Adrian Smith 1 Posted May 3, 2020 Author Share Posted May 3, 2020 Final job on the wings was to screw in the servos and fit the push rods. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrian Smith 1 Posted May 3, 2020 Author Share Posted May 3, 2020 I had a small job on one of the main wings in that the claw nut inside the wing had come loose so I used epoxy to stick the claw nut block back in and secured with a bolt until dry. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrian Smith 1 Posted May 3, 2020 Author Share Posted May 3, 2020 Next I needed to lay out the internal electrics.One problem that was apparent was the different type of plug on the Etronix voltage regulator and my RX battery of choice. I guess I will have to rewire the regulator with a different plug to match the one on the battery which is a pain. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrian Smith 1 Posted May 3, 2020 Author Share Posted May 3, 2020 This is my likely layout. The RX battery will have to go towards the front of the fuz for reasons that will come next. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrian Smith 1 Posted May 3, 2020 Author Share Posted May 3, 2020 Before I tidy everything up I thought I would check the CoG.The wing spar (tube) is 117 mm from the leading edge. However, the operational CoG is 118mm - 240 mm to 260 mm depending how much of a hooligan you are. Even with the 2 lipos towards the front it is a tad tail heavy although not much. I am hoping when I install the lipos in the pipe tunnel near the front of the plane it will balance near enough to the recommended CoG. Bit of guess work there though. Edited By Adrian Smith 1 on 03/05/2020 16:53:11 Edited By Adrian Smith 1 on 03/05/2020 16:56:45 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
john stones 1 - Moderator Posted May 3, 2020 Share Posted May 3, 2020 Good result Adrian. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Manuel Posted May 3, 2020 Share Posted May 3, 2020 Posted by Adrian Smith 1 on 03/05/2020 16:52:17: Even with the 2 lipos towards the front it is a tad tail heavy although not much. I am hoping when I install the lipos in the pipe tunnel near the front of the plane it will balance near enough to the recommended CoG. Bit of guess work there though. You know the drill Adrian. Start with the CoG well forwards and adjust to suit your flying style. Plenty of space inside for moving stuff around. P.S. Might be an idea to "lose" the wheel spats for the first few flights after lockdown. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrian Smith 1 Posted May 3, 2020 Author Share Posted May 3, 2020 Thanks John. The finishing off bits seem to take the longest time. Good advice Gary. I tend to leave the spats off for the maiden just to see how thing develop, Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrian Smith 1 Posted May 5, 2020 Author Share Posted May 5, 2020 Time to tackle replacing the plug on the Etronix voltage regulator. The plug on the left comes from the 2S lipo so I got the bits ready to do the other end. I stripped the wires by 4mm ready to crimp the pins and fit the plug. all done and tidy. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrian Smith 1 Posted May 5, 2020 Author Share Posted May 5, 2020 I thought I had better test the RX to see if all is well. All working. Next job to tidy up the motor wires with heat shrink and a nylon tie. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrian Smith 1 Posted May 5, 2020 Author Share Posted May 5, 2020 I turned the Capiche upside down to arrange the power pack fitting. I extended the velcro on the tunnel ceiling to allow for battery adjustment, but for now the packs are sitting well forward. Added some straps for extra security. I will be giving some thought to securing the RX battery, as I am not sure how I am going to do it. Also I will probably have to extend one of the leads a tad from the ESC. I know this is usually a no no, but this needs to be done for access reasons. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Jenkins Posted May 5, 2020 Share Posted May 5, 2020 Neat solution to use the tunnel for the flight pack. Have you got a figure for the all up weight yet Adrian? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Gary Vinten 1 Posted May 5, 2020 Share Posted May 5, 2020 hi what prop do you have and what watts you going to pull auw as well Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrian Smith 1 Posted May 5, 2020 Author Share Posted May 5, 2020 Peter, Not measured the AUW yet, but when the final jobs are done I will weigh the separate parts as accurately as I can. Gary, I am going to use 20 x10 wooden electric prop as a starting point purely because I used one on a similar sized/spec MXS aerobat and it was fine with good performance. I have an inline watt meter which I will used to answer your question accurately, but not reached that point yet. