chistech

Finished mine today and will try and maiden tomorrow or Friday. Balanced right on at 2" with the battery moved a little forward. I put a mark with a magic marker so the batteries will always go in the same place. The slightly larger 3600 Turnigy batteries are no problem to fit. I will weigh it tomorrow but I don't think it's that heavy. I did cut about 7mm off the motor shafts and the prop location looks good. The one thing I found is that the ESC's are not easy to plug into the leads coming from the wing due to them being up in the front of the cockpit. I used two pairs of needle nose pliers to plug them together. Then it is a slight chore to get the cockpit floor with pilot attached into the plane as the wing is now in the way. With a little dexterity it can be done. I will post some pictures and flight reports.

chistech

Maiden flight yesterday and it went fine for the first couple flights. This plane tracks really well and gets up on step without any issue. My full set up from HK flies this plane great and all for less than $90 including two batteries. I got 8 minutes of half throttle flight out of the 3600 Turnigy pack and still had 3.5 volts per cell. This plane flies scale and you do need some speed to fly. It is not a docile flyer but still easy to fly. I am still trying to get used to landing electrics as I am a fuel pilot and have a hard time judging between under power and free wheeling. This plane likes to bounce a little on landing and on one I popped off the battery hatch cover. I can tell you do NOT taxi with the hatch cover off. My Widgeon immediately filled with water and sank to the wings when I tried![X(] Everything was easily dried out except the best servo I put in the plane, a HiTec 82 MG. This servo cost the most and the water got into it easily. Even the receiver was a no issue but not this servo. Will have it back up soon.

Avaiojet

Chistech,

Congratulations! What a speedy effort and for under 100.00 smackeroos! You did post your list of items used?

Hey, If you want your AMA number, a name, or anything else on your model, accent stripes/graphics, just let me know. Free of charge.

An award for your accomplishment.

Mine's still in the box.

Charles

chistech

Hello Charles,
I posted everything I bought from HK on post 74. Thanks for the offer for the free graphics/ID tag. I will send you a PM as I would like to buy a few for all my aircraft.

Thanks, Ted

efurche

GLASSED THE AREA OF THE NACELLES WHERE THEY CRACK. RAN MOTOR EXTENSIONS LAST NIGHT. MOUNTED MOTORS. MAY PROTRUDE A LITTLE MORE THAN THEY SHOULD (I DIDNT DO THE MOD YOU SUGGESTED..) JUST GLUED A SCAB PLYWOOD TO BACK OF FIREWALL FOR THE TOP SCREW.

DO THE TOP NACELLES REALLY GLUE TO THE WING??? I HATE THAT. ANYTHING GOES BAD INSIDE AND YOU HAVE TO TEAR INTO THE NACELLE.

ANYTHING ELSE I NEED TO KNOW BEFORE CONTINUING?

DID THE BP MOTORS COME WITH PROP ADAPTERS? IF NOT, WHAT DID YOU USE? I FOUND ONE IN MY DAPTER COLLECTION, BUT NOT 2.

ED

efurche

MORE ON ADAPTERS- LOOKS LIKE THE BP SHAFT IS EITHER 1/8" OR 3.5 MM THE SPINNER THAT COMES WITH THE WIDGEON MAY BE 4 MM NOT SURE... WHAT DID YOU DO?

ED

chistech

The spinner that comes with the Widgeon fit my HK adapters that came with the motors.

Avaiojet

Chistech,

What's the largest props those motors will turn?

Charles

chistech

The HK motors call from a 8x4 (4s) to a 10x7 (2s). I have used the recommended GP 8x6 slow flyer prop and they work good with these motors. My buddy also flew it and thought it was powered just right. No complaints from me!

Avaiojet

Chistech,

What is the (4s) and (2s)?

Do you mean four blade and two blade?

