Tall Paul

Thanks.. this is for a raw beginner, speed isn't important... or it shouldn't be.
I'm somewhat concerned about it getting too small too quickly, compared to a more usual trainer type.

FlyFanatic

With the Evolution 46, a 11x6 or 7 works great, with the os 55ax im using a 11x8 and all I can say is WOW.. lol

yank51

I strongly suggest that this plane NOT be used for a beginner's 1st plane. Although it is a smooth flyer, with good characterisitics while flying, it requires a little to much speed on landing for a raw beginner, period. This is why you can read about some many here with nose breaks on their A/C, due to its needing to be "flown" to the runway, not floated in.... I had the opportunity to fly someones this past weekend, and since we noted this while he was flying it (and setting it down hard, BTW) when I flew it I was ready for this. But a beginner, well...... Not a SIG Kadet or any typical high-wing, lots of deheidral A/C. A very good 2nd or 3rd A/C though for sure. And it DOES look great out there flying...

MinnFlyer

My Feedback: (4)

Well, every instructor is different. Personally, I prefer NOT to teach with a floater that you need to fight the self-correcting tendencies on.

In fact, I would rather use the Raptor than the Mustang (PTS) to train with.

True, it does not "Float" in on final, you need to keep some throttle in. But it's not like you have to "manage" the throttle, just don't "chop" it till you're ready to touch down.

And even THAT may change once you get rid of the TPS Prop.

BTW, keep checking the Magazine, the review should go live in a day or two.

rc-sport

My Feedback: (12)

I agree with Minn, if someone wants to use this or the PTS Mustang then he should. I trained a student on the PTS Mustang and he learned how to land the right way, to fly the plane to the ground not just chop the throttle and watch it float in like many trainers do. The F 22 and mustang are alot more exciting for a kid to learn with then a Avistar or Nexstar.

schwatd

Hey Guys,

I thought the new agreed thought was 'floating' any trainer in was a bad idea as it gave a false sense of accomplishment and lead to disasterous tip stalls in novice pilots with other planes that can't float, hence the newer style of trainers that have to be flown from take-off through to landing. Am I wrong or did I miss something?,...? Anyone,... Buhler,......Buhler,....

rfan_1

My Feedback: (2)

Hi folks, Would those of you that are flying these planes mind taking a look at your elevators in the full down position and check for the same amount of travel on both sides? I had to replace one set due to a 1/4" difference between the two sides. The replacement elevators were still off, but only by a very small amount. I'm curious to see if any other plane owners are seeing this.
Thanks for your time.

RFan

MinnFlyer

My Feedback: (4)

rfan, Mine are equal.

As for the debate as to whether or not a trainer should float, I can only say that a lot depends on both the instructor AND the student.

Some people really NEED a slow-flying, Self-Correcting plane. Some people only need this type of plane for their first few flights (Which nowadays can be accomplished on a simulator), and some are just naturals who pick it up right away.

Now in all three scenarios above (And yes, there are others, but those are the 3 most common) they all need to spend a lot of time practicing before going solo. Lord knows there are a million ways to get into trouble and a novice needs to learn not only how to make a plane go up, down, left and right, but also how to avoid getting into trouble, and more importantly how to get out of it once it happens.

But I have found that in more recent years (Mostly due to the Nintendo Factor) people pick up the machanics of it much more quickly than they used to. Due to this, I really prefer training someone with a plane that goes where you point it, and not one where you are having to fight it through a turn, and then have to deal with it ballooning as you roll out.

Now I already know the other side of that arguement - That type of plane (High-wing Trainer) teaches the basics of areodynamics. This is true. But it is also something that doesn't need to become a hinderance to the learning process.

In other words, it's like teaching someone to drive a car using a car with a standard transmission. Sure, they learn a lot more about the internal workings of a car, but do they really need this when they are learning to drive? I don't think so.

Woody 51

This bird reminds me of the now oop Great Planes F15 kit. I had one once and covered it in grey.
To get around the "lost in the clouds" problem of "grey on a cloudy day", I applied Cub Yellow bands to the fuselage, wing tips and the whole of each fin, aka what the USAF had on Korean War era F86's. Solved that problem and looked quite good, although not "scale." But that model wasn't scale and neither is this one.

Will I be getting one of these. You betcha, soon as the ARF version hits the shelves. Wonder how it would go with a small dimension .60? (I have an old RJL/Kraft .60 that might suit)

yank51

Well statyed. Many things have changed (from when I learned back 25 years ago) and there are different methods of "teaching" and "learning", all of which need to fit the individual situation. I only expressed my opinion, and I DIDN'T expect it to be agreed to by everyone. It's like religion and politics, there is no "right" answer, plain and simple, and you will NEVER get everyone on your side......

Flyjets

My Feedback: (51)

Adding my 2 Cents

I have the Grey version with HiTec 625 all surfaces.

