HEEEEEEE Hawwwwwwww

[Goinav8n]

Well I got to go out and do the Maiden on my new Xperince Pro Full Carbon sailplane this afternoon. I did a couple of hand tosses and then set up the hose monster. It went straight up. First flight was short as I didnt pull back to hard for the first flight. But the second was 7+ mins. I need to take a little weight out of the nose. I balanced it at 104 mm and its a little nose heavy for my liking.

On the 4th flight after about 5 mins I was doing a dive test and just checking the controls. The plane started acting a little weird. It just skidded acoss the sky. On the turn I saw the rudder was full right. The servo had locked full over. It wasnt a big deal I just slipped it in and no harm done. Im just glad it was on the rudder. Its a DS 368 and its new so I was surprised this happened. Back to JR in the Morning.

Here are a few pics

Jeff

Oh 74 oz !!

[Chipwillis]

Congrats!

I maidened the Shadow today also! I didn't have any blue sky at all, and there was about zero lift.

Plane flies great though. I gotta get my Xpro together now.

Chip

[Chipwillis]

74 oz!

I hope mine comes in that light ( full carbon ). Actually, I will be happy if it is 80oz!

The wing is a thing of beauty!

I am glad I got rid of my Supra, this and the Shadow are much prettier airplanes and that is what does it for me.

Chip

[Gldrpilot]

Congrats Jeff!! Let us know more once you get that rudder servo fixed and you get more flight time on the XPro!

Looks great!!

Chris Keller

[Bro]

Jeff;
nice!!

Happy Holidays!
Bob

[OVSS Boss]

Jeff,
Wierd idea, but are you sure it was the servo, I have hung a wiper on a the rudder of a Pike superior and it can happen and give all kinds of wierd feelings. Just a thought before you send it in.

Congrats on the new ship!

Marc

[davidjensen]

Nice new Xperience! Keep us up to date on what you think of the new ship. I hope to get mine out on the wing again soon.

[tigroot]

Congrats on the maiden Jeff!
Bob

[Goinav8n]

Marc

Its the servo as It unfroze when there was no power but then froze again when the power was added. That time it was in the center position.

It was a great mild day. Its been over a month since I have flown so it was just good to get out. Russ one of the guys Im trying to convert from power was out and he flew his Gambler and I gave him stick time on my XP-4. He launches very good. The lift was tight and light but was workable. We were out until about 4:00 pm. It was a great way to spend the afternoon

Jeff

[davidjensen]

You guys are killing me :( . I havent flown my Xperience for 4 weeks. The week before X-Mas we had the big blow here in the NW which took out our power for a whole week :mad: I just got back from a week with the inlaws :( and now the temp outside is about 38 degrees with a trace of snow on the ground. :mad: I'm afraid to look at the weather forcast for the weekend.

[Fred Cotten]

Jeff, keep this away from B. Coleman. Just make him stand back and wish he had one Fred

[Goinav8n]

Hi Fred

Actually I have a Xperince Pro that I am going to sell Yellow with Blue. One of the guys decided he didnt want it so Im giving Bernie first shot. Its a D-Box X=tail. Its his favorite colors so maybe he will get it. If not Im sure someone will

Jeff

[Fred Cotten]

Jeff, Coleman will be home today, from the windy city. Thats is his COLOR. I will have fun with him. He has been telling me albout that plane. We have him now. Fred

[davidjensen]

The sun made a repeat appearence today and I got to go fly for a couple hours. No real lift, a 3mph wind from the south and I had to use my hi-start. I did get the CG set very close to where I like it. The wing is very sensitive to CG. I had the CG at 104 and there was some pull out in a dive and it was mushing a little. I pulled out less than 1/4 oz and it made a huge difference. A nice 500+' radius pull out in a dive with a clean trailing edge and with reflex it's almost dead straight. I need to measure the CG to record the location. This was my first flight with the JR 790 receiver in PCM mode and had no radio issues with the 60" antenna. I played a lot with the flaps and proper deployment to control glide angle and I felt much better with the control level even in almost dead calm air. I even had my first hand catches so my comfort level is getting better. Now that I had my fix I'm good for another week.

