Turbycat Posted January 29, 2013 Share Posted January 29, 2013 I shall mainly be assembling.... Got to have something to keep me awake Andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SkippyUK Posted January 29, 2013 Share Posted January 29, 2013 wish i had a job like that!!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark R Posted January 29, 2013 Share Posted January 29, 2013 Nice looking bit of kit Ps wanna swap jobs? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbycat Posted January 30, 2013 Author Share Posted January 30, 2013 Packed everything away in the car now. Airframe built, radio and engine installed. All I've got to do is put in another "y" lead for the port ailerons and trim and fit the cowl, spinner and prop. About another hours worth of work. Can't put any pics up as my phone won't connect the internet at work. The build itself was a pretty straight forward artf assembly job. The only niggly bits were the cabane struts and the undercarriage. The fittings were the usual artf fare. Not top end but usable. I've fitted Alturn 750 MG servos all round. Don't think it needs servos this strong but I'm pretty happy with these servos having chucked them about in my Yak 54. For power we have a Super Tigre G2300 up front turning a 18x 8 graupner G sonic prop. I think this is going to go like a bullet!! I do love my Job. Having plenty of free time on the night shifts makes up for the odd day when I'm busy Andy Edited By Turbycat on 30/01/2013 04:01:23 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Ashby - Moderator Posted January 30, 2013 Share Posted January 30, 2013 That looks very nice Andy, let us know how it goes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbycat Posted January 30, 2013 Author Share Posted January 30, 2013 I will do David. I'm expecting performance to pretty sprightly with the ST2300 up front. I have few bits to finish off. Decals need applying, final fit of exhaust, control throws need setting and c of g needs checking. I was pretty pleased with the quality of the kit. The fit and alignment was pretty much spot on apart from a little fettling of the tail fin piece. There's a couple of things I don't like. Firstly the undercarriage and mounting. Seems like an after thought. Definately budget compared to the rest of the kit. Secondly the aileron control rods had pre bent Z bends in them. So of course 2 out of 4 didn't fit. I made new ones up easily enough. Now I've got to wait for some nice weather to give it a go. Not had much flying at all lately. due to snow and now galeforce 100 winds Andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbycat Posted January 30, 2013 Author Share Posted January 30, 2013 Quick pic as of 4 am this morning. Glad it fitted in the back of my Mondeo as it really needs to stay in one piece Off to the LMS in the morning for 1 "Y" lead . Could have sworn I had a couple knocking about in the garage. Note to self "Get workshop organised!!" Andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tony Bennett Posted January 30, 2013 Share Posted January 30, 2013 thats nice sir. fits in the car well. unlike my cirrus moth Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbycat Posted January 31, 2013 Author Share Posted January 31, 2013 I'm really glad it goes in in one piece . (Phew!!) I finished it this morning. I have the the c of g towards nose heavy as I don't want to be surprised on the maiden. The control throws are set as per the manual. Here are a few pics I took in the garden. Looks good. One small thing is that the spats are already working loose. So these will be taken off for the maiden while I figure out how to mount them a bit better. Andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David Ashby - Moderator Posted January 31, 2013 Share Posted January 31, 2013 Looks very nice indeed. You can't beat a nice Pitts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil May Posted January 31, 2013 Share Posted January 31, 2013 That is a cracking looking model.Phil Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
FunnyFlyer Posted January 31, 2013 Share Posted January 31, 2013 Hope your boss is not a forum member. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbycat Posted January 31, 2013 Author Share Posted January 31, 2013 "Hope your boss is not a forum member. " Sorry that made me laugh!! My boss is a very wealthy buisness man. He has his own flying museum in the States!! Not that he'll ever let the likes of me near them!! Andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbycat Posted April 23, 2013 Author Share Posted April 23, 2013 You'll not believe this but I just got round maidening the Pitts yesterday!! Weather and my shift work ganging up against me. Well a brief report: First of all the control throws and c of g were set as recommended in the instructions. I set 40% Expo on the elevator and ailerons just so it wasn't too twitchy on the first few flights. The model was given a good preflight inspection and the engine fine tuned a bit as it was idling a touch fast. I threw my WOT 4 around for a few flights. Sat down had a cup of coffee and decided to go for it. After hearing some stories about Pitts being a bit lively I was prepared to go for height and then try the trimming. With the ST G2300 up front the take off run was quick, The model climbed rapidly so I fed in some