v6goose

Hi all...

Thanks Grosbeak, I did.

So with one day left before my two week holiday, a broken fuel nipple, no engine spares in any LHS's and the three main suppliers online (USA) saying that stock wasn't expected until mid-August I was at a loss.

In case this ever happens to you, here's what I did.

The nipple is a two part assembly consisting of a molded black plastic 90° bend which is molded around a taper fit brass sleeve with vertical teeth to hold onto the plastic. I decided to try and pull it out to replace it with a second hand one from a local small engine shop (thanks Scott).

The black plastic shattered and left the brass sleeve protruding out of the carb housing by around 4mm. I had read online that you can squash it using vice grips and twist it out but before I did, I wondered if a standard fuel/pressure nipple would fit in the hole. I went to my LHS at lunch to find they had 6-32, 8-32 & 10-32 threaded fuel nipples in stock.

Unfortunately the largest one was still too small to fill the hole so I decided to drill and tap the sleeve for the 6-32 nipple. It left the sleeve wall very thin but usable so I screwed in the fitting as per the picture.

I cleaned the carb carefully to remove all the brass swarf and reassembled the whole plane. I ran it up outside and it runs just fine.

I don't know how long this fix will last but fingers crossed forever!

Maiden flight tomorrow morning (July 16).

Cheers!

Goose

grosbeak

Nice work - congrats! Good luck with the maiden.

v6goose

Thanks John...

Just back from the maiden and all went very well

4 flights in total:

[ul][*] 7 mins[*] 10 mins[*] 10 mins[*] 12 mins
[/ul]

It was very roll sensitive on the first flight and I subsequently dialed the throws down 10%. Everything else was good on low rates. The medium and 3D rates are nuts but will probably be useful when I am better at flying it.

Full system checks between flights revealed:

[ul][*] Loose header bolt[*] Aileron bolt needed snugging up[*] Aileron rates turned down 10%[*] Engine bottom end too rich
[/ul]

Some observations:

[ul][*] This is a very responsive aircraft even on low rates, it snaps fast and tight on low rates and medium approach speed.[*] It will fly forever on idle, slowing down to below walking pace with no wing rock. It does pitch up on idle a little and down when the power is put on probably due to the ailerons not being centered, but I'm working on that. This might be related to a tendency to roll left during loops too.[*] Inverted flight needs so little down input that I found myself bumping the elevator stick and letting it come back to center on the springs... even in the corners.[*] 12 minutes of flight time with over 50% at idle equates to around 1/2 a tank of gas.[*] I forgot to put washers under the front lugs of the engine for right thrust (just installed). That too will force a re-trim and might negate the stuff above.[*] High altitude hovers were controllable for quite a while on low rates... topside facing and wind behind me.[*] Gobs of power! Performance is excellent with this engine setup. I have subsequently programmed a throttle curve to allow full stick to equal a more linear response.[*] It's a small plane and gets small fast. I keep it close and well within the field limits to keep it smooth and see whats going on.
[/ul]

Oh, and its a lot of FUN!

More flying to come...

Cheers

Goose

v6goose

Oh, and for those of you interested in the power consumption, after 40 minutes of flight time and a few minutes screwing around, I put:

[ul][*] 366maH back into the 750maH 2s Lipo for the ignition.[*] 201maH back into the 2100maH 2s Life for the flight systems.
[/ul]

This means I can probably get (theoretically) 80 minutes of ignition battery and 7 hours of LIFE duration *lol*

Happy with that.

Goose

v6goose

With more than 2 hours of flight time on this bird now, I can say that it is flying really well and any/all little tweaks have been applied.

I have spent the last 3 flights working off a trimming schedule and have it very close. The engine continues to perform excellently and requires very little in ongoing tuning once set.

If I get any video I will upload and link to it.

Thanks and good luck!

Goose

stangevil29

My Feedback: (1)

v6Goose,

Thanks for the great details throughout your build and flying thread. I havent ever considered a profile before but, I think I have found my next project. I need a good throw in the truck and give it hell plane for those days I dont feel like dragging a biplane or 100" one out there.

v6goose

Hey no problem... information sharing is what RCU is all about.

I had never looked at profiles before either, but for the same reasons you mention it made sense and I'm glad I took this route.

Good luck with yours.

Cheers

Goose

Brettis

posted on another thread but am interested in getting one of these but just with an OS 95ax.sounds like you have loads power with that motor. seems to be a popular size for this model.

v6goose

Im sure it will fly great with the 95, it's a very light airframe.

Good luck!

Goose

Brettis

I agree Kiwis can fly. Are you an ex pat by any chance.

v6goose

ABSOLUTELY!

Brettis

so where is your home town

v6goose

The big Auck

You getting plenty of flying in Waiuku? Lots of space out there.

Cheers

Goose

a1pcfixer

My Feedback: (7)

Any idea on how much that pipe & canister weigh's???

How's the sound levels?

Here's mine;
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SZRdtZxxQP0[/youtube]

I did mine back in September of 2010 when both eng & model were first released.
Stock L-G is too short though for 17 x 6 props. I went to tetherite/Krazy leggs L-G.
Bunches of fun!!!

