Live Wire almost finished, need help  
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All Forums >> Electric Aircraft Universe >> 3D Electric Flying! >> Live Wire almost finished, need help
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Live Wire almost finished, need help - 1/26/2004 11:08:44 PM   
scottm


 

Posts: 143
Joined: 8/27/2003
From: Scottsdale, AZ, USA
Status: offline 		I am almost finished with my wattage live wire. I used Hitec HC 55 servos, a Kokam 2s 1500 battery, wattage 30 A esc, and JR r700 reciever with the case off. I modified the tail so it is not all-flying, and used better hinges. On a digital scale it weighs .926 pounds or 14.82 oz. Here is a pic:

My problem is that the battery is too big for the canopy parts. I know other people are using that battery, so what are you guys doing on the canopy?

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< Message edited by scottm -- 1/27/2004 1:54:24 PM >

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RE: Live Wire almost finished, need help - 1/27/2004 6:55:59 PM   
scottm


 

Posts: 143
Joined: 8/27/2003
From: Scottsdale, AZ, USA
Status: offline 		Ok, I came up with something. I put velcro on the clear canopy so it covers the reciever and esc area. The battery just has to stay out in the breeze. I flew it yesterday, and was disappointed in the performance. My Aerobird had more power than this toad.

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< Message edited by scottm -- 1/27/2004 1:55:31 PM >

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I spend most of my money on beer, women, and R/C. The rest I just waste.

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RE: Live Wire almost finished, need help - 1/28/2004 12:26:44 AM   
Park Pile-It


 

Posts: 13
Joined: 8/31/2003
From: Sunnyvale, CA,
Status: offline 		I used a Thunder Power 3 cell 2100 mAhr cell along with a Hacker B12 15L with a 4:1 gear box and a 11x5.5 prop on my Live wire. You had a good idea to make the rudder non-all flying I will do that also. With the stock rudder when I go to full throttle the rudder flaps back and forth. Anyway, I ended up hanging the battery underneath the wing near the CG using velcro and rubber bands. Sorry I don't have a picture handy. I also made a foam faring to protect the battery on my less than perfect landings. Anyway, this setup has plenty of power. All it took was adding a $300 power train to this little foam airplane! Lots of fun.

Cheers,

Steve

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       Post #: 3

RE: Live Wire almost finished, need help - 1/28/2004 6:28:47 PM   
scottm


 

Posts: 143
Joined: 8/27/2003
From: Scottsdale, AZ, USA
Status: offline 		Thanks Steve, thats a sweet setup. Does it hover easily? What is your run time and auw?

I am going to try a 3 cell 1320 thunderpower next, and set the throttle endpoint at 80 % and hope the motor survives. I am under the design weight by 2-3 oz right now, does anyone know if I could fit a geared speed-400 motor?

< Message edited by scottm -- 1/28/2004 6:47:25 PM >

_____________________________

I spend most of my money on beer, women, and R/C. The rest I just waste.

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RE: Live Wire almost finished, need help - 1/29/2004 4:40:31 PM   
Park Pile-It


 

Posts: 13
Joined: 8/31/2003
From: Sunnyvale, CA,
Status: offline 		Hi,

The AUW is 17.5 oz. Actually 18 since I added a buzzer circuit to alert me with the Li-Po cells get too low since my Hacker 18-3 controller does not have a programmable cut-out voltage appropriate to these batteries. As for the flight time, I'm not sure. This morning I had to land at 18 minutes to make it to work on time. The plane was still able to accellerate vertically so as far as I can tell it will fly forever. At half throttle it draws 10 amps and I don't usually go beyond that. If I average 7 amps out of a 2.1 amp-hour battery that works out to about 20 minutes though. Here is a picture of the battery installation. I ran some 1/16" bamboo skewers through the foam to give the rubber bands something to hook on to and there is velcro between the battery and the underside of the plane. It really is not slick looking but it flys great.

Steve

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< Message edited by Park Pile-It -- 1/29/2004 4:40:24 PM >

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RE: Live Wire almost finished, need help - 1/29/2004 5:26:55 PM   
scottm


 

Posts: 143
Joined: 8/27/2003
From: Scottsdale, AZ, USA
Status: offline 		Thanks for the info Steve. Yep, its a bit ugly but its a heck of a nice system. What is that gear and wheels?

With the stock motor and 2s 1500, I only get about 8-10 minutes of really weak performance. My cells only take about 1000 mah after flying until cutoff, too. I dont know whats wrong, but its not much fun compared to well, anything. Im picking up a 3s today.

_____________________________

I spend most of my money on beer, women, and R/C. The rest I just waste.

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RE: Live Wire almost finished, need help - 1/29/2004 6:09:35 PM   
Park Pile-It


 

Posts: 13
Joined: 8/31/2003
From: Sunnyvale, CA,
Status: offline 		Have you considered using an MP Jet brushless setup with a gear box?
http://www.hobby-lobby.com/brushless_mpjet.htm
I've hear good things about them but have no experience.

