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Archive for December, 2011
Posted by zanek | Dec 29, 2011 @ 08:23 PM | 4,839 Views
Here is another FPV video from Castle Valley, UT filmed with the Gopro. This time the camera is in the same place on the center of the wing, but it is aiming out so you get a side view. Here is the video:
Castle Valley winter flying with Gopro part 4 (wing cam) (5 min 39 sec)

Be sure to check out my rc blog at http://www.rampagingrc.blogspot.com
Posted by zanek | Dec 28, 2011 @ 07:03 PM | 4,715 Views
Here is another FPV video flight in Castle Valley, UT in winter. It is interesting to see from the air how there is only snow in the shady areas because it gets just warm enough to melt in the sun. In this video I am out in the front yard, and in the daylight so the video quality and view is much better. Here is the video:
Castle Valley winter flying with Gopro camera Part 2 (different location) (2 min 41 sec)

Posted by zanek | Dec 28, 2011 @ 05:26 PM | 4,604 Views
I managed to get a video of me flying the Micro T-28, by using the Gopro camera on a headstrap, so it filmed where I looked. At times the plane is hard to see because it is so small. I will try to get a better video later. For now here it is:
Micro T-28 flights (3 min 16 sec)

Come check out my rc blog at http://www.rampagingrc.blogspot.com
Posted by zanek | Dec 28, 2011 @ 09:53 AM | 4,818 Views
I just got home today, to my Micro T-28. First flight went uneventfully, as did the second. But then the wind picked up, and I had to stop flying. It was a little nerve racking at first, because it was my first time with ailerons. But I didn't crash, thanks to some beforehand practice on the simulator. I will go out and fly tomorrow morning, if weather permits, and I will try to get a video. Until then, here are some pics and specs. The plane is tiny!


Top view


Bottom view

...Continue Reading
Posted by zanek | Dec 25, 2011 @ 09:30 PM | 4,109 Views
Merry Christmas everyone !

I hope you guys had a great Christmas. I got a Parkzone Micro T-28
I will be posting some videos soon. You will be able to see them at my rc blog, http://www.rampagingrc.blogspot.com

Come check it out
Posted by zanek | Dec 18, 2011 @ 11:12 PM | 3,957 Views
Here is the onboard video from the Gopro camera. It is amazing the difference the camera makes. Without the camera, at this altitude, the plane flies much better. But with the camera it needs much farther to take off, and flies like a rock. Watch how little I glide in the video. Here it is: Watch in HD if you can
Castle Valley winter flying with GoPro camera (0 min 40 sec)

Posted by zanek | Dec 18, 2011 @ 11:10 PM | 3,879 Views
Check out my rc blog at http://www.rampagingrc.blogspot.com It was origninaly a school project, but I kept it going
Posted by zanek | Dec 18, 2011 @ 11:08 PM | 3,835 Views
I didn't get a chance to fly with the GoPro camera yet, but I did do some flying around while my Dad filmed from the ground. Where I am flying is about 5000 feet above sea level, so you would think that they plane would be 'lazy' in the thin air. But it flew much faster, glided longer and climbed better. I did some research and found that there are some very interesting physics causing these counterintuitive flying characteristics. After searching around some, I found an explanation. First off, thrust from the propeller. At sea level, with the 'thick' air, the motor turning the propeller bogs down quite a bit under the load. As the air gets thinner, at altitude, the propeller gives less thrust at the same RPMs as sea level, but that means it also has less load so it turns faster, increasing the thrust. So basically the motor speeds up under the lesser load and that is enough to compensate. And as far as the gliding, what I read said that as the air gets thinner, the air resistance of the plane reduces with altitude faster than the lift. That means as you get higher in elevation, the drag decreases compared to the lift. So the higher you are the less drag there is at cruising speed. Meaning you can fly faster and glide farther. I got the information from here. In this video, it is the first time I have used the flaps I recently made for the plane. It is very cold out (about 30 degrees Fahrenheit) in the video, but that doesn't seem to affect the plane. Here is the video:
Watch how it just lifts off the ground, and when I am coming in to land I have to push it down with the elevator, otherwise it will just keep going.
I got the information from here: https://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?t=213592
Winter Parkzone Radian Flying in Utah (0 min 32 sec)

Posted by zanek | Dec 18, 2011 @ 12:15 AM | 4,130 Views
I just got to Utah, and I brought my Radian. I did some modifications on it, and plan to do some flying around here, with the Gopro camera on. Here is where I will be flying:

I will be landing on a dirt road, so I did some modifications to the plane. The first thing that I did was put on bigger wheels that weren't made out of something that looked like styrofoam. The new wheels are 2" diameter. Here:

I also installed flaps for making landing easier. I didn't make them with this particular flying spot in mind. But I had some delays, like the servo I was going to use died on me, so the flaps will get their first test. Hopefully I will be able to get out tomorrow morning, if the wether permits. Later on in the month there might even be some snow. Here is a short video of the wing flaps working:
Quick test of the flaps on my Parkzone Radian (0 min 8 sec)

If weather permits, I will be out tomorrow morning flying with the Gopro camera onboard.
Posted by zanek | Dec 03, 2011 @ 08:38 PM | 3,875 Views
Today I went out and flew my Radian with a camera on it for the first time. I got a short video from the Gopro camera I had on the wing. It is a little choppy because I am still getting used to having the extra weight on the plane. I hope to go out in a few days and get some more videos. Here is the video of my first filmed flight: (watch it in HD if you can)
FPV Radian First flight with video camera onboard (1 min 11 sec)