Scrooge Howard

Along with many others I also taught myself back in those old days .  It was relatively simple , having had about 15 years building & flying "Free Flight " models of all varieties , which usually required some trimming of Rudder / elevator variety to achieve any sort of flight , & subsequently the flight pattern one desired  OH! what a blessing it was to be able to make these adjustments in flight instead of having to endure "Out of tiim flights" , before being able to do so .                                           The trick here I suppose , was that I had some F/F models already , that were quite capable of looking after themselves without any "Inter ference",  from me . so all I had to do was install one control at a time   (Firstly Rudder), which , Iset at neutral  and the model was allowed to F/F by itself until ie , I felt it would be a good idea to add a little ", say, Left trim  .This I would do in a most gingerly fashion & watched to see what happened . If it did what I wanted  ,Brilliant , knowing that I`d only got to leave go fo the sticks  ,  and it would resume F/Fing once more .                                            This process continued , carefully substituting one control at a time , then gradually increasing "Throws" , and finally combining all together .  As I don`t have to point out  , I had unwittingly become a proficient R/C pilot ,(At least of the Vintage  Pilot category)  . That was a wonderful period to be experiencing the hobby ,& Im still marvelling at it all today .                                              

Hi Pete , Shaun  & Flytil`,                             Thanks for your replies ,all read video watched . I agree with F`boats you get CG problems twice over apart from shifts due to Lipo`s & changeing to brushless any way. this is exactly the sort of stuff I like to hear about .                              I always feel unngratefull if I don`t always reply to individuals , but those who reply 1st & so help to get the ball rolling deserve one.                              I am always grateful , (Not to say astonished) ,to others sharing their thoughts & info` with me . So thanks in advance , in case you don`t get acknowleged I can assure you that all your inputs get read with interest nevertheless .                                 Scrooge

HI There ,                Having aquired 2 well used "Retired"  Twinstar airframes I decided extract the best bits for restoration & upgrade the power to "Brushless".  This resulted in one extra pretty good fuselage being left over , so I decided to indulge a long held desire & convert This spare Fuz into a Flying Boat Hull shape & so use it for flying off water when I next had one of my "Funny Moments"                NOW , I know it must have been done dozens of times before , but so far hav only located  2 vidoes & nothing else regarding this subject ,(not much variety & little detail),                I fancy going the way of "Sponsons" at present but feel rather isolated & without reference to other modellers experiences in tackling this interesting conversion .                 Looking thhough "All Things Flying " , pages (All 59 of them ) , I could only find  2 threads which had anything at all  to do with water planes & neither of those mentioned Twinstar conversions . They did however reflect my concerns about possible flying sites , & it is this ,one supposes that causes  water flying`s lack of popularity . However , with the cleanliness & silence of electric power this situation might well improve . At  least it may become feasible for small models to be flown from ponds in small farmers fields on a regular basis . Dare I  mention wet areas left whilst floods subside  (.No ,perhaps that`s not an acceptable way of thinking ,whilst  victims struggle to get their lives back together)l , Still ; When things improve perhaps.                  Any suitable Info` regarding  Twinstar , flying boat conversions would be much appreciated     .   SCROOGE.

Jesus ,Talk about the tower of Babel.

Thanks Eric ,                     I remember now .          Speed of light = Speed of radio signals .          Couldnt remember  what  that was  .  Q.E.D.   I guess .                     Cheers     scrooge

Thanks Eric, The more I continue with this thread the more I realise how little I know about radio .  Think I`ll go & do some flying & balsa bashing whist my head stops spinning , but  I am curious as to  how  this unfamiliar ,(to me), "Constant",  " 300 ", is derived.                                                                                      Regards ,           scrooge

Hi Eric,           I suppose you are still frightening the cat .       I now own a Twister CP  V2  "Like wot yew sed" , from our previous contact .  As you can see from my thread starter I  had reservations about  bucking the system , but on balance I`m willing to proceed cautiously , & give the submitted  suggestions a try .           Very interesting that  " Doubling back doubles the frequency",   Does this mean that if I cut the aerial in half  ,  =17.5  first , then double it back , its then effectively tuned back to  35 once again .                                                                                           Regards ,       scrooge.             

Hi Owen ,                Thanks for reassurance .    It`s not long ago that I was puzzled as to how anyone managed to roll a Heli` with all that aerial hanging underneath .                                                                       scrooge.

