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Robin Colbourne

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Everything posted by Robin Colbourne

  1. I was recently trying to persuade a friend that he should be building aircraft tugs like that, and smaller ones for lighter aircraft. GIven that the average age of private pilots is fairly old, a lot struggle to get their aircraft out of the hangar without assistance, particularly where its onto grass or up an incline. You also have much better situational awareness if you can stand where you can see all the extremities of the aircraft, which is important, as it can get very expensive if you hit your own aircraft onto the hangar structure, or worse still, on someone else's aircraft. I was aware of these tracked tugs being available in the US, but didn't realise that any had made it over here.
  2. I bought a Bossanova at our club auction earlier this month. It is going to need a fair bit of refurbishment though before it is airworthy. In addition to geographical location, the difficulty is going to be finding one in good condition. They have very light construction, are designed for a type of flying (3D) that is likely to result in damage and they have been out of production for ten years or more. I have read that the Bolero is pretty similar so you may be better off looking for one of them. That one in the ebay listing, with the exception of the missing engine cowl, looks pretty good. You could try messaging the seller to see if you could send him a box to put it in, and take the risk that the courier doesn't destroy it, however ebay doesn't encourage stuff like that, and with Parcelforce you are looking at around £40 for delivery and Evri light & large via Interparcel around £30. This is the manual for the Bolero: Ripmax Bolero Manual Inwood Models in Huntingdon are having a big sell off of used models. They aren't on your doorstep, but are a lot closer to you than Lymington is There is also 'A Plane Olde Bargain' in Lincolnshire who have a regular stock of similar models, such as this Hype which comes wth an engine & servos APOB 3D Hype
  3. I agree, Just the wind noise of the glider going up the line. There's something magical about it as the energy it is using is your own, as it was your muscles that stretched the bungee, unless of course you have a 'fetchermite' to do that for you! 😁 The bit I really like, is that in a decent wind, even though you think you've stretched the bungee as far as it will go, often when you release the glider, the wind stretches the bungee even further, so the glider goes back from the launchpoint as the full length of the bungee lifts the ground.
  4. Thank you for posting these videos Ron, its a topic in which I am very interested.
  5. One of the problems with UAV operations, is that often the person manning the radio or answering the phone isn't as experienced or as knowledgeable of the regulations as they really need to be. The fact that this NOTAM was 24 hours a day, seven days a week, suggests it wasn't a model flying operation but some sort of trial. It doesn't surprise me that it specifies model aircraft as well as UAVs , as its not unusual for pilots on UAV operations to fly a low value aircraft at the site , i.e. a model, to get some site awareness before operating the larger, more expensive and more complex UAV.
  6. Some food for thought here, plus a couple of plans Ornithopter.org This is the R/C Pterodactyl that HobbyKing used to sell.
  7. Certainly in industry it is not unusual to make test pieces for peel and tensile strength to extend the life of epoxies reaching their use by date. It is also common for samples of mixed epoxy to be stored for future analysis in case there is any doubt about its quality. Getting the mix ratio right is critical. Unlike polyester resins which have a catalytic reaction. two part epoxies rely on the adhesive mixing fully with the hardener. If one part uses up all of the other and there is surplus, that surplus will stay in liquid or jelly form, weakening the resin. For the best bonds: Weigh out the adhesive and hardener with an accurate balance. Warm the parts to be bonded so the mixed resin wets out (reduces in viscosity), rather than chilling on contact (If the material being bonded is porous, the cooling substrate will pull the epoxy in as it cools). Having applied the epoxy to the materials, gently warm it to further reduce the viscosity, which helps get any air trapped when mixing or spreading out. Once cured, do a post-cure for 12 hours at a higher temperature than the part will ever see in service. If this isn't done, there is a danger of the joint softening if warm and under load (e.g. near an exhaust or speed controller) and either failing completely or resetting in a stress-relieved form. Geoff S, in answer to your original question, the time on the faster setting epoxies (e.g. 5, 20, 30 minute) seem to refer to how long the mix can be used for, whilst 24 hour epoxy seems to refer to stuff that is set hard in that time. Well, that is my experience anyway.
