I'de like to know if anyone has experimented with using 3 blade props on thier ucd. Please give any details/characteristics.

I'm using a Evolution .61 on my ucd and am considering using a 3-blade prop. Thanks...

Jeff

Well I finally got the throw a little Better but with the Stock Futaba control arms there Jus isn't enough for the High Rates I'd like.... What Aluminum Horns would you guys recomend? I plan to keep it on the Low rates and I'm havin a more Experience Pilot take me up on it a couple time <with Low rates lower than recomended> but once I get comfortable i wanna Try some stuff that I made up on the sim.....

Also how are you guys going your elevator servo's? I couldn't find the Reverse "Y" so I bought a regular one and I'm gonna Switch the Control Horns so that they're 180 degrees apart <ones points up one down>. How do you guys think this will work? I guess We'll find out when I pull all the electronics outta my trainer...

I don't recommend flipping the servo arms around. You need both halves to travel exactly the same amount throughout the entire range of movement. Not having this can cause tip dropping and undesired rolling in some maneuvers.

Futaba sells a small electronic servo reverser, the SR10. Its about 30 bucks and you can reverse the servos electronically, keeping the linkages where they should be. You can also use it to adjust the subtrim so you can get each elevator half's neutral position the same.

i have a thunder tiger .61 in mine w/13x4 apc and i love it. lots of authority in a hover. its not a rocket ship but it will keep going up till i tell it to turn around.

Ice-man,
Here's servo reverser I currently use. Works fine so far
http://www2.towerhobbies.com/cgi-bin...er&FVPROFIL=++

Greetings,
Jock

Almost finished my U-Can-Do 46, OS 50SX in front, HS225 on elevators ond ailerons. Eclipse radio, no elevator mixer, one servo modified to run reversed.... Rudder servo mountet where instruction said trottelservo should be mounted.... Pull-pull on rudder. 4-cell 600mAH battery under fueltank. Balanced at 5" from LE with no extra weights Total weight 5lb 6oz! BUT, seems to me like the firewall has some UP-trust built in? Thought it should be a bit og DOWN-trust, an I wrong???? Dont know how to post pictures....

I have a cheap TH .61 engine in there and it works great. Hovers at 1/2 throttle and pulls out good. Unlimied vertical!! Only $89 from www.towerhobbies.com

TTYL,
Andrew T.

The rain finally stopped long enough for me to get my UCD46 off the ground. I have to say it's a nice model. This is my first 3D'er so i have a lot to learn. I'm flying it with a Saito 65. Even though this is my first 3D'er I can tell I'm going to need more power and more throws on the control surfaces. I have an Enya 80 i thought wouldn't fit but after checking again looks like it will work. I would like to know who makes extra long control horns and servo arms so i can get more throw on the control surfaces. The only problem i had was with my Expert on board glow, more like an Expert on board torch. Looks like the regulator went out. I knew the engine wouldn't idle very well so i used the on board glow. The other question i have is it worth practicing 3D on a simulator?
I've learned a lot from the treads in this post.
Thanks,
Maekju

Chief sells nice long aluminum servo arms that work great. You can see them [link=http://www.chiefaircraft.com/cgi-bin/rcm/hazel.cgi?action=serve&item=/Models/Model.html]here[/link]. You need 45 degrees of throw or more for good 3D. A lot of people fly the 46UCD with a Saito 72 and I've heard the Saito 82 is the best overall engine for it. Your 65 is underpowered like you said. As for the onboard glow I'd scrap it. Those things are dead weight and you shouldn't need it anyway. I would just get a remote glow extension from Dubro. They are very light compared to onboard glow.

It's not only worth it,,, it's imperative!!! You will hone your skills and learn the tricks faster, easier, cheaper, safer, better, indoor, out of the rain, whenever you have a chance. I'm sure there are more reasons....

I have Reflex XTR and there are several excellent planes to fly 3D, most notable is the Yellow Funtana which can be downloaded from http://www.rc-sim.de along with many other. The standard planes that come with it are only there to give the program a bad rep.
The other simulator choice, and some say better for 3D, is the Aerofly Pro but I have no personal exp. of it (yet).

As far as the UCD I have one with an OS.91 four stroke with a pump. With a 15x4w prop its absolutely perfect, balances right on with the battery aft.
Just mind a few pointers:
*Put CF tubes over the pushrods or switch to 3mm (4-40). The supplied ones will bend.
*Use good quality horns and clevises, the barn-door surfaces are so big, any little loosenes will become big flutter.
*Strengthen the horiz. stab with flying wires or CF spars. It will brake off in 3d moves sooner or later.
*Add some extra right thrust for the "oversize" motors, You'll have it lean to the left in vertical pull up and hovering.
*Reinforce the landing gear attachment. Just make some bumpy landings and it will break clean off,,, easier to fix after you brake it off . They put too little glue on at the factory and the pins don't go all the way through like they should. I broke it in the fourth landing. Metal pins through the bulkheads and block, a good helping of epoxy and glasfiber on the outside and it has stayed.
*Put on a better tailwheel from the beginning, e.g. the Sullivan. you'll be landing it Harrier style before you know it. Mind the weight though.
*If going for a lighter motor you may consider putting the rudder servo in the throttle servo bay and use pull-pull. The rudder servo should be strong and fast.
*Practice throttle control. If you overspeed the surfaces will flutter and kill your servos or rip clean off. With a fine pitch prop it'll fly impressively slow and gracefully.