She has a Custom Motor mount out of composite and a new OS61FX swinging a 11 * 8 APC prop at 12,300 RPM

Presently she has 5 Flts on her.

Watching her Fly I can tell she is just a tad to short coupled the fuselage really needed to have a few more inches in length for the Speeds mine is moving at.
I Estimate she is running in the 80 MPH range.

The CG at 6" is close to perfect but the Main Gear should have been furthur aft.

Thats my 2 cents.

Next I might put a Macs Tune Pipe on her with a Long Drop and try the 10 * 10 APC.

Seems all the 10" Diameter props actually work very well for the F22 on Take Off.

Ian

ag4ever

I maidened my F-22 this Sunday.

I was at the LHS on Saturday with my wife, and she asked if I wanted an engine to put in the F-22 until I get the Jett 50 I really want in it. Well, I looked at the OS 55ax, and the 61, but decided to get the 55 as it would be a drop in engine and I would not need to modify the engine mount for it to fit.

I got home and started putting the engine in, I had to slide the engine all the way back on the engine mount so the ears were touching the rear most screwes for the engine mount straps. I then trimmed the cowling to just fit around the engine and allow the fule line to pass by without pinching them. Once it was all mounted I tested the CG, and it was spot on for the most forward position the book suggested (i think it is 5 3/4" from the wing root). This was with the battery sitting right next to the reciever in front of the elevator and rudder servo. I also added an 8th servos for just the nose wheel. I epoxyed in a tray in front of the wing bulkhead and behind the fuel tank. This way the nose wheel push rod is much shorter and I think aids in more ground control as well as less binding. I could not get the rudder servos to stop bizzing when it was done the way H9 showed. There was just too much binding in the long stiff nose wheel pushrod.

So Sunday, I get to the field and go up in my LT-40 just to get my fingers in order, but the wind is a bit high and the Kadet just wags all over the runway trying to get up, then i try to force it up too soon, and it stalls and jumps left right into the grass. I figured it should not be too bad as it was "gracefull" crash, but when I get it back, the tall gras had actually torn the covering in a couple places on the left wing just back from the trailing edge on the top surface. I decided the tears were not that bad, so I restatred it and took off again, and it went just fine. But now it was not flying right. I guess the tears were too much, as I had to add a bunch of right aileron to keep it level. Seems the left side was just not giving me enough lift. So after a couple times around I land it and decide to put it away.

So I get the F-22 and fuel it up. I then start the engine and run a tank thru the engine to break it in. Then after I break it in, I refuel it and proceed to test it's taxi ability and try a "hop". Well after starting it, I placed it on the ground, but I steped on the antena wire an chopped about 10" off. Well thats no good, but I am only testing the taxing and also just trying a rotation then immediatly landing, so the range will be fine. The engine is running great, still running rich and it reliably idles at 2000 rpm, with a 11x8 prop it is swinging about 10,000 rpm at wide open. So I taxi up and down a couple times and all is well so I decide to do a rotation and then land immediatly. I drop the flaps to full down and slowly bring up the throtle, it jumps in the air before I even thought it would, so i slowly bring the throtle back, and it starts to wobble from wing to wing and touches down while tapping the wings on the runway. Well that is not nice, so I taxi back to the pilot station and take it to the bench to see what I did. I cracked the right wing droop at the tip, Well it is not too bad. I pulled the reciever out of the LT-40 and put it int the F-22, dialed down the aileron rate a bit and refueled. This time I had about 80% down flaps, and it rotated better and lifted when I was expecting it to. Also the ailerons seemed to be better now, not so wild. Well, I flew a couple circuits with the flaps down then decided to raise them. Now the aileron control seems a bit sluggish, but it was enough that I had plenty of control. I flew a bit with the flaps up, and decided the rains were getting close, so i had better land. I deployed full flaps and reduced throttle to 1/3. Setup for approach, but it would just not drop. Came in staedy at eye level for the entire length of the runway so throttle up a bit and try again. This time I cut to just barely above idle and it settled into a nice glide slope and touched down with only one small bounce. Whew, it is still in one piece and the rain is getting close. I decide to pack it up before I try my luck any more.

So my conclusion:

Fun plane to fly, but I don't think I would like to try it with a 3 blade. I also plan to setup the dual rates for the ailerons so I can have a lower setting when the flaps are down and a higher one when they are up. (The only explination I can think of is when the flaps are down more air is forced over the ailerons.) Don't step on the antena as it hangs way out the rear.

I have a bunch of different props I bought for it, just incase the 11x8 was not a good match, but it seems fine for now. Speed was good, but I am still a new pilot so I want it to be a bit slower, and with the 55 spinning an 11x8 it gets in the air fine and has enough oomph to keep it up.

