Going for first ever flight solo later. Wind or no wind?
07-19-2013, 05:50 PM
#51
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RE: Going for first ever flight solo later. Wind or no wind?
Try to slow down, the faster the plane goes the quicker the control surfaces make the plane move. It also give you more time to react to what i the plane does.
07-19-2013, 06:42 PM
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RE: Going for first ever flight solo later. Wind or no wind?
07-19-2013, 08:32 PM
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RE: Going for first ever flight solo later. Wind or no wind?
I was a control line and free flight modeler in my youth. After being away from modeling for many years I decided to give RC a try.
(This was pre-Internet, pre-simulator, and pre-ARFS.). My first RC was a Dynaflite Butterfly. The building skills I had learned as a child and teenager came back quickly, and the trimming experience from free flight helped too. Aided by the slow flight and large size of the model I learned to fly it with little drama. I then built a Sig Kadet and again learned to fly it with minimum mishaps, thanks to the experience with the large, slow Butterfly.
In light of my own experience I highly recommend the powered glider approach.
Oh, back to the initial post- dead calm is the way to go.
Good luck! Please keep us posted.
Jess
(This was pre-Internet, pre-simulator, and pre-ARFS.). My first RC was a Dynaflite Butterfly. The building skills I had learned as a child and teenager came back quickly, and the trimming experience from free flight helped too. Aided by the slow flight and large size of the model I learned to fly it with little drama. I then built a Sig Kadet and again learned to fly it with minimum mishaps, thanks to the experience with the large, slow Butterfly.
In light of my own experience I highly recommend the powered glider approach.
Oh, back to the initial post- dead calm is the way to go.
Good luck! Please keep us posted.
Jess
07-20-2013, 02:38 AM
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RE: Going for first ever flight solo later. Wind or no wind?
Okay guys, just getting plane ready and swapping engine as my Irvine 40 is leaking on the carb so going to fit my abc magnum engine instead. It's held in with two clamps so there is a bit of movement. I've forgotten which way it should be angled. Can anyone offer advice please?
07-20-2013, 04:04 AM
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RE: Going for first ever flight solo later. Wind or no wind?
There shouldn't be movement in the engine, but it should be to the right like looking out the cockpit. About 2°s
07-25-2013, 08:01 AM
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RE: Going for first ever flight solo later. Wind or no wind?
I really gotta agree with Jester and JohnBuckner on this one. The plane you have chosen is a trainer yes, but this is a trainer best suited to training with a qualified instructor. Going it alone with a plane like this is going to be difficult and like someone mentioned, you can only crash it so many times until it becomes impossible to repair. Further, I share JohnBuckner's concerns about the casual way you guys are trying to learn. SAFETY should always be of primary concern, especially on a plane with a glow or gas engine since those can do real damage to people and property.
Just recently I bought the new Apprentice S 15e from E-Flight and have found it to be an incredible plane to "teach yourself to fly." To date, I have allowed 5 RANK newbie pilots to fly this plane on "Beginner" mode and all successfully flew the plane and landed it with just a bit of over the shoulder coaching from myself or other more experienced pilots at our field. The new SAFE technology is indeed amazing and will give even the greenest of RC newbies a good chance at RC flight success. Even the most experienced of the pilots at our field were surprised at how great this airplane flies and how well the newbies were able to fly it. Check one out, it will take a lot of time and frustration out of learning to fly on our own. BTW - I bought this plane because I wanted to see the technology. I needed another trainer like I need a third arm. On "Experienced" mode though, it is a kick to fly.
07-26-2013, 04:17 AM
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RE: Going for first ever flight solo later. Wind or no wind?
Thanks for the tips Chuck but I have been having fairly good success with the training. I have however decided to go and fly in a much bigger space this weekend which is far away from anything that I can hot or damage. I'm going to take a gallon of fuel and use as much of it as I can over a few hours until I can fly this thing properly and land without any problems.
