Getting Spirit 2M better

[Emilio Eduardo]

Hello Everbody!

Well... I'm planning to make a thermal sailplane.. but i have some questions.. I'll probably make something like a Spirit 2M but i wanna get it better, i've heard many people saying that it has a short tail and a sensitive nose.. so i need to change it..

All right.. here there is a better explanation, I want to modify the Spirit in it's worst parts. And.. i need yours suggestions, where, how, what kind of wood, everything!

Thank you!!

Post Scriptum: I've chosen the profile (is that the word in english that means the format of the wing?), it will be the Ag36. Obviously the wingspan will have 2meters.. but.. the wing will be separated in 4 parts(Mid section and lateral sections) , just like this:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/_eMiliO_/Planador/Asa.jpg

I have some questions now, how much dihedral? Is the wing with (Para os brasileiros, me ajudem com esta palavra, enflechamento) much better than the wing without it? I'm asking that because i don't know if it is very much harder to make the wing with it...

And.. excuse me if there is something wrong, you may have realized that i'm brasilian and i don't have much experience with english. So, if there is a error inform me and it'll not happen again and... I'll learn more about this language :D


Thanks again...

[John Gallagher]

Before you start, take a look at the charles river site article.

http://www.charlesriverrc.org/articles/kitmods/dickwilliamson_gpspiritmods.htm

[Emilio Eduardo]

Thank you man!!
It helped me lot!!!

So, here is the actual list of modificantions:

-Changing the CG position
-Modifying the decalage/incidence
-Getting the fin and rudders biggers
-Making wings strongers
-Creating a nose with less damage in crashes
-Putting the tow hook in another position
-Changin some fuselage's dimensions to acomodate the standard servos on the nose
-AG36 Profile
-Inserting Ailerons on the wings' outer panels
-Covering all the wings with balsa of 1/32"

And... I think everyone has ideas!! just talk to me and.. I'll think about it :D hehehe
Oh.. if somebody could explain to me how i can make the (stringers?) on the wing.. i think something like two of them in the same distance from the Edges, each one on the extremitys, you can see it on the image:

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/_eMiliO_/Planador/Perfil.jpg

So... Thanx!!!

Everyday i enter on this forum i see that i have a lot to learn here!!

[FrogChief]

Hello Everbody!

...


And.. excuse me if there is something wrong, you may have realized that i'm brasilian and i don't have much experience with english. So, if there is a error inform me and it'll not happen again and... I'll learn more about this language :D


Thanks again...


Emilio,

Your English is 1000% better than my Portuguese. ;)

Also...If you haven't gotten the Spirit yet, may I suggest a couple of MUCH nicer flying 2 meter sailplanes:

http://www.mmglidertech.com/grandillusion.html

http://www.djaerotech.com/dj_product/chrysalis2m.html

[Emilio Eduardo]

Oh man!! thank you!! i'll take a look on (i use on with this verb?) it later because i'm gonna work!.

I'm studying some things here about the plane, as soon as possible i'll buy the woods than the construction will start :D. Probably i'll take a lot of photos and all the construction will be posted here... So.. wait for me that it's gonna be very beautiful i think!!

Thank you man.. and thanks to everyone!!

Please go on helping me.. With you the plane will just be better!!

Post Scriptum: Oh man.. and i have one more thing to say, please study this beautiful language that is the Portuguese, I think you'll love it, just like I loved to learn English and French..

Edit Again...

So frogChief.. I've entered those sites you'v sent me.. but.. None of them satisfied me. I think I'll continue with the spirit modification, because it'll be very, very modificated.

And for everyone.. I'll mantain a list with the modifications on the first page, second post.

[FrogChief]

Oh man!! thank you!! i'll take a look on (i use on with this verb?) it later because i'm gonna work!.

I'm studying some things here about the plane, as soon as possible i'll buy the woods than the construction will start :D. Probably i'll take a lot of photos and all the construction will be posted here... So.. wait for me that it's gonna be very beautiful i think!!

Thank you man.. and thanks to everyone!!

Please go on helping me.. With you the plane will just be better!!

Post Scriptum: Oh man.. and i have one more thing to say, please study this beautiful language that is the Portuguese, I think you'll love it, just like I loved to learn English and French..

Edit Again...

So frogChief.. I've entered those sites you'v sent me.. but.. None of them satisfied me. I think I'll continue with the spirit modification, because it'll be very, very modificated.

And for everyone.. I'll mantain a list with the modifications on the first page, second post.


Well good luck with the Spirit my friend. We'll help you with ANY questions you may have. :)

-Sean from the USA :D

[Fred_L]

I've built two rudder-elevator Spirits. Neither have spoilers.