  8. Rollin Klingberg did some research on tip fins. His conclusion was that they should be inboard from the tip. I think this is the video in which he talks about fin position: Rollin Klingberg on flying wing fins
  9. A 3mm carbon tube would be my choice. With a metal pushrod there is a lot of momentum if the model stops suddenly and this is more likely to break servo arms and strip gears than a snake will. A 650mm 0.8mm steel wire weighs 25.8 grams (0.9oz). The same length in 3mm carbon tube is 3.9 grams. Of course you need to add the end fittings to the carbon, whereas you could have a 'Z' bend on the steel wire. If you used a 3mm carbon tube it has a 2mm bore, so you could epoxy a short length of studding into the ends to attach the clevises. Hyperflight 3mm carbon fibre tube
  10. Material thickness and choice are very definitely very important. A friend is building the Valueplanes 1/4 scale Miles Hawk. It is 2.48M (97") wingspan, yet seems to use materials of the size and weight, or even thicker, than a full-size wooden glider. Where the wing roots abut the fuselage, the fuselage has four laminations of liteply, making it about 10mm thick. My concern is that the thing has massive strength in places, yet potential weak points where, for instance, the longerons are cracked to go from parallel to tapering in towards the tail. When scaling up, always remember, dimensions goe up linearly, areas are squared and volumes are cubed. Twice the size is eight times the volume.
  11. Hoochykins, have you had a look at the Pegasus Models range. They do the Fiesta which is a traditional wooden R/C trainer which could be either electric or engine powered, plus a whole range of other kits. If you read the reviews, someone has done an electric conversion and lists the exact set up that he used. He also said that it is the ideal electric trainer. Pegasus Models Fiesta
  12. Very nice find Roy! Was that the kit that 'A Plane Olde Bargain' was advertising recently? Is this completed one on Ebay a Simple Skyman or Escort? It appears to have a strange hump behind the wing, or is the wing too far forward? I spent ages searching "Galaxy Models Escort" on Google. Very interesting, but I didn't see any model aeroplanes... 🤪 Bowmans Simple Skyman or Galaxy Models Escort on Ebay
  13. We have a chap who brings along a Flyng Styro 'Chubby Lady' electric model to our club's summer evening flying sessions. It has a geared 280 brushed motor, flies remarkably well and has been doing so for many years. Whilst I understand the recommendations to move to brushless power here, 'if it ain't broke don't fix it'. By changing a model around a lot, and particularly with a newcomer doing it, there is the danger of inadvertently adding weaknesses in the structure and altering thrust lines. The Easy pigeon was a good flier as it was designed. For sure, once Hoochykins has some experience with flying, a brushless set up should improve performance and duration, however at this stage, a consistent performer which stays within the pilot's capabilities and remains in one piece is the primary requirement.
  14. Once the engine is run in, given that it is a very slow flying model with a thick wing, I would go larger on the diameter and finer on the pitch than those recommendations (8" pitch stated in instructions). Too coarse a pitch and you will have trouble getting the model down, as the residual thrust at idle will cause it to float and float. You still need plenty of ground clearance, as the undercarriage will flex a surprising amount and you don't want to break big props.
  15. That is such a nice fuselage that it seems a shame to butcher it. Why not put a motor on a pylon up above the wing, where the shaft and prop will be protected? You can then fly it as a pure glider still if the opportunity arises.
  16. Hoochykins, It is normal in Mode 2 to have your primary turning controls on the righthand stick. If you had ailerons, then these would be on the righthand stick with the elevator, with rudder and throttle on the left stick, As you don't have ailerons, the rudder would normally go on the righthand stick in place of the ailerons. You could put the rudder on the left stick nad just have elevator on the right, but I've not seen it done. Having a brushless motor on an on/off switch may be a violent for the speed controller, plus it is likely to use your battery up a lot faster than having a proportional throttle. From a beginners point of view, it will also mean everything happens much more suddenly, which is not ideal. The 10 channel version of the FlySky FS-i6, the FS-i6X is to the best of my knowledge, simply a software upgrade to get the extra channels. Whether the FS-i6 gets i-bus & s-bus capability with the software upgrade, I don't know. Six channels will be plenty for fixed wing flying in the short term. I would advise getting the FS-i6, and, once you can fly proficiently, you will have a far better idea of what extra features are worth having. In our club there seem to be a fliers, including experienced ones, spending far too much time flaffing about with overly complex transmitters.
  17. Hoochykins, it looks like you are aware that there area whole host of models that use the same fuselage as the Easy Pigeon (Green Sleeve, Seagull 2200, Bluebird & Albatross) . New spares can be hard to find, however if you set up searches on Ebay, Facebook Marketplace and Gumtree to alert you when any of the related models are offered for sale you should have a plentiful supply of spares should you need them. Where possible, have the search include 'search title and description' as they may be buried in a collection of models.
