|
|
|
It's a good thing I wasn't counting on getting the little 70" Extra ready for the short IMAC contest on the 10th. It arrived to day but, the vendor sent the wrong color plane.
The seller hasn't answered my emails yet and their phone goes to an answering machine. So, I don't know what they will do about it. It seems they have 3 different color schemes (A,B, or C) for this bird but, this one (C) wasn't pictured on their site. I ordered B and would have accepted A without a problem ....so, I get the one that wasn't pictured and wouldn't have chosen. Go figure. Garry |
|
|
|
|
|
|
Chipmunk Update
I flew the Chipmunk last week on Wed. and the new 18x10 prop really made a difference. Lower RPM and better pull. Up-lines are almost effortless and the engine "sounds" right. It needs a bit more trim help to fly a good pattern but, the engine is running very well with no misses.
However, the right gear collapsed on the first landing and took out the left gear with it. I touched down about 2 feet out from the runway on the grass strip and hit a little hole or dirt clod and the gear folded right up. The "landing" also broke the new prop and busted one of my stacks loose on the Pitts muffler. I was really ticked. So, I ripped out the old gear mounting blocks and remade them a lot beefier and strengthened the area with 3/8" square hardwood. I used wood screws to attach the mounting blocks to the new hardwood rails epoxied to the ribs (I beefed up those ribs too) and spar box. I also installed an angled brace from the gear strut to the bottom of the wing near the flaps. If it breaks out this time I'm going to replace it with a non-scale one piece gear. It might look like crap but, it should stay attached. Garry |
|
|
|
|
|
I picked up this little beauty from Randy Davis a few days ago and now she's ready to fly. It's a Wild Hare Extra 300 50cc bird and I really like the trim scheme. I haven't flown her yet but, plan to do that early next week and start practicing for the next IMAC.
Garry |
|
|
|
|
|
For sure..........that is a great looking Extra. I'm always partial to planes that have a lot of white on them.
Today and next week looks like great flying weather. I hope to get out to the field this afternoon for a few hours. |
|
|
|
|
|
I'm partial to any patriotic trim scheme and this one fills that box very well I think. I know she flies well because I've watched her fly when Randy owned it. Now, I have to do my part and prevent any unintentional impacts with the ground.
After installing the spinner and composite prop she balanced perfectly on the CG ....and that's where I like 'em. I have a brand new set of wheel pants for her but, found an old set (same size) that belonged to my defunct Giles 202. They fit well but, don't exactly match the color scheme. I've never had them on any of my previous planes so, these will give me a chance to find out if I like flying with them. If I do,, I'll rig and mount the new pants. Garry |
|
|
|
|
|
I flew the Extra yesterday (Tues) and she did very, very well. 1/4 turn on the low end needle took out almost all of the 4 stroking and the engine purred like a kitten. She balanced very neutral with no forward stick needed when inverted but, I may add a smidgeon of weight to the nose to get her to lower the nose on final. She wants to float in at a level attitude and I'd like a little nose down on final. She will float for a long way but, lands like a feather.
I put about 4 flights on her yesterday until the throttle linkage popped off the throttle ball and she was left running at 50%. I lined her up on final and cut the power but, she floated all the way down to the ruff off the south end. No harm done luckily. I'll fix it so that won't happen again. Garry |
|
|
|
|
|
Good to hear on your maiden.
Instead of adding dead weight to the front, can you move anything forward like ignition or flight battery......maybe slide the fuel tank towards the nose a little? |
|
|
|
|
|
There's nothing left to move forward Rex. The batteries are both 2100mah LIFpo and very light, the ignition is already up front on the engine box. There's no room to move the fuel tank and besides, I wouldn't want it changing CG as it empties.
It probably won't take more than a couple of oz of lead to do the job so, it's not going to hurt the power to weight ratio. If that doesn't do it, I'll fly it like it is. My preference is to have it just a touch more forward but, it's very manageable the way it is. I'm just not accustomed to pushing the nose down on final. I replaced the "cup" on the end of the throttle rod with one that fits tighter on the ball. I think that will hold it. Yesterday, I noticed that a fuselage rib repair had broken loose so, today I bought a stick of balsa the right size and replaced that entire section (approx. 18"). I braced both butt joints and used 5 min. epoxy to hold it all together. I measured and cut a patch of monokote and tacked it down with a tack iron and then shrank it with my heat gun. All went well and she's ready for flight again. The wheel pants are working out fine so far. They are mounted high enough that the grass at the south end didn't bother them at all. I think I'll keep them on a while longer but, may paint them to match. Garry |
|
|
|
|
|
Scratch Building A Twin Engined EDF
Here's a picture of the twin engined jet I'm building. What I've built, so far anyway. The fuselage is 45". The wingspan will be 50" (including the angled wing tips) and have an area of 480 square inches. The weight will be approximately 5lbs (I hope) with a wing loading of around 24oz per square foot.
It will have two RC Lander 70mm electric ducted fans and should produce 1800 watts and result in approximately 360 watts per pound. That may be overkill...we'll see. It will also have E-flite retracts. The wing is not my design. It is a Tower Hobbies Voyager wing cut down to 44" and modified to take retracts and simpler, more stable wing tips. I bought the wing for about $40 from tower and stripped it down. I'm hoping the plane will be ready to maiden before the electric fly-in in November. I may need a better pilot than me to maiden it. Any volunteers? |
|
|
|
|
|
MigStick Scratchbuilt EDF Twin
Well, it's finally finished. One day and one week before the electric fly-in. I'm calling it a MigStick and hope to maiden it next week before the fly-in. If not, I may have to draft someone to maiden it at the fly-in. Still asking for volunteers or maybe a co-pilot for moral support.
Here's the final specs: Length 45", Wingspan 50.5", Chord 10", Total Wing Area 490 sq inches (3.4 sq feet) Flying Weight 5 lbs, 12 oz (92 oz) Wing Loading 27 oz/sq foot 1800 watts (verified with watt meter at full throttle, 1792 watts) 313 watts/lbs It's a bit heavier than I'd hoped. It's weight puts it in the warbird range but having 313 watts per pound should make up for it. Any thoughts?? |
|
|
|
|
|
Yes, it's my own design...well, kinda made it up as I went along. I've built several scratch built planes in the past mostly using Chuck Cunningham's rules-of-thumb for airplane design. They've were all pretty much conventional designs (propeller driven tractors). This is my first scratch built EDF "jet". And yes, with a fairly heavy wing loading it should take off and land pretty fast.
It may be more excitement than my heart can bear. Hope not. |
|
|
Thread Tools | |
Similar Threads | |||||
Category | Thread | Thread Starter | Forum | Replies | Last Post |
Discussion | Carrotcake's NEW RC8T"e" project(s). New/Current owners Welcome-tips/info. | carrotcake | Electric Power Cars | 423 | Oct 20, 2014 09:54 PM |
Discussion | New scale boat project | jimmy777 | Scale Boats | 7 | Jan 28, 2013 04:37 PM |
Discussion | My Scale Project Overview Since 2009 | catcat | Scale Helicopters | 4 | Jan 17, 2013 01:15 AM |
Discussion | Im New, Asking some questions about my new project | me madjoe 90 | 1/2A Planes | 19 | Jun 07, 2011 12:44 AM |
Discussion | New Project = new problems !! | danny_boy | Dock Talk | 4 | Oct 23, 2008 12:38 PM |