Charles

chistech

I believe that means 4 cell and 2 cell batteries. It is how HK has them rated. I'm not an electric guy. Maybe someone who knows will chirp in. The 8x6's with these motors makes for a nice flying combination with plenty of power. The whole HK package works very well.

chistech

Finally got some pictures out of the camera. I now only fly after taping the hatch cover down. I lost the cover on a bouncy landing and when I tried to taxi back it filled the plane and it sank to the wing. Ended up ruining the elevator servo and both esc's. Put in a couple of new, sealed ESC's and a new elevator servo. Been flying it a lot now. Super good flyer with all the HK components.

chistech

Hello All,
Just picked up another Widgeon from another club member who has decided to move it. It is powered exactly like mine (all HK components) with all the futaba servos recommended in the manual. The original owner put it in once and did a little damage. There is some torn covering on the top middle of the wing and the windshields have broken/cracked. I will be offering this for sale. It flies well w/both ESC's Corrosion X'd treated. There is no batteries or receiver. I do not see the windshields offered for parts. I will have to do more research and try and locate some. I will be selling pretty reasonable if someone is interested. Pictures to come.

scale only 4 me

My Feedback: (158)

OOh, just dangle that carrot

chistech

Here's the scoop. I recovered the center section where the owner had repaired the sheeting w/white monocote. I put a small strip of white monocoat on the bottom of the wing by the nacelle also. It could use two new nacelles as the ones on it are taped. The two windshields will need to be fixed. It is in very good condition other than the windsheilds and two nacelles. It is ready to fly minus batteries and receiver. I am putting it in the for sale section.

Avaiojet

Well,

I thought I'd bring the Widgeon Thread back to life. An update on my interest.

I still have the Widgeon, in the box, un-opened. I decided to keep it. I will follow chistech's lead for set-up. Smart modeler!!

Don't know when I'll get around to opening the box, but I expect close to the end of the year. It's 4-27-13 as I write this.

I'll make some changes to the model, that is, I'll add radial type nacells like the really old ones. I just love them large radial necelles.

Other than that, no news is good news.

Happy modeling!

Charles

.

Charlie P.

I'm just finishing up mine.  I set up my Futaba 8FG for the differential thrust to rudder mix (on a switch) below 40% throttle for taxiing.  That took a bit of monkeying around but I got it on the fourth mix attempt.  All set for my maiden either this weekend or next.  We have a Float FLy on 5/18 & 19 and I want a few practice hops before then.

Turned out nice - but I don't feature unplugging the wing each trip.  It's a battle getting slack in the ESC leads to clear the cockpit "sole".  I came up with a way to just give the wing a 90°swivel and tip it down into a foam cradle beside the fuselage.  I'll likely transport it that way with the wires connected. 

Charlie P.

Maidened the G-44 yesterday. With the differential thrust (30%) on the motors for handling the taxiing was spectacular. It's on a switch so once I line up for takeoff I can turn it off. I was able to "S" back and forth within a wingspan in a good breeze. Takeoff was gorgeous and itflies very scale. Looks great in the air. It does have a heavy feel - I willincrease throws - but it has a heavy wing loading so that is not surprising.After sometouch andgoes, loops and rollsI took it up to 100 feet and tried for slow flight. The left wing dippedFAST and I managed to get her into a flat spin that I could not break with throttling down and elevator orrudder. If I had had more heightit might have occurred to me to try the differential thrust. Note to self: keep it over 1/2 throttle except on final descent and flair.

She pancaked upside down. The amazing thing is I lost a prop andthenacelle behind it was cracked - but no other structural damage. By the time I got to her the wing was about half full of water.

I dried her all out (set my trim air gun to cool and stuck the nose in one servo hole for three hours). One of the Futaba S3114 aileron servos was soaked and, after drying, it went to full throw and jittered back. Now it just runs continuous. I'll replace both and save the other one for throttle on a glow plane or for parts. Otherwise, ESCs, receiver, motors, all other servos - fine and 100%. I'd say that's a good outcome for a loss of control from 100 ft. I could (have) patched up thenacelle but decises I might as well order a new pair. This bird will be getting some use in the future.I also used the drying out & check-out to reroute the motor wires so it's easier to get the wing off and back on (though now it's a battle to get the battery out).

I do want to try different propellors. The GP 8 x 6 Slow-Fly props don't leave me too impressed. I suspect with the heavy airframe I am getting some distortion. I ordered up a couple variations of APC.

Avaiojet

Outstanding!

Charles

Charlie P.

