Originally Posted by rusty case

Great vid, Dick!
Excellent pilot!
Gotta build me one of those!
is that the fpv49 scratchbuilt plan?

Yes, that is a FPV49 V3 KFm4 flying wing designed originally by Schraut5 and refined by Trond.

Here are the plans.

http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?feature=plcp&v=7d5QCwWgnAg

Excellent videos!

This is my latest build, a Bugatti 100. The original was intended to break the speed record in the 30`s but was never flown because of the war.
Model is 60cm span, Kfm 4 airfoil, 207 g, Turnigy 2211/2300 with Graupner 4,7x4,7 prop and 800 mah 3s lipo.
Maiden flight in heavy winds went surprisingly well. Looks great in the air.

Fabulous Thomas - one of my favorite planes.

Shouldn't it be blue?

You are right, Nick - it should be blue, but it is small and quite fast so I thought red would be easier to keep in sight. Now the Bugatti looks like a Ferrari.

Thomas B:

Your Bugatti 100 ist Prima!

Dave-

An elegant shape made into a pretty model... nice one Thomas

rc plane scratchbuilt foamie windy conditions Gulfport Mississippi (8 min 16 sec)

Here is a youtube link to me flying in heavy wind with my foamie. It looks to get good lift, but the thing drops out of the sky in a glide. I'm not sure why.
handmade plane flying and crashing in the sand at the gulfport harbor. gusts around 25 mph I guess.

Dollar tree foamboard
bamboo skewers
hot glue
30" wingspan
KFM airfoil
24" I think length
no rod in wing
no rudder
2 9g servos
2 cell lipo nanotech 1.0
8-9 min flight time
exeed rocket 2205-1600kv
9x5 plactic prop
total weight a/b 300grams
flysky tx rx
20a ESC

perhaps it's a CG problem, adam???

Looks like a CG thing. Do a dive test on a less windy day.

Where should the CG be? I think mine is right at the drop of the step. should it be different?

Originally Posted by adamh1281

Where should the CG be? I think mine is right at the drop of the step. should it be different?

Typically, the CG should be approximately 1/3 of the average chord from the leading edge.

g

adamh Most of the problems I saw with your flight were due to flying a plane that is unsuitable for the conditions.
Get up early and fly in the early-morning calm and you'll get a real handle on how you plane behaves.

Originally Posted by adamh1281

Where should the CG be? I think mine is right at the drop of the step. should it be different?

The dive test is the best way to find the best CG point. The page at the link below is intended more for gliders and recommends doing the test with the plane trimmed for a level glide. But if you reduce power to just enough to maintain level flight (and trim for level flight as you do the test), the reactions of the plane and the results will be the same.

For me, the indication that I do not have the CG at the right point is that (on a calm day ideally) if I trim for a level glide or level flight and land I'll find there is some amount of up or down trim on the elevator. That is an indications that you are holding a too heavy tail up (down trim) or keeping the tail down (up trim) on a nose heavy plane.

The point of the article is that you find the neutral CG point and set the CG to suit the way you like to fly. Some planes and flying venues favor CG locations that will intentionally vary from the tail heavy side to the nose heavy side.

Once you understand the article the image explains it all.

CG location article - http://www.polecataero.com/handlaunchu/cg-location

CG location image - http://polecataero.com/uploads/cg_trim.pdf

Jack

Originally Posted by Whiskers

adamh Most of the problems I saw with your flight were due to flying a plane that is unsuitable for the conditions.
Get up early and fly in the early-morning calm and you'll get a real handle on how you plane behaves.

Yes. I know. I wanted a challenge. I've been flying for about a month, and I've gotten bored with it. I wanted to fly yesterday, and I enjoyed the challenge. crashes are OK, just means I learn something and get to build another plane, or fix the one I've got.
thank you all for the advice.