Basement Troll

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I saw this plane on another thread about 2 months ago and I watched the videos on the website and decided I would order one. The website is www.maxairrc.com. I have had several emails back and forth with Jason from Maxair, pestering him on deliveries and he finally told it was on its way last week. It arrived on Monday. One of the reasons I was interested is that Maxair is located in Moncton, New Brunswick, Canada and I wanted to support one of my own.

I took some pictures when I got it and posted them and was told that I must do a build thread on this plane because it looked so interesting. (Thanks Barry) I hardly consider myself qualified to critique a plane but I'll do my best and explain as well as I can.

The box arrived in great shape and I was impressed with the packaging. There were no broken parts and everything looked good. My first impression was holy crap that is a big cowl. The covering had the usual wrinkles that were easily removed. The covering job was well done.
Looking at the internal framework of the fuse it looks and feels very strong but I still felt there were a few gaps that needed a bit of ca for insurance.
I weighed all the parts with my postal scales some of the hardware was still in the packages but, I get a weight of about 5.5 lbs of the frame and hardware. I will be using the following setup:
YS 110 on CP 30% Heli
APC 17x4w or 16x6 (Depends which I like better)
Rudder HS5625
Remaining surfaces HS 5645
Throttle Whatever I have around
Futaba 9C with 127 receiver

I started on the ailerons as per instructions. I had one problem here that was not covered in the instructions. The control horn bolts were too short to go all the way through the ailerons. I ended up using some slightly bigger ones to make the horns work. (More to come one this.)
I then started on the aileron servos. When I went to put the carbon fibre control rods on they were too long. This annoyed me. Then (after a beer and some deep breaths) I realized the servos needed to be turned around as shown in the instructions and they fit perfectly.
I put the rudder on and then started on the landing gear. I ran into a hitch on this. The holes were drilled with the gear on backwards. I took the blind nuts out and reversed them but in hindsight I would just re-drill the aluminum landing gear. The hatch that covers the gear didn't fit just right because of the gear. A bit of trimming and it is ok now.
The tailwheel took 5 minutes and seems ok. I thought I would try it for a while and see if it lasted. (I crush the odd tailwheel assembly on landings.)
I wanted to put the control horns on the elevators before I put them on and this is where I ran into another snag. The elevators do not have backing that goes all the way through for the control horns. At this point I contacted Jason and found out the problem and solution.
There were supposed to be some wood screws included in the hardware package and all the control horns are to be screwed on. The bolts and backing hardware wasn't to be used. Jason assures me this how his prototype was done and it has lasted fine. There is a double layer of plywood in the elevator to screw to. You are supposed to put thin ca in the screw holes to strengthen them. I suggested he put an addition to the instructions in to explain this. That is as far as I have gotten for now. I will post more later and here are some pictures of the plane so far.
Don

Barry Cazier

My Feedback: (17)

Basement Troll...
Great thread to start. Thanks for doing that.
As you know I've got one of these planes on the way. I expect it in a week or so. I'm very interested in seeing how your build goes and I hope to contribute as well.
The way the control horns mount (wood screws) sounds very similar to the Mayhem. I built that plane a couple of years ago and I use wood screws. I didn't really think about it very much until a year later when I checked them. All was well. I was able to tighten slightly but nothing has come loose. I've got about 70 3D flights on the Mayhem and it seems to be holding up pretty well. So I wouldn't be too worried about it.
Question...I've always been told to put the servo with the most torque on the Rudder, yet you seem to be doing the opposite. Is that the right way to do it? Any comments?
I'm with you on the tailwheel. Almost every plane I build gets a different tailwheel. I haven't seen this one but it would have to be pretty darned good for me to even try it. Actually the one I use the most is a Sig Mayhem tailwheel. About $15 and is really a durable and very steerable tailwheel.
My intended set up is as follows:

Saito 125 with 16x6 prop
Rudder = HS 5945
Elevators = HS 5945
Ailerons = HS 5625
Throttle = HS 85MG
Radio = Futaba 9CAP Super
Receiver = DP138

Pilot = Crazy

Goal = Inverted Flat Spin (rising) or landing

Weight goal = < 8.5 lbs even if I have to leave landing gear or one wing off

Should be a great plane.
I look forward to your information on building.
Thanks
Barry

rcflyer96

Looking good guys!! Glad to hear some people have this plane on the way. As for which servo to put on the rudder, I would go with the highest torque for sure. Both your setups are awesome. It should perform very nicely with those engines. I've had a chance to fly it and its sweet. Very comfortable to fly and blows aways the F90 IMHO.

Look forward to reading the build thread.