[Goinav8n]

I got to go out today and really got to fly the XPro. Im starting to get used to its flight characteristics. I was flying off the Zip start. The first launch and flight was 20+ mins. Long enough I let my Buddy Bernie Coleman at the controls for at least half of the flight. I flew it around getting low and finding light loft and then working it up. I still need to work the camber a little to get it right.

Im flying it with full trailing ailerons. Its very responsive. What is everyone else doing?? I dont couple rudder as I know how to use my left thumb 8-).

When it high I like the rudder to be controlled by me. I feel I have better control. The flap elvator comp still needs work. The nose comes up pretty high on the first drop of the flaps.

I did 4 launches that were OK but popped off the line early. No lift so they were landing practise flights. On the 5th flight I hooked a small light thermal and worked it downwind as far as I could see it. It was low over the trees. It was a good flight as it showed it could move back up wing towards me with very little reflex. There wasnt much wind but the alt. loss was minimal.

I even got to fly Bernies 2 AVA's he did over 2 hours on the E-AVA.

Overall a good day. Hey it was better than work. I flew the XP-5 a few times too. It was 63 degrees here today. Im liking Jan. pretty good at this point.

Jeff

[Jurgen]

Thanks Jeff for many flight reports, let them come, i value "fly threads" over "build threads" when one knows how to build.
Jurgen.

[davidjensen]

One of my flight modes (cruise) couples the flaps with the ailerons. I get a roll rate of about 270 degrees/second when flying at moderately high speed. Nice when you consider the wing span. For thermal flying my flaps stay fixed except for camber and reflex. I find the need for opposite aileron in a turn is minimal unless you get going to slow turning off the wind. I use aileron to rudder mix but still start most turns with the rudder and keep feeding rudder to ballance the turn. The addition of some rudder mix helps to keep the ship in a straight line when rolling the ship quickly using full aileron. I do find the Xperience does slide a little more than my Esprit and the rudder is not as sensative as the v-tail Esprit. The rudder on the Xpro is more forcefull at full deflection but produces a slide where the Esprit banks the wing more with full rudder. Another thing I've noticed is the amount of launch flaps needed for hi-starts. If I add more than about 4mm of flaps (measured at the center of the wing) in calm conditions the ship will stall on the way up. I can't wait to get this ship on a strong winch. I think the zooms are going to be spectacular.

[Jim Frahm]

David,

Enjoying the weather???? I have three new planes waiting for their first flights. Don't you just love the PNW? Let me know when your heading out to Redman and I'll drop what I'm doing and meet you there. My new Espada RL is ready to go along with a new Pike Perfect and I just started on the Shadow v-tail. Jim

Hey Jeff,

My Xperience Pro v-tail weights in at 72oz. 74oz with a cross tail is pretty good.

Jim

[davidjensen]

Jim

Why yes we are enjoying the weather :mad: We went to Discovery yesterday and didn't even get out of the car. It was honkin and the level of carnage was something I can do with out right now. 3 new ships? WOW :) If you are on the SASS yahoo group you can get a better idea if any flying is happening at 60 acres. I'll let you know the next time I get out there. I just hope someone has a winch next time. We all want to know your flight impressions of the 3 new ships.

[Jim Frahm]

Jim

I just hope someone has a winch next time. We all want to know your flight impressions of the 3 new ships.

I'll bring my winch and give you a flight report on all three.

Jim

[davidjensen]

I like your thinking. :cool:

[G Oakey]

Keep a close eye on that Coleman character!

You know he has to have a plane that is yellow and blue (will remind him of his old Windsong).

George

DESS
Greenville, NC

[Goinav8n]

Hi George

I tempted him with it but he went and bought himself a new Shadow X-Tail. Im building a wiring harness now. Now I just need to see if I can beat him.