As for my landing gear it is just 1/16" piano wire and foam wheels. Longer gear was needed to accommodate the longer prop. At first the gear was too floppy and the plane would hit its belly unless I landed perfectly (something I still don't do every time) so it is re-inforced with more wire and zip ties. You can tell I don't have a lot of time to dedicate to making my planes look great.

Steve

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       Post #: 7

RE: Live Wire almost finished, need help - 1/30/2004 1:38:39 PM   
scottm


 

Posts: 143
Joined: 8/27/2003
From: Scottsdale, AZ, USA
Status: offline 		Well, I tried the thunderpower 3s 1320 yesterday, and even with the endpoint set at 70% the stock motor burned out in 2 minutes. I went to my LHS and got a E-flite eflm100, a speed 400 w/ 1.85:1 gears and 8x4 prop. It was the best thing they had, but I wonder if it would be better to find one with lower gears with a bigger prop.

_____________________________

I spend most of my money on beer, women, and R/C. The rest I just waste.

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RE: Live Wire almost finished, need help - 1/30/2004 3:45:14 PM   
Park Pile-It


 

Posts: 13
Joined: 8/31/2003
From: Sunnyvale, CA,
Status: offline 		Have you looked into a BB 400 like the Multiplex Permax 400 BB Motor located at http://www.hobbypeople.net/prdcls/motorac02.asp ? I don't know the specs on this moter but Watt Age also has a BB 400 Cobalt motor that claims peak efficiency at 18 amps so I bet it would work with 3 Li-Po cells. My understanding is that these motors use regular controllers and cost between $35 and $50.

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RE: Live Wire almost finished, need help - 2/3/2004 1:53:50 AM   
scottm


 

Posts: 143
Joined: 8/27/2003
From: Scottsdale, AZ, USA
Status: offline 		Update: I put on the e-flite motor, and it works well. For the 3S li-poly, I set the throttle end point to draw 8 amps. Perofrmance is better than the stock motor at 9 amps. But 8 is still too much for the thunder power 1320 3S and the Kokam 1500 2S packs. They only discharge 1/2 capacity or less before the voltage drops. Does anyone make a speed 400 motor optimized for 11 volts? It would draw less amps for the same power (watts).

_____________________________

I spend most of my money on beer, women, and R/C. The rest I just waste.

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RE: Live Wire almost finished, need help - 2/4/2004 5:07:55 PM   
Park Pile-It


 

Posts: 13
Joined: 8/31/2003
From: Sunnyvale, CA,
Status: offline 		Maybe a regular 400 would work if you use a bigger gear ratio like 4.5:1 or 5:1. MP Jet makes some good gear boxes. This will let moter spin faster and sustain a higher voltage while drawing less current.

Steve

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RE: Live Wire almost finished, need help - 2/8/2004 12:15:15 PM   
GWR



Posts: 797
Joined: 2/12/2002
From: Edison, NJ, USA
Status: offline 		I've been thinking of getting a Live Wire since reading about it in the March '04 issue of Fly RC. They used a PJS 550R with the stock 9.6v, 800mAh NiMH battery. They say it flew good, but it only put out 75 watts per lb. I think I'd like a little more performance for a 1 pound plane, so I'll look at different motors. I fly an MP Jet 25-35/20 in my GWS Zero and it works great with a 3 cell poly. Performance really starts to fall off once the plane starts getting above 16 ozs though.

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RE: Live Wire almost finished, need help - 2/9/2004 6:56:08 PM   
scottm


 

Posts: 143
Joined: 8/27/2003
From: Scottsdale, AZ, USA
Status: offline 		Update

I took off the speed 400 motor because it was geared too tall and drew too much power. Now I have a gws 350c with the 5.33:1 gearbox and 1047 prop. With a 2s 2100 TP li-poly, it weighs rignt at 16.0 oz, flys for more than 20 minutes, and has enough power for most stunts except hovering. With a 3s 1320 TP li-poly, it hovers easily, and will accelerate vertically. I only do that for 2-3 seconds at a time though, to save the motor. I'll be happy for a few more weeks, then I plan to get a brushless.

Here is a link to the specs on the 350c:

http://www.gws.com.tw/english/product/powersystem/024.htm

_____________________________

I spend most of my money on beer, women, and R/C. The rest I just waste.

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RE: Live Wire almost finished, need help - 2/12/2004 8:28:24 AM   
ravensnest



Posts: 29
Joined: 2/6/2002
From: rowlett, TX, USA
Status: offline 		my 3dx is about 12 oz and with the 350c/d 6.6:1, 2000ma 2s1p it will hover. through several flights on the same charge. tried the 5.33 and it was a disapointment. 6.6to1 is the best with a 12X6 or 8 gws. How sweet it is.

Eddy Johnson
Fury Expert,OS 91
Raptor 60,YS 80
Raptor 50, OS 50(nite bird)
Hornet CP
Hummingbird
3dx
ultimate- 40"
yak54-40"

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