Trevor Crook
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Everything posted by Trevor Crook
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Bees, if you can get the Flair SE5a from Steve Webb it is an easy electric conversion - mine flies nicely on a 3s setup, battery easily accessable via a hatch over the engine/tank area The esc is under the battery. Looks good in the air, too.
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I don't think we bothered with the pressure feed back then, as Peter C says. However, looking at the picture again, I must get around to drilling out the nipple!
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Geoff and Ken, regarding the dummy motor - it's sold as a spare for the Durafly "Das Ugly Stick" and has a shaft with a bearing at the front and a coupling at the back. The motor was chosen to be as similar as possible to the Durafly original - that wasn't in stock. I had to get one wth the correct diameter shaft and similar kv as I didn't want to put too much power through the plastic engine, which incidentally had to come from the global warehouse. Although I've put air scoops under the nose the motor does get quite hot, fortunately the all-important esc doesn't. Peter, I do sometimes go "EEEEYOWW" as it flies by, but no sound system. Flying here in the crowded south-east, with thousands more houses going up on our green fields, we certainly can't afford noise complaints. I have been tempted to apply some castor oil "weathering" behind the exhaust though!
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When I first joined a club around 1969 I started learning on rudder only "galloping ghost". Our club secretary was Ernie Strutt, and he built and flew a Tauri, which he generously let me have a go with (at a safe height!). Hence it was the first "multi" I flew. We still go flying together - I've been married to Ernie's daughter for over 40 years - and he still loves building. Hence, a few months ago I aquired a Tauri plan (actually a Super Tauri) and he built it for me: All is not as it seems - I am a 100% electric flier these days, but I felt it needed an "engine", so I bought a plastic one from Hobbyking! Here's the motive power: She flies beautifully on a 3S 400W setup - better than the original on a Merco .29. Causes a bit of amusement in the club, too. In writing this, I've realised I haven't given Ernie a go yet. Must put that right next time out, I owe him...
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Yes, I'm very pleased with the colour scheme. It was inspired by the Fly Baby reviewed in the magazine a couple of months ago. Peter, I am also a big fan of low wing loading, and I also think that the relatively thick wing section you have used gives gentle stall characteristics. When I put the wing on my storage rack, it happened to be above my Sig J3 Clipped Wing Cub wing, and is almost identical in span and chord. However, the Cub wing is flat-bottomed and half as thick, and the Cub is about a pound heavier than the Ballerina. It has a much sharper stall, and is inclined to drop a wing, but it is a scale model so ideal model characteristics have had to be compromised.
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Yes Paul, I did consider using a 4s pack, but the power train was originally used in my electrified Galaxy Magician, and when I tried 4s in that I had to reduce the prop size so much to keep within the ESC's 40A limit it became very ineffecient and went no better. Also now the lead is pretty well glued in!
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This is my first Peter Miller model - his reputation is so good I had to try one. My father-in-law volunteered for the build, and I did the finishing with Hobbyking film. I specified 2 variations from the plan to suit my preferences - a fuselage mounted torsion bar u/c and one servo per aileron. I am electric only these days so it's powered by a modest 360W 3s 3000 setup. Weight is 4lb 6oz. ready to fly. Unusually for one of my adaptations of a glow design, I had to add 4oz of lead to the nose to acheive the plan c of g. Maiden was on Sunday. She needed a bit of elevator and aileron trim, but flies superbly, performance is much better than tha power and weight suggest. Lovely loops and rolls, very docile handling. Well done Peter, it is a credit to you, as I expected it to be.
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I have been vaguely considering buying a Nissan Leaf as a second car, and have done quite a lot of research. These have an overall battery capacity indicator, and most used cars I've looked at show full capacity, even after several years and tens of thousands of miles. I doubt that many owners leave them in a part charged state, so that's part of my rationale for my cavalier battery maintenance regime (apart from laziness!).