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrian Smith 1 Posted May 6, 2020 Author Share Posted May 6, 2020 Gary, I think I got my watts and amps mixed up. The motor should provide 2800 watts with a 10S set up I am using so hopefully that is enough. When I ground test I will be using a Turnigy inline watt meter (180A) which tell me what current I am drawing although I know it will be different on the ground rather than in the air. Hope that makes sense now. Edited By Adrian Smith 1 on 06/05/2020 07:28:45 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrian Smith 1 Posted May 7, 2020 Author Share Posted May 7, 2020 Not much progress as a bit of soldering was required for the wiring to be acceptable in the space and configuration I have. I managed to route the series lead to be wired into the canister tunnel where the lipos will sit. I refitted the cowl and decided to add a couple of fixings at the bottom of the cowl to stop is "rocking" slightly I still have to make a ply plate to house the Rx battery which I will do next. then comes the job of setting up the control surfaces. The rudder will be straight forward, but the elevators with four wire connecting points will be so much fun. I have still to weigh the constituent parts go get an approximate AUW. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Jenkins Posted May 8, 2020 Share Posted May 8, 2020 Looks very neat Adrian. Really interested in the AUW now. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrian Smith 1 Posted May 10, 2020 Author Share Posted May 10, 2020 First a few numbers. Peter, I have weighed the Capiche 140 and it is as follows:- Power packs + RX battery come to a total of 1.3kg (2.87 lb) . The fully fitted out airframe plus wings total 4.08kg (9lb) making a grand total of 5.38kg as near as damn it for AUW. As a starting point I have set the elevators 40mm +/-, the rudder 45mm +/-. It took me most of the afternoon to adjust and secure the cables for these working surfaces. It was quite an awkward job. When I set the aileron push rods tomorrow (nice easy job there) I will probably go for around 25 mm +/-. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrian Smith 1 Posted May 10, 2020 Author Share Posted May 10, 2020 I cut out an 1/8th ply RX battery plate and added the velcro strap and holding strip. Test fitted the RX battery and all seemed well. I have a few more finishing jobs to do yet such as customising it with some decals and generally tidying up the covering and giving it a good old clean. More photos soon. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Jenkins Posted May 10, 2020 Share Posted May 10, 2020 Wow Adrian, that's a really good result. My fully fitted out Capiche (Saito 180) but no fuel tipped the scales at 6.5 Kg so you are 1.1 Kg lighter with your "fuel" ie battery pack. With 2,800 watts that should give you unlimited vertical. I don't know why my Capiche airframe was so heavy but the extra weight made it a non starter for F3A aerobatics. I use degrees for measuring control throws and generally start at 10 deg each way for aileron and elevator and 20 to 25 degs for rudder and make changes from there. The Capiche being a 3D capable airframe has larger control surfaces compared with a pure F3A design but by keeping the deflection down the Capiche is a very smooth flyer as you no doubt know. Look forward to reading your flying report. Great outcome for the conversion. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrian Smith 1 Posted May 25, 2020 Author Share Posted May 25, 2020 A lovely flying day today so I decided to re-maiden my Capiche 140 now it's an electric model. To say it was interesting is an understatement. You will see in more detail by looking at the attached video clip. **LINK** The problem starts around 2 mins 55 secs on the downward leg when I start to lose control authority. Prior to that she trimmed out find and as I suspected is a bit nose heavy. A couple of right clicks on the aileron and some 3-4 clicks up elevator. Good power too. The trouble started after an inverted move to see about the CoG and flying into the downward leg. She was all over the place and when you think there is going to be a bag of bits my nerves shut off completely and a calmness comes over me. It's a good job I have a long runway as I needed all of it to get her down. A slice of the port elevator had sheared off and I noticed it fluttering down as I came on to finals. Nevertheless, I suspect elevator flutter ( the first I have ever experienced since I started flying) . May be due to uneven tension in the elevator wires. Anyway got her down safely and at some point a repair job is required as she is eminently repairable. I will tape up the elevator gaps when I am finished. Edited By Adrian Smith 1 on 25/05/2020 14:26:14 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron Gray Posted May 25, 2020 Share Posted May 25, 2020 Good reactions and recovery Adrian, looks like a relatively simple repair job. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cymaz Posted May 25, 2020 Share Posted May 25, 2020 A small lead weight under the moving elevator tip halves should cure the flutter. I have them on the big Cap. There was no time to do a proper trimming flight, bit good result on getting back in one piece. The landing looked very tricky. Edited By cymaz on 25/05/2020 17:11:48 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adrian Smith 1 Posted May 25, 2020 Author Share Posted May 25, 2020 Cheers, Ron & cymaz. Safe to say it was a bit leery for a moment there.The lead weight seems a good idea. I will repair the Capiche when the weather turns and I have to be confined to the workshop.The simplest way is to remove the whole port tailplane I guess and take is from there. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cymaz Posted May 25, 2020 Share Posted May 25, 2020 Some bed time reading Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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