Brettis

weather has been crap lately.is there private message forum in here or you happy to swap emails here

a1pcfixer

My Feedback: (7)

Links to PM's and eMail are in the lower LH corner of each message.
But, why not posted openly and share in the discussion?

v6goose

Hi A1PC...

The muffler and header weigh 10oz all up which sounds like a lot but when you consider the DLE-20 and the entire airframe ready to fly is 7.6lbs, you have to be happy with that!

I was worried about the noise of the DLE... the stock exhaust deflector is just that... a deflector. There is no baffling in the box and others had commented that the 20's had an annoying pitch to them. With the canister it is beautifully quiet and have been likened to a .60 glow with the stock muffler in flight. One club member challenged me in flight that it was gas powered at all ! *lol* I have not yet been able to put it on the meter.

All that to say I am really happy with the setup although I am still tweaking it after 25 flights. By that I mean I have recently taken the wheel pants off. They look great! but contribute to a fairly severe tuck to the gear in knife edge.

I have the balance point maybe 15mm (just over 1/2") behind the recommended point and yesterday added 28g (1oz) of lead in two flights to continue getting it all right for my airframe. It's really flying nicely now.

I have a Dave Brown aluminium spinner turn up in the mail yesterday which will smarten the looks up and add some needed weight to the nose. I can remove some of the lead.

Thanks for your post... yours was one that I found while researching the ProX and contributed to me buying mine.

Cheers

Goose

v6goose

Hey Brett...

Anything flying/ProX is fine in here as A1 says, anything else is good in PM's too.

Do you have your ProX yet? I'd be keen to hear how your getting on and eventually the performance with the 95.

Yes, the DLE is a popular choice it seems, my reasons for going that way were all my aircraft are now gas and I love them, the low cost of fuel and no mess. The DLE is 5cc larger than the recommended glow (120) and has lots of power... i rarely use full throttle and fly 15 minute flights on less than 1/2 a tank of gas

The weight is close to a 120 and the DLE was available locally and cost $10 more than the glow option. For me, its a no brainer.

Cheers

Goose

v6goose

PS: A1...

I was worried about the stock LG length as well and bought the carbon gear from Aeroworks after talking to someone there on the phone. As it turns out, the carbon gear are the same size as the stock aluminium ones but much lighter.

Perhaps there was a little communication break down, but I was given the impression the carbon ones were longer.

Long story short... I put the stock ones back on as I needed the weight and even though there is only around 50mm (2") clearance when its standing on its wheels, I have not yet whacked a prop and I am using Xoar 16x8's.

Take off's and landings are so easy to do as 3 pointers that its really not an issue.

Cheers

Goose

a1pcfixer

My Feedback: (7)

Goose,

That 10 ounces -minus the stock 2 ounces nets you around abouts 8 more than stock,
but you might be even less than that depending on how it's mounted.

Our flying field is a (lumpy) grass field, so the Krazy Leggs/Tetherite was needed.
Found they flexed a wee bit to much, so I restricted that with a threaded rod & springs
to cushion the flexing.

A Vess 17 x 6 prop is the most preferred prop by many for this eng. Puts it right into
the DLE20' power curve. Hovers at 30-40% throttle easily. Second choice in props for
this model are Xoar 17 x 6 props. Not quite as good as the Vess, but very close.

On my H9-Twist 150 I'm restricted by the short L-G to 16 x 6 props, but I'll make
longer L-G this Winter.

For anyone going with this model, you MUST center the ailerons on the center of the SFG's!
I didn't and my initial flight was a VERY exiting & short flight![sm=confused_smile.gif] Took a while to calm down!
Once corrected, it's been a blast to fly!!![sm=thumbs_up.gif]

v6goose

Interesting. I would say my performance with the Xoar 16x8 is good to great with unlimited vertical and plenty of power when I need it. I will try one and see what the difference is like.

I did exactly that and found that one was still lower than the other. The first few flights might have been a little high and would explain the odd trims needed for full power and a different trim for idle. I took the SFG's off and used a straight edge to get them exactly right and like you, its been a blast ever since.

Cheers!

Goose

Brettis

Goose

My nearest shop is out of stock and wont be getting any in for a few months by the sound of it.they have the 46-60's and i have an OS 65 ax to put in it but i'm leaning towards " bigger is easier" theory.
Common sense and economics says go for the 46-60 and upgrade to the 60-90 at a later date.
I would have to import the bigger model and engine and at the current exchange rate seems to be making things look even more tempting.
If the wife finds out everything is doubled because of the" yes dear you can buy that if you get me soimething of equal value" syndrome LOL.

Brettis

So far have a quote from AMR which i understand is in Canada is $196 USD to Auckland Airport.Local store price $299 NZD and out of stock. Hmmm

v6goose

Ha ha... nice one. That's why most in here work harder on hiding new stuff than working out how to pay for the equal share

My good buddy [link=http://www.hobbycity.co.nz/shop/RC+Planes/40+-+80+Size/.46.60PROX260+REDYELLOW.html]Simeon runs Hobby City[/link] in Albany up in Auckland and they have both colour schemes in stock for the 46-60 ProX260's you talk about.

Seems they are taking orders for the big ones too.

Tell him Goose sent ya... he will sort you out.

Good luck

Goose

Brettis

So would the 65 AX in the smaller model be an adequate match.