Hi Dave,              At the moment I`m using the Perkins training U/c attchment , so whilst taking your point , it doesn`t apply to me right now , but it is a good tip  I`ll certainly be using  when I get confident enough to remove it & start doing my Duncan Osbourne bit.             Still musing over that aerial installation of yours . I suppose it was its similarity to a "Continuously  loaded"  type that affected my waters .                                                                                                  Regards ,     John (scrooge) Howard.

Hi Dave ,           Wow , I feel it in my waters , this could be the answer.            At the moment  ,submitting  to the encouragement & advice I`ve  received , (Thanks everybody), I`ve vanquished my "ghost of folding aerials past" , & am indulging in some "Aeriligami" of my own ,the latest being     ---  From skid to tail post & back again to front of othr skid , all enclosed in drinking straws.           Yesterday I installed replacement T/Rotor motor , switched on & all seemed OK  at least within the  confines fo my living room ,(Too small to fly in), & am now awaiting permission of the weather to get down to some serious airbourne checking .                                                                                   Cheers .    scrooge .

For the present ,                              Thanks Alan  .  I hope to get the new rotor/motor & install it (any time now) , then things should start to get interesting .          Meanwhile  Good egg beating .     Cheers  ,    scrooge 

Hi Alan ,             I too use 24.iGig these days , seems to solve most problems and it certainly would solve this one.   Unfortunately the "Twister" Is fitted with a single unit which comprises 35meg Rx , ESC  & Gyro , all in one , otherwise I would have slipped In a spare 241 Rx  .  However although  disliking taking liberties with Radio installations I have to agree with you that this case justifies it , and the method you suggest , not involving any surgery , should be quite safe providing I carry out thorough & intensive ground checks first .  In any case , seeing that it wont be flown more tha about 50yds away I feel it`s worth trying , so thanks for your confidence building reply , ghosts & all                                                                                                                                Cheers , scrooge

Hi, 36 Yrs F/W R/c , Decided to try Helis , spent 50 Hrs on "FMS" simulator in preparation . Got myself a "Twister CP V2" electric , managed to do a totally uneventful 1st battery load of hops & hovers in a car park , but didn`t like the last 24 of 38 inches of aerial hanging underneath , (accident waiting to happen , I thought) . Sure enough towards the end of the 2nd battery load , the inevitable happened , when during the last landing , upon settling down the tail rotor entangled the aerial thus stalling the rotor/motor & burning it out . What within the well established principles , (ie not cutting or coiling), the aerial can anyone suggest how I can prevent this happening again . I look forward to any ideas you would be good enough to share with me . scrooge.<!-- / message -->

H i Eric ,         Thanks . I am looking into your suggestion right now . So far thinking , good price , rotor dia approx 12 cm less than "Neon Blaze" , but appears to benifit from a brushless motor , good spares back up , I`ll have a word about it at the model shop , but have given myself until Wednesday to look around .          Meanwhile wish you good egg beating ,          Scrooge .

I have been flying fixed wing for longer than I care to remember , these days mainly electric & now wish to sample the delights of electric helicopters (Not Contra- rotating.) Having followed Graham Ashbys experiences in RCM&E  I felt that was the model for me . However at the local model shop I was offered a "Century Neon Blaze" which whilst not on their shelves at that time for sale , one was shown to me , recomended , and I was given a delivery time of 3weeks , no worries , nice time to get up to speed on a borrowed simulator  , so I went ahead & ordered one .   However , after the time was up & it had not arrived at the shop , I checked on "Centurys" web site &found that this model would not be  available unti after the middle of March . I don`t want to wait that long , so would like to know of any similar electric  helicopters that I could order from my local model shop that are widely available . (As you can see I am a firml supporter of my local model shop)                                                                                               Cheers , Scrooge

Hi Dave Bran ,                       Ihad similar experience .  Carried out instructions from both manuals ,  (6EXAp & 6EXP) Ref your Para` 3. My disappointed student sought an answer from his supplier who fortunately were able to help him by operating " training switch inhibit" , no reference to which appears in my manual (6EXAP) , or so he tells me in his (6EXP) .                       Forwarding your message to him has helped spare my blushes somewhat , so thanks .                       I`m looking forward to meeting him soon so we can reverse roles & he can show me how to do it . (Out ofthe mouths of babes etc,etc) .                     

