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GP "Spirit of St.Louis"

Old 01-13-2003, 03:02 AM
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Loopman
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Default GP "Spirit of St.Louis"

I built and attempted to fly a Great Planes foamie "Spirit of St.Louis". The plane went together very easily and I was very reserved in my use of epoxy. I even used foam friendly CA in place of epoxy where I could to save weight. The plane balanced out with no additional weight! It uses a standard 280 class motor running on a 4.1.1 gear reduction. I used the recommended battery, a 350mah 9.6 volt and it was fully charged.

The plane was started and gingerly tossed into a 3-4 mph wind. It failed to gain altitude and was very sluggish. I attempted to fly it several times with the same result each time. I have built several ARF's and stick built planes so I do not believe my building skills are at question, Is it possible that this plane is underpowered? Or is it just an electric dog?

Thanks

LOOPMAN
Old 01-13-2003, 02:10 PM
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Tippie
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Default GP "Spirit of St.Louis"

There is a product review in the "Winter 2003" issue of Backyard Flyer.

Said best flown on a day of light winds 2-3 mph to overcome the drag of the struts. 3-4 mph may be reasonable, "what a difference a mph makes" (a little play on words).

They also said if you want to increase performance you can put in a 380 motor which will fit without modification and check the balance of the plane. I don't consider the plane anything other than one to just fly around without fancy tricks. Not a high performance plane.

Since they mention the drag of the struts you man want to consider removing the struts or replacing them with something with less surface area. I don't know what the struts add to landing gear strength.

There is another suggestion to installing the prop so it can be removed easily that you might want to take a look at, so if you can find an issue of Backyard Flyer you might want to check it out.
Old 01-13-2003, 05:12 PM
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rahtware
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Default GP "Spirit of St.Louis"

Loopman

Could you post the weight and wing area. It would be interesting to me, to see the lower limits of what a geared 280 can pull.

Thanks
Old 01-13-2003, 05:21 PM
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Loopman
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Default Spirit Specs

Rahtware,
Here are the specs taken off of the Tower website.

SPECS: Wingspan: 40.1" (1020mm)
Wing Area: 253 sq in (16.3dm2)
Weight: 12.4 oz (350g)
Wing Loading: 7.1 oz/sq ft (21.7dm2)
Length: 25.5" (650mm)
Control Throws-
Elevator: 5/8" (15.9) up and down
Rudder: 1-1/4" (31.8) left and right
Electronic Speed Control: Follow mfg's instructions to arm/set range.
Center of Gravity: 1.61" (41mm) back from the leading edge of the
wing on both sides of the fuselage in an upright position.

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