Tetley

WohooOOO!!!, I got to fly the groove today, the sun was out no rain but a 21mph wind[:@] the wind sock was stuck out straight like a big go home now sign. Anyway i set up fiddled the mixture a bit and placed here on the line, The wind was rocking the plane as it sat there on the ground, big gusts blowing, I thought about it for a sec........ Sod it i'm going for it!!! I nailed the gas and the groove was up! in about 10 feet!!

I did a few laps and trimmed her out, only one click of left a/ron was needed, the wind was giving me a hard time, very gusty but the groove just 'grooved' along , Knife edge was a breeze (no pun intended), inverted very nice, did some rolling circles 10/10, Harrier and Hover felt great apart from the wind messin with me[:@]. Blender no probs flats spins no props, very slow high alpha k.e was very nice and uncoupled.

The plane flew great and I can't wait for a less windy day, I slowed it down on a into wind pass and it stopped!! just hanging there into wind at about 40 feet, so i started to roll it!! for about 5 mins just sat there motionless rolling!! quality!!, . I am more than happy with the groove, I can see were going to spend alot of tie together.

I feel that the cg at about 145 could go back more [X(] , When slamming into a wall it felt a bit lazy on the up but i guess i need a less windy day to fiddle out the cg, but i will defo go back further maybe 155-160.

Ok gotta go do some work now[:'(], any questions fire away.

Jim


Hey Smartmove, you won't be disapointed, i'm running the sc52 with tuned pipe on it, and it seems like plenty of scream for this plane!!, as your name says i think it would be a 'smartmove' ...Jim

Robbiemeek

Nice one Jim, sounds like it has met up to your expectations even on a gusty day! I can't wait to join in on the fun when I maiden my groove. I know its only early days yet, but perhaps this is an artf contender for the capiche 50 for those people who want a quicker build? I guess we shall see as more people fly the it. I will post as soon as i fly my one, hopfully with pics as well.

Tetley

Hi Rob, I got half way to the feild and realized i had forgot my cam! doh! pics next time (saterday prolly), if you like the capiche 50 then you will like/love the groove, even in heavy gusty wind it felt very nimble and very floaty!. The wind was making it kite a fair bit but i could tell it was going to rock on a calmer day.

It had no bad stall habbits even when i grabbed full elevator on full throw it just mushed into a harrier no wing rock(other than the wind!)....nice!.

On the ground I had to use a heap of elevator to stop it nosing over, but the grass was pretty wet and squelchy and those swept back wheel prolly dont help.

Good luck on your maiden

Jim.

The boys Back

I flew the prototype at Sandown (test flew it there and then so no time to fiddle with CG etc) and i found it quite nose heavy as it was and there was no lead in the nose? (west 50 and pipe)

Dave

Tetley

hmmm no lead eh, me and rob here have had to add some, about 120 grams now with 1800mah nmh righ up front with a cg of 145mm, without the lead i think it was at 165mm, so are you saying it needs to go back past 165? ...... Mine did not feel nose heavy just a bit shy to slam up hard into a wall, other than that it was shweeet!!. Any further tips /comments from you dave are very welcome, and any other info about the prototypes and what changes where made and why....

Great job though, looks great and fly's very well from what I can tell in the crazy wind today!.

Jim.

simon Ka

Dave....I'm sure I had the prototype at about 165mmm not sure why the adopted swede kicker bought it so far foward?

Tetley

Hi, well i'm just of out with the groove again now, i will try a further back cog and see if it works out....today looks loads better that yesterday lol half the wind and more sun ...


Jim.

simon Ka

Tetley.....I want a job like yours.

smartmove

Pictures!

Tetley

I have the camera with me today , but i cant fly and shoot pics so ground pics will be the one , you want my job?? are you sure lol, online support is not a glam job!!! but i can choose my hours!! play all day work till the weee hours ..

Jim.

Tetley

OK, just got back from flying the groove again, the wind was loads better today and showed me that it was still nose heavy, i have removed ALL of the lead from the nose, the plane now fly's 3d a whole load better.
The Cg they give you in the instructions is very very conservative to say the least for 3d flying. If your a good 3d pilot then forget the lead, i think i'm at about 165-170mm back from L.E now and it feels great, It was a bit hard to hold in a good elevator or hover with all that fat up front¬¬.

I got 7 x 10 min flights today and really starting to get the feel for the groove now, all in all i think it will do a great job getting me ready for some compo's next season[&:]......

Here are a few pic's of the groove at the Field today. (and my midget stang powered by axi2808-24 and 2400mah lipo's )

Tetley

Just a quick 'q' to you 2 here that flew the prototypes, I had a 12x6 on today and yesterday seemed ok, what other props would you recommend i try?? what props did you fly it on?? maybe a 13x4? i got a few in the box,,,Any suggestions welcome, bearing in mind I 3D for the whole flight.



Jim.

Robbiemeek

Thanks for the info on the c of g Jim. I weighed my groove in at 2.9 kg but have 400g of lead up front to get me a 137 mm rearward c of g. I will drop some lead and maiden at 150mm to start with I think. The fact that you now have a lighter plane as well a rearward c of g has to contributed to a better flying plane, I just HATE adding weight. I will get a few flights in first I think before I remove any more.
Thanks for your valued input to this new artf, this is what I joined RC universe for !

happy landings, Rob

simon Ka

Tetley. Best prop for West .50T1 on the Genesis pipe is a apc 13 x 4w.

