SAS Wildthing 46 battery

[James M]

Hi All

Apologise if I have missed this in another thread.......

I'm looking to order a SAS Wildthing 46 for using off the local cliffs/ridges, I've been bitten by the bug after throwing an easyglider pro electric of a local ridge.

Looking through the threads and posts on here I'm thinking that the Wildthing 46 would be a good, rugged, starting point.

Was planning on using the following in the build, Hitec HS 325 HB, an AR600 receiver etc. When it comes to the RX battery I was wondering whether i can use a 6.0v pack as opposed to a 4.8v? Will it fit? Main reason was to save on dead weight - other than the pilot

[Phil May]

Hi James

Servos should be fine, I use bog standard Futaba 3003's and never had an issue with them.

If I remember right. I think you will struggle to get a 6 volt pack in the fuz'......maybe someone will correct me on this...............

I use an Enloop 2200, 4.8 v and get a days flying out of it.

You will love the W.T.

Good luck and have fun

Phil

[James M]

Hi Phil

Thanks for the info - what I was thinking looking at the online manual.

Was looking at the 325 just to be safe side. You now if i have a bad landing/controlled crash..........

Will ask Alan when I call to place the order.

[Devon Flyer]

I use Vapextech 'Instant' AA packs in all of my gliders. Low self discharge packs for a lot less than Eneloops.

4 cell pack is ideal for a Wildthing.

Any cheap standard sized servo will do. I've been using a pair of THESE for the past year with no problems, and I do a lot of combat.

Edited By Devon Flyer on 05/06/2012 10:59:09

[James M]

Hi All

Had a chat with Alan and ordered a Fusion 46 - I prefer the tail. Alan advised that no real difference when it came to flying the model. Also it means I have a pair of fusions - I have the 60 size in the loft that I'd forgotten about .

Thanks for the link to the battery Mr D Flyer - do I still need to cycle the battery before use?

Oh in answer to my original question - Alan advised that it is unlikely to accept a 6.0v humped RX battery due to the size of the fuselage.

Hopely arrive Thursday/Friday and I can start the build!

[Devon Flyer]

Posted by James M on 06/06/2012 07:32:04:

Thanks for the link to the battery Mr D Flyer - do I still need to cycle the battery before use?

No - they arrive about 70% charged and ready for use. I just put them on a normal charge to top them up.

[James M]

Thanks, again, for the info Devon Flyer.

Ok have bee studying to build manual and probably over thinking things but when CW taping the wings do I either

a) Cut the tape cleanly to the edge of the wing and glue the wing halves epp to epp?

OR

b) Cover the wings completely in CW tape and glue the wings together CW tape to CW tape.

Option a makes more sense but as I have been wrong before I just wanted to be sure.

[Phil May]

Cut the cw tape at the edge, glue wings together then tape over join...thats what I did

[Devon Flyer]

I think Alan provides the glue for sticking the wing halves together. It appears to be Copydex or something similar. Stick them EPP to EPP.

Just follow the build manual.

[Peewhit]

Hi James,

Having built and rebuilt a 46" fusion, I would glue the wing halves together and then cw tape over the whole wing.

This will be a lot stronger than taping each half individually and the joining with glue and strips of tape.

Using a 4 cell AA pack, it will ballance with just a small amount of lead taped in front of the battery.

Despite what Alan says, the Fusion will greatly benefit from about 4oz of ballast burried in the fus right on the C of G.

This makes it fly that little bit faster so that it penetrates better and the wing will generate more lift.

Good Luck,

Peter

[James M]

Thanks for the info Peewhit. Makes a lot of sense about the wing joining - maybe you should speak to Alan about it!

Now all I need is a rain free day, oh and the postie to deliver the the model.

[Alan Cantwell]

i dont know which of the last 2 requests is the daftest

[JAMES S]

Hi,

Managed to happily get a 5 cell 2/3A Rx pack in my Fusion, I use Spektrum and use 6v packs for all the Rx's. Agree a humped pack wouldn't fit!

Its a great fun aircraft and very tough so I'm sure you'll enjoy it.

James

[Tom Satinet]

you don't need a 6v pack in the model. Just use a 4.8v instant type AA pack. It will fit the easiest and give you huge amounts of flight time. There isn't the need for much nose weight on the model. In fact if you use another type of battery you WILL probably need nose weight because it won't fill the cavity as far forward as a AA square pack.

You won't get significant voltage drops running 2 x standard servos.  You will be able to fly all day without recharging.  Spektrum brownouts are not going happen unless you fly for about 3 days continuously.

