Micro SSX Biplane Beta build thread

[hawaiianspork226]

Hey jkarpy!

I started the Micro SSX Biplane beta kit yesterday, and Im hopefully finishing the airframe (sans covering) today

A few questions before I continue the build though:

1. Which motor mount do I use? The round one with 6 holes, or the oblong one used on the original micro SSX?

2. Which are your favorite servos to use on this plane? Im not sure if I should hack out the larger servo tray cutouts or not yet...

3. I probably asked you this a while ago when you showed us thr prototype, but have you considered aileron linkages to permit the use of one servo for all 4 ailerons? I know youve probably already considered this, and most likely have already tried it, but if not I would give it a go...

Also: variable wing incidence!?!? AWESOME! I really like this concept...

Ive been taking pictures of the build progress; its going quickly especially for not having instructions. For any really puzzling questions I have just been referring to the pictures you posted on the other thread.

Mistakes so far: somehow Ive managed, on BOTH wings, to mount one of the wingtip ribs upside down... no big deal; Ill just trim the spar a bit on one side and fill the slot with a sliver of balsa... definately a "DOH!" moment though... I just wasnt paying enough attention.

-David

[hawaiianspork226]

the airframe is assembled! looks awesome naked lol

How long do the carbon interplane struts need to be?

I may start covering tomorrow if I have time...

-David

pics tomorrow

[JohnM]

Go with the Hitec HS-45HB servos. I have them in my Micro SSX and they work great.

John

[jkarpy]

Hey jkarpy!

I started the Micro SSX Biplane beta kit yesterday, and Im hopefully finishing the airframe (sans covering) today

A few questions before I continue the build though:

1. Which motor mount do I use? The round one with 6 holes, or the oblong one used on the original micro SSX?

2. Which are your favorite servos to use on this plane? Im not sure if I should hack out the larger servo tray cutouts or not yet...

3. I probably asked you this a while ago when you showed us thr prototype, but have you considered aileron linkages to permit the use of one servo for all 4 ailerons? I know youve probably already considered this, and most likely have already tried it, but if not I would give it a go...

Also: variable wing incidence!?!? AWESOME! I really like this concept...

Ive been taking pictures of the build progress; its going quickly especially for not having instructions. For any really puzzling questions I have just been referring to the pictures you posted on the other thread.

Mistakes so far: somehow Ive managed, on BOTH wings, to mount one of the wingtip ribs upside down... no big deal; Ill just trim the spar a bit on one side and fill the slot with a sliver of balsa... definately a "DOH!" moment though... I just wasnt paying enough attention.

-David

1. Use the round one.
2. Use the smaller one. You can always hack later.
3. I have not tried it yet.

Instructions are here. Please don’t go past the end of the instructions. I have some details I need to post.

http://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=772157

[jkarpy]

the airframe is assembled! looks awesome naked lol

How long do the carbon interplane struts need to be?

I may start covering tomorrow if I have time...

-David

pics tomorrow

Did you glue anything to the fuselage yet?

I am working on the remaining instructions.

Man your fast!

[hawaiianspork226]

no i didnt glue anything to the fuselage yet; ill wait to glue anything onto it till i get all the guts so i can make sure the CG is gonna be OK

im gonna go ahead and try one aileron servo... why not... if it doesnt work ill just put another in

i started "stitching" the wing skins together on a (rough) template i made... lookin pretty good i think... though the bond between the 2 layers isnt that great... ive got the iron as hot as i can get it without shrinking the film and it still peels off if i want it to... is that how it always is?

-David

[jkarpy]

no i didnt glue anything to the fuselage yet; ill wait to glue anything onto it till i get all the guts so i can make sure the CG is gonna be OK

im gonna go ahead and try one aileron servo... why not... if it doesnt work ill just put another in

i started "stitching" the wing skins together on a (rough) template i made... lookin pretty good i think... though the bond between the 2 layers isnt that great... ive got the iron as hot as i can get it without shrinking the film and it still peels off if i want it to... is that how it always is?

-David

Yes that is the way it always is. When you pull it from the glass, make sure you pull the bottom piece first. When you apply it to the wing, tack it in place so you get all the wrinkles out. Don’t touch the seams with the iron until it is completely attached to the wing.

[hawaiianspork226]

k gotcha... ive got both top skins stitched now ill do the bottoms

-David

OH how long are the interplane rods supposed to be??

[jkarpy]

k gotcha... ive got both top skins stitched now ill do the bottoms

-David

OH how long are the interplane rods supposed to be??

The biplane has 8- 0.060” diameter carbon struts. 4 wing struts, 2 front and 2 center cross struts.

Wing struts: 4.840”
Front struts: 2.675”
Center cross struts: 5.000” (May need to be trimmed during installation)

The cross struts are installed last.