If the weather holds out today, I plan to fly it after work.

fredira

I bought my Raptor as the ARF version.Installed a OS MAX .46 LA. Balanced the plane with a great planes cg machine.The battery I ended up putting near the elevator servo. It does have a long run out.Once air born I could not achieve over 5 feet of altitude.Had to throttle back before it flew out of site.Some minor damage to repair.The question I have is the C.G right on the plan's? I did notice it has some down thrust which I plan to change.I did not put on the added trainer stuff.I also put in the flap servos. Anybody know if the C.G is correct?
I'm not here to bash Hanger 9. Just want to get it flying. P.S I'm using a 11X6 prop.
Thanks

ag4ever

An LA 46 is way too small.

This plane needs some good power to get it going. The LA series engines just don't put out the power of a typical engine of the same size. The EVO 46 is marginal for this plane, and the LA 46 has even less power.

I am flying mine with an OS 55AX and a 10X8 prop turning about 13,000 RPM. This is with the engine still running really rich as it is a new engine and I am still breaking it in. I have about 5 more tanks to put thru it beofre I will start to lean it up and go for peak RPM.

So the first thing I would do, is get a bigger engine (an OS 46FX at a minumum, and even that is a bit small) and go with a smaller diameter prop.

roxyndav

My Feedback: (2)

[8D]Just wondering how many (ARF) Raptor owners are mounting there batteries in the tail like the instructions call for? I have read of some folks complaining about the airplane being tail heavy. I hate to add unneccessary weight to any airplane. I will post the outcome after I balance the airplane after installing the rest of the radio gear. My gut feeling is to mount the battery right behind the nose gear. Time will tell as always.

Remember: Altitude is you good buddy!

the iceman

has anyone put an os 55ax in the raptor? if so, can u tell me where u put the weights, im having trouble balancing it. Should u balance it with a fill or empty tank of fuel? How much weight did u put on?

thanks in advanced

ag4ever

Take a look at post #62.

I balanced mine with an empty tank.

I used no weights, but then again you should read about the other items I did to my plane.

the iceman

thanks

my problem was that i had the receiver battery in the back of the plane because that was what the manual said to do. So, i moved the battery up to the middle. Now it was nose heavy i had to put 4 or 5 lead weights in the back. Could u take a picture of the middle of your plane where the electronics are or tell me where exactly u put the battery and the receiver?

also how does the 11 x 8 work, i currently have a 12 x 6 on my 55ax, and it is very loud but powerful?

thanks

octane-link

My bird is totally stock, and it balances just fine 6" aft of the LE, like the manual says.

However, I have yet to maiden it, so I will report back when I maiden. I am curious, does anyone have dual rates set up? If so, how did you set them? I am thinking of using the stock deflections as low rate, then quite a bit more aileron and elevator on high rate, leave rudder alone (else nose gear rod binds). Thoughts?

MinnFlyer

My Feedback: (4)

Bump

ag4ever

I will try to snap some pictures when I get home, but these pictures from the Hanger 9 site might help you understand how I have mine set up.

I have a 2000 mah square NiMH Hydromax pack in my plane where the first picture shows it. I can put it there since, I don't have the pushrod to the wheel going through that location. I did not like how long that metal rod was, nor the fact that it seemed to keep stallign the servos and it was always buzzing. So I added an extra servo just for the nose wheel steering. The second picture shows approximatly where it is located. This way, I can really fine tune the rudder and steering servos without affecting each other any. Also, since this plane could use a bit more nose weight, I figured usefull weight was better than dead weight.

If you have a flat pack, you might be able to put it there and have the push rod go over it.

PaulWR

I am just finishing putting together an H9 Raptor (not the combo). I am setting up the control surfaces movements and am wondering that the instructions in the manual say to set up the aileron travel, in low rate, at 3/16 of an inch. Is this a mistake??? because I can't imagine any aileron movement being effective, set that low. I have arbitrarily set them at 3/4 of an inch for now.
However, I have noticed from reading several comments on this forum that with the flaps down the ailerons should indeed be set at a lower travel rate, but 3/16"??
Paulwr
Thanks

octane-link

That seemed odd to me as well, which is why I am planning on setting high rates for probably 1/2", and on its own switch so that I can turn only those on. I am interested in what other people have done on this though.

ag4ever

I had mine setup for low rates at 3/16", and then after the first flight dialed them back through radio ATV to about 60%. For my beginner skills, this is about right with flaps at full to 1/2 deployed. If I have the flaps all the way up, I would want 100% ATV, but have not taken the time to set my dual rates up on this plane.

I think 1/4" on low and 1/2" on high would work for me right now.

the iceman

they probably put a low rate on it for beginners

i put one of these arfs together a few days ago, but for some reason the metal pushrod that goes from the servo to the nose keeps making a clicking noise when i turn left. I believe its because it is hitting the hole it has to go through inorder to get to the nose. Has anyone else had a similar problem? Any suggestions on how to fix it?