I can hover!!
 

Just got back from flying and after a year of trying to fly 3D I can actually hover, and hover well I might add. I'm pumped. I feel like a kid with a new toy. Can't wait to go back and do it again. I've been flying for years, but never really spent the time on it to get much better. Last summer I got my first semi-3D plane, which was a Goldberg Matrix. This plane was both more fun and more difficult for me to fly because I was not used to something this quick handling. It was also very tip-stally until I retrained my elevator thumb and moved the CG back where it should be. But, I stuck with it and I can now hover it. I realize this is not a great 3D platform, but maybe I will make me better when I get my next plane, which I think will be a profile, like a mojo. I really can't afford the big stuff so i figure a profile is the way to go. Just wanted to share my newfound enthusiasm for the hobby. For some reason I could do other 3D stuff like high alpha flight, walls, blenders...but could never hold it in a hover until now. now the fun begins!

Mike

RE: I can hover!!
 

Congrats! Makes me want to go to the field now...but I guess I'll wait until daylight!

RE: I can hover!!
 

Way to go, Mike! yup, I'd say a profile is next. Much cheaper to keep in the air and fix after something goes wrong when you're pushing the envelope. The tip stalling thing will totally disappear, especially if you get a Mojo or a Katana 70 V2. Best of luck as you begin working on torque rolling, rolling harriers and inverted harriers. You're a sick puppy, mike! You're one of us.

RE: I can hover!!
 

Thanks.

I'd love to be able to do rolling harriers, but so far no luck. It's mainly from all bad habits from years of flying and hardly touching the rudder. I'm OK now on the rudder but it's not as automatic as it needs to be to do harriers and rolling circles. The only way I've done anything close to that is using just elevator, but it's very floppy, very ugly. I think having a plane that will fly slower will help me too.

Mike

RE: I can hover!!
 

Sure it will. I'm just saying that's the kinds of things you will now BEGIN to work on. And you're so right, the rudder is going to be the key to much of this.

RE: I can hover!!
 

BlackB12

I taught myself the same way you did.

Only use rudder to get yourself in the air and than forget about it untill you come back to earth.

I always wanted a heli and ended up buying a Corona. It did worlds for me and my left stick/rudder. Now when i fly i automatically link turns. A heli also forced you to keep the tail straight as an idependent serfuce. This is perfect for hovering a plane.

I am not saying go out at buy a $500 heli like i did. Ofcource if you have always wanted to try it might be a good time to learn. But if you can find a really cheep used heli that is rtf, like under 100. It will help alot.

RE: I can hover!!
 

I know what you mean about flying a heli, kind of. I fly the ones on the sim all the time and yes, it does train your left thumb more compared to flying a plane. Just went out and practiced today. changed props and man what a difference. Put a 13x4wide on and all of a sudden the thing pulls out of a hover with authority compared to before. It also gave me more control as far as being able to hover without climbing or sinking. Before one detent on the throttle stick would make it either climb or sink. Now it's much finer adjustment, if that makes sense.

Mike

RE: I can hover!!
 

If you have a sim try setting the gyro settings on the heli so it is not perfect and the tail drifts all the time.
That would work well.

Hovering is alot of fun from what i have been able to do before, the best practice is the real thing.

I am going to be moving up to a profile also after the flying season in arizona kicks into gear again and I get some flying in.

I am looking at the mojo, extreme flight edge, and the katan to put a 46 ax in.

Good Luck

RE: I can hover!!
 

Well this sucks. On my fourth flight last night flying straight and level, my ailerons went full deflection left and I had no control. I crashed in a bean field and somehow only ripped the firewall out. But now I'm worried about why the crash happened. Of course the radio was working fine when I went to the crash site. Never ever had even a glitch at this field. I'm gonna try and fix it, but if I can't or if it gets too heavy, I may be moving to another plane sooner than expected.

