Piers Bowlan
-
Posts
2,934 -
Joined
-
Last visited
-
Days Won
1
Content Type
Profiles
Forums
Blogs
Gallery
Calendar
Downloads
Posts posted by Piers Bowlan
-
-
Ah yes, being able to laser cut a lot of parts for your club mates makes a lot of sense and makes a lot of friends too!
I guess it must require several processes like scanning the plans and manipulating the image files onto ‘balsa shaped’ pieces of wood, before you can sit back and watch your robot cutter, work it’s magic. A truly ‘Hamlet’ moment!
-
In the case of Peter Miller’ o-Four9ier it is really such a simple design that you could probably cut out a set of parts for it in an evening if you had the wood available. I rather enjoy the process of making parts for a model, when starting a build. Many seem to hate it. I wonder why?
-
1
-
-
16 hours ago, MattyB said:
No, the RX included will only bind to the TX provided with the kit. Consulting with the supplier is definitely the correct thing to do at this point; the only other thing I would check is which channel teh ESC is plugged into in the RC, as it could have been plugged into the wrong one at the factory.
RC Hobby sell a PNP version without the Tx and say it is compatible with the Radiomaster 16S. I’ve no idea what protocol either that or Greg’s FlySky Tx uses.
In any event it certainly sounds faulty. Who did you buy it from Greg?
-
This was posted earlier in the thread. It shows the C of G behind the aft wing bolt, the question is how far behind, there is no scale on this plan? It also assumes the rear wing bolt on your model is true to plan! Perhaps you will just have to wait for someone with a Miras to post.
Good luck with the maiden, it should be exciting 😁
-
If you were to photograph the ‘20-30’ engines together and post them here we might be able to identify them. You might even get some offers.
The BMFA have just held another online auction with hundreds of engines and old kits for sale. Anyone know when the next one might be?
Would you have a RCV 58CD or perhaps a HP vt-21 by any chance?
-
My subscription to RCM&E (paid quarterly) works out as £4.16 an edition, so quite a saving on the £6.35 price in WH Smith’s and not even the cost of a bottle of cyano!
I don’t even have to make a special trip to WH Smith’s when the latest issue comes out to get my copy (another saving), it’s delivered free to my door 😊.
-
Good point kc - anyone know?
-
The Turnigy plush ESC use the same programming card as hobbywing ESCs. Might be easier, especially if you have several plush ESCs, as I do.
-
Wings secured with rubber bands may not be beautiful or scale but they can reduce the damage in the event of a crash. Sometimes more so than plastic wing bolts too.
If you want to fit ailerons you will need to reduce the dihedral somewhat or you may find the ailerons effectiveness is somewhat reduced, due to adverse yaw.
All in all it sounds like quite a bit of surgery. Personally I would just maiden it as it is, see how she flies and then consider my options…
Looks like it might make a good trainer 😊
-
If it wasn’t working I can’t imagine it flying for more than ten seconds before crashing. The operator must have been very near to where it came down. You would also expect a lot of damage with an out of control fun-fly model. Something funny going on here?
-
Did you try calling the phone number for the Three Shires MFC?
‘Local police station’ : The owner might not think of contacting the police if he hasn’t bothered to mark the model with an Operator ID. Bit like driving without a licence!Is the model radio controlled BiggusB? If it is, it will have servos and pushrods connected to the control surfaces (elevator, rudder, ailerons etc).
I just wondered if it was a free flight flyaway, although in that case you would expect the address to be on it somewhere.
-
14 hours ago, BiggusBobbus said:
Thanks for the fast replies.
It's a bigger model than 250g and it's not an all electric model.
I will get them to check it for a number and report it.
Hopefully we can get the model back to the owner ASAP.
If you were to post a picture of it here someone may even recognise it as belonging to a fellow club member. A long shot but possible.
-
20 hours ago, Romeo Whisky said:
I wrote a booklet on the Basics of Electric Flight which can be downloaded from our Club website.
The link is here:- https://dmfc.org.uk/downloads/electricFlight.pdf
Perhaps you might consider sending it to Kevin Crozier as a basis for a future article/s in RCM&E? They havn’t had anything like that for a while.
-
For scale fidelity ‘B’ would get my vote although ‘C’ is probably most common with Cub model designs, - easier to build with a flat bottomed section. 👍
Full size practice is often to design a wingtip to minimise drag and maximise efficiency.