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I think Matty means he discharges them to a storage level, around half charged. They don't take as long to recharge after that. Must admit I don't bother myself, certainly during the summer when I do most flying. Just charge them all up after each session so they are ready for next time. Not sure what this does to overall battery life but mine seem to last reasonably well.
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I think that for club sized models, EP wins the logical argument on most fronts, as summed up by BEB above. Peter also gives a very concise and balanced summary from a dedicated IC flier. IC is a more emotional choice. I flew IC for 30-odd years, but always regarded the engine as the motive force, not a hobby in itself. Now I am 100% electric, and certainly don't get bored. It opens up the field of EDF jets, and makes multi-engined subjects far easier. Both clubs I am in have 80-90% electric flying in any given session, so if this is typical you will get plenty of support when you join one if you go EP. Good luck whichever you choose.
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John, that's the P40 I saw - as it was circling I had time to get some binoculars for a good study. I knew it was based at North Weald as I recently assembled the Durafly kit and researched where the supplied "Skull" scheme came from. I saw in the latest Aeroplane Monthly that the full-size is currently for sale - yours for just under 2 million dollars!
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I live about 10 miles from Farnborough, and yesterday evening saw the following departing over my garden: WW1 formation, including 2 Fokker DR1s and a Sopwith Triplane, Spitfire (Mk9 I think), and for the first time a B17G, presumably Sally B. During the preceding 2 weeks I've also seen a P40 and Catalina, as well as other aircraft too far for a positive ID. Brilliant!
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Fabulous model, brillantly flown, although I didn't see any of the trademark 90 degree-plus banks that the full-size used to do. This is understandable with such a large and valuable model at a public show. Does anyone know why the take-off was on tarmac but the landing on grass? I would have thought that the tarmac would be kinder to the u/c but perhaps a LMA type can explain why not.
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Electric propellor fatigue resulting in possible failure
Trevor Crook replied to Owdlad's topic in Incident Reports
I've never had that happen. Does the model belly land, or has it experienced nose overs or prop strikes? I can't think of other stresses that would cause this, as there should be no vibration if the prop is balanced. As said above, very important not to take any chances with props. I still use some of my old glow props if they are the size I need, they seem to perform pretty well and are more robust than dedicated leccy ones. -
I should be able to give you feedback soon - my son is giving me his Sea Fury in exchange for my Dynam Hurricane! He did strip the gears on a flap servo when the u/c collapsed on the first landing, but happily had another servo from the same factory so he extracted the servo without disturbing the wiring, swapped the broken gear and glued it back in. To replace the whole servo, it would be easiest to cut the lead near the servo and solder the wires from the replacement to the existing lead. Bear in mind that the servos fitted are special slow moving ones - could be best to replace them both with a matched pair, and do the slowing in the Tx if you can. He told me he only uses a bit of flap for landing as he finds that easiest - full flap gives lots of drag so needs some throttle management. I'll give a flying report when the weather has improved.
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Oh and Mark, well done for the excellent job on the software. The Omega uses a simple row of leds to program and display 10 model memories (Futaba had 4 at the time) and was a very cost-effective alternative to an lcd display. I helped Derek to write the manual as I could do it from a user's perspective. I still think the ability to set the failsafe position of all channels while in flight has never been bettered.
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I've still got my Omega Tx, the last Fleet design. Alas, I've got rid of all my Fleet Rx's as I've standardised on the Futaba/JR servo plugs, and have kept a couple of Schultz Rx's - not flown on 35 for some time though. Mark makes a valid point about the tuning, although I think the circuitry is quite stable and the standard range check should show any problems. Of more concern would be the state of the batteries. As well as a battery health check, the wiring and pcb should be checked for signs of corrosion.
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Wings 'n' Wheels
Trevor Crook replied to John Privett's topic in Shows, Club Events and Competitions
The North Weald site is very resistant to flooding and mud - I hope that continues as I am going tomorrow!