Jeff

[Fred Cotten]

Jeff, the way you beat Coleman, is to not let him use his seeing eye dog when he flys. Thats how we do it down here. Fred

[Goinav8n]

I just figured I would trip him on the way out to the line. 8-). Its good to practice with him. He is good competion. Something I really enjoy. Im just now starting to get the calander lined up for the contest season. I just want to practice more. Last year was a year I didnt get to fly hardly at all

Jeff

[Jim Frahm]

Jeff,

I just finished the Shadow tonight. AUW is 72oz with a CG of 101. Thanks again for selling me the plane.

Jim

[Wing-span]

You guys seem to be getting a lot of flying in.

The weather over here in England is crazy. Too windy nearly every weekend!

I last flew my Xpce Pro V last week so I need to read of your flying exploits to get me through the days

[davidjensen]

It was a good day.

[Wing-span]

She holds knife-edge flight really well. Hardly any rudder! :p

[Jim Frahm]

David,

Actually it was two good days! I was able to fly Sat and Sun. Sat I used the super duper high-start and Sun I used the winch. The first launch with the Perfect pulled the turn-around out of the ground. That's a first for me. After that I launched without launch flaps.

Happy flying everyone,
Jim

[Gldrpilot]

Alright Jim,

Now you have all 4 (Perfect, Espada RL, Shadow, & Xeperience Pro) of the hottest planes out there :P
Which one do you prefer?? How's the Shadow compare with the other three? I'll bet alot of other pilots want to hear your impressions of all of them.

Chris

[davidjensen]

Yeh what he said :D

[Jim Frahm]

Okay guys!

I would love to be able to tell you all the scientific stuff about each one, but I’m just not that smart. Heck, I buy a plane because it looks cool. I prefer a cross tail over a v-tail because it’s easier to pack, not because one is better than the other.

What I can do is give it to you in layman’s terms.

The Espada RL has the widest speed range of anything I’ve flown to date. Its light, gives good feedback in lift, and it looks cool. You know you’re in lift when you’re able to circle slowly and flat, you know you’re out of the lift when it stalls in the same type of turn. But, it’ll pick up speed quick so you don’t lose too much altitude after a stall. Launching is straight and strong. My setup is straight from Skip Miller’s web page. Thanks Skip!

The Shadow flies a lot like the Xperience Pro. My X Pro and Shadow are both v-tails. I wanted a cross tail, but Jeff didn’t have one at the time. I may purchase a cross tail fuse from Soaring USA just to compare the same plane with different fuselages. I can’t add much more info on the Shadow because I need more time with the setup. I think the CG was too far forward. I currently have it at 102 and I plan to move it back to 106. I didn’t have to add any weight to the nose to achieve 102mm. I’ll move the receiver back or add a couple of grams to the tail just to check it next time.

The Perfect is the perfect name for this plane. . Everything about this plane is easy, launching, flying, landing, thermals, it’s all easy. If a plane is easy to fly, then that builds confidence and confidence can give you wings…. I easily flew 10 minutes without knowing it. I’ve flown other planes during a 10 minute task and it felt like hours. That’s what I mean by easy. It launches very strong. I broke the winch line twice and pulled the turn-around out of the ground once. I ended up with 0% on my launch setting just to reduce the strain on the launch equipment. Oh yeah, it looks cool too.

If I had to pick just one plane……. Wait, I’m lucky enough not to have to choose just one. My wife is the greatest.

The best part; all 4 planes are winners. The fit and finish on the Espada and Perfect is a little better than the Shadow and X Pro and the price reflects it. The only thing I would change on the X Pro and Shadow is the wing to fuse wiring connection. The recessed plug should be in the fuse, not the wing. With the recess in the wing, you have almost zero room for the wiring.

Do like I do, buy the cool one!

Hope this helps,
Jim

[Freakflyin]

Alright Jim,

Now you have all 4 (Perfect, Espada RL, Shadow, & Xeperience Pro) of the hottest planes out there :P
Which one do you prefer?? How's the Shadow compare with the other three? I'll bet alot of other pilots want to hear your impressions of all of them.

