Peter Jenkins

Alternatively, use a Perry Pump to pump the fuel to the engine. If you have a pumped engine e.g. OS120 pump you also avoid the problem of fuel tank placement. If you are going to move the tank aft and the engine isn't pumped, then you definitely need a Perry Pump.

Hi Toto I understand the issues you've had with glow engines. I have run diesels, glows petrol snd electric. Without doubt, with one recent disastrous exception (my fault btw), electrics have been simply a matter.of plug in and go. Next up, diesels, were the easiest on field equipment, then glow and petrol given the need for glow starts (or on board glows) and ignition systems plus a starter motor. That having been said, I start my OS91FX with a reverse rotation tap with a chicken stick unless it's a cold day when I resort to sn electric starter. Dead sticks have been few and far between but I did get a petrol dead stick on one occssion - again my fault. What you describe leads me to thjnk that your helpers were not well taught as regards setting up and tuning glow engines. It does happen. I relate a situation where a fellow club member had a clutch of helpers who could not get his Irvine 46 started and running. I had spent the morning flying my Irvine 53 powered Wot 4 so at lunch I noticed he was fed up snd depressed. I offered to have a go at sorting ot out since my Irvkne ran very well. After 5 mins, the engine was running and after a further 5 mins we had a perfectly set idle and main jet. He flew the aircraft and was delighted. I suspect having a "committee" trying to stsrt and adjust the engine was not the right approach but as my engines run perfectly it may be that I knew what I was doing. A surprising number of glow engine operators appear not to know about idle jets which control the engine up to half throttle. Once these are correctly adjusted they merely need a tweak e.g. if set on a cold winter's day and then being used kn a hot summer's day - those conditions affect the air/fuel ratio as air density varies. My Wot 4 has a side mounted engine and when I fitted a throttle pipe, that lived underneath between the u/c legs, there was hardly any mess on the aircraft after a day's flying. Just my experience.

+1 for Pitts of some sort.

Oops - good point Wookman.

Neddy You should always switch off the Rx before switching off the Tx. What you have triggered isbthe Failsafe by turning off the Tx first. The Rx sees that as a lost signal and goes into Failsafe. You need to set the Failsafe so thatnon signal loss, for an eldctric motor,the motor shuts down. For IC, you would set it to idle. Find the section on Failsafe and after you select motor it should allow you to set the throttle position. You will need to set it at zero or 100 depending on what the existing setting says. You test the Failsafe by having both Tx and Rx switched on and then switching off the Tx. There may be a slight delay when you turn off the Tx before the motor stops. You should do this check before starting every flying session to check the Failsafe is working correctly.

OK, have you tried using the "Reverse" function that is described at para 4.3 in the manual? As I don't have an XP8103 I cannot work through showing screen shots. The screen shot I've sent seems to work as follows: 1. Switch on the Tx 2. Press the UP DOWN keys together to enter Function mode. 3. From the list displayed, use the UP DOWN keys separately to access the Reverse function from the list. 4. Use one of the <ch ch> buttons to select the channel you want to reverse 5. Press one of the + - buttons to change the direction of travel 6. Select the next channel to change using the <ch ch> buttons and reverse it using the + - buttons. 7 When done, press the UP DOWN keys together to exit Function mode. 8. Take the prop off and then check the channels affected to make sure they work correctly. If you feel you cannot tell which way the motor is running then put the prop back on and restrain the aircraft while you try the Throttle switch.

Hi Neddy To avoid confusion it's always best to use the standard terminology. For example: a. Pairing should be called Binding as that is how it is referred to in all manuals I've read since 2010. b. "Power turned off" can be confusing. Is the Tx power turned off or is the throttle stick in the closed position? I suspect you mean with the throttle stick in the closed position but I'm not 100% sure. Turning the Tx off is the way we check that the Failsafe works correctly. For an electric motor, you should set it so the motor either stops or has a very slow idle. c. Is the motor running in reverse or is the throttle function reversed? I suspect the latter as you say it runs flat out with the power turned off - see my b. d. If the motor really is running in reverse i.e. the aircraft is being pushed backwards with power on, you need to disconnect the drive pack, and then remove 2 of the 3 wires going from the ESC to the motor and swap them over. It doesn't matter which 2 you swap over. Then reconnect the flight battery and check that the motor runs in the correct direction. (The ESC turns the DC current of the battery into a 3 phase AC supply to the motor. The switching on and off of the 3 phase supply provides the turning force for the motor so swapping 2 of the 3 leads over merely turns the direction of rotation of the 3 phase supply to the motor.) When making any checks on an electric motor, always remove the propeller first as if the motor goes to full power you don't have a major problem! I had a look at the manual that is posted and it seems to be missing the page with Reversing the Servo movement on it. I found another manual here, which is not as easy to navigate but does have the relevant section on reversing a servo and I've posted the screen shot of it below. If you follow that you should get a reversed servo direction. If the throttle stick is working back to front then you need to reverse the throttle channel as well. Hope that helps. Peter

Skmetimes it saves a lot of time and effort to start with a clean memory. That way, you will know what the model is mesnt to do! It can be a ddvkl of a job trying to trouble shoot odd behaviour when it's skmeone else's setup that you dkn't really understand!

Sometimes there is no substitute for reality!

Hi Neddy There are 2 parts to your Tx. There is the computer part and there is the radio part. You have replaced the radio part with the FrSky 2.4 GHz module but the computer part is pure JR and its functions are as described in the Tx handbook. None of those changes apart from how the Failsafe operates I would think as that is dependant on the radio link. Setting up the model memory is as per the manual you have. The same will hold true of setting control throws, exponential and any mixes you want to use. Hope that helps.

