jet22b

FYI Guys,
If anyone was waiting on Tower Hobbies to get the DLE 55RA in-stock at the end of this month, I just check their website and they will not have them until early Jan. 2013!![]
Oh well I have other thing that need to be build and re-paired!!
Sonny
aka
jet22b

edwal07

Hey guys go to Valley View RC. They have them in stock. Tell Tom that Ed from B'ham recommended you. They also have a 10% discount going on. the link is: http://www.valleyviewrc.com/estore/gas-engines/dle.html

You also get a few freebies with this engine you won't get anywhere else. Like a kill switch, switch with fuel dot and a NGK spart plug. Now that is a good deal.

Tom is a great guy to do business with and is a DLE service rep also. They have good prices and will treat you right! I know from experience and doing business with him for over 5 years.
Ed

jet22b

Ed;
Thanks for the link!!!!
I like to have everything on hand when I start to build!!!
Thanks, again!!
Sonny
aka
jet22b

edwal07

Wecome Sonny,
You are close enough to go see him! I met him in Georgia at the Perry Swap Meet a couple years ago. Really super nice guy and he sold my field stands on his website. He keeps his word and will do you right! Tom and Valley View are A-One in my book! He will also drill your prop for freeif you buy one from him!
Ed

jet22b

Ed,
You are so right!! I am only 7 miles from his shop!!! I will drive down next week to pick up the DLE 55RA!! Don't find good hobby shop like we had in the good old days!!
Thanks, again for the info and I hope you and your family have a very good Thanksgiving!!
Sonny
aka
jet22b

edwal07

Thanks Sonny,

Make sure and tell him Hi for me! We are moving back to Oregon in a couple years and hope he is still there and doing well as he will get more of my business and see my face more often. Hope you and yours had a Happy Thanksgiving also. I also have 4 daughters living in Oregon so as soon as I retire for the second time we are coming home.

Good flights and calm winds,
Ed

taildragger56

Just bought a Dle 55ra from valley view, great people to deal with and very fast shipping! could not ask for better treatment.

wjcalhoun

Roger that on VVRC.
I have not ever had a single issue with them, and the service and help are always better than one has a right to expect.
Hope that the chatter on this thread will bring them business.
Good people, good products, and great customer service.

Spridal

My Feedback: (17)

Yup,
Tom and Tammy are always helpful and willing to help. I really like the fact that they will pre-driil your prop for free if purchased from them.

wjcalhoun

Guys
For those of you installing a DLE55RA, note that the mounting bolt pattern for the standoffs is different than the DLE55! There is no template for the RA in the manual, no manual with my RA, and no manual for the RA on the DLE website, so i had to make my own template for drilling the firewall.

ahicks I think noted the typo in the manual for drilling the firewall; manual states 13/16" which is of course incorrect. I don't think it is actually 3/16" because that is too small for a clearance for 5mm bolts; i think the manual should state 13/64", which is correct fractional size for clearance for 5mm.

Note to all - the firewall will require a 5/8" or 3/4" hole to be drilled at the center of the FW if you have an aft-facing carb (as the DLE55 and DLE55RA both have) in order for the engine to be able to breath properly.

I'm about halfway through my build. Will post some pics later.

Minor mods:
- pinned the firewall with bamboo skewers
- installed 1 1/2 x 2 1/2 x 3/8 balsa blocks vertically along the lateral margins of the main landing gear plate for structural reinforcement.
- used 1 1/4 servo arms on the elevators and ailerons for increased surface throw
- sealed all hinge gaps with clear monokote

I am fairly impressed with the quality of the arf.
-Tail gear mounts into hardwood. It is definitely not balsa back there like the R70.
-Surface hinging is very good with gaps less than 1/16"
-Mounting of the stabs with CF tubes and bolts is great
-Fuel, radio, and servo decks are strong, have many mounting options and lightening holes

Some things i wish they had designed differently:
- a real plywood-based mounting system for the aileron servos (they may be between a rock and hard place with the foam core wing - no real wood to mount servos)
- move the elevator servos forward enough that they could be mounted symmetrically. They are so far aft that there is not enough space in the aft fuse to hold two servos, hence the vertical offset. The linkages look odd, especially with the longer servo arms. (I know, I could have opened her up and built structure one bay forward where i would have wanted them, so it is on me not to have done that).
- provided fuel barbs that actually fit the brass lines, or vice versa (just an annoyance)
- CF main gear. Those aluminum bars are heavy.
- would have been nice to have a cannister tunnel in her; fuse has plenty of room for it had the decks been mounted higher (torward the canopy)
I am eager to get her in the air.

Bill

taildragger56

Thanks for the information Bill! Will look forward to seeing some pics. If you could post a copy of that template for the 55RA and post it, that would be very helpful.


Thanks

jet22b

ED;
I will do that when I go down next week to pick up the DLE 55RA. I will also tell him keep a eye on this thread.!!! The rain has come here in the Great Northwest and flying is just about over. I will take my time on the R90 build, because it will be spring before she fly!!
Thanks, again for the info. I do love to keep my local hobby shop happy!!!
Sonny
aka
jet22b

jet22b

Bill;
Thanks for the info you post about the mounting of the DLE 55RA. I would hope DLE would post a bolts pattern here or on their website.
Thanks again for your info!!!
Sonny
aka
jet22b

wjcalhoun

Hi Guys
I will try to post the DLE55RA template i made.
USE AT YOUR OWN RISK. CAVEAT: the measurements are as close as i can get them but may be wrong.

