Originally Posted by headlessagain

We all know that if the sun strikes a very distant car mirror or even windscreen it will twinkle brightly.
To increase the chances of picking locating your model you could add some patches of silver reflective trim. My fb recently gave me a roll of aluminium tape
http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/Aluminium-...7#ht_754wt_905 but I've not yet found a use for it.
I've also used mirror self adhesive film for the cabin windows on my BluCub
Just a thought
Andy

Maybe worth testing Andy - & here's one: how often have you gotten a 'twinkle' from your window setup? Is it enough to be something you could count on? Looking to efficacy.

Thing is, you'd have to catch the sun, mirror, & eye in perfect alignment to catch a spark....whereas at almost all other moments, mirroring surfaces enhance camouflaging of an object behind the mirror. Especially a small object in a huge environs like a sky!

Now you guys gonna think I'm dead looney....but I've got a UFO story. *LOL*
Absolutely true though....Short version - while bass fishing alone on the river, after several minutes of feeling like something was watching me, I saw a large ball in the sky ONLY WHEN IT MOVED. Its outer surface was entirely mirrored.
Had never told anyone but, years later I came across something on the www; and was very surprised how many almost identical descriptions of events were reported. Now go "Hmmmmmmmmm..."

.

.

Originally Posted by botulism

While this may be true for cats, I don't think the XYW system has been used to describe the human retina.

I would love to be proven wrong, so cite if you're able.

--
Greg

The XYW cells are part of the eye's Ganglion Layer.
See: Eye-Based Interaction in Graphical Systems: Theory & Practice
Andrew Duchowski, Clemson University
Part I
Introduction to the Human Visual System (HVS)

Hello everyone. Below is a video with the maiden flight of my Phoenix!

Phoenix 2000 slope flying (3 min 59 sec)

Very nice job there, both flying and in the production! Interesting viewpoint, & nice to be able to watch your flap-work. Thanx for showing us how a 'silent' version can work.
Your 'scenery' ain't too shabby either -- I'm jealous!

Originally Posted by StarHopper44

The 'averted vision' comes into play because there's an actual blind spot in your retina where all the receptor nerves exit the eyeball -- ie no rods or cones. You can find it yourself by holding a pencil erect at arm's length directly in front of one open (other closed) eye. Lock vision onto the wall behind the erasor & slowly move it off to the side (to right for right eye, etc), while staying aware (it takes some 'thinking'*) of the erasor. A few degrees away the erasor will disappear! Repeat for the left eye - move left - same thing.

Sure, but the blind spot is not at the centre of vision - it's off to the side as you said (although there's a common misconception that the "star disappears if you look directly at it" phenomenon is caused by the blind spot).

Hence, I don't understand why any other strategy would be better than looking directly ahead at the target area. I haven't had a chance to read Digiflier's XYW article yet, so perhaps that's the key.

Originally Posted by StarHopper44

...Short version - while bass fishing alone on the river, after several minutes of feeling like something was watching me, I saw a large ball in the sky ONLY WHEN IT MOVED. Its outer surface was entirely mirrored.

Yah, I used to see objects like that all the time, Hopper. Back in the 70s. Usually after eating little piece of paper, with that 'Truckin' guy on it.

--
Greg

Thanks guys, am gonna give the nylon wing bolts a try and report back here.

For better long-range visibility some of the RC glider guys use this reflective/hologram-ish tape on their wings and tail feathers. There is a picture of the stuff at the bottom of this page: http://hilaunch.com/Wing_tape.htm

gorillas, congrats on maiden ad nice video.

I use a nylon bolt in my SIG Ninja .. it fixes the wing really good tought it gives that impression that the nylon can keep going in forever and doesnt totally tight ..

Its hilarious... i been flying for a lot of years and never tought nylon bolts were so they would break in a crash until reading it here i feel so dumb..

All,
Regarding the Nylon bolts, do you think these will work?

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B000OCWC3C/ref=biss_dp_t_asn

Originally Posted by botulism

Yah, I used to see objects like that all the time, Hopper. Back in the 70s. Usually after eating little piece of paper, with that 'Truckin' guy on it.
--
Greg

Yaa...and now y'all know why I shied off telling anybody about my experience.

Originally Posted by JLT_GTI

...
Its hilarious... i been flying for a lot of years and never tought nylon bolts were so they would break in a crash until reading it here i feel so dumb..

Naaaa....you ain't s'posed to feel dumb 'til you break one while tightening it!

*crickets*

Convo's sorta died off so, to get the ball rolling again....?

Maybe it's just me & my ape-grip hands but, given a lack of any torque specs in the manual or elsewhere that I've found, I'm mildly surprised it hasn't come up previously in this thread.
Re tightening.....for anyone like me who at first hookup wonders how tight to tighten the wing screws:

Tightening to the point of "can't tighten it any further" is WAY over-doing it! You will soon be greeted with stuff (like the blind nuts) tearing loose. Learned the hard way!

My 1st concern was to not have the freakin' wing coming off in flight. Later realized that ain't hardly gonna happen - the wings themselves flex more than the screw connection ever will, and what little flexing there is at that point (the wing butts) isn't rapid enough to vibrate those screws loose.

The 'correct' tension is what I'd call "snug enough". Just snug enough to hold everything in place, without extraordinary tension on the screw bindings. When you consider the weight of what you're holding against that wing, it really isn't much -- and you don't need an 'iron pipe cinch' to hold it in place!

Any arguments to the contrary, I'll gladly hear! How tight do you tighten?....like to hear it in your words!

I'm still using the stock blind nuts, however I replaced the bolts/screws with hex/allen head ones.
I was tightening them up the other day and one felt like it going aroung-around-around and not getting any tighter and I'm thinking here we go I've stripped the blind nut.

However it finally got, as you say 'snug enough', so thankfully I wont have to muck around trying to replace the nut/s.
Because as we all know the reason for blind nuts is that they are normally in a position that is difficult to get to.
Still I'm little concerned when I go flying today I'll find that it really has stripped the nut. - We'll see!!

I use nylon bolt in my Ninja and at first i tried to really tighten it ..

now it just needs to be "tight" and no more.. it will hold the wing perfectly fit in flight and actually even containing ballast the g force necesary so the fuselaje would break away in flight must be quite enormous..