Mike

RE: I can hover!!
 

when you put the firewall back in use tri-stock on the back to reinforce it, and move the batt/rx back to compensate for the (marginal) weight

RE: I can hover!!
 

Ya, definatly triangle stocks

My firewall fell off on the ground once.

Now it has 8 screws, triangle stocks, and alot of epoxy holding it together.

I don't think it will be falling off anytime soon

Also, are your alerons using 1 or 2 servos?

RE: I can hover!!
 

That sorta happened to me on a maiden flight of a Vector flight xtra 300. Just rolled left and I couldn't do anything. All my radion stuff seemed to be alright but I didn't trust the servos again, even after sending them in for a chek up. Now I let the rx run for a least a minute before take off on a new charge. Just to pull a little juice out of the batteries. I replaced them with Hitec mg digitals. 645s.

RE: I can hover!!
 

The wing is a two servo wing running hitec digital high torque metal gear servos. I think the number is HS5625 Been flying them for over a year with no issues.

Just glued a new firewall on. I used lots of tri-stock all the way around. I'm experimenting with Gorilla glue. I used that rather than epoxy since it expands and fills in any voids. It's oozing out now so every 10 minutes or so I go out and wipe off the excess with a wet paper towel. On some areas I'm letting it foam up a lot to act as a gap filler. Should be just as strong as epoxy, but lighter and more bonding areas since it expands and creates it's own fillets between the firewall and the sides of the fuse.

Mike

RE: I can hover!!
 

Hi again

Are your using a y harness, If so you might want to change over to plugging them in to different channels. For example: mine are plugges in to channel 4 and 6. This depends on your radio. Anyway, this should allow you to have control of one aleron assuming if something happens to the other. This sometimes works and sometimes doesn't when you have a glitch

BTW, you need a computer radio for this

The other day you might of had control of one aleron and at least leveled the wing. Although your control would not be very good, you might have been able to safely land the plane.

Now, glitches are always anoying. I have had some pretty hefty ones with my electric heli. It is very common in electic planes an helis because of the motor and esc. I first try to isolate the glitch on the ground. Then i will eliminat things by unplugging each servo individually. Then if it is still doing it remove all servos and reoraganize them. You might narrow it down to a bad channel on your reciever, the whole reciever itself, bad servo/servos, bad batery, ect.

RE: I can hover!!
 

I have a computer radio and I'm running each aileron servo into a separate channel on the receiver. The acted like it just flat out locked up. I was inputing full right aileron but it kept rolling left. Just locked up. Just plain weird. On the ground and every time before no problems. Even ranged checked it and it was rock solid after the crash. I'm gonna check the battery, switch, etc., after I fix the firewall and remount the engine.

Mike

RE: I can hover!!
 

Hmmm

That is very strange that both channels failled.
What radio is it? I would look there first.

Maybe you have some weird setting on it or something.

Maybe it has a glitch in it
For example:
I was told by hitec that my optic 6 had a glitch. The channels would lock up and you would have to turn the radio off and on if a certian setting was set like at %50 and you moved the stick in a certian way.

RE: I can hover!!
 

If you are running a PCM receiver you might want to check your fail safe. It may be set to full aileron deflection. If you are running PPM (FM) all bets are off. Also, not surprised that both channels failed since the way you have it setup one is a slave to the other. Whatever one does the other is going to do the opposite especially if the master channel is the one that went nuts.


OH congrats on the hovering!!:D That is VERY cool. Now, just take off and start working on those rolling harriers. The only way to learn is to do it. I started out by sitting in front of the TV with my transmitter just working on muscle memory.
Roll Right
Left Rudder
Down Elevator
Right Rudder
Up Elevator
over and overand overand overand overand overand overand overand overand overand overand overand overand overand over..

I must have spent 2 months doing that everytime I sat in front of the TV. After that, about 100000000000 on the sim and at the field rolling harriers are just as easy as flying straight across the field. Just takes time and fuel my friend.. Time and fuel.[8D]