down trim. I put in 2 clicks of left aileron trim and she was straight and level at 1/3 to 1/2 throttle. I actually found her quite easy to fly. She is fast when the throttle is chucked wide open and she'll climb out of sight. I flew some circuits and took her up high for some low speed handling checks. The stall gentle with a right wing drop. A this point the breeze picked up a bit and it started getting a bit bumpy but the Pitts handled it well. It is very solid in the air. Landing time! I tried a few low approaches first getting used to the orientation of the model on approach. I then committed to a landing. The engine still didn't want to settle down to a slow idle so a go around was carried out. During this I was impressed with the slow speed handling. I set up a bit lower approach after lowering the throttle trim a bit. This time she came in as gentle as anything. Still a tad fast but ok. I then think I breathed in! I gave a good once over then I had 3 more flights with her slowly exploring her handling and some gentle aeros. I'm definately pleased with this and it does appear to be a quality offering from Black Horse. Andy Edited By Turbycat on 23/04/2013 19:42:28 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbycat Posted April 23, 2013 Author Share Posted April 23, 2013 A few pics at the field. A very pretty plane! Edited By Chris Bott - Moderator on 23/04/2013 20:46:15 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rich too Posted April 24, 2013 Share Posted April 24, 2013 Excellent, cracking looking model, and great that it fits in the car assembled. Rich Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Victor Saliba Posted April 24, 2013 Share Posted April 24, 2013 Well done Sir, nice model plus the sound of that engine, i love glo engines, fitted with a BCM muffler should sound like an angry beast. i have some BCM Mufflers on my models too. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbycat Posted April 24, 2013 Author Share Posted April 24, 2013 I like the BCM muffler on this. It isn't too noisey and gives a nice deep sound. The model is overpowered with the Super Tigre but I'd rather have the power in reserve. It will come in very handy when I get the hang of prop hanging. It will be able to pull out vertically if needed. Andy Edited By Turbycat on 24/04/2013 07:39:53 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Steve Hargreaves - Moderator Posted April 24, 2013 Share Posted April 24, 2013 Lovely job Andy.....I do like a nice Pitts Special.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Danny Fenton Posted April 24, 2013 Share Posted April 24, 2013 Black Horse really seem to have got the proportions for this one just right, looks great Andy, well done Cheers Danny Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill_B Posted April 24, 2013 Share Posted April 24, 2013 Glad the maiden flight was a success for you Andy, but what's the AUW of your model please, and did you need to add weight to the tail, or was the ST engine heavy enough to balance it out? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbycat Posted April 24, 2013 Author Share Posted April 24, 2013 I'll have to check the weight again as I didn't write it down! The model pretty much balanced in the given range with the ST. It's not that heavy an engine either. I didn't add any tail weight. I think the thrust line was a bit out and have increased the down thrust which should eliminate my very slight down elevator trim input required for level flight. I think if you go for the recommended 120 FS you're going to need some lead up front. I'd rather put a heavier more powerful engine up front throttle back and enjoy the extra power during aeros. No point carrying dead weight if you don't need to. Andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbycat Posted April 24, 2013 Author Share Posted April 24, 2013 Well I just did a quick check with the bathroom scales and it is about 5.6kg with an empty tank. It handles surprisingly well especially at low speed. I do tend to keep the speed up with this and keep my attention on it as I'm pretty sure it would bite if you let it. I was out again today flying it. I does beautiful large aeros. Big loops, high stall turns and a very nice inverted flat spin. The rolls are going to take me some practice to get anywhere near axial. Inverted flight was ok. The increase in downthrust should reduce the need for down elevator to maintain level flight. Knife edge required a slight down elevator pressure to track straight. I'm pretty sure this will knife edge loop with a bit more rudder authority. All in all a very nice plane to fly. As with all aerobatic aircraft it will require a good amount of fine tuning to get the best out of it, but as a general day to day aerobat to rip up the strip with I think it's great! Andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bill_B Posted April 24, 2013 Share Posted April 24, 2013 Thanks for the info. Andy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turbycat Posted April 24, 2013 Author Share Posted April 24, 2013 Hi Danny, I totally agree with you on this one, Black Horse do seem to have got this one very right! I know it's "only an ARTF" but for some reason I'm bit silly proud of this one. Andy Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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