Its shape will not have an effect on adverse stalling charactistics. If a designer is concerned about that he might include a little washout, amongst other things.A properly constructed parallel chord wing on a lightly loaded Ben Buckle Super Cub should have a totally benign stall - unless severely provoked!
Just build it to the plan, don’t agonise about it. 😉
-
1
-
1
-
-
There were some really excellent RCM&E articles by the late, great Dave Burton, affectionately known as BEB (Biggles Elder Brother), on the Forum. Some of these covered the mysteries of electric flight. Others, such things as principles of flight and aerodynamics. I think the archived material is only available to digital subscribers sadly. (I am paper only😪).
Perhaps some of these old articles could be rehashed in future editions of the mag as they would be just as relevant today. -
Plan is very good value at £3+vat.
-
How much, Steve?
-
When I say you ‘don’t hand launch’ an e-Amethyst I mean, you don’t have to hurl it into the sky. Just start the motor and pretty much let-go, with it pointing into wind. Not much point fitting a landing gear to an e-glider. Anyway the ‘power set for the Amethyst is here. No doubt Model Shop Leeds or Retro. Modeller could order a power set in for you. The Pitchler product number for the power set (motor, folding propeller and electronic speed controller) is 15027.
-
12 hours ago, Piers Bowlan said:
Similar to the Keil Craft Caprice I mentioned earlier is the Pichler Amethyst which is now available in an RC version with a small electric motor to launch it to height.
There is a rather nice video of the glider version being flown from a clifftop by John Woodfield which shows how well it flies, here. It weighs just 230g so no need to register with the CAA either. Also to avoid confusion the kit was produced by West Wings but now by Pichler.
2 hours ago, Greg said:Hello Piers,
Thanks for letting me know. I think with my Arthritis hand launching is not going to be possible. My arm will need some help 😀
Regards,
Greg
You don’t hand launch the Amethyst Greg, it has an electric motor. I only added the link to the glider VERSION so that you could see it flying. Sorry for the confusion.
-
Similar to the Keil Craft Caprice I mentioned earlier is the Pichler Amethyst which is now available in an RC version with a small electric motor to launch it to height.
There is a rather nice video of the glider version being flown from a clifftop by John Woodfield which shows how well it flies, here. It weighs just 230g so no need to register with the CAA either. Also to avoid confusion the kit was produced by West Wings but now by Pichler.
-
What about a Keil Kraft Caprice free flight glider Greg? You would enjoy the build no doubt and they fly so well. Some people fit them with just rudder radio control to keep them in the same county!
-
1
-
-
In Greg’s OP he is clear on what he wants; he says he wants to build and fly an EP balsa glider kit and teach himself to fly it - and why not, if he builds model boats he will be able to build a balsa model.
John Lee mentioned the Aeronaut range earlier. The quality of their kits have been highly praised in previous RCM&E reviews and I suggest the LT200 Flex could be considered? The description on the Model Shop Leeds website is helpful although unfortunately out of stock, but Retro modeller do have one in stock here. You will see from the comprehensive instructions here, the build is quite technical using jigs to ensure everything is straight and true. The wings are all balsa sheeted too so the model could just be doped if preferred to film covering. The instructions provide details of different ‘build options’ including ailerons/elevator vs rudder/ elevator control, plus a wing spoiler option too ( I think this is crow braking and not something for a first model perhaps!).
DD mentioned ‘breaking propellers’. Like all e-gliders the model would have a folding propeller so unlikely to break unless you land with the motor running.
The completed model may have a hard life and end up brushed and battered Greg but if you build the model yourself you have a good chance of being able to repair it. It is a learning curve after all.-
1
-
-
I am glad you are feeling better Greg.
Just ignore the negative comments, there is no right way or wrong way to do this hobby. I have been flying model aircraft all my life, from the age of five (I’m now 66!) and have never been a member of a model flying club.
I started with gliders and now fly electric gliders mainly.
Just do your own thing Greg. 👍-
1
-
-
I was assuming Peter owned the copyright and why I said ‘and Peter didn’t mind.’ Good point Ron, SLEC or RCM&E may now own the copyright. I have no idea but a shame if the plan was not widely available.
How NOT to hand start a full size plane!!!!
in The Video Channel
Posted
I’ve hand swung a C150 a couple of times but it was chocked or tied down with a pilot sitting in it. I had to swing the prop on my Turbulent as there wasn’t an electric start fitted but I carried a pair of portable chocks, plus I had my ‘patented’ homemade device for pinning the tail skid to the ground. I also used the harness to strap the stick fully back. Belt and braces - safety is no accident!