Ken-h

My Feedback: (3)

Jemery,

Outstanding job! You did an outstanding job and very sweet indeed. The best part comes on Saturday. Good luck with your maiden.

Ken

Maudib

My Feedback: (51)

Yeah man... awesome job!

JoeAirPort

My Feedback: (41)

SAWEET !!!!!!!

jharkin

My Feedback: (2)

Thanks for the complements guys!!

Well, it seems I still have a little work to do. Tested out the balance and I'm tail heavy. Its balancing around 6-6.25in with the batteries and RX back under the pilot.

Back when I was doing the initial build (around page 17 or 20) I was coming out extremely nose heavy before the covering was on so I went nuts getting rid of nose weight (carbon firewall, titanium prop bolts etc, moved the ign back, etc).

So now I have to pull the cowl again and move the ignition back to the firewall and move the batteries up to the motor box. Hopefully that should do the trick and we will still be go for Saturday.

-Jeremy

JoeAirPort

My Feedback: (41)

5.5 inches is good for my 3D stuff and even precision. It's a perfect CG for me.

jharkin

My Feedback: (2)

Did some more work last night. Put the ignition on the firewall, the ign battery in the motor box and mounted the RX batteries over the fuel tank and ...

tada - Balances at exactly 5.5.


I think we are go for Maiden Saturday if the weather holds. I will report back this weekend!

JoeAirPort

My Feedback: (41)

Sounds great, let us know how she does.

jharkin

My Feedback: (2)

Saturday was a a no-go due to rain.
Sunday I was helping some guys give buddy cord flights a country fair.
So finally Thursday afternoon we got out to the field to do the test flight.

It took some working getting the DA primed for the first start (probably because it sat in a box for over a year) but after that it ran great. 6900 on the NX 22x8 at the factory settings (slimline pitts muffler, 87 octane w/32-1 lawnboy). We had the lean out the low needle some to get it to hold a nice reliable idle and and then had to richen the top end to keep that slightly rich 6900 for break in. After a tank its turning 6950 or so at high and idles rock solid at 2100. I can bring the idle down to 1800 even but it gets a little rough.

Setup:
CG about 5.5"
Ailerons: 45deg H/20 low
Elevator: 50 high/15 low
Rudder: 50 high/ 30 low

It was windy (15 gusting to 25) but we decided to give it a go anyway. After a checkout and a good engine running range check I took her up for the first flight. The plane flies much lighter than I expected for something this size (I fly primarily 60-size profiles, etc and only flew gassers a few times before on friends planes). The DA pulls it like a freight train, I was off at well under 1/2 throttle and could putt around at 1/4 forever. Only 2 clicks left aileron and 2 clicks up elevator had it trimmed. Inverted is hands off. I had the elevator low rates around 15 degrees through but with the neutral CG and the wind (and my nerves) it felt a bit twitchy.

Then it happened. Between the gusting and my first flight nerves I bounced it on landing. That cracked the landing gear mount loose of the after former and snapped one of the stringers. After we got her back to the pits we also found half the cowl screws vibrated loose and it was rubbing the spinner.

It should only take me an evening or two to fix the LG mount, and looking at the structure they could have put more wood into the plane in this area. Also for the next few flights I am going to bring the CG forward 1/8 or so and turn down the rates some. Once I get it trimmed out well and get used to it I'll give the 3D rates a try. By then I'll probably be done with the break in gas.


Overall an awesome plane. I know I'm really going to enjoy wringing her out!

JohnVH

My Feedback: (38)

Glad to hear you flew it, sorry to hear about the LG.. you must have bounched it very hard! I harrier land mine and its never broke. Look forward to seeing some in air shots!

Toolman-RCU

My Feedback: (10)

The only time I broke my gear plate was on an off runway landing due to my carb coming loose. The gear plate is a pretty easy fix and a good time to beef it up. I have had other Edges that had much flimsier gear mounts, but this one is pretty good.

jharkin

My Feedback: (2)

I got the minor damage from the maiden repaired and got out to fly the edge again. I got 4 great flights on her today... what a plane.

Inverted is nearly hands off. Doesn't seem to need more than one or two clicks of trim to fly straight & level. Knife edge needed only 1-2 degrees up elevator and a couple deg aileron to smooth out.