  18. I've been flying off and on for 48 years and I'm now using a FlySky FS-i6 transmitter with the FS-ia6B receiver. If you are using a separate battery pack for the receiver it tells you the voltage of that battery. Whilst you could invest in more expensive and complex transmitter at this stage, there is no real need. I've taught several people with Easy Pigeons over the years, and if you start by putting a rubber band around the propeller blades and just doing straight glides into wind over long grass. Repeat over and over again, you will learn how to land it. Once you have mastered that, you can take the rubber band off and, if you have enough space do a littel bit of powered flight, still going straight and landing stright ahead. Whilst the original brushed motor and controller are a bit antiquated, if it ain't broke, don't fix it. You may struggle to get an electronic speed controller that shuts off power to the motor at the right voltage. There are some on AliExpress, although most are designed for surface vehicles with forward and reverse. Beware, the Easy Pigeon fuselage tends to break between the back corner of the underwing hole and the air outlets below the rear wing dowel. If you can find a club, an instructor will save you a lot of heartache in the long run.
  19. The move to ARTF models has bought a lot of people into the hobby without the skills and facilities to repair used models. I tend to buy a lot from auctions and bring and buys, yet it is very rare to get one that I would feel comfortable flying without any repairs or modifications beforehand. Fine, if you have years of experience and can see the best way and have the tools to tackle the repair, but for someone with only an electric trainer under their belt, it is a daunting prospect. They would probably rather buy a new known design mail order with a much greater chance of satisfaction. The other thing is space to store these secondhand airframes. Not everyone has a workshop or shed and mothers, girlfriends and wives may tolerate a new ARTF in the house, whereas a dusty, oily and smelly artifact may get the hackles up.
  20. Extra Slim, you mentioned that the tank is right on the bottom of the fuselage. If this means that it has no foam between it and the airframe then there is a possibility that the fuel is frothing with the vibration being transmitted to it.
  21. NigelR, it was probably empirical data from testing a number of different aerofoils until Chris found one giving the qualities he desired. Anyway, Sukhoi used something along the same lines for the Sukhoi Su-26, and they seemed to know what they were doing. (image from RC Groups)
  22. In the late 1980s the Sailplanes International 'Secret Weapon' aerobatic slope soarer was very popular. The box stated that the tip aerofoil was a NACA symmetrical section, however the root was the 'LBMD001'. After searching all sorts of aerofoil databases to find info on the root aerofoil, I finally discovered that LB and MD were the initials of the two designers.
  23. I don;t know about the Wots Wot, but at a talk Chris Foss gave to our club many years ago, when it came to questions, he was asked which aerofoil the Wot 4 used. "Size 9 left foot" was Chris's answer, i.e. he drew it around his shoe. He then went on to elaborate a bit, adding that it had a slightly of concave section between the spar and aileron to make the aileron more effective.
  24. You could equally argue that the 'foamie' is a model and as a person is flying it, that must make them an aeromodeller. If you read Flight magazine from 1909/1910, the letters pages were full of debates whether an 'aerodrome' was a thing that was intended to fly, as in Samuel Langley's 'Aerodrome' or the place from which one took off and landed as in Farnborough or Brooklands. Ultimately it doesn't really matter, provided the listener knows to which type the conversation refers. When I taught an adult education couse for people wanting to learn how to build and fly R/C models, I had the full spectrum of interests amongst those on the course. Some were happy to buy a secondhand model, charge it up, put fuel in it and fly; others built and flew; whilst one chap who built a very nice 'Pilot Kits' Tiger Moth, once the model was up in the air and trimmed out, when I offered him the buddy box, replied, "Oh no, I'm happy to just watch you fly it". We get from the hobby what we want, and as time and money pressures vary through life, what we build and/or fly varies too.
  25. Wood screws into wooden bearers don't stay secure for long. The engine vibrates, which vibrates the screws, which opens out the holes and before you know it the engine is flapping all over the place. If you can easily get at the underside of the bearers, then machine screws, washers and nyloc nuts are an option. My prefrerred method is captive 'T' nuts epoxied into the underside of the wooden bearers and machine screws, passing through washers on top of the engine's mounting lugs going into the T nuts with a drop of nut lock on the screw thread. If you use non-high tensile screws there is the possibility of shearing the screws and not the engine's lugs in the event of an 'arrival'. With regard to a separate engine mounting plate, Using fairly widely spaced mounting lugs gives you the option to change to a different make or size of engine without making a mess of the wooden bearers, as it seems no two engines have exactly the same mounting hole spacing. Use either a 1/8" aluminium or 3/16" or 1/4" tufnol or paxolin if you can get it. They are fabric or paper reinforced phenolic resin.
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