I think Westons have made a slight error in the instructions, the first prototype Dave and I flew at approx 165mm c of g.
(this one was a bit heavy as the wings had been sawn in half and re-set twice, plus I built a leading edge shroud to change the wing planform)

Dave flew the second prototype at Sandown with a West .50T1 and pipe with NO nose weight and the c of g in Daves opinion could have gone back a bit further (But he does like to fly very tail heavy, i've tried flying his indoor planes!!!)

Good to see the first reactions to the Groove is very positive.....a lot of effort went into designing it and keeping the construction strong but light. The West .36 should fly it well....and will give a lighter set up.

Tetley

Thanks Simon for clearing up the c'o'g issue , Sounds like you had fun sawing wings in half!![X(][X(] lol, I will try the 13/4 I have here and see how it goes, i have a 13/4 apc on my yak54 and i'm not all that keen on the way it spools up/down, very wafty, but i'll give it a go.
I can't wait to get back out there tomorrow and show her of to the gang ...I'm sure this plane is going to be another great seller just like the Hype was.

Thanks again for your input, with such a new kit it's nice to get the 'word' from people in the know

Jim.

rorywquin

So what is a safe starting point then? I had my cg at about 140mm but it took about 300g of lead on the engine bearers. I have only had one test flight but have removed about 50g of lead. On my only flight I did find the elevator fairly sensitive compared to what I am used to and flying inverted only needed a tad of down to keep it level!! So I had thought that mine would be about right now. However reading these posts it seems it will still be nose heavy !!

Waiting for good weather to make a few more flights!!

Tetley

Hi, i took out all the lead and moved the rx batt back behind the tank rather than on top of it!!, fly's great now, just need to get some free time and weather in the same block! C'G is about 160-165 now


Jim.

bri neasham

Hi, for people already flying the groove freestyle, did you find the engine mount bolt holes in the firewall in the correct place? The reason i ask is that on my particular model when i bolted the engine in and slipped the cowl in place the crankshaft was 1/2-3/4 inch to low and no amount of trying to angle the cowl would allow the spinner to line up.

Also what mufflers are you using? I have fitted a JEN56 motor and using the supplied SQ silencer i will need a exhaust extension of about 1/2 inch to clear the bottom of the fuselage,as well as needing a big cutout in the bottom of the cowl, so i tried a weston throttle pipe which i naturally though would fit, infact it clashed even more with the fus and would require a exhaust spacer of over 1 inch thick to fit!!

Any suggestions?

Regards

Brian

simon Ka

Hi.
The Groove Freestye was totally designed around the West motor and Genesis pipe combo. Retro fitting any other motor and pipe combo may require some additional cutting of cowl etc.

Tetley, how are the c 0g g experiments going ?

Camel

Have about four hours on the groove now with cog back to 160/165 flies well. Cant hold a stable elevator or harrier so may have to move further back. Also seem to have a slightly warped aileron as it flicks right every time with abrupt full elevator(normal rates). Other than that it's really good. 12x6 apc is ideal 13x4 from me hype is rather noisy and to no great gain thrust wise also touched the deck with it on a not so gentle arrival!
Any one flying with cog further aft or comments on above, I'd be gratefull
have fun
[>:]

smartmove

Tetley, what prop have you settled on now with your SC 52? 13x4 any good? I am currently running my ASP 52 (with mini JENCVEC pipe) in a Wot 4 on a APC 12x6 (I will use this engine in the Groove).

Nickolas

Guys,

I'm thinking of getting the Groove. I'm looking for a 40 size plane that can perform both pattern and 3D. The other candidate is Kyosho Majestic which is more patternish but with some mods can perfrom 3D I think.

I'm closer to the Groove but I have not read any detailed review or flight report. The engines that I'm thinking of are West 50 T1 or Saito 82. With respect to servos, I'm thinking of 2xJR 591 on ailerons, HiTec 605 on rudder and JR-2235 (5.5Kg) on Elevator.

Any comments or recommendations are wellcome.

Rgrds,

Nik

Tetley

Hi all, to keep it short, 12x6 prop 52 motor (plenty for unlim vert) cg at 170 ish, I didnt like the spool up on the 13x4 and the 12x6 seems to have more zip to it, for those with wing rock you need to move ya cg back a bit at a time, the groove can fly with a real reward cg!! nice and floaty.

camel, check your cg and drop back a bit, i have had no wing rock problems, also check your elevator is pulling both halfs the same ammount!, this would cause wing rock and the snap to one sie you said about.

I'm going to try a saito 70 in it soon just for fun, the groove is very light and i think a 70 would pull it about like a rag doll!!.

Jim.

Robbiemeek

Nickolas, I have both planes and they both fly excellent. The groove is a better alrounder as it will fly slow and stable like a 3D but can be flown like a patternship when the rates are reduced. I have reduced the rates to bear minimum to fly patterns otherwise everything is overcompansated. The majestic is slightly smaller and has to fly faster to perform and is not so stable at low speeds and landings are fast. The build quality is far better on the groove and quicker and easier! If you were thinking of buying the west 50 then the groove is made for it, literally! There is more than enough power and it will hover a bit below 3/4 throtle on a 12-6 apc. I would recomend the groove as it is a new plane, new design with unknown unexplored talent to be discovered. I havn't had the chance to fly it that much yet but the time I have spent has been very rewarding and enjoyable. It makes my flying look more advanced than it really is. It can be flown knife E the whole circuit and will pull vertical to a KE loop with ease. I still have a lot to learn about the groove which is what makes it so good as every flight is a lesson for me.
Just my 02, I hope this helps.

graham

Hi Rob, got myself a groove looks nice, have you had any probs with the swept back u/c when you taxi?As our field is not all that smooth .
I am going hacker/lipos [thats all i fly now££££££]should be sweet,what is your all up weight?

Cheers Graham[8D]