On the second one that I built I did the CRRC modifications plus a few of my own. From memory I don't think CRRC said that the the standard Spirit stabiliser is too small, it is the fin that is too small. CRRC I think recommends making it 25% or 50% larger (I cant remember exactly which). I made my stabiliser removable for easy transport and so I needed to make up an entirely new fin. The fin is larger, the rudder is larger and it has a vertical hinge line so I can access the screws that hold the stabiliser on.

I also don't think CRRC recommends full sheeting of the wing, just top sheeting, back to the spar, on the outer panels to stop covering sag, preserve the aerofoil profile shape and help prevent tip stalling. I also did a full D-box sheeting construction on the inner panels to give greater torsional stiffness. I used Sullivan golden rods rather than the balsa stick pushrod. The balsa stick technique looked primitive to me but the Sullivan golden rods do change length significantly with temperature. I am constantly doing trim adjustments during a flight as the rods cool down and then later, when the aircraft has warmed up on the ground, I have to check that everything is aligned before launching.

The other modification I would recommend is to relocate the wing hold down dowels. In standard configuration they, and the elastic bands, stick out into the airflow at the crucial wing-fuselage junction. They must be creating a ton of drag out there. I moved the dowels inboard and aligned them fore-aft. You need to cut holes in the rear deck behind the wing trailing edge to get the rubber bands in there and if you are really fastidious you could put tape over the hole after assembling the aircraft.

Really, unless you are using full size servos, the fuselage is rather large - in fact it is cavernous. You could take some of the height and width out of it.

In the end the Spirit is a nice docile slow flying sailplane.

F

[Emilio Eduardo]

Yeah, you're right.. I've changed.. It's not the stabilizer that is too much small... it's the fin... I think the fin is the mobile (is this the word?) part of the hotizontal stabilizer right, because that's the thing i wanted to get larger.. And the rudder will be built larger too (Rudder is the vertical moveable part right?).

Well.. I'll sheet the wing because I don't want to use monokote and everything else.. and i don't have the iron to do that.. I think it'll help about torsional stiffness so.. to try to reduce the weight I'll do the wing just like that image on my 2º post here. Next to the Attack stringer and the Back Stringer I think it'll be very resistant! Oh, I remebered a question.. Those stringers should be done with ply wood? (Para os brasileiros.. este é o nome pras varetas de cedro e tal?)

I've not understood the part about the golden rods and balsa stick pushrod, I guess it is something about linking the servos with balsa or steel handles. After it I understood, about the temperature that changes the lenght of the handles.

The third modification i think it is something about changing the way how the wings are holding the fuse. Well.. I saw something about this in a Brasilian Forum where the guy used some plastic screws and it worked fine, with less weight than the elastic bands...

And about the fuselage size, I'll make it a few larger because , how you've said I'll use standard servos and to try to make putting the CG on the right place I need to take them to the front!!

Thank you man!! now I'm gonna correct that on the 2nd post.

[Emilio Eduardo]

Well, the wing plan's are done. They'll be ploted on monday and the wing assembly will be done on wednesday probably. So updating, here it is.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/_eMiliO_/Planador/WingsProfile.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/_eMiliO_/Planador/WingsAssembly.jpg

[rcastro]

Hello, here are some improvements for the Great Planes spirit 2m, such as wing sheeting and electric conversion with lots of pictures: http://spirit2m.blogspot.com

Hope it helps.

[Ricardo RW]

Hi Emilio,

Do you have any advance in your building? Please show us how is it going.

Saludos.

[rcairnut]

Emilio are you going to use Plywood for your Spars or am I looking at his wrong?

Rodney

Well, the wing plan's are done. They'll be ploted on monday and the wing assembly will be done on wednesday probably. So updating, here it is.

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/_eMiliO_/Planador/WingsProfile.jpg

http://img.photobucket.com/albums/v288/_eMiliO_/Planador/WingsAssembly.jpg

[lincoln]

movable part on horizontal stab is the elevator

fin is fixed part of vertical stab, rudder is movable part. Fin and rudder are what need to be larger, unless you make the tail longer.

1/32" sheeting is going to be too delicate, most likely. You will get a lot of holes in it, I think.

You can do a fine job with Monokote using a household iron, even an old one. Just don't iron your clothes with it afterwards. It will have some burnt adhesive and/or color on it which will come off on clothes. For the first 5 or 10 years I was in the hobby I used an iron I bought at a yard sale. I guess you'll have to look up "yard sale" as I'm not thinking of a short explanation.