Chris

There's also an Onyx LT leaning in the corner he's gonna check out too... %^)

[davidjensen]

Some guy's have all the fun. :cool:

[Freakflyin]

Some guy's have all the fun. :cool:

David, Are you gonna make the SWC?

[Jim Frahm]

David, Are you gonna make the SWC?


Freakflyin,

Did you fly your light green Onyx at the SWC/F3J warm-up last year? If so, we talked about your plane at the event.

I'm arriving on the 8th and hope to fly on the 9th. I'm lucky my parents live in Casa Granda.

Jim

[Freakflyin]

Freakflyin,

Did you fly your light green Onyx at the SWC/F3J warm-up last year? If so, we talked about your plane at the event.

I'm arriving on the 8th and hope to fly on the 9th. I'm lucky my parents live in Casa Granda.

Jim

No Jim, that wasn't me...(I bought mine last August) but I'm sure looking forward to talking about them at this one! I unfortunately have to work that Friday. The price I paid to have the entire weekend off for the event...

Mike

[davidjensen]

Mike

No I will not make the SWC this year. I do plan on making Visalia

[Goinav8n]

I got out and flew off a winch for the first time with the Xpro. The wind was around 5-8 mph and about 85 degrees. Man was it nice out. I went out with Bernie Coleman who had his new Shadow out. We both have green planes. I got to fly his Shadow also. I did about 5 mins at about 200 feet working real light lift. It turns nice and tight. Since Its not my plane I worked the lift without camber. Low I didnt want to hurt his new plane.

Both of these planes fly alike. On our last flight at 4 pm we decided one last launch and we will pack up. I launched into a boomer thermal. 3 mins later Bernie joined into the same thermal. This gave us both time to test the flap setups and have some fun. I found that I need a bunch more down elevator with full flaps deployed. It just wouldnt nose over. reflex was good about 2mm on the entire wing trailing edge and it scoots right along. My dive test showed Im a little tail heavy but I like it this way. My flight with all the goofing off was 27 mins. Not bad for the last flight of the day and looping rolling flying inverted. It was fun.

I learned that this sailplane needs to fly faster than my Xtreme. I was trying to fly it to slow. Its nice getting some stick time on this plane. It launches very nice and has good zooms. It didnt bend as I never let off the foot pedel. Mine is full carbon. Bernies Shadow didnt bend either so it has a good strong wing.

One of the fuse differences I see is the tail on the Shadow is cut all the way to the top of the fin. The hinge is the full lenght of the tail. The Xpro isnt. This and the fact the wing saddle is different because of the airfoil seem to be the only difference.

I have a lighter Xpro a D-Box one I am just finishing up. Im not sure Ill keep it or not but I will not be able to complete my scrach built plane for the flying season. Just linkages are left and its done.

I really like the way it handles. It reads lift very nice. and will turn very tight. After flying V-Tails for 6 years its different flying the X-Tail. I also broke down and got glasses. Its amazing to see the sailplane. During the last team trials I lost my plane because of the extreme distances everyone was flying at. Denial is by the way side. Keeping it in site is a good feeling
8-)

Jeff

[davidjensen]

Great to hear you like the MIBO. We are going back to Eagle tomorrow. I'm taking the XPro and may get to fully ballast it. The winds are predicted to be 30 to 50 mph. If they are 30 I'll go for it but not at 50. I reserve that for the CA Sloper at 29 oz/ft.

[davidjensen]

What another great day in Mecca. The winds were 20 to 40 mph and I put all the led I could stuff into the Xpro (25+oz). It was a blast. It is fast without being scarry fast. This thing turns on a dime and I did flex the wing. It seams to flex much easier with negative G's than Positive G's. I was able on 2 occations to remove the 5 degreees of dihedral from the wing. The amount of positive G flex was minor. I truly think the Xpro is one of the finest all around high end gliders on the market.