I have only had to carry out one repair job up to now when I snapped it in half. Otherwise I have only snapped a prop and put a couple of small holes in the covering where I overshot on a landing in to some bushes and also hit bushes when I failed to land in the right field and went out of sight. Every time I have had a mishap the plane has been just above stall speed or has been stalling so there is no massive amount of momentum in the plane for it to cause any structural damage.
If I am succesful with the trainer on Saturday I'm going to crack out a Seagull spacewalker that I have. I only paid £40 from the local model shp for it and I have an engine and servos. First thigs first though I will make sure I can land the trainer say ten times in a row without any mishaps first. Also perhaps each landing needs to be ensuring the main wheels hit first then nose or with teh tail dragger I may nose over.
I'll keep you guys updated over the weekend. I hope I don;t smash it up, lol. The doubters would love that. lol.
I have only had to carry out one repair job up to now when I snapped it in half. Otherwise I have only snapped a prop and put a couple of small holes in the covering where I overshot on a landing in to some bushes and also hit bushes when I failed to land in the right field and went out of sight. Every time I have had a mishap the plane has been just above stall speed or has been stalling so there is no massive amount of momentum in the plane for it to cause any structural damage.
If I am succesful with the trainer on Saturday I'm going to crack out a Seagull spacewalker that I have. I only paid £40 from the local model shp for it and I have an engine and servos. First thigs first though I will make sure I can land the trainer say ten times in a row without any mishaps first. Also perhaps each landing needs to be ensuring the main wheels hit first then nose or with teh tail dragger I may nose over.
I'll keep you guys updated over the weekend. I hope I don;t smash it up, lol. The doubters would love that. lol.
07-26-2013, 05:23 AM
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RE: Going for first ever flight solo later. Wind or no wind?
G'day
Interested to see you have a Space Walker. They are one of the nicest flying models around. The prototype was an ultralite aircraft built by a bloke that used to build model aircraft! He built his ultralite like a bit model and so later people decided that his "real" plane would make a good model which it does.
I have two. One is like yours (40 size) and the other is a 1/4 scale. They both fly well and they both have the same general flying characteristics. As tail draggers, they suffer from the P effect. This causes them to pull to the left quite a bit as you are taking off. You need to give gentle right rudder control to keep them straight on take off. My 1/4 scale nearly scared me silly on my first attempt to take off. It has a Laser 150 four stroke which has tons of torque. It started the roll straight enough then after about 20 feet suddenly did a 90 degree left turn and took off across the strip.
My smaller 40 size one also does this but not as strongly. It is something to watch out for.
The 40 size has a tendency to suddenly drop its right wing if I slow it down too much. Test out the stall with plenty of height to see what it does at low power. Gradually increase the UP control on low power and see what happens. If it just drops its nose, it will be pretty safe. If it drops a wing, it will need more attention when landing.
I saw you mention a 11 x 7 prop which you got with an Irvine engine. Irvine engines were considerably more powerful than the GP 42 you have now. Your GP42 is a great trainer engine. The Irvine, if it were a 45 or 46, would be quite happy with the 11x7 but less so if it were a real 40. I think your GP42 will not like the 11 x 7. It is just a bit too big. I generally like 5 or 6 pitch props on trainers as it makes them easier to land if the idle speed is a little too high. It also keeps the speed down but gives the model good climbing ability.
Do you have an engine for your Space Walker. The GP 42 would probably fly it but would be a bit underpowered. Mine has a 56 Saito four stroke which is great. Any 46 should be OK. www.justengines.co.uk is a good place to find engines. They give great service even to us blokes downunder.
Cheers
Mike in Oz
Interested to see you have a Space Walker. They are one of the nicest flying models around. The prototype was an ultralite aircraft built by a bloke that used to build model aircraft! He built his ultralite like a bit model and so later people decided that his "real" plane would make a good model which it does.
