Keith Evans 3

All calibrations done correctly .

Help required . I,ve recently tried the gyro and it works well in normal mode but not in auto level mode . The plane was take up to a good height ,put into a climbing rolling mode and the sticks released .After what seemed like ages ,probably 2secs it did not level out .I chickened out ,switched the gyro off and regained control . Should I have waited longer for the auto level to have taken effect or do I have a problem. I checked the gyro on landing and the auto level mode was flashing as it should be . The gyro is activated from the transmitter I.e. off normal. Auto .The gain is controlled by a slider on the transmitter . The transmitter is a Futaba 14sg . Keith

The plane is an electrified Sky 40 which has been converted to a tail dragged like it,s big brother . It has 4.5 in Tundra wheels to help with winter field flying .There is a tail skid at the rear as per Peter Miller . As for learning to cope with it ,I,m still Designing it for old age ,see previous forum topic . If things do not pan out in the near future of things that I can do to aid my flying then I,ll pull the plug on the sport before I become a danger to myself and others and take up a different hobby . Thanks

I,m considering using a gyro to help overcome ground looping of a tail dragger model. Any advice on rudder movements and gain setting on the gyro would be appreciated Thanks

if you don,t want to use an iron ,then PVA spread between the covering and base material and then held down with loads of plns may work .

I,ve successfully used 4Max coverings .

Thanks everyone for your input I,ve tried twisting the wing .I don,t want to strip and re cover .so it,s going to be a smallish tab on the problem wing .

I forgot to say I,m contemplating using a flat bottomed section . Thanks

I,m contemplating building an electrified version of a June Bug .Large slightly undercambered wing on top and a more pronounced undercamered smaller wing on the bottom.I know it will have different flying characteristics but will it still fly satisfactorily? Currently the design is for single channel but I,ll make it a three channel version . I know some people don,t like messing about with old designs but I have personal reasons for doing so . Any thoughts or ideas would be helpful . Thanks . Keith

Here is my Christmas build.

I have a non-aileron undercambered glider wing with wash in in the outer panel .It is covered in transparent oracover .I have tried heating and twisting but to no avail .I am considering adding a trim tab to the opposite wing to compensate .any advice would be grateful . Thanks

Threaded rods with nuts and washers .

Thanks for all your inputs . It,s really helped .

Is there a recommended current that can be safely taken constantly from an esc.such as a % of its stated rating ?

3mm and 4mm threaded rod plus nuts and washers can be had from B&Q .

Agree with the above . for interest the plans show 2 degree right side thrust and 3 degree down thrust . The planes I design and build myself follow Peter Millers designs of zero zero and work fine . All the Sky 40,s I built have come out around 6 lbs and 12 oz.i.e a pound heavier than that stated on the plan . I believe it is because it is an all liteply construction apart from the tail feathers . Flying on 4s power with an 11x6 prop is fine it,s marginal on 3s Do not use the abs cowls build your own from balsa and ply ,they will last longer . Adding a bit more length to the cowl will help with the balance . I use threaded rod stand offs for the motor and if any thrust adjustments are required it is very easy to do . Best of luck .You will enjoy flying it .

Thanks for the replies .

Could an esc placed close to a receiver cause any problems? Thanks

I found the Sky 40 when in trike mode took off just as well with a fixed front wheel assy. And saved on servos .

I used the original u/c as a guide for the spread of the wheels made out of 10 swg backed up with a secondary brace soldered to it and used 4saddle clamps screwed to a 6 m.m. Ply base mounted into the fuselage sides backed with 3/8” triangular balsa . The u/c was infilled with 1/8”lightply .

Hi I converted my Sky 40 to a tail dragged a little while back and used an aluminium tail skid screwed to 1/8 ply glued to the lite ply and it works well . while you are at it consider splitting the ailerons into flaps and ailerons .Mine are approx a 40 /60 split of ail. To flap . They work well and add another dimension to the flight envelope .

If you feel you must add the extra webs then why not just the first 3 bays where the loads are the greatest .

What happened to the sky 40 ?

Well Dave three months to go then ! I have tried a stand alone model stand but could not get on with it .A bit too much of a faff to set up and yet another item to clean down and carry to and from the field Call me lazy but I,m at that time of life when easy sounds good to the ears Best wishes and have a merry Xmas.

I’m in my late 70’s. Surviving and all the bits left inside me are working well. I’m more of a builder than a flyer but it still gives me a thrill to fly one of my own models whether it has been built from a plan or one of my own designs. The aches and pains are being magnified by the cold weather. So I thought to make life a little more easy it was time to take a hard look at my fleet. Apart from a little Park flyer and one electric glider I’ve always loved I.C. engines: · The smell · The noise · The successes of tuning, etc. However the downsides are: · The cleaning · The heavy flight box · The bending, etc. · They are starting to take the edge off things. So blasphemy took hold and I have gone electric: · Easy to start · No mid air engine cuts · Cleanliness · No heavy flight box · And I can load batteries sitting down. To increase flight hours I have also modified my fleet. To cope with the weather and field conditions I now have a fleet that can cope with: · Blustery winds · Damp heavy fields · And those few, long forgotten, halcyon days. Some of the modifications include: · New cowls to accommodate motor, esc, balance weight and necessary cooling Larger wheels with beefed up u/c · Conversion of some trikes to tundra type tail draggers Building lighter. Not being at all comfortable with electrickery, phone calls to George at 4max sorted out my requirements. To get accustomed to and give me some confidence in the dark side, I took part in a consortium build of a 60” version of Andy Blackburn’s Vans RV4. One club member donated wood. I built, covered and added some servos. The last member supplied the motive power and the necessary flying ability. This was completed in the early part of this year and is a beautiful beast in the air. It has taken me until now to very enjoyably convert the fleet. The models are slowly being maidened. I hope the grim reaper will turn a blind eye! Keith