Most of the above came from other peoples experience and has made my UCD an extremely enjoyable experience.

Happy hovering.

And I forgot:
* If you use the CA hinges then follow the instructions carefully and then pin your hinges with toothpicks.

Cheers

Björn

Thanks guys. Your suggestions are right in line with my ideas. From the treads i've read in this post most people say the same things. The on board glow was just to get the new engine to idle. I removed the engine and put it on my test stand to give it some more run time. I got five flights on it last sunday, nothing fancy just feeling it out. I had already ordered a Reflex flight sim and i saw the servo arms on the Cheif web site. What about the horns on the surface? Are their other ones avaliable to get more throw? I'm turning a zinger 13*7 prop on the Saito 65. What would you recomend for the Enya 80? As i said this is my first 3D'er and learning throtle management is something different for me. I use to be a bore hole in the sky type flyer but i think i'm going to love the 3D flying. After flying this plane, i think my Hots II and Hot Kanary will stay on the building board just a little longer. I don't like ARF's so i would like a BIY 3D kit, any recomendations? I'm working in South Korea so flying sites are far and few.
Thanks for all your help.
Maekju

I started cheap with mine, but a good friend (top 10 IMAC competitor and local futaba rep) was using Futaba 3010's all the way around on his. He also intalled an O.S. .46 FX heli motor with a tower $15 muffler. I am using a Magnum .52 XLS, both engines hover between 3/4 and 7/8 throttle. No problems with any 3D moves with this "cheap" set up. We fly in San Antonio, Texas, where summer ambient exceeds 95 degrees and 880 ft. above seal level, which is wear and tear on engines and servos. The 3010's require NICD 6VDC battery only, most of us are using 1100's and Ace smart chargers. I think we are all exceeding over 300 flights on the .46 size, with only the normal tailwheel brake offs on hard harrier landings and the initial landing gear shear off on rough grass field landings.
We have a couple of "rich guys" running JR 8411's all the way around and use either the O.S. 50 SX with tower muffler or Saito .91. Most of us have the cg all the way back to the recommended rear limit. No one has had a nose heavy problem, with placing the batteries in the hollow space behind and under the throttle servo. The original cg range was ammended during later outputs of the kits, moving it way back. The airplane is still neutral and stable with the rear most cg, but tends to porpoise a little if trying to fly it in a straight slow line, but harriers and lands very slowly with this set up.
Hope this helps a little, if I crash mine, I will definitely go buy another, I would go into withdrawal without it.

Well another five flights last Saturday and the landing gear and tail are still in tact and still under powered with the Saito 65. Next weekend I'll have the Enya 80 or Tower Hobbies 60 installed. My CG is 5 1/4 back from the leading edge. I'm think I'm going with the Enya first. If people are using 56's with no problems, the 60 should do the job quite well. I have a Futaba 3010 servo on the rudder and 3001's on eveything else. I will upgrade to 4-40 or carbon fiber push rods and stronger servos when my skills upgrade. For now I'm just getting use to flying the model. I read where some people say this model is sensitive to fly even on low rates. This is not true. This model is VERY sensitive. I kicked in 80% expo and I'm really stating to get more comfortable flying the model. I've also been concentrating on learning throtle management. Looks like it's all starting to come together. Any sugestions on a 3D model for my YS 120?
Maekju

Looking for a 120 four stroke 3D plane, try the World Models 120 3D arf. I bough one a couple of months ago and put my old OS 120 on it, flew great until the header pipe blew out, so bought a new G2300 Supertigre on it, and it goes ballistic. Gotta exercise allot of throttle management with the 1.4 Cu.in. two stroke on it, but with an APC 18X6W prop, it flies great slow, hovers, knife edges, ...etc. Currently practicing IMAC pattern with it, since it flies slow, but like a pattern plane, easy to do stall turns, straight rolls, and so forth. Huge wing, thick foil, very light wing loading and two piece plug in wings for easy transport. I took off the spring landing gear, installed a floor with 1/4 ply and put a 4 star 120 landing gear, since I fly at a really rough, bumpy, uneven grass field most of the time. IT comes in two colors, I have the green, which has allot of yellow with it, so easy to see. It comes with split flaps, so you can set up crow with four servos for ailerons, you'll need an 8 or 9 channel radio to use this feature. if you use a six channel, then your stuck using y-cables on each wing, but have the advantage of two seperate servos for the large ailerons. I used an 8 channel futaba PCM receiver, with channels 1 & 6 on ailerons and the two auxiliary channels slaved to them using channel 7 & 8. I used a reversing y cable for the two elevator servos and a 6 volt 1650 NIMH battery and super switch. All the servos are heavy duty (77 oz. torgue) except the pull-pull rudder, which is a digital MG 155 oz. I've got about 20 plus flights on it and fly the Imac pattern with no real mixing issues, the plane is so neutral and stable. The 3D stuff is great, but much slower and more graceful than my U-Can-Do .46.
Hope this helps a little, good luck on your search. Let me know if you find anything better.
Happy Landings,
[email protected]