Axial rolls, snap rolls, loops, hammerheads - its just tracks through everything beautifully. I tried a couple short hovers up high (engine is only on the 4th tank) and its very solid, stable and effortless pullout.

Here is a couple more shots of the plane.

jharkin

My Feedback: (2)

Yeah, I bounced it HARD. My fault. Its was probably a bit too windy for a maiden (gusting to 20 I'd guess) and I had way too much low rate elevator throw.

tuwood

I had one of my wheel pants catch some grass on a not so nice landing last fall & popped the left side of my LG block loose. I just epoxied it back in place & FG'd outside & inside and it's as good as new. (probably better)

SU-13

My Feedback: (1)

i got to fly a bme edge for the first time on the weekend. i really have to thank ken for talking me into flying one. and jeff mullen(i
think) for letting me fly his edge. the thing has ballistic power. harrier rolls are a breeze. and i thought my H9 alitalia cap flew nice.

harv

JohnVH

My Feedback: (38)

Hey Harv, Glad to hear! Yes the plane is a winner for sure, that H9 cap isnt even in the same league in my opinion.

SU-13

My Feedback: (1)

i know. i might come down to your bellnigham field this saturday with the cap. oh and also, how did the abbotsford airshow go with the big yak.


harv

JohnVH

My Feedback: (38)

Hey, airshow as great! Were you there? Im out saturday unfortunately, but should meet up another weekend, might be a bunch of us camping at the field labor day weekend!

SU-13

My Feedback: (1)

no, i wasnt at the airshow, but i asked ken why you didnt come to the huckfest and he told me you were at the airshow, flying the yak.

harv

JohnVH

My Feedback: (38)

ahh, yup!

astrohog

My Feedback: (1)

Hey Harv!

I am glad you enjoyed the Edge! I overheard a couple of your fellow club members saying they could see your ear-to-ear grin from the pits behind you!!!!

Come on down to the Bell-Air field anytime! Like John said, there will be a few of us camping down at the field on August 31, Sept 1 and Sept 2. (weather permitting for me, of course!!) Ken, are you in for Labor Day????

Astrohog

SU-13

My Feedback: (1)

man i really need to get my hands on one of those edges. i probably wont come to your labour day thingy. i got a soccer tourney. but ill probably stay for both of these comnig weekends. if the weather permits. ill come up saturday(like 1-2) and i can stay the night at my dads friends place. and then leave saturday evening or something( ken is gonna come up and be like. but the border is gonna be packed at that time)lol. hope to see you soon.


harv

JoeAirPort

My Feedback: (41)

I'm on season two of my Edge II and I love the plane. The 3D quality is amazing. What I think is does best is harriers and torque rolls down way low. So stable in a torque roll, it almost torques itself with no inputs when locked in. I have the Extreme flight Yak/Ultra RC Yak and although it torque's ok, no match to the stability of thie Edge. Only thing this Edge has that the Yak doesn't is a little coupling in knife edge that I still need to mix out. Going from the Yak to Edge, all my knife edge manuevers are off. Again, if I would quit flying and take a minute to setup the knife mixing, that would be gone. This plane has really been through the ringer, I have done anything and everything to it and it just shines. People love the looks of it too. Very popular at the field.

David_Moen

Wow! I haven't been on RCU for months and this thread is still on the first page of topics!
2nd season for me on my Edge as well, so far nothing else I've seen makes me want anything else!

jharkin

My Feedback: (2)

I've had limited time to fly but have managed to get about 2 gallons (maybe 15-18 flights) through mine.

LOVING this plane, but Ive managed to delaminate both the stock main gear and the graphtec replacement Ive tried. Not a single harrier landing on either

So I'm giong to just eat the weight penalty (plane has ridiculous power already) and get some nice strong TNT aluminum. I'm going to call them with the dimensions but I bet that either the Aeroworks or Wild Hare 29% edge sets will fit. Anybody used one? Which and how heavy was it?


-Jeremy

Steve

My Feedback: (54)

I've had the same trouble with glass or fiber gear. My fix was to drill the carbon gear for pull pull eyelets and run a piece of cevlar cable across the gear about 5" up form the wheels. I've had no trouble now. You can use music wire also and just bend the ends.