When you print it, make SURE that the SCALE marker actually measures 2.00 inches; that way you can be sure that the size of the tempate is correct.

Update: still will not post. If you want the template, PM me, and I'll send it that way to you.

wjcalhoun

More thoughts and pics

The throttle servo mounting options (out in the left and right forward flanks) are really nice, keeping the servo away from other things. The problem is installation. Remember the sequence: 1) mark the holes, 2) drill the holes, 3) make threads with a screw, 4) harden threads with thin CA, 5) install your servo. Unless you have a really long drill bit, #2 is a problem. One solution - make a drill from a #2 rod, filing a chisel point onto the end of the rod. I made a 6 inch #2 drill that way (photo).

I am using #2 all thread rod for my throttle, and it is long (11 1/2"), so it is stiffened with a carbon fiber tube over the all-thread, secured with epoxy. It seems quite stiff, and a better solution than the flexible rod/tube in the manual / kit.

Another odd thing about the DLE55RA is that the choke PULLS on, and PUSHES off, which is backwards from the DLE55. Maybe there is a way to invert the arm, but is is not apparent to me. ALL my other manual chokes PUSH on and PULL off.

I am not really enthusiastic about the rudder pull-pull. First, it uses crossed cables (enforced by the guide tubes) which is not good geometry, and second the guide tubes do no line up well with the ends of the rudder servo arms. The actual cable is coated wire, so there is not that much friction, but I would almost rather fish the pull-pull cables through the fuse for a nice straight shot to the servo arms.

I installed my miracle switches / fuel dots. It would be nice if Miracle included a template, because there is very little room for error, particularly with the dual switch / fuel dot.

I think GP may think that many will use an engine bigger than 55-60cc. The fuel tank is enormous. I'll be we can fly a 55 for 25 minutes at nearly WOT. The only reason I can think for that big a tank is that they recognize that many will end up with 80-90cc engines. As a side note, the brass tubes are not the standard 1/8", but appear to be 5/32". Small difference perhaps, but all your medium tygon will not fit. For those of you, like me, who have invested in Viton, that will stretch enough to go over the larger tubes. However, i do not generally use viton at $7/ft for vent lines, fill lines, etc.


UPDATE
I think something is wrong with RCU right now.
Cannot upload pdf of the template, and cannot upload jpgs.

Will try later.

Best
Bill

Spridal

My Feedback: (17)

Guys,
I mentioned this in an earlier post but I think it warrants another mention; please be sure to go over the entire plane with CA if possible. I almost lost my left stabilizer in flight due to the absent of glue. The plane is nice, but judging from the two I've built the QC is sub par.

microdon2

My Feedback: (47)

Spridal - you almost lost the left STABILIZER? Not elevator? I haven't seen this plane in person yet, so I don't know how it's designed. I take it the stabilizers are not one piece, like on the Rev 59 and 70? But if they're split, how are they glued in? Can you post a pic?

Also, you've already built TWO Rev 90's??

Slow and Steady

Instead of using a template, I rip lengths of 1/4 ply to 1/2 the center dimension of the bolt spacing i.e. if the spacing is 68 mm, I cut the plywood to 34 mm. Then line up the plywood with the center lines on the firewall and mark a line across. It provides dead on marks at the center of each hole.

wjcalhoun

S&S
Your approach works well also.
The spacing of the upper and lower bolts is different; wider near the jug, and narrower at the crank end on the 55RA. It is not a rectangular pattern like the 55.

Spridal

My Feedback: (17)

Look on page 8 of the manual for further clarification. The stabs are mounted to two carbon fiber rods and then secured to the fuse with two metal plates. The metal plates mount to the stabs with bolts that thread into blind nuts. The actual wood that the blind nuts attach to had little if any glue at the joints and had seperated in flight. I felt the tail getting mushy and was lucky enough to bring her in before disaster.

wjcalhoun

Spridal
Thanks for the clarification. I'll pull my stabs off and check that joint.

microdon2

My Feedback: (47)

Spridal - thanks. Sounds like a good catch and very good save on your part.

Slow and Steady

WJ, An a-symetrical bolt patern? Just when I thought I had the perfect solution! sounds like a schematic would be helpful. Maybe Valley View could post one here.

wjcalhoun

Here is the DLE55RA template.
It is shop grade, not perfect.
When you print it, MAKE SURE that the scale marker measures 2.00 inches.

Hope it is helpful.

Bill

wjcalhoun

Pics from the build
#1 - awkward location for mounting throttle servo; one needs a long drill bit
#2 - chisel point ground on end of #2 rod for long drill bit
#3 - installed throttle servo with #2 rod / CF stiffener
#4, #5 - carb connection for throttle control rod
#6 - 6-32 pressure nipple installed on carb cover
#7 - miracle switch / fuel dot