So it would seem. Perhaps John could tell you where it is as the manual doesn't identify its location.

Neddy, you need to read the information on Page 18 as per John Lee's post. The CR2032 lithium battery is a very slim battery that is used in clocks, remote switches etc and powers the memory when the main Tx battery is disconnected - that's the one you have linked to in your post above. This link takes you to the CR2032 battery. On my JR XG11 Tx, they must have changed to using NV RAM to hold the model memories as it does not need this back up battery to support the model memories. As John says, best to make the change before you start programming the model memories - just in case!

Hi John Do you fly "thumbs" of finger and thumb? I have found that many who fly "thumbs" tend to roll right when they pull up into a loop. It's the geometry of the thumb. I first noticed that when I was practising for my B and found that if I turned my wrist inwards so that the thumb could now just pull straight back then the roll to the right disappeared. I have since moved to mounting my Tx on a tray and re-taught myself to fly fingers and thumb - that's an even better way to avoid cross control inputs.

It wasn't clear hence my comment. Thanks for clarifying.

Andy I don't know if you are talkjng about the A test being spread over 3 flights. If that's what you meant then I'm afraid that's wrong. The BMFA Achievement Scheme test has to be done in one flight. If you fail, albeit you may be asked to repeat.one or more but not all manoeuvres, you are allowed one more attempt that day. The Achievement Scheme booklet on the Power Fixed Wing tests is very clear on this point. Also, if you pass the flight test you must also pass the pre and post flight checks and the questions. You can be failed if you are unaware of the requirements. There is no question of doing three tests. It is not up to the Club Examiner to make changes to a National Scheme. If you were referring to Club sign off to fly solo, then that is entirely up to the club.

Don't forget you need to drill yourself so that SWEETS becomes the first thing you do when you arrive at your field. Next, make sure your preflight check is carried out in the same order every time -.if you vary it, you will forget something. All of the actions needed to get you from the pits to the flight line, your pre-take off checks including checking the whole sky not just in front of you, communicating your intentions with other pilots in the box at all times. If you want to demonstrate control there is nothing more difficult than flying perfect rectangular circuits as Ron has already explained. If you can fly 2 identical circuits you hsve demonstrated full control of the aircraft particularly if you have a cross wind component and have flown all 4 legs accurately compensating for the wind's effects. After that, I would start on basic aerobatics as that will get you used to controlling your aircraft when it's in an unusual position, talking of which getting used to flying inverted is also very good practice - but start at height! Try and drill into yourself to roll upright if things get uncomfortable and resist the panic of just pulling up elevator! Finally, het used to having a plan for every flight and carry it out. Don't get into the habit of just boring holes in the sky aimlessly till the battery alarm sounds. You will find it much more interesting and you will progress faster.

I sometime use a key chsin camera on my aerobatic aircraft mounted using the rear camalyser retention bolt looking aft. On one flight, a fly was sitting on the rear fuselage as I started the take off roll. He hung on until I flew the first reversal starting with a 45 deg upline. As the power came on it either got blown off or jumped! Your bee was made of sterner stuff!

kc - just to clarify for newbies, this is any 2 of the 3 leads going to the motor. These leads carry the 3 phase AC power that the ESC supplies to the motor having converted from the DC input from the battery pack. As written, there is just the chance someone would swap the leads into the ESC from the battery - which is terminal for most ESCs of course. I always take the view that if there is some ambiguity there's a chance of an error being made.

Well spotted Martin.

Comment from one of the Flight Coach team: We are having some DNS issues in European. We're looking into it, could be something to do with some new EU rules. For now you can access it by setting a preferred DNS in your ipv4 settings. I just chose a random one in Australia (one from here: https://public-dns.info/nameserver/au.html) and that fixed it. I did try the URL I posted and it now seems to work but for how long? If you get to flightcoach.org, then you will see this home page: The Software Manual and Hardware Setup tabs should give you the information you need. It doesn't seem to specify any particular board though.

An alternative to carbon rods is to use metal turnbuckle type rods. That way you can make minor adjustments to eliminate any electronic trimming by adjusting the rod length mechanically very easily. 3 mm rods should be suitable.

The Flight Coach website seems to have gone down as I cannot access it either. You can find a short write up on it on the CK Aero website (link) and some information on boards here. I will try and find out why the FC website is down and post the outcome on this thread.

That may be so David, but the rest of us wouldn't know what was going on. After all, English is the language of aviation. Having said that, I remember flying into a French airfield just outside Paris, Les Mureux, where all the RT was conducted in French till someone told the controller thst someone was calling him in English! He then spoke to me in English and everyone else in French! I kept a very sharp lookout till I was clear of the runway!

Just found this video by Juan Rombaut, a world Top 20 F3A pilot, talking about how he uses Flight Coach to help him practice and improve. Link.

Great job Dave. Others might also be interested in the Flight Coach system that has been developed for F3A aerobatics but can be used for any type of flying. This website gives detailed information on setting up hardware and how to use the free plotter software to display your flight. This project has had the benefit of working with the Arduino folk to produce an excellent post flight debrief facility. The plotter is designed to segregate each manoeuvre in the FAI schedule but you can use the plotter without recourse to this function or you can choose to call each of your manoeuvres one of the named manoeuvres. There is a facility to extend or contract the path of each manoeuvre if you wish to look at each segment in detail. There is plenty of information on the Flight Coach website on how to set up the hardware/firmware and how to configure the plotter.