The picture is a a gas powered trainer I designed to have glider like characteristics, but without all the launch and space requirements of a glider. Unfortunately, I could never get the motor running reliably enough to actually fly it. After getting hooked on electric with my Megatech Merlin sans landing gear, I decided to convert my trainer to electric - stubby grass field relatively near my house and who needs the extra weight anyway!

I'm going to build a new fuselage for the electric, so decided to do a little hand-launching to check areas and proportions before drawing up the new fuselage and tail feathers. A few steel washers in place of the engine weight and I was off.

Good things I learned: Wing works/good glide ratio; Monokote open structure stands up to the tough grass and stubble/

Things to improve: 3/32" wire LG too thin; tends to tip stall vs a benign mush; control surfaces relatively innefective. Next Post for Test Bird Corrections.

Solve tip stall: Warped in ~2 degrees washout in each wing.
More reponsive controls: Increased Rudder and elevator areas via foam egg cartons and painters tape.

Weather permitting I'll try the fixes this weekend and report the results.

Hand launched today and all seems well. Very nice long glides with no bad habits. I would still like a little more responsive rudder. Next step - redisigned fuselage and tail. Wider fuselage to handle my 8 cell CP-1300SCR battery packs, high wing to improve rudder action and be more scale like, and rudder and elevator to the new enlarged areas and proportions.