Make sure they bottom out in the slots. Also make sure each set is exactly the same length. Do not install them until all warps are ironed out of the wings.

James

[hawaiianspork226]

k cool! thanks jkarpy

i just wanted to put together a mock-up for a few pics before i cover it and i needed to know the strut length

lookin good; ill post pics soon

-David

[hawaiianspork226]

build pics thus far; ill take more as i cover

-David

[jkarpy]

build pics thus far; ill take more as i cover

-David
It looks like your build is going well.

[hawaiianspork226]

wings and ailerons are now covered

i would have done the tails if i hadnt gotten so many phone calls... oh well ill do them in the AM im too tired now

pics tomorrow too:)

looks pretty neat so far; i cant wait to see how it looks all put together and covered

-David

[hawaiianspork226]

covered!

heres some pics

-David

[jkarpy]

covered!

heres some pics

-David

Wow! Looks great! Are you going to have it at the shop tomorrow?

[Doctor Who]

Nice!! I like the scallops. Doesn't look like a British plane :)

[hawaiianspork226]

no it wont be at the shop... because Im in boca raton right now lol

Ill be in orlando on the 29th briefly, I may drop it off then...

as for the scallops... theyre supposed to be Gee Bee-esque. I need to make some big red lettering for it too... ultimately Id like to build a profile fuselage for it with a Gee Bee stylized outline; but Ill wait on that till I can get all the guts for it.

I really am happy with how well and how fast it all went together

jkarpy, are these gonna be ARF-ed too?

-David

[jkarpy]

no it wont be at the shop... because Im in boca raton right now lol

Ill be in orlando on the 29th briefly, I may drop it off then...

as for the scallops... theyre supposed to be Gee Bee-esque. I need to make some big red lettering for it too... ultimately Id like to build a profile fuselage for it with a Gee Bee stylized outline; but Ill wait on that till I can get all the guts for it.

I really am happy with how well and how fast it all went together

jkarpy, are these gonna be ARF-ed too?

-David

II will eventually, if I can sell some of the ARFs I have in stock now. I forgot about Boca.:o

[hawaiianspork226]

cool; i think theylle be great; even if you offer kits only i think people would like em... you would definately sell ARFs though... maybe a debut at SEFF??

just ideas.. anyway i cant wait to get this little thing airborn; of course itll be january before that happens as i have no equipment to do it here. in the mean time ill detail it out some more; hinge the surfaces, and rig up the aileron linkages for one servo to see if i can get that to work...

-David

[jkarpy]

cool; i think theylle be great; even if you offer kits only i think people would like em... you would definately sell ARFs though... maybe a debut at SEFF??

just ideas.. anyway i cant wait to get this little thing airborn; of course itll be january before that happens as i have no equipment to do it here. in the mean time ill detail it out some more; hinge the surfaces, and rig up the aileron linkages for one servo to see if i can get that to work...

-David

When you get back, you can come over and I will set you up with the motor and what ever else you need.

Marry Christmas

James

[BOBSHELIGUY]

Ha Ha!! I finally found your thread David! I used carbon rods for my aileron linkages. I have one at the root and one at mid aileron. I have a long carbon rod with light heat shrink tubing and another little piece of carbon so they hinge. I just drilled a little hole in the aileron and glued the little piece in. I am having camera interface problems but I will post more and put up pictures when i fix it.

[BOBSHELIGUY]

One more thing. David, did you get carbon rods and pushrod wire in your kit? I didn't ad was just wondering. No biggie...already have it together.

[jkarpy]

One more thing. David, did you get carbon rods and pushrod wire in your kit? I didn't ad was just wondering. No biggie...already have it together.

When I dropped the kits by the shop, I forgot to bring the carbon.

[hawaiianspork226]

ya i grabbed a rod from bobs

it was a bit large and had to be carved down a bit on each of the ends to be inserted, but no biggie

havent hinged the surfaces or worked on the aileron linkages yet. i just had surgery a few days ago so this is the first time ive ben able to sit at a computer and be functional.

no i didnt get any pushrods either. i have plenty layin around though lol

i like the heatshrink tubin idea for the ailerons... i think thatll work nicely.

-David

OH PS i thought i was gonna pas through orlando on the way to tampa ont he 9th... er today... but im not; the surgery messed up all my plans... so no new years in tampa with freinds:( and no micro SSX biplane at bobs yet, sorry jkarpy:(

[hawaiianspork226]

jkarpy,

Ill be working at Bobs on monday the 7th if you want to meet up; ill bring the MSSX bipe with me too in case you want to see it

totally looking forward to getting this little thing in the air; its been teazing me all winter break

let me know

also... ive got an idea i need to tell you about...

-David

[jkarpy]

jkarpy,

Ill be working at Bobs on monday the 7th if you want to meet up; ill bring the MSSX bipe with me too in case you want to see it

totally looking forward to getting this little thing in the air; its been teazing me all winter break

let me know

also... ive got an idea i need to tell you about...

