known for folding up like a paper bag in a crash, which although might save a crankcase does leave you with an expensive pipe to replace. This would appear to be a double edged sword, do you go for a strong pipe that will survive a crash but potentially pass on crash stresses to the crankcase or alternatively go for a weak pipe that although it will save the engine will end up a crumpled wreck in even a mild whack..... food for thought. Personally I have no preference and feel you would need to be fairly unlucky to crash right on the pipe AND damage a crankcase.

Comparing weights of the pipes the Outrage is unsuprisingly heavier, it has a 1.5mm thick skin and the baffles are spot welded leading to some minor weight penalties over the Hatori. In my view it's so little (75g or so) to be of little consequence on a 90 sized machine but it is enough to warrant pointing out.

The outrage pipe comes with the usual rubber exhaust deflector which you install with a couple of tie wraps. This also has a nice exhaust stopper built into it, so you can plug the exhaust for transport.

The outrage pipe has a hole for a pressure nipple, this is included in the box and was duly installed with no issues as I do run a uniflow pressure fed system on my 700N.

One last comment regarding the outrage pipe finish, it is a chromed pipe but where the manifold is welded to the pipe the welds are not ground or finished in any way, so the chrome can look a little untidy on the main weld points. This is a minor point of course as I'm sure few of us spend time inches from the pipe inspecting the finish!

OK, so moving on to the flight review.

My expectation (given I run a Carbsmart) was that no needle settings would require adjustment. I had of course assumed that the midrange needle would be okay and as it turned out this was a wrong assumption. Midrange was slightly rich on the Outrage compared to the Hatori and required a couple of clicks to get it back on song in the mid range.

Cranking the starter motor the engine popped into a nice idle and immediately there is a slightly higher more crackly tone to the Outrage pipe when compared to the Hatori. This actually proved to be across the rev range, the Outrage has a slightly crisper / higher note to it than the Hatori pipe. Spooling up and switching to idle up the Revlock kicked in and the 700N assumed it's normal headspeed for 3D. There's a nice trail of smoke from the pipe and everything appears to be fine.

Working through my usual 3D routine I felt that top end power the Outrage probably has a little more to give than the Hatori, although without back to back flights it's difficult to say for sure, the overwhelming thing was it didn't feel down on top end power at all and I was pretty sure it had more rather than less. If you start to over pitch and go for a bog down then it does hold power but I felt it dropped off the power a little more than the Hatori would normally. Having said this when it does come off the power it isn't like a muscle pipe where all the power goes and you have to stop and regain headspeed. It bogs down but it does hold the power, albeit at a lower headspeed. So effectively you can bog it and continue whatever move you were pulling, then when you come off the collective it will recover nicely. If you manage your collective nicely though it stays really on the power and is a joy to fly.

To sum up, better top end power, bogs a little earlier than the Hatori but once bogged it does hold on to the power rather than dying.

Pros

Looks nice with the chrome finish
Small pipe and the deep manifold keeps it well away from the canopy and tank
Better top end than the Hatori
Doesn't totally die off the power when bogged
Cheap to buy in comparison to competition
50% crash replacement policy

Cons

Solid pipe, potential for crankcase damage on a hard crash on the pipe
Bogs a little earlier than the Hatori
Welds on the manifold/pipe are a little untidy
Heavier than the Hatori

Conclusion

I've always liked my Hatori 939 as it is a quality pipe and known to produce good power. The Outrage out performs the Hatori top end but bogs a little easier at the bottom end. The differences aren't massive though and so this makes the conclusion fairly easy.

Overall having flown both I'd be happy with either on my machine but the Outrage offers significantly better value for money with it's lower initial price and 50% crash replacement and therefore comes highly recommended.

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