To be honest I don't really agree with the instructions that come with the model. As Peter says, I think it is better to join the wings then tape it. Seeing as the tape is supposed to act to prevent the epp from bending it seem a bit strange to create a weak point at the point where there is the most strain.

As most people have discovered with the wildthing and fusion there is no reason not to ballast them to a sensible level.

What you want to get strong is the join of the fuselage to the wing as they often come off. You need to make sure it is strong at the intersection of the leading edge and fuselage. I used sign tape (double sided) on mine and it never came off. Plenty of Xweave is required if you don't have something like that.

I also think the model would benefit from having the spar go out to near the wing tips rather than being a 1m length which leaves about 4 inches of unsparred wing tip at each end. Whether it is worth buying another carbon rod remains to be seens. I seem to remember the instructions being a bit strange with regards to the installation of the spar as well (?).

I glued everything on mine together with "goop" rather than the tipex stuff you get with it!

Make sure the control horns on the servos are not too long and that you use a long hole on the horns of the elevons. You don't need 45 degrees of throw each way. The worse you make this gear ratio the more like you are to strip the gears on the servos.

use the wing beds to build the model in. KEEP IT STRAIGHT!.  Nearly all the wildies that I see at my slope are built majorly on the p*ss. If you need a lot of left or right trim this is a sign that it is wonky and/or badly out of lateral balance. 

People have a strange attitude to wildies in that they think they are not the sleekest model on the slope so they don't think it is important to make the thing smooth and build it well, but really it is very important if you want it to fly well.  When I see bits of tape handing off them and the covering coming up I dont really understand how people expect them to fly well. Well built they fly well and can go in a wide range of conditions.

Also I don't see any reason not to use coloured tape on the bottom of the wing (contrary to the instructions), this just makes it easier to orientate the model. Compared to a multiplex easy glider, which has the roll rate of jupiter, the fusion rolls like a top. Use the throws in the instructions to start with.

Another thing I see people doing with wildies/fusions is not using any exponential and then flying it round like the TX gimabls are designed like the edges of a 50p piece.  Expo works well. 

Edited By Tom Satinet on 08/06/2012 14:16:50

Edited By Tom Satinet on 08/06/2012 14:17:58

[Tom Satinet]

Thinking about it....

another thing I see with these planes is that people struggle to trim them out. They make CG adjustments then don't think that maybe the model needs retrimming. Obviously it is the same for any model, but planks wings are a bit more "pitchy" then models with a long tail. CG changes are usually immediatly noticeable to the pitch of the model. If you take off or add nose weight, don't forget it will alter the pitch trim of the model quite noticable. Don't forget to re-trim.

The model should fly around without needing flying all the time, on both axes. As I say if you have a lot of left or right trim you don't have a straight one (make sure it is ballanced across the wing as well as the CG).

As you take the cg back you will probably want to reduce the elevator throw. Again the same as any model, but more noticeable on this kind of plane. More reward CG = more pitch sensitive = less elevator throw.

[Peewhit]

Well said Tom.

Good sensible advice, even if it is a bit long winded

James, I used coloured tape on both the top and bottom of the model - red on the top and yellow on the bottom.

The tape can start to tear off, typically at the leading edge and wing tips. A good tip to prevent this is to use sellotape ultra clear around the wing tips and right along the leading edge.

Start at the wing tips using small lengths of about one inch. Overlap each length slightly and gradually work around until you get to the straight leading edge where you can use one great big long length.

[James M]

Hi All

Thanks for the advice. I received the model and electronics yesterday.

To date the wings have been joined and covered in xweave tape. Tonight, after I'm finished in work and doing the chores that the missus dictates, I'll start on the covering of the wing with coloured tape.

Never ceases to amaze me how much stronger EPP is when it is covered in Xweave tape. The taping could have been a little neater on the trailing edge - will tidy tonight.

Now all I need is a colour scheme - tail and elevons are going to be orange! May do the fuselage also in that colour.

One question - could I trim the EPP to accept the servos without trimming the lugs off? Just wondering if this will significantly weaken the wings?

[Frank Skilbeck]

Posted by James M on 09/06/2012 07:13:41:

One question - could I trim the EPP to accept the servos without trimming the lugs off? Just wondering if this will significantly weaken the wings?

Yes, upto you, the wing will be fine, but as you'll never remove the servos you might as well take the lugs off. My original wildthing is over 10 years old and still uses the original Fleet servos it was fitted with.