I had the maiden flight today. I gave it a good toss and some power and it started to climb. However, it started fluttering. The more I turned up the throttle, the more it fluttered. I could control it enough to fly some good circles around the field. I took it up high to try some unpowered flight and with the motor off, it flew extremely smoothly. I tried a high speed dive with no power and it was very smooth. It just seems that it flutters (I mean the plane seems to just pitch up and down kind of violently) whenever I give it power. Is there anything I can do to overcome this?

I am very impressed with it's glide characteristics. I had a blast getting it up high and gliding back down with no power. Overall I am pleased, I just want to have smooth powered flight as well.

Mark

Maybe a few degree's up or down on your motor mount?? hmmm...well I obviously cant say, as I havnt maidened mine yet. Hopefully Justin or some brushless Overlord owner will chime in.

I am also curious about where your CG ended up at?? Your using 8s CBP 1400's right? and what servo's did you use?
I apologize if you posted this infromation already and I missed it.

Jay

Yes, 8s CBP 1400s and HS81 servos. My CG is about 7.5 in. I have a couple of quarters taped to the tip of the battery pack to make the CG just right. I also should mention that my motor sounds very jumpy in flight. It coincides with the flutter, but it does not do this if I am holding the wing still and running the motor.

I was suspicious of aileron flutter, but with the excellent performance at high speeds with no power, I don't think this is the case.

Mark

Does the motor stutter exactly the same moment when the fluttering occurs?

Yes. It stutters in unison with the flutter. It seems like the back of the wing will kick up and then the motor surges a little bit. But, if I'm holding the plane still, the motor will run fine all the way up to full throttle. Is it possible I have the prop too close to the back of the plane? It is about 1/2 inch away at the edges.

Mark

No, that wouldn't cause this.

Sounds more like either the ESC hits it's overcurrent protection or the batteries can't deliver the amps.

I'd bet that its not the batteries, I am pretty sure those batteries will deliver plenty, I think they are rated up to 25 or 30 amps.

My guess is the motor or esc is causing some kind of interference.

Have ya done any throttle up range checks??

Jay

It does at low throttle also, maybe my esc to motor connections are flapping in the breeze. I just wanted to make sure this wasn't normal behavior. I have a friend that had a zagi that he says did the exact same thing.

Mark

Can you describe what you mean by "flapping"? Is it just a noise or is something physically "flapping" up and down / back and forth?

The wing is jerking up and down during powered flight. I was thinking that maybe since the connectors between the motor and esc are hanging out in the wind, they are being blown around and this is causing a poor connection at times that may be causing the surges in the motor that is causing the jerky flight.

What kind of connectors do you have there? Anything less than Deans Ultra or Astro powerpoles should be replaced with the latter.

Allright, I have just confirmed that it is definately an electrical problem. I am using Dean's ultra. Under power, I figured out I am getting interference which is making the motor jumpy and the elevons are twitchy. I am going to try moving my esc because it is located directly over where the antenna leaves the RX.

Jeez, I feel dumb. Problem solved.. New flight report coming soon. Thanks for the help ScYcS

AND Bernoulli, Just noticed your post where you hit the nail on the head. Good call.

I can move the esc towards and away from the RX and the problem comes and then goes away. So...DON'T SITUATE THE ESC DIRECTLY OVER THE RECEIVER.

Also, I can attest to the durability of this wing. During a rather violent twitch yesterday, I nosed into the ground at high speed. I saw the wing hit and about 1/10th of a second later I heard a huge THUD. I nervously walked over to see my plane with not a scratch waiting patiently, I threw it right back into the air and it flew great!! However, I should have checked the battery first, because it turns out I hit hard enough to bust 3 of 8 cells and they were hissing when I pulled the pack out. This wing is definately tough!!

I just finished flight #2. After resolving my electrical issues, the flight was awesome. Now I have just as smooth flight when powered and unpowered. I managed to do one tight loop and got a couple rolls in. I can tell the overlord is going to be a lot of fun to fly. My CBP1400 lasts for about 10 minutes of average flight. I'm sure I'll be able to get longer out of it once I get better at flying. I think my CG could still stand to come a little bit further up, I'm going to try adding a little more weight to the nose.

I am very pleased with my Overlord and now I'm sure I made the right choice. Jay, I can't wait to hear your flight report.

Mark