More thoughts . We use very basic, but good, 3 cell £16 Perkins Lipo chargers . The "Saphions" are almost idiot proof, certainly no more hazardous than their NiCad equivalents , they hold their charge well , we have flown them sucessfully several weeks after their last charge , without "Topping Up" , unlike Ni/types , & they also seem to have at least as good a shelf life . Unfortunately up till now , they have only been available in one cell size , but we have sucessfully "Paralled" 2 Standard 3 cell S packs , (to power an "Axi 28/20 /10" motor , using a 12 x 6 prop) . Occasionally , when I`ve over discharged during a flight , I`ve been able to restore to normal use by carefully applying a small charge, ( about 250 Ma for about 5 mins), using an ordinary Ni/type charger , before connecting to the LiPo charger for completion , (something I would not even contemplate doing with a LiPoly or LiIon battery) . But "Hey" don`t copy me , use your loaf & don`t over discharge in the !st place . I look forward to seeing more suppliers/manufactures providing greater choice in this "Not So Worrying" Phosphate technology.

If we are talking of "Saphions" ,John Ogier states correctly , they are Lithium Phosphate cells. Myself & four friends have been using them for around 2 years now and found them to be excellent , trouble free , tolerant of abuse ,equivalent in voltage ,( 9.6v/ 3 cell pack),to an 8 cell NiMh pack but lighter, and found to enhance the performance of all the models we have used them in . We now no longer purchase 8 cell Ni based packs for 1200Mah , applications and can`t think why they are not more popular. After watching a fellow club member using another "Lithium Phosphate" based, (A123),pack , early days yet ,but so far we are equally impressed . Nothing yet however quite seems to match the sheer power/weight ratio of the Li-Po`s ,so in spite of their draw backs we are tending to use them more & more

Hi Lee& David, I agree, perhaps "Destroyed" was not a good word to use , and "Overcome" might have been more appropriate ,but the context was about communication after all , not international relationships . But blimee you`r right, it is raining again . Whilst I too am proudly British, I feel that we should not be too insular when it comes to Global exchange of information, we all have a lot to learn from oneanother, but when discussing a specific subject such as "Model Aviation" it is advantageous to be able do so under one website only. Thank you both for your inputs , scrooge

Yup. But R.C.Groups was there first, and has always been hugely contributed to by our fellow countrymen ,and in fact ,still is!, so I can only reiterate my original comments . The internet has destroyed national boundaries, and we all have this absorbing common interest, so why not a common website. Respectfully, scrooge.

To anyone that may be interested, I sifted through all your contributions thoroughly, (Thanks Guys),and in the end decided, somewhat reluctantly ,(scrooge),to invest in some 241Gig gear. Sofar I have only done 2 flights with it in my previously, almost unflyable, (Due to glitching), "Fantom",but what joy, No glitching whatsoever , smooth as a babys bum. I am at present most pleased, but hasten to remind you .Only 2 flights with one model! . More checks , then when weather& time permit & I`ve indulged myself in"Glitch free E.D.F." for a while, the "Tigershark" will get its turn to be re-born

Hi David, R.C.Groups is the other one. So together with WWW. modelflying that makes two I think, or am I getting it all wrong . Regards , scrooge.

I may be in a minority , but I feel that two websites dealing with identical modeling topics , side by side , is one too many, being both divisive & annoying to interact with , the same question or answer having to be placed separately in each site with slight differences in wording to suit the current mood & style of other contributions to that particular site . This problem does`nt occur if all contributions go to one site only. scrooge

Mark. Excellent example . The prop was obviously transmitting energy to the airframe when it stuck ,& to prevent the "Spin" , energy would have to be generated, (By the flying surfaces), to oppose this & by so doing create yet more drag , so freewheel it!. In these days of heavy , powerful , fast models using,by comparison very small props the effect must be hugely reduced , but is it totally eliminated ?. Ummm .

What prompted me to display my ignorance in public ?, Nigel Hawes article , Pg71 , RCM&E, July 07. Glad I did , Thanks guys for some very interesting contributions to the discussion . Hi Mike Rolls , so I`m not the only old time "Balsa basher" brought up on "Freewheelers ,Featherers& folders " , & I certainly wouldn`t entertain a stationary prop on any of the rubber driven F/Fs Ifly today. Alistairs point about the impeller speed , IF , higher when freewheeling , than that of the commanded (Low revs) , of the motor , dragging down the impeller speed to match, it is something I will bear in mind in future when trying to tickle my E.D.F. over the "Threshold" on the glide by adding a "Smidgin" of Throttle (now it will be all or nuthin) , just joking .