I'm a little confused about the engines you are talking about for the .46 size U-Can-Do. I would absolutely steer clear of a .60 two stroke on this plane, it is way to heavy and a short blip of full throttle in a strait line would most likely shed the tail and ailerons and so forth before you had a chance to react. I was using a Magnum .52 and Supertigre .51 on mine, which both have plenty of power. The magnum started going deadstick in prolonged midrange flight about half way through pattern practice,, so I put the old reliable OS .46 FX with a tower muffler and APC 12.25X3.75W prop on it. I tach 13,400 on the ground and pull the plane verticle like a homesick angel. I was flying in 95degree heat at 880 feet above sea level, so if you are lower and cooler, a .46 to .52 two stroke should give you all the power you want, all three two stroke engines hover about 3/4 to 7/8 throttle and pull out just fine, with the .52 pulling out and accelerating verticle. My plane weighs 5.5 pounds dry.
I tried a Saito .72 on mine and it did not hover or pull out at all, with any prop combination. One guy is using an OS .70 with a 14X4W APC and hovers great. I would have thought the Saito, being lighter would have more power, but this case it didn't do the job. The new .82 or .91's do great on this airplane, so your enya .80 should work great with a 14X4 or 15X4 prop, whichever gives you the revs you need for your ambient conditions. This appears to be your best choice, without buying a new engine. Hope this helps, gotta go to the field, calm day, and gotta work the rest of the week.

Happy Landings,
[email protected]

I have a TT61pro on this plane and it is fine it may be alittle heavy but not too bad. not sure where im ballenced but no weight was added anywhere.

it turns a 13x4w prop to 11800 RPM the 13x4 spooled a bit quicker but they didnt have any last time at the LHS.

I have HS422s on ailerons 425s on elevator and 635hb on rudder.

with this combo i get little over half throttle hover good pull out(not rocket, enough to inspire #9 violation) and the occasional accidental momentary full throttle down line has not yet produced flutter. (KNOCK ON BALSA)

i know im not being smart with the servos but i cant afford any better on this plane.

Ok guys, I'm getting a wild hare edge 540T and i want to learn some 3D aerobatics. I have the old version of the O.S. 70 Suprass 4-stroke and it still runs great. I have it in a Hangar 9 Ultra Stick 40 and it is rocket in the vertical with a 13x6. My question is, could this engine hover and do everything with the u-can-do 46? I would also switch to an APC 14x4w prop.

I have had two Horizontal stab's break off on this u can do 46. The first flight broke it off at 1/2 and the second flight at 1/4 throttle broke it off.

the plane has a super tiger 51 ringed and a 10-6 prop

I have 20 years in this hobby and I cant figure out what is wron.


see picture

Any ideas????

If you're flying it hard without any reinforcement, the chance of the stab breaking is pretty good.

I epoxied triangle stock at the fuse/stab joint above and below the stab on both sides, and also used kevlar flying wires to tie the stab and fin together. After 60+ flights of beating it hard, I haven't had a failure.

I had been disappointed with the vertical performance of my UCANDO with a thunder pro 46. However, last week I took off the 12 x 5 wood sport prop and put on a 12 x 4 APC. The aircraft will hover pretty good now. If it falls off the hover I can catch it with full throttle. It will also climb out of a hover. Not a power house but definately enough for a rookie like me to enjoy it.

I was not flying hard. The flights were the first and second flights. The plane is brand new.

Thanks for the tips.

Port, you might want to also try APC's 12.25x3.75 prop. Everyone that has mentioned using this prop with a .40-.46 has reported the best overall thrust.

Hobby, I was going to say that the stab might have weakened from cutting the covering for glueing it to the fuse, but looking again at where it broke, looks like that's not the case. IMO, the UCD's stab just isn't very strong but when reinforced, will take all the punishment you can throw at it.

I would bet that the .51 and the 10x6 prop is the culprit. try an 11x4, 12x4 or 12.25x3.75 prop, that 10x6 at 12000rpm is producing about a 70 mph pitch speed, where most of the people flying this plane are using a 4 inch pitch prop maxed around 10000 rpm, which gives you around a 40 mph pitch speed. If your elevator linkages arent perfectly slop free, and your servos are sloppy around center, maybe combined with a non sealed hinge gap and no reinforcements, anything over 35-40mph would probably introduce flutter, and rip the elevator off. by changing to a bigger, lower pitched prop you gain alot of thrust and lose the speed~which this plane was designed for.

Half throttle may be producing a higher speed than you think with that 10x6.

Dylan

You are most likely correct.

I remember heraing a vibration during my run up but wrote it off as mono coat vibrating.

I was 5 min. into the flight when the stab 's broke off, one completely and one partial, that how I got it on the ground.

The servo's are new digital futaba 3151

I did not seal the hinge gap. (very seldom do)


Thanks.

Hobby_man