In the air it's a dream.

Taxi and Takeoff:
Taxi is easy and straight. On takeoff it likes to turn left on full power and then straighten up after the vertical stab gets some traction through the air. It's a little tough to deal with because the rudder is mostly ineffective at lower speed. Not too bad because the turn is very predicable always at the same speed and about 10-15 deg. Just hammer full right with the throttle and then let it off after 1-2 seconds to minimize turn.

Battery sizing:
I've read some people use motors with about double the watts of the stock and 5000mah batteries. I wanted to keep the power stock to dog-fight with my buddy in his stock BF-109 and keep it even. Also didn't want it too heavy so I bought a few 3000 mah batteries. IMO these are too small for the stock setup and here's why. The Thud is no speed demon and requires significant throttle to just fly at a moderate pace so flight times are pretty low. 4-5 minutes flying solo and cursing around. 3-4 minutes if flying aggressively. I already bought 3 batteries so I'll live with it but in hindsight I'd go with 3600 mah for the stock motor.

Power & Speed:
I said it wasn't super fast and no where near my buddies BF-109 but it's no sloth either. At full power it is a lot of fun and might have 1:1 power-to-weight. Not sure because it will go from low level at 2/3 throttle to vertical at WOT as far as I've wanted. Just not sure if it will climb indefinitely.

Dog Fighting:
Just like...Continue Reading

Black Witch Alpha 2 (AKA Version 2) has begun.

Black Witch Alpha 1

Changes, Improvements:
- 5mm taller fuse to handle the bigger battery.
- Additional wing spar.
- Aileron servos inside the fuselage.
- Smaller horizontal stabilizer.
- Horizontal stabilizer on top of the box fuse.
- Some unnecessary vertical stab changes for purely aesthetic reasons.
- Air intake moved to the side.

Specs:
- Code Name: Black Witch (Alpha 2)
- Wingspan: 26"
- Length: TBD
- Weight: TBD
- Prop: APC 4.2x2 first flight on 3S, APC 4.75x4.1 on 3S, APC 4.1x4.1 on 4S.
- Motor: Turnigy 2836 3700kv
- Battery: Turnigy 4S 1300-1600mha. Rhino 3S 1350-1750mha for initial testing.
- ESC: Turnigy 60A Plush....Continue Reading

Specs:
- Code Name: Black Witch (Alpha 1)
- Wingspan: 26"
- Length: 21"
- Weight: 13.24 oz
- Prop: APC 4.2x2 for initial testing (80mph on 3S), APC 3.9x4.1 (82mph on 3S), APC 4.75x4.1 (~100mph on 3S).
- Motor: Turnigy 2836 3700kv, $16.69 HobyKing.
- Battery: Turnigy 4S 1000mha, $13.17 HobbyKing. Rhino 3S 1350mha for initial testing.
- ESC: Turnigy 60A Plush, $37.64 HobbyKing.
- Total Power System Cost: $67.50

Video(s):
- April 3, 2010 1st Flight: Windy, started to rain toward the end, and CG might be off. But it flew. Rhino 3S 1350mha, APC 4.2x2 prop.
- April 18, 2010 2nd Flight: Better CG, better weather conditions. Dopplers around 80mph. Rhino 3S 1350mha, APC 4.2x2 prop.
- April 22, 2010 3rd Flight: Just practice flying. Uneventful.
- April 24, 2010 4th Flight: Nothing special. 82mph on 3S APC 3.9x4.1 prop cut down from 4.1.
- May 1, 2010 5th Flight (No good video): Around 100mph on 3S with a 4.75x4.1 prop. It loses all aileron control at high speed. Crunched the nose a bit on landing so going to retire this one and build a new version....Continue Reading

Some random planes. Some past, some current....Continue Reading

• RA-5C Vigilante - Prototype complete. 2nd Prototype started. Build Thread
• Shrike. This .15 gas Shrike was stolen from my garage before I could fly it. Fun-51 was stolen at the same time.
• 727-23 in vintage AA colors
• PBM Mariner
• F-8 Crusader
• Mig-21 Fishbed
• F-4E Phantom
• B-58 Hustler
• XB-70 Valkyrie
• F-108 Rapier
• F-105 Thunderchief
• Curtiss SB2C Helldiver
• P-61B Black Widow
• Kawasaki Ki-61 Hien
• Dornier Do335
• Douglas DC-6
• Curtiss C-46
• de Havilland Mosquito

Specs:

• Wing Span: 24.5"
• Wing Area: 177" ^2
• Motor: hexTronik 1300kv
• Propeller: APC 7x5E
• Battery: 700 mah 3 cell
• Servos: 2 (mixed tail-eron)
• Weight: 9oz

Links:

• Build Thread + More Pictures
• 1st Flight Video