Two new aileron servos in place (coated with petroleum jelly)and I prepared a pairof APC 9 x 4.5E Thin Electric, APC 9 x 4.7 Slo-Flyer and APC 9 x 6E

Flying-dog

Too beautiful twin large aircraft

chistech

Put mine in this past weekend. I've decided I hate electric aircraft. I'm tired of everyone bragging how great they are. I fly both glow and electric. I do not loose any glow planes and every one I've had gone in has been electric powered. Bad motors, bad ESC's, batteries going out, charging batteries, etc. It is a major PITA compared to a little clean up time and unlimited flying time. I've tried, I've listened to everyone brag, and I've even tried to like the electric power but it SUCKS!. Yes, there are perfect places for the electric planes, I agree. But, when I have the choice to fly either electric or glow at one place it will always be a glow plane for now on. Just my view and all who think the electric stuff is great, more power to you. I'll save my hundreds I've spent for batteries and charges for cases of glow fuel.

Sorry, should have said what happened. Actually, not sure but I was doing a roll about 60' up when I think I lost one engine and it spiraled in. I tried cutting the throttle back and nothing. I tried rolling the other way and nothing. Yet, after hitting the water and splitting the wing in half, the elevator, rudder, and ailerons all worked! No motors of course.

scale only 4 me

My Feedback: (158)

Sorry to hear that,, Bad luck sucks,, typically EP is very reliable,, Nothing sucks more than not knowing what exactly caused the crash

Personally I'm sick of Glow issues too,, thinking of putting a DLE 20 in the os2u, it's my last glow plane

chistech

Well the weekend wasn't good for both my electrics. Turns out the Widgeon lost an esc which has never been wet which caused the motor to quit in the roll. My foam PBY also lost an esc that decided to burn up when I put a fresh battery in right after a flight. I was away from home camping at a campground with a nice size lake. Needless to say I was grounded in a matter of minutes. My Saitos and OS 4 strokes run great. I did have one YS that I didn't like so I sold it. Haven't done the gas thing yet but it might be in my future.

The wings on these widgeons don't even have a ply joiner or anything at the main spar. The main spar is actually two 1/4" balsa pieces that's it. Not very impressed by the center section's construction. The front wing dowels only go thru two doubled pieces of 1/8 balsa and nothing else. When it hit the water that front piece just split at the dowels and peeled the center sheeting right off it. Not much inside to make it strong that's for sure.

Charlie P.

Bummer on the ESC failing.

I had a VERY weird occurance with my G-44.  Two Saturdays ago I went to our lake site and when I plugged it all together my "beeps" were not right.  Usually I get one or two "beeps" when I plug in the battery.  I was getting continual beeps a second apart.  I never did like the fact that to install the battery one has to reach between two props in close proximity; so I'm generally pretty cautious and have the model secured.  Good thing.  I turned off the Tx & turned it back on, and the beeping stopped.  Moved the stick to full throttle to "prime" the ESC and got the four "beeps", but when I went back down ONE engine went to full throttle.  ***!  I figured I'd reversed something or had the wrong model programmed so I advanced the throttle.  That stopped the engine and happily the other engine didn't head off to full throttle.  This was still not good!

 Not good at all.  Thank God I had the model secured "just in case". 

The really bizarre part is that the transmitter was set to the proper model.  It turns out I had lost 50% of the settings.  I still had end point, digital trims & sub-trim, exponential, and dual rates.  I had lost the servo reverses, three programmed mixes and aileron differential.  NEVER had anything like that happen before.  The transmitter was out of my sight and control at a float fly since the last time I had flown, and I suppose it is possible someone got into the wrong features when snooping . . . but I really doubt that.  And it's almost impossible to accidently get past the challenges (you have to select "yes" and hold the select button down for several seconds).  It wasn't a full reset for the model.  The transmitter is four years old and has never done anything like this before.

The only other thought was that while I had the charger on the Tx we had a lightning storm and lost power.  Even then I don't think a spike or brown voltage would "get in" a transmitter turned off.

Boy, am I nervous now.  If it can happen once could it happen betwen flights? 

I did use thw rsame Tx with a second model I had brought that day and all was fine. 

Point is, mostly, to be prepared for really odd things when pre-flighting and starting a model - even electrics.  If I had been beside the G-44 I might have had a prop in the anlke when it lurched to one side.  I was standing behind with my legs ahead of the horizontal stab - fuel model style for run-up (I still like to be behind to check control surface movement).