Basement Troll

My Feedback: (3)

Barry the reason for my servo choice is the servos I have are all plenty strong enough to go any where on the plane. I wanted the quicker servo on the rudder as I feel I need the speed the most on there for corrections while hovering. I usually run with no expo on the rudder and start with about 30% on the elevator and ailerons. I change that after I've flown the plane a bit. If I had them I would have used 5625's all around. If I don't like it I'll put something stronger on later. The elevator halves could likely use a 5475 but I had the otheres so I went with them. My Harrier has 475's on all surfaces except the rudder which is a 5625 and I have never had an issue with them. I took a couple more pics at lunch. I have 2 sig tailwheels ordered because of reading your input in the Showtime thread. If they show up before I have achance to fly the plane, I will change it. Here's the rudder installed and a pic of the tailwheel.
Don

STG

My Feedback: (26)

Nice thread!

1) I find that I don't have any luck keeping my linkages tight unless I run ball links.

2) I think the sig tai wheel is +5/8oz more in the tail. Keep this in mind when shooting for your CG.

Are the makers of the arf saying it is capable of rising flat with YS110?

Barry Cazier

My Feedback: (17)

STG...

I don't think the manufacturer makes any claim of the rising flat spin. The crazy pilot hopes this plane will do one. One of the coolest moves there is.
Thanks
Barry

STG

My Feedback: (26)

I like the one Yuri does in the 2004 TAS video...that is cool! [8D]

Basement Troll

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STG the one I ordered looks like the one Barry put on his Showtime. I think it's different from the one you show. Did you order one of these planes as well or do you have the same tailwheel from a different plane? I fly off of grass and I wreck tailwheels like crazy. I think I should be putting a larger diameter wheel on or something. Even when I land perfectly they seem to drag in the grass and bend.

AHPowelson

My Feedback: (37)

I was hoping somebody would make a build thread! I've been eyeing this plane for a few months now and look forward to the flight reports. I'm thinking of powering it with a Saito 125 or the new OS 1.20. [8D]

Ramz

Any motor that is 30oz or less and that will swing an APC 16x6 at 9000rpm will work great. I did the prototype testing with a YS110 spinning a APC 16x6 on 10% at 9000rpm and the performance was good.

aubej

My Feedback: (1)

Great thread Don.

We were in a hurry to get the pre-orders out and missed the missing wood screws and reversed drilled landing gear.

Screw package:
All kits shipped from now on will have a package of wood screws and instructions on how to set up the control horns. (Thanks Don!).

Landing gear:
I checked the current model I am putting together and the landing gear fit ok even though reversed. The only difference was that the straight edge of the gear was facing the rear of the plane and the tapered edge was facing the front. This will not affect handling in any way. As Don mentioned, if you prefer to flip it around it's pretty easy.
The manufacturer got an earful on that one. This will not happen again.


As far as performance goes, I think you guys will like it. This plane really rocks. I will be testing the Velox RII with a BME Super Tigre 90 gas conversion. I can't wait to get this combo flying. I just got the engine today and with ignition it comes in at 32.2 oz. (with the stock muffler). I'm going to order a Bisson pitts and hopefully save a little weight.
I'm really excited about this combo. If it works out well, MAXAIR will be offering it as a combo.



Thanks for all the feedback guys. We really appreciate it....keep it coming.

Jason

Barry Cazier

My Feedback: (17)

Question for anybody...
Can the engine be mounted sideways? I know the manual depicts an inverted mount but with some engines, especially 2 strokes they run better sideways.
Basement Troll, are you mounting yours inverted? If I was using the YS I'd mount it inverted no problem, I'm not so sure with the Saito. I did run a Saito 100 on my UCD and a Saito 82 and they both ran fine inverted but sometimes leaked fuel.
Just wondering.
thanks
Barry

Basement Troll

My Feedback: (3)

Mine is going in inverted but there's no reason you can't put it at 9:00 o'clock. The only thing you'll have to watch the lateral balance with the head sticking out to one side. It would make the stock muffler work easier as well.
Don

Ginge

Looks very ncie mate.

Anybody know if this kit is or ill be avalblie in the UK?

Basement Troll

My Feedback: (3)

Ginge, contact Jason at www.maxairrc.com and he will get you any of the info you need. He is very helpful.
Don

diggs_74

Alright Don, you talked me into it... I guess this will be the home for my YS120SC... I would think it should haul it around ok.... Now I just have to slip it by the wife

Barry Cazier

My Feedback: (17)

diggs_74...
I'm betting the 120YS will be perfect in this airplane. Mine should arrive any day now, probably Monday. I'm clearing a spot on the bench for it, dusting off the scales, warming up my laptop, and looking forward to building this beauty and doing some comparison testing. I've got the Satio 125 for mine and want to do some thrust comparisons with the YS 110 and I want to compare the flight characteristics to the Showtime and the EF Yak. I'll also make some general "fun" comparisons to the UCD and Mayhem although I feel this plane will probably be in a different catagory than those.
Looking forward to it and just can't contain myself.
Thanks
Barry

diggs_74

I would like nothing more than to jump up on their site and add one to the shopping cart... However, I just got this plane and lets just say, I could have bought 3 Revolution for the price.. The wife was thrilled, especially knowing that it could die on the first lap of the first heat.... I may have to wait a month or 2...