-David

I will see you Monday. What are your hours?

[hawaiianspork226]

actually jkarpy it turns out i might not be working all day monday... shoot for 5:30 to be safe; i have advisor meetings at school i have to take care of.

im gonna stop by Bobs today if i get a chance; ill drop the MSSXB there if i do in case you want to come in earlier to see it. if that doesnt work out we'll just figure somthing else out

-David

[jkarpy]

actually jkarpy it turns out i might not be working all day monday... shoot for 5:30 to be safe; i have advisor meetings at school i have to take care of.

im gonna stop by Bobs today if i get a chance; ill drop the MSSXB there if i do in case you want to come in earlier to see it. if that doesnt work out we'll just figure somthing else out

-David
I can meet you at 5:30.

[hawaiianspork226]

cool ill try and be there

-David

[MustangAce17]

hey James,just realized you had a vendor thread,David build looks great. I saw the first one at the ZEFF flyin while demoing for James and it's a sweetie.Would like to get one myself in the future along with the parts for a SSX Canard.

[BOBSHELIGUY]

Hey James,

Do you have a motor and ESC for the bipe that I can buy from you so I can get this little guy in the air?

Ill be at bobs for the rest of the week through Saturday if you wouldnt mind bringing some stuff by.

Thanks a lot!

-Brian

[jkarpy]

Hey James,

Do you have a motor and ESC for the bipe that I can buy from you so I can get this little guy in the air?

Ill be at bobs for the rest of the week through Saturday if you wouldnt mind bringing some stuff by.

Thanks a lot!

-Brian

They are on order. The ESC is the TB9. Did David show you the motor?

[Arrow]

....

[Spudx]

James when I talked with you the other day you told me to use a motor that weighed no more than 40 grams. I have a park 370 I thought I would use but it weighs 45 grams. Is to to heavy?. And what should be the over all wight of Bi Plane
Spud

[hawaiianspork226]

the motor James is having me use weighs 19 grams and feels like a little powerhouse! 2500KV... i cant wait:)

i just got back from DC and my special helper (girlfreind) is staying up there this semester... which means ill have a lot more free time ::sigh::... but ill busy myself with airplanes to keep myself outta trouble lol

so tonight ima get crackin on it again

-david

[hawaiianspork226]

I just maidened on sunday!

conditions were VERY windy at 20-25mph but i couldnt resist so up we went, camera rolling

i was anticipating at least a somewhat sketchy maiden especially given all of the wind... but no. it was a non-event... the bipe required no - repeat - NO TRIM!!!

i played with the wind, even flew backwards; it handled it wonderfully for such a small model, something i would have thought the opposite of especially given the extremely light wingloading...

i flew it again monday night on a lit parking lot on campus and again it went beautifully; the colors even showed up well in the moonlight and the dim parking lights.

i have not flown it in non-windy conditions yet but im looking forward to it.

this has officially become my keep in the car plane (at least for the winter when my car isnt a solar powered oven)and i keep it charged just in case i get a second to fly somewhere between classes, work, meetings, lunch, etc...

we will get the video posted soon!

-david

[jkarpy]

Congratulations on your successful beta build David.

Micro SSX Biplane kits are now available.

www.FlyERC.com or
www.millenniumrc.com

[Spudx]

I just finished mine this afternoon, to late to give it a try. It weighed in at 6 1/8 oz. It is a great kit and everything fits so it make it fun to build. I well fly mine tomorrow weather permitting. i really liked the micro film that James sent me. It is easy to put on and goes around the corners with no wrinkles. I used the 250 on this one. I have attached some pictures even tho you all know what it looks like.

[jkarpy]

I just finished mine this afternoon, to late to give it a try. It weighed in at 6 1/8 oz. It is a great kit and everything fits so it make it fun to build. I well fly mine tomorrow weather permitting. i really liked the micro film that James sent me. It is easy to put on and goes around the corners with no wrinkles. I used the 250 on this one. I have attached some pictures even tho you all know what it looks like.

Look great Spud! Thanks for posting.

[Spudx]

I finely got a fight in this afternoon and the little bi plane flies great, I had to tame down the serve troughs but as I fly it a little more I can increase them. I think I am going to take the 250 of and replace it with the Hacker, the 250 doesn't seam to have as much punch. I was using a 2 cel 500 mah. and my be the 900 that I have would work better. I also received the new motor you sent me James, do you think it would work better than the park 250.

[jkarpy]

I finely got a fight in this afternoon and the little bi plane flies great, I had to tame down the serve troughs but as I fly it a little more I can increase them. I think I am going to take the 250 of and replace it with the Hacker, the 250 doesn't seam to have as much punch. I was using a 2 cel 500 mah. and my be the 900 that I have would work better. I also received the new motor you sent me James, do you think it would work better than the park 250.

