RE: Fliton Extra 330 Freestyle Who's Got One?
 

Diablo, You're gunna' love it. Very nice plane to fly. It is built light so you'll need to reinforce it some but that's easy. Let us know how it goes.

RE: Fliton Extra 330 Freestyle Who's Got One?
 

Thanks to all of you for the great build ideas and tips! I have been lurking on this post for quite some time and my FL Extra is nearly done.
All I have left to do is attach the canopy, so I am looking for some photos of how you all have fastened yours. It seems like there's no room to get a screw in along the front edge. ?!?
Please post your pics so I can see what's working for you (and what's not).
In exchange, here are a few photos of some of the things I have done so far.
Cheers
-Mark
PS. I am going with the Saito 82... I hope it's enough.

RE: Fliton Extra 330 Freestyle Who's Got One?
 

Nice, where did you get the dual elevator setup? Thats a nice one.

RE: Fliton Extra 330 Freestyle Who's Got One?
 

How did you get the bellcrank in? Thanks!

RE: Fliton Extra 330 Freestyle Who's Got One?
 

I machined the belcranks from a piece of (6061) aluminum, the axle is a piece of 5/16" K&S brass (I made an aluminum one too but I don't trust it), the bushings are turned from ABS bar and I made doublers to strengthen the fuse' from 3/32 plywood.

I used a fiberglas pushrod with 4-40 rod ends.

Assembly was fairly straightforward;
-Carefully measure the fuselage to dedtermine where to place the axle/belcrank assembly
-Drill a hole all the way through the fuse'
-Slide the doublers through the opening for the horizontal stab' and glue place in with thick CA
-Fasten the bushings to the outside of the fuse'with wood screws
-Slide the axle into one bushing and then pass one belcrank (with the clevis on it) through the stab' opening while holding it with a hemostat.
-Push the axle through the belcrank and through the far bushing
-Tighten the pinch-bolt on the belcrank with a long hex driver
-Slide the pushrod down the fuse' and thread into the clevis

Here are a few more pic's so you can see the details.

I am still trying to figure-out the best way to attach the @^%&'ing canopy :eek: !!!!

RE: Fliton Extra 330 Freestyle Who's Got One?
 

Before I glued the horizontal stab in place I epoxied in a piece of 1/4 ply to the floor of the fuselage for the tailwheel mount to screw into. Also I made a new axle for the tailwheel from a piece of 1/8" music wire.

RE: Fliton Extra 330 Freestyle Who's Got One?
 

msiminoff - I get it now ... since you need to attach the push rod you then use that to hold the horn in place as you guide the shaft through it. :)

RE: Fliton Extra 330 Freestyle Who's Got One?
 

What spinners are you guys using? I can't get a standard shape (don't really like the Ultimate style) 2.25" TruTurn or Vortech that will fit a Saito .91 (or .82, or 1.00).

RE: Fliton Extra 330 Freestyle Who's Got One?
 

I attached with the small screws that came in the hardware pack, two either side, then finished it with clear striping tape from an auto parts store.

The attached picture might just about show it

RE: Fliton Extra 330 Freestyle Who's Got One?
 

What prop is that? It looks like a 13x8 or so...

RE: Fliton Extra 330 Freestyle Who's Got One?
 

msiminoff I really like your set up. I didn't glue any supports into the tail for the tailwheel assembly because I completely forgot before I glued in the horizontal stab. I used a Sullivan Tailwheel setup and stuck 4 screws into the balsa back there, then hardened it with CA. I don't think it's going anywhere. At least, I hope not.


Have you flown it with the .82? I think that's the powerplant I'll be using.

Got an all-up weight for your bird yet?

RE: Fliton Extra 330 Freestyle Who's Got One?
 

I'm using a TruTurn 2-1/4" Ultimate Wide Blade.
Since you don't like the Ultimate style you could try their 2-1/2 Standard Wide Blade, but it will be a little big for your cowl.

RE: Fliton Extra 330 Freestyle Who's Got One?
 

Thanx!
No, I haven't flown it yet. Hopefully I can get down to the field for a maiden flight this weekend.
I'm guessing the weight will come in at 6-1/2 lbs (plus 16oz of fuel)... ceretainly a lot lighter than the Funtana 40 that this motor was in previously.
In the F40 it hovered at around 3/4 throttle but was pretty anemic on the pull-out.
Anyway, I am much more into pattern aerobatics than 3D flying (hovering) so I'll have PLENTY of power for what I want to do. I am planning to use the same fuel (20%) and prop (14-4) as I did on the F40.
-Mark

RE: Fliton Extra 330 Freestyle Who's Got One?
 

I got some weights on my Extra tonight.

With everything except for the engine and spinner (this does include the weight of an APC 15x4w, servos, linkages, fuel dot, fuel regulator, fuel line, engine mounts/hardware, air filter, fuel filter, wheel pants, batteries etc.), the all-up weight is 4lbs, 13.1oz. Adding the published weights for the engine and spinner (I should have them tomorrow):
Saito .82a and muffler = 17.6oz.
TruTurn 2.25" Wideblade spinner + adapter = 2.6oz

So, I'm sitting at 6lbs. 1oz. give or take an ounce or so. The cowl is uncut, as is the canopy, so I can lose a bit of weight there, but I will have to add a bit of wood to mount the fuel tank, also the weight of the foam rubber... I think overall I will be able to stay at the 6lbs mark. When I go to recover the plane this winter or spring, I'll probably replace the servos with JR 9411s or 3421s, go with the carbon fiber GraphTech landing gear and hopefully get it down to 5lbs 8oz. - 5lbs. 12oz.

