Information on Cox Model Airplane Engines
Cox Model engines were manufactured for over 50 years and were in many respects the yardstick against which other remote-control (RC) engines were measured. Leroy Cox created some of the most popular and reliable RC engines and was a constant innovator in the field. The Bee and Tee Dee engines were considered the best engines for competitive racing by RC enthusiasts.
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Cox Engines
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Cox Model engines have been used to power model airplanes, boats and cars since 1945. The original company L.M. Cox Manufacturing Co Inc was in business from 1945 to 1996. During that time they produced millions of 1/2A Class 0.049-cubic-inch engines, which became the standard for model airplanes. Cox went through a number of name changes, was sold to Estes Industries in 1996 and moved to Colorado.
Brief History of the Company
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Leroy Cox started his company in his garage in 1945. In 1949 he developed his own engine named the O Forty Five because it was .045 cubic inch engine. In 1950 Cox began producing a model airplane engine called The Space Bug.
Cox's first RTF (ready to fly) airplane went on sale in 1952. The Babe Bee, Cox's next generation engine was developed in 1956 and its advanced design and low price made it a hit. In 1960 a Cox engineer named Bill Atwood created the Tee Dee and Medallion engines lines.
In 1969, Leroy Cox, suffering from health problems, sold his company to Leisure Dynamics, which ran the company until 1980 when they went bankrupt. The company was purchased out of bankruptcy and sold to Estes Industries.
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Space Bug and Bee Engines
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Cox produced many different type of engines during its long history. A detailed description of these engines is beyond the scope of this article but a quick breakdown of the major engine types would start with the 1949 O Forty-Five. The first engine developed by Cox, it is considered an engineering breakthrough for its time.
In 1952 Cox released the Space Bug, the first engine built entirely by Cox and used mainly for control line flying. The Bee engines, introduced in 1956, stayed in production until 1996. This next-generation engine was a breakout product that set the standard in model airplane engines. The Babe Bee was the standard and the many variations developed during its history included some high-performance racing Bees.
Tee Dees and Medallions
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The Tee Dee engines, designed by Bill Atwood, hit stores in 1960. By far Cox's best-selling and most famous engines, Tee Dees stayed in production until 1996 and over the years became the most popular engine in competitive RC racing. The less expensive and less popular Medallion line of engines were basically Tee Dees made with cheaper parts. While reliable, their performance did not match that of the Tee Dees.
End of an Era
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Estes Industries operated Cox from 1996 to February 2009. Over the years it slowly withdrew many of its product offerings and did not release any new engines or products. In February 2009 Estes shuttered the Cox division and sold all remaining inventory to Bernie & Xena, a private company in Canada that sells the inventory through its website and eBay.
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