Martin Harris - Moderator

Took advantage of a limited offer (Sundays usually being off limits by decree of SWMBO) to take my grandaughter out to fly a little rubber powered toy and a chuck glider after being frustrated by a stinking cold yesterday and constant drizzle. Couldn't help putting my profile 3D extra in the car, now could I?  What a novelty, flying from a green surface with virtually no wind! 

The insurance is normally valid from the time your club receives your renewal - however, I'm not certain whether the club itself needs to re-register (with at least 6 renewals) in order for this to apply?

Posted by ken anderson. on 31/12/2010 10:54:34: just tell her --your the 'boss'...and then let us know which hospital you end up in...we'll send some get well card's.............    ken anderson    ne...1. I wonder if there's a connection here with Myron's thread?

I think what Simon is referring to in his OP is the reduced voltage drop across any fixed resistance such as in connections and wiring.  In a simple DC circuit, if for example, you double the supply voltage and the load resistance to maintain the same power, the losses in the fixed wiring etc. are virtually halved. You could always tell an early 6v VW in the dark by their pathetic headlamps! Edited By Martin Harris on 31/12/2010 00:09:51

Best solution for flight times is a battery charger that can display charge and discharge info - use it after a session occasionally to monitor usage and remaining capacity. In practical terms, any normal pack - 700mA/h upwards will give adequate duration unless you're intending flying for hours at a time.  It depends on the number and type of servos, flying style, freneess of linkages etc. so an accurate timing is difficult - maybe 100 mA/h per 10 minute flight as a safe/rough estimate...  I would avoid very high capacity NiMHs as there's a suspicion that the thinner materials used to obtain the energy density may compromise reliability.  Each cell is nominally 1.2V although a fair bit higher freshly off charge. Edited By Martin Harris on 29/12/2010 16:11:22

Posted by Chris Bott on 29/12/2010 13:38:45: Why is it BEB that I've never spotted any forum comment on how a Futaba or JR repair went (or many other makes for that matter). Is it because their equipment never ever has a failure?@import url(http://www.modelflying.co.uk/CuteEditor_Files/Style/SyntaxHighlighter.css);@import url(/CuteEditor_Files/public_forums.css); Chris - is your comment in support of BEB's observation? Quote: New research reveals just how powerful good and bad reports of customer service are when it comes to UK consumers choosing where to spend their hard earned cash. A new survey out today reveals that over 80% of consumers tell their friends, family and associates about their good or bad customer experiences, with three times as many (25.2%) relaying bad experiences, over good (8.4%). Edited By Martin Harris on 29/12/2010 14:03:03

There might be something in your (possibly) tongue in cheek remark BEB...and I have to admit that it's a thought that has occasionally drifted through my mind.  Spektrum have (in my experience) taken the modelling world by storm and seem very popular and well defended by their users.  We DO seem to hear more tales of woe from their users though but this could simply be down to volumes. They aren't my system of choice but my personal opinion is that they seem generally OK but have had a few proven problems and rather a lot of (quite possibly spurious) reports of random problems, are extremely well supported by their importer and very cleverly marketed  with BNF, PNP etc. promoting their widespread adoption.  Andy does seem to have been jumped on unfairly - I made the same interpretation of the post from John Saunders and I'd like to think I'm looking at this without any undue bias.  

Posted by Tim Hooper on 29/12/2010 08:50:18: Well done, Hugh! It's a great feeling isn't it! tim  Mangling your finger???!!  I don't think so...  Oh dear, this thread is too full of opportunities... I thought it would be your finger that was wrapped (in bandages) - or was it rapped?  Seriously, Hugh, hearty congratulations on your persistence and dedication and keep up the good work. P.S. BEB, I have a nice scar above my right thumb from a pusher prop nearly 40 years ago - and a similar one on my left hand from where, with a bandaged and still dripping right hand, I tried to adjust the needle with my remaining good hand...it was only then that I twigged that the pusher blade came round leading edge first...so I'm definitely not one of the smart ones!Edited By Martin Harris on 29/12/2010 13:29:59