I think (hope) at 6lbs this plane should be awesome with a Saito .82, and if I can get it down to 5.5lbs it will be perfect.

What do you guys think?

Any other ideas for losing a bit more weight?

RE: Fliton Extra 330 Freestyle Who's Got One?
 

RVM - the plane is pretty light for its size, not as light as flatties but its light for a scale plane in this category. The SA82 will be a lovely choice, much better than the 72 I had in mine, I only turned a 13x6 and u can turn a 14x6. Sometimes getting a plane too light is no fun to fly. If its just for prop hanging and 3D then yeah try to get her lighter still. I loved my F90 but trying to fly IMAC with it kinda sucks. Felt too light and in the wind she is not that stable.

I think trying to shave off another 0.5 lbs will not be a easy task.

You still can sort out the UC if you really want, drill holes to lighten it. Other than that you have nothing much more to do other than to remove more wood! Wanna go for AA batteries? Hehehee ... you recharge them after each flight! That may save you 1.5 oz!

RE: Fliton Extra 330 Freestyle Who's Got One?
 

What is UC?

Well, I figure if I can take off 4oz. switching to Carbon Landing gear, and about 2oz. in lighter servos, I will get close. That would probably be a bit though, without taking off the wheelpants and spinner.

RE: Fliton Extra 330 Freestyle Who's Got One?
 

Not sure why you want to lighten it up so much. I think it will fly great with Saito82 and most of the stock set up. Leave the wheel pants off and get carbon gear. That should do it. It's pretty lightly built to begin with.

RE: Fliton Extra 330 Freestyle Who's Got One?
 

RVM - UC is Under Carriage

RE: Fliton Extra 330 Freestyle Who's Got One?
 

rclement:
Lighter is always better. :D





That's what I thought. :D

RE: Fliton Extra 330 Freestyle Who's Got One?
 

My Saito .82a with muffler weighs 18.2oz.

Here are some pics.

RE: Fliton Extra 330 Freestyle Who's Got One?
 

I only have a few more items to install. Fuel tank, fuel regulator and its associated T's and valves, two fuel dots, receiver and battery. The fuel tank will be mounted with its center point around 12cm (where is the best CG anyway?) behind the leading edge of the wing. This should put it slightly in front of the final CG. I have to make some supports for it. The front part of the tank will be above the receiver and throttle servo. The throttle servo was originally mounted in one of the stock locations, but I could not get the linkage to work as I would prefer so I made the mount you see in the picture. It works perfectly. Now I have to fill in a couple of holes in the firewall. Yay. I hate that.

How are you guys mounting the cowl and canopy? If I install some blocks to bolt the cowl down to I'm going to have to sand off a bunch of epoxy to glue it down, unless I glue it with epoxy. I haven't decided how to secure the canopy yet. Or the front hatch for that matter. I'll probably just use clear tape for the hatch.

How are you guys fueling/defueling your plane? I've got two fuel dots I am thinking about using - one for fueling and one for releasing pressure from the tank (regulated pressure - can't fill the tank while it has anywhere from 3psi-9psi). I don't know if I want to mount the dots in the fuse, however, because I have bad luck about spilling fuel and don't want the nitro and oil soaking into the wood.

Anyway, on to the pictures.

RE: Fliton Extra 330 Freestyle Who's Got One?
 

Hmm those pictures didn't upload quite as I expected... let me try to fix them.

RE: Fliton Extra 330 Freestyle Who's Got One?
 

you guys don't have ANY idea about this one.......he's a real "go getter"..........LOL
:)

RE: Fliton Extra 330 Freestyle Who's Got One?
 

It's because I used to fly a little bit of pattern in the 90s. ;) An extra gram here and there will turn into an extra ounce, and an extra ounce here and there will turn into pounds. In a plane that only weighs 6lbs, a couple of ounces can make a difference. Consider this: 4 oz. is a quarter of a pound. Would you ignore an extra 1/4 pound in your plane? I would not ignore 1/4 pound even in a 35lbs. plane. That's a lot of weight for our models, even up to 40% planes (assuming you intend to do aerobatics/3d).

I have plans for an 80" (27%) Extra that I think I can keep at 12lbs-12.5lbs RTF with a 46cc gasser. Wingloading is somewhere around 24oz/sq.in. Can we say giant foamy? :D

RE: Fliton Extra 330 Freestyle Who's Got One?
 

I replaced the arm on the throttle servo in the picture with a shorter one. The first one only allowed about 2mm clearance between it and the fuel tank. The shorter one allows quite a bit more, allowing me to lower the tank and make installation a bit easier. Also, since the tank does bulge a bit when running, especially the bottom of it, this will allow a bit more tolerance.

Another side benefit is I was able to adjust the length of the rod and turn my ATV (top and bottom) up a lot. 150% to be exact. The servo could probably move to 151% or 152% in either direction, so I'm not overdriving the motor (I'll double-check this later to be sure), and 150% is the max in my radio anyway. This allows me to have a much higher resolution, and therefore much smoother throttle control. I should have my smooth throttle "ratchet" in soon as well. Once that's in and I get the throttle curve nice and linear, the engine should handle like a Ferrari V8. :)