I am using the new motor with a 3S 730 mAh from Thunder power with a 7-3.5 GWS prop. The biplane flies great with this combination. It has unlimited vertical and is as fast as the Micro SSX. It also slows down, as a biplane should. I have not been able to time the flight but it seems extremely long.

Motor Specs:
Net weight:19g
Weight with mount and wires: 22g
Kv: 2100
motor dimensions: 22.2×24mm
Shaft diameter: 3mm

Test Propeller Voltage Current Power Pull RMP Efficiency
5×3 11.5 V 6.7 A 77.05 W 325 g 18337 4.22 g/W
GWS 8040 7.6 V 9.3 A 70.68 W 365 g 8654 5.16 g/W
GWS 0843 7.6 V 10.1 A 76.76 W 360 g 7950 4.69 g/W
8×3.8 7.6 V 11.1 A 84.36 W 350 g 7180 4.15 g/W
GWS 6030 7.6 V 4.9 A 37.24 W 227 g 12300 6.10 g/W
GWS 7035 7.6 V 6.2 A 47.12 W 285 g 11213 6.05 g/W

[Spudx]

I will try the new motor you sent. I have a thunder power 3 cell 750 mah . May be that will pep it up. Remember our air is a lot thinner here at 5500 feet. the micro ssx flies fine with the hacker and the 250. I could not fly the bi plane real slow, not enough air over the wings I would guess. It also appears that your motor is the only one that can use 11 volts.
I changed out the motors and batt, it incresed the over all weight by 1 oz. So now the plane weighs 7 1/4 oz. and I am more than a little nose heavy. Its way to windy today to fly, winds up to 60mph.

[hawaiianspork226]

just thought id jump in here

brian and i are both using 3s 480 lipos form thunder power. they fit right in the battery tray and provide plenty of flight time, are lighter than the 730 3s packs, and really wake that little park 250 up on brians; he can hover no problemo.

we even fly them in pretty stiff wind too; upwards of 20mph... and they can still scoot and get around; but only on 3s. on 2s its a little risky to be flying in wind that strong.

just some input to help out

-David

[Spudx]

David when you are using the 3s on the 250 does the motor get pretty hot? I saw on the spec sheet that the 250 is only rated for a 2 cell.

Spud

[hawaiianspork226]

i dont know, Brian was the one using it. It hasnt broken yet, and he hovers it every flight lol

im using the 19 gram chrome motor that James let me borrow

-David

[Spudx]

Sorry David I didn't read the thred very well, the mind is the second thing to go. If you talk to Brian ask him for me or Brian if you see this let me know.
Thanks for you help.
Spud

[Spudx]

James
I took your suggestion and replaced the 250 with your motor, 750 thunder power and the 7 X 3.5 prop. Boy did it make a difference, it was off the ground instantly and flies great with this combo. The timer on my DX7 showed 18 minutes and I think I still had a few more minutes left. The only problem I had was that I landed a little hot and nocked the prop off, the extra 1" with the flex of the landing gear makes a difference.
The 250 at 5500 feet just isn't enough motor.
Spud

[zzonie77]

bump

[jkarpy]

bump

Bump? :confused:

[austin.laws]

hi i am trying to find out info on the new ssx biplane. I know this is wrong foru but dunno where else to look. tried clicking link on your webisite but just crashes my web. Any ideaon price? Im in UK alrreay have a slow stick. Any info or link would be gd thanks austin.

[jkarpy]

hi i am trying to find out info on the new ssx biplane. I know this is wrong foru but dunno where else to look. tried clicking link on your webisite but just crashes my web. Any ideaon price? Im in UK alrreay have a slow stick. Any info or link would be gd thanks austin.

That project has been put on hold for a few months. I decided to make some design changes. After flying the prototype for a few months, I decided that the model was too heavy and had too much drag. It requires a big motor to fly it and I really want to stay the same or close to the power plant that flies the SSX mono wing. Sorry for the delay. Please e-mail me and I will put you on the list to be notified when it is available.

James Karpy
Millennium R/C

[austin.laws]

That project has been put on hold for a few months. I decided to make some design changes. After flying the prototype for a few months, I decided that the model was too heavy and had too much drag. It requires a big motor to fly it and I really want to stay the same or close to the power plant that flies the SSX mono wing. Sorry for the delay. Please e-mail me and I will put you on the list to be notified when it is available.

James Karpy
Millennium R/C

Ok not sure how i email without a email addy lol. but i was wondering if u had thought of a price? or a ball park figure? but let me know ur email addy and i will. thanks austin.

[jkarpy]

Ok not sure how i email without a email addy lol. but i was wondering if u had thought of a price? or a ball park figure? but let me know ur email addy and i will. thanks austin.

Sales@millenniumrc.com