It is possible to buy high voltage servos designed to be powered by 2 LiPos in series but they are unlikely to be found in the average Wot4.  A number of modern receivers are capable of running on 2S LiPos.  An alternative worth considering is 2 A123 cells with (or even without) a  diode in series which will give a nominal 6 (or 6.6) volts. Edited By Martin Harris on 29/12/2010 13:02:53

Posted by Stephen Grigg on 28/12/2010 10:38:16: Yes Martin thats also true but you dont have to do it,it is your choice,once in the air youve lost the choice,you have to landI suppose my reason for hesitating over doing my own maiden flight is that Ive seen a number of more experienced members do there own maidens and come to grief.although they had carried out check overs carefully a couple were to tail heavy and crashed on take off,  I think we're singing from the same song-sheet here - that was the point I was trying to make!   To be frank, if these people had been more careful about getting the C of G in a safe position they miight justify your description of "experienced". You can be in the hobby a long time without benefitting from the fruits of your experiences...  Preparation is the key to a successful maiden - of course, if you're flying an "own design" or unconvential model you may be entering uncharted territory where reactions and speed of thought are at a premium but for any normal model you shouldn't get any great surprises - but if, for instance, the instructions give a C of G that seems unreasonable, question it!  I do an awful lot of maidens (ooh er missus!) at our club and the vast majority are non-events. That's the way I like them and they are usually just a trimming exercise combined with a check on the low speed (particularly) and general handling. I'm sure you'll find it rewarding to do your own if you can pluck up the courage...and you'll probably wonder what the fuss was all about.   Edited By Martin Harris on 28/12/2010 18:21:19

Depends how deep your pockets are - ASPs are very reasonably priced and I've no complaints with mine - or there's always the inline twin 200 from Saito...

Please make it a 4 stroke!

Posted by flytilbroke on 27/12/2010 21:26:05: Is it the most important Flight For our New Model   The last one is always the most important, as if you don't finish it correctly    Isn't the next flight always the most important?

If it needs ballast I prefer using lead...

A very light and quick wipe will do the job.  CA cures in the presence of moisture/absence of air so wiping it away quickly works OK - practice it on some scrap material (like a piece of covering, plastic bag etc.) first.Edited By Martin Harris on 27/12/2010 16:55:53

Diluted epoxy makes a great fuel proofer but hardly necessary in your case!  Epoxy resin adds virtually no strength on its own.   What you could do is use carbon fibre tows, cloth, Kevlar or glass cloth to reinforce the structure using epoxy to bind it andfill the weave.  Failing (or complimenting) that then strategic balsa fillets can add a lot of strength for very little weight.  Thin cyano is useful for hardening balsa - soaked in to screw holes (after unscrewing the screw from the hole!) or into the grain and you can use it with baking soda or microballoons to form fillets. Watch out for the fumes though! Edited By Martin Harris on 27/12/2010 16:22:44

Posted by Rob Sten on 27/12/2010 14:43:01: I was hoping it was a boat.....  You could glass coat the box...

Think Douglas Bader - part of the RAF display team so not short of skill and experience but ego overcame education and he pushed himself just a little too far to prove a point... ...but, without such people we'd still be debating whether or not to adopt the wheel! Of course, there are those who would still  like us to.     Edited By Martin Harris on 27/12/2010 15:02:04

You lucky wotsit!!!

I think James covered that at the beginning of his latest posting... 

It's like a Christmas pudding - all in the mixing... Stuff like 4 (or more)  aileron wings, crow braking, etc.   

While you're practicing with your known model, do remember to play with the trims and get used to flying a model that's well out of trim - as well as coping with an out of trim model until you've adjusted them it's entirely possible to run out of movement - the nastiest case being running out of down trim and having to fly the approach with down elevator and reducing the down to flare and hold off - it does feel rather odd...

You can paste using the relevant icons - just don't paste direct into the reply box from Word etc. as the forum doesn't get on with the formatting commands...

Oh dear, I hope I was wrong with the first reply on this thread!

That's why I queried the number - have we actually made 200 posts today yet?