STG

My Feedback: (26)

The stock muffler is just under 6oz and I think the pitts will be 4oz. So there is 2oz saved. Your ignition battery pack will weigh 2oz (2/3aa, 750mah) so you will be back at 2 pound power package. You will be able to run an 8oz gas tank instead of a 13oz tank (for OS1.20AX). So there is 5oz less RTF weight.

At any rate my guess is that the best way you have a chance to get unlimited performance from this gas motor (9 pound plane and at least 14 pounds of measured thrust) in a 8.8 pound plane is to run a good light CF pipe on it and load it with ~15x6 prop. I guess there is a chance that an Ultra thrust or Turbo Jett tuned exhaust will make a noticeable improvement.[&:]

I say skip the pitts and try a Turbo Jett or Ultra thrust.

Not sure if this motor has enough cooling capacity in gas making that kind of power?

Yes, I am a nigh sayer and I know there will be those who are happy flying this combo with very little pull out power.

I hope I am wrong. Keep us posted.

aubej

My Feedback: (1)

STG, I think you may be right. I doubt the BME conversion will compare to a YS 110 running 30%, but if the performace is decent, I love the idea of running a gas engine on the Velox RII. I love my larger scale gassers, so this would be the cats *****....again, if it offers decent performance.

Jason

Basement Troll

My Feedback: (3)

I installed the h- stabs tonight. The carbon fibre tubes lined up ok but I had to file the insides of the holes where the tubes went into the stabs to get them to line up without too much pressure. Everything looks ok. I took some pictures but I'll have to go back to work to download them as my card reader is there. I'll stop tomorrow and get it if I get a chance. The stabs lined up perfectly with the wings. I'm down to installing hardware and the canopy and a few other things. If I don't get busy doing other things tomorrow I might get it close. Installing the engine and throttle servo always seems to take me some time. And then there is the Cowl.....YUKKK![:'(] That is when I wish all planes were profiles.
Don

Barry Cazier

My Feedback: (17)

Basement Troll...
Sounds good.
Make sure you take some "all built" pictures before the maiden. You never know.

Thanks
Barry

Barry Cazier

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I just checked the FedEx tracker. They say my plane will arrive on Feb 1st. But they also show it arriving in Salt Lake City, Ut this morning. I'm betting it will be here Monday.
Yea!!!!!!
Thanks
Barry

Basement Troll

My Feedback: (3)

We had a great day of weather today. It was about 40 degrees and sunny. I got 4 flights in on my Bad Boy and 2 on the Harrier. When I get a day like today, the building takes a back seat. I have been taking pictures but I haven't posted anything. My card reader is at my office which is about a 5 minute drive away but I hate to go in on a weekend. Somebody will see me and call and make me work so I try to stay away. My wife came out and took some pictures of me hovering the Harrier. She bought it for me for Christmas 2004 and had never seen me fly it properly so today was the day. I have planes to clean but that is a good thing. I think I have burned a gallon a week of fuel in January. Yes this is Canada. We have had an incredibly mild winter here. We have no snow at all. December was really cold and since then it has been great. I will get on the Rev II tomorrow or Monday. It's looking pretty good and making me want to finish it so I give it a try. Barry i always take a picture before a maiden. It's a superstition thing with me. The Harrier is a lot of fun to fly. I still think it needs a bigger rudder though.

Basement Troll

My Feedback: (3)

Well I did get some things done this weekend on the Rev II. I put the wings on to see how they looked and they looked perfect to me. I don't have an incidence meter so I just assume everything is perfect. (How niave is that?) I then started on the H-stabs. I put the tubes in and tried the fit and it was a bit off. I took a small, round file and opended up the ends where the wood is and then it fit acceptably. It only took a bit of filing in each hole. I glued with 30 minute epoxy as per the instructions. The allignment with the wings was perfect. I then started on the pull/pull setup for the rudder. I have never done a pull/pull setup before so this was my first crack at it. I had one small problem. The brass tubes for criming were too small to get the provided wire through twice. I had some other tubes around so I used them. I had it installed and lined up and took pictures and then decided the wires weren't tight enough. I ended up trying to tighten them and pulled one of the wires out of the crimped tube so now I'm starting over. This is my fault not the planes though. I realize I should have started at the servo end first and done the rudder end second which is how it will re-do it. The elevator servos were not an issue. I did make sure I ran the wires in the top part of the fuse formers so they don't get tangled in the pull/pull system. One thing to watch, on the left elevator, if you put too much up throw the push rod binds on the bottom of the H-stab and bends the push rod. I had to reduce the throws a bit so it didn't touch. I also found some nuts that fit the threaded part of the pushrods to use as lock nuts. I thought the clevis' were a bit sloppy without them. So far ther have been a couple of small hiccups but nothing serious. With a bit of luck I might get it done this week. Maybe a flight on the weekend! Here are the pics.
Don