I have two. One is like yours (40 size) and the other is a 1/4 scale. They both fly well and they both have the same general flying characteristics. As tail draggers, they suffer from the P effect. This causes them to pull to the left quite a bit as you are taking off. You need to give gentle right rudder control to keep them straight on take off. My 1/4 scale nearly scared me silly on my first attempt to take off. It has a Laser 150 four stroke which has tons of torque. It started the roll straight enough then after about 20 feet suddenly did a 90 degree left turn and took off across the strip.
My smaller 40 size one also does this but not as strongly. It is something to watch out for.
The 40 size has a tendency to suddenly drop its right wing if I slow it down too much. Test out the stall with plenty of height to see what it does at low power. Gradually increase the UP control on low power and see what happens. If it just drops its nose, it will be pretty safe. If it drops a wing, it will need more attention when landing.
I saw you mention a 11 x 7 prop which you got with an Irvine engine. Irvine engines were considerably more powerful than the GP 42 you have now. Your GP42 is a great trainer engine. The Irvine, if it were a 45 or 46, would be quite happy with the 11x7 but less so if it were a real 40. I think your GP42 will not like the 11 x 7. It is just a bit too big. I generally like 5 or 6 pitch props on trainers as it makes them easier to land if the idle speed is a little too high. It also keeps the speed down but gives the model good climbing ability.
Do you have an engine for your Space Walker. The GP 42 would probably fly it but would be a bit underpowered. Mine has a 56 Saito four stroke which is great. Any 46 should be OK. www.justengines.co.uk is a good place to find engines. They give great service even to us blokes downunder.
Cheers
Mike in Oz
07-26-2013, 06:48 AM
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RE: Going for first ever flight solo later. Wind or no wind?
ORIGINAL: thebest_102
Also to add to this make sure when you trim you are heading into the wind. Downwind trimming can be erratic. Keep in mind that depending on the field the wind direction at altitude maybe different than that on the surface.
Also to add to this make sure when you trim you are heading into the wind. Downwind trimming can be erratic. Keep in mind that depending on the field the wind direction at altitude maybe different than that on the surface.
I thought based on laws of physics that you are still moviing through the same mass of air. Its just that its also moving.
Ground speed is affected and the plane will come away / towards you faster but it shouldn;t affect the planes behaviour or trimming should it?
07-26-2013, 06:55 AM
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RE: Going for first ever flight solo later. Wind or no wind?
ORIGINAL: OLDS45512
check out this plane, might be helpful.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b8H02ZaRjQU
check out this plane, might be helpful.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=b8H02ZaRjQU
07-26-2013, 06:59 AM
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RE: Going for first ever flight solo later. Wind or no wind?
ORIGINAL: mike109
G'day
Interested to see you have a Space Walker. They are one of the nicest flying models around. The prototype was an ultralite aircraft built by a bloke that used to build model aircraft! He built his ultralite like a bit model and so later people decided that his ''real'' plane would make a good model which it does.
I have two. One is like yours (40 size) and the other is a 1/4 scale. They both fly well and they both have the same general flying characteristics. As tail draggers, they suffer from the P effect. This causes them to pull to the left quite a bit as you are taking off. You need to give gentle right rudder control to keep them straight on take off. My 1/4 scale nearly scared me silly on my first attempt to take off. It has a Laser 150 four stroke which has tons of torque. It started the roll straight enough then after about 20 feet suddenly did a 90 degree left turn and took off across the strip.
My smaller 40 size one also does this but not as strongly. It is something to watch out for.
The 40 size has a tendency to suddenly drop its right wing if I slow it down too much. Test out the stall with plenty of height to see what it does at low power. Gradually increase the UP control on low power and see what happens. If it just drops its nose, it will be pretty safe. If it drops a wing, it will need more attention when landing.
I saw you mention a 11 x 7 prop which you got with an Irvine engine. Irvine engines were considerably more powerful than the GP 42 you have now. Your GP42 is a great trainer engine. The Irvine, if it were a 45 or 46, would be quite happy with the 11x7 but less so if it were a real 40. I think your GP42 will not like the 11 x 7. It is just a bit too big. I generally like 5 or 6 pitch props on trainers as it makes them easier to land if the idle speed is a little too high. It also keeps the speed down but gives the model good climbing ability.
Do you have an engine for your Space Walker. The GP 42 would probably fly it but would be a bit underpowered. Mine has a 56 Saito four stroke which is great. Any 46 should be OK. www.justengines.co.uk is a good place to find engines. They give great service even to us blokes downunder.
Cheers
Mike in Oz
G'day
Interested to see you have a Space Walker. They are one of the nicest flying models around. The prototype was an ultralite aircraft built by a bloke that used to build model aircraft! He built his ultralite like a bit model and so later people decided that his ''real'' plane would make a good model which it does.
I have two. One is like yours (40 size) and the other is a 1/4 scale. They both fly well and they both have the same general flying characteristics. As tail draggers, they suffer from the P effect. This causes them to pull to the left quite a bit as you are taking off. You need to give gentle right rudder control to keep them straight on take off. My 1/4 scale nearly scared me silly on my first attempt to take off. It has a Laser 150 four stroke which has tons of torque. It started the roll straight enough then after about 20 feet suddenly did a 90 degree left turn and took off across the strip.
My smaller 40 size one also does this but not as strongly. It is something to watch out for.
The 40 size has a tendency to suddenly drop its right wing if I slow it down too much. Test out the stall with plenty of height to see what it does at low power. Gradually increase the UP control on low power and see what happens. If it just drops its nose, it will be pretty safe. If it drops a wing, it will need more attention when landing.
I saw you mention a 11 x 7 prop which you got with an Irvine engine. Irvine engines were considerably more powerful than the GP 42 you have now. Your GP42 is a great trainer engine. The Irvine, if it were a 45 or 46, would be quite happy with the 11x7 but less so if it were a real 40. I think your GP42 will not like the 11 x 7. It is just a bit too big. I generally like 5 or 6 pitch props on trainers as it makes them easier to land if the idle speed is a little too high. It also keeps the speed down but gives the model good climbing ability.
Do you have an engine for your Space Walker. The GP 42 would probably fly it but would be a bit underpowered. Mine has a 56 Saito four stroke which is great. Any 46 should be OK. www.justengines.co.uk is a good place to find engines. They give great service even to us blokes downunder.
Cheers
Mike in Oz
As for the engine - I bought a Seagull PC-9 a few weeks ago and that came with an OS46AX so I was going to put that in it and then back in the PC9 once I want to fly it. The spacewlaker has been well flown so has some wear and tear but the PC9 is immaculate so I want to keep that one and use it once I can fly the other low wing.
07-26-2013, 07:16 AM
#63
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RE: Going for first ever flight solo later. Wind or no wind?
To make the transition to the Spacewalker, you'll need a few extra skills aside from landing a trainer without breaking it. The first is flying the whole flight in total control. Trainers are designed to self-correct to level, which often teaches new pilots to depend on that. So instead of rolling out of a turn and leveling the wings yourself, you wind up just releasing the sticks and letting the dihedral do that for you. Takeoffs are another area. Most newbies open the throttle and have the plane takeoff at whatever angle and at whatever moment it wants to and call that a successful takeoff. A truly successful takeoff starts with a straight takeoff roll and ends with the plane breaking ground when YOU want it to and then doing a steady climb out. It's the same with landings. You should be able to set the plane down within 30 feet of where you want to with very little left or right deviation before you graduate yourself from the trainer. When you are rolling out of every turn where you want to, flying an oval racetrack pattern with both lines parallel, maintaining altitude in your turns, and taking off and landing at will, then it's time to consider moving up to a sport plane. The other indicator is that the trainer starts to feel slow to you. When you find yourself waiting for it to make the turn or finish rolling to level or finish the landing approach, then you're ready for a little bit more performance and a plane that doesn't self correct. But if you are still reacting to the plane and having to fix mistakes, your reaction times and knowledge of piloting are still not developed enough even for a trainer, let alone something more demanding.
