RE: U-Can-Do 3d 46?
 

Good Point Rocket-Man,
There is a fine line between building and flying. I think it is due to the new mentality associated with the term "ARF". Many, myself included, want to buy an ARF, throw in an engine and radios and go flying. The UCANDO is a tempting plane to do that with, it is a beautiful flyer without cowls, canopies and pants. I think GP's goal was to make a plane to compete with fun-flys but with stellar good looks. To get the looks they added subtle touches like, canopies, pants and cowls. It all comes down to this, build it how you want it. Do you want to throw it in your car, rip up the sky at the field, come home and throw it in the closet, or do you want to have a GOOD looking plane sitting next to an Excite 90, Magic 3d or whatever, and then rip up the sky. That's the beauty of this plane.

Canopies, pants and cowls don't make a good 3D pilot.

Most of the best pilots have rough looking planes, they fly 'em instead of show 'em.

RE: U-Can-Do 3d 46?
 

Hi guys,
I have encountered a few problems with my new UCD46 and I need someone's help.
first of all I bought a new saito 72 and had a tuning problem at the low end(idle).
after braking in the engine ,I have tried to tune both needles with out any luck.
when I taught I'm making a progress (the engine runs smooth)
I observed after a few flights that the engine Emmit's black oil ,traces were found on the muffler and on the l.e, a result of lean mixture. trying to fix it by opening both needles(not at the same time) got me were I started poor performance( the engine stalls at idle)
could some please tell me If I'm doing something wrong or does saito engines are
hard to tune?(my first saito).
the second problem is that I accidentally drilled my fuel tank but I have glowed it
with 5 min epoxy.( so far so good ),
on my fifth flight I had an engine cut, It seemed like I ran out of fuel.
I landed the UCD nice and easy refuel and planed to take off again when at a certain point I have noticed that fuel is leaking from the plane,
I stopped the engine and checked the fuel tank ,well its pretty obvious now,the fuel melted the epoxy ,creating a nice glowing pool inside my UCD.
well my question is does someone have any idea how to fix the fuel tank if possible and could the epoxy and fuel mixture Is the cause of my poor saito performance?
thanks in advanced.

RE: U-Can-Do 3d 46?
 

Best way to fix the fuel tank is to drop it in the trash can and produce a new $10 bill to replace it. Don't ever screw around with fuel tanks or hoses, if even the slightest doubt of anything replace them. As far as you plane goes you better suck up the glow fuel with baby powder and cat litter. Otherwise your plane will start to disassemble itself on the inside.

The poor performance came from what was once a small airleak that caused you engine to run lean. Then it got bigger. I doubt that epoxy caused any problems.

First suck up the oil in your plane. Then REPLACE your entire fuel tank AND hoses so that your entire fuel system is brand new. Your talking $10. Then try again.

By the way ... who ever told you to use epoxy to repair a fuel tank should no longer the person you listen to for RC advice. Unless of course ... that person was you.

RE: U-Can-Do 3d 46?
 

Oh yea, this will do it. I was flying mine with a saito 91 on. The hose coming from the gas tank that connects to the muffler came off. Well, during level flight, it ran OK. But when I tried to go vertical, it would act like it wasn't getting the fuel needed (no pressure going to gas tank for upward push of gas to motor). I didn't understand what in the world could be causing this until I landed and noticed the hose just dangling there. Now I have hose clamps. Problem solved.

I would do what STL said, get a new tank. Its not worth trying to patch a tank. Check your balsa too for unglued areas.

RE: U-Can-Do 3d 46?
 

Sorry, forgot what I quoted. The mixture of epoxy and glow fuel won't do it, the lack of tank preasure more likely caused it....

RE: U-Can-Do 3d 46?
 

Well, mine is finally assembled (Club meeting tonight!). Funny how the wheel pants didn't seem like such a big deal after getting the cowl to fit. Sorta like skiing the bunny slope after coming off a diamond trail!

I'm still not happy with the 2-56 control rods though. They seem way to flimsy, especially for the elevators. Also, did anyone else get the supplied spinner to fit on a 70 Surpass II? It seems mine was getting hung up on the locking nuts and washer. Looks like a trip to the LHS for some alternatives.

BTW, with the 70 Surpass up front, a 5 cell battery over the fuel tank, the CG measured in at 5.5" back with a total weight of 6lb, 4oz. It will be tough holding out, but "other" commitments won't give my son and I (it's his plane) a chance to fly this plane until next weekend.

RE: U-Can-Do 3d 46?
 

I would definatley put carbon pushrods on at least the ailerons. Or beef them up. If you get the UCANDO up to fast speed, they will flutter and easily bend. It happened on one of my 46 UCANDO's.

RE: U-Can-Do 3d 46?
 

:(Xender,
The Saito 72 is set super rich at the factory in an apparent effort to keep you tinkering with the needle valves long enough to allow the new parts to get adequately lubricated at a speed of less than 4000 rpm for the first 10 minutes (see instructions). It won't even run at high throttle with the glow plug disconnected. Adjust the idle needle first then adjust the high speed needle just enough so it runs without the battery connected to the glow plug. From then on its a juggling act of adjusting both needles in leaner increments during break-in.

Black oil is bad. Stay away from black oil. You can watch your engine's life bleed out in black oil.

On the subject of fuel leakage, you may find that fuel still leaks out even after you replace your tank as correctly suggested by others. It may continue to leak out of the engine due to the high placement of the tank relative to the carburetor. Since the UCD 46 cowl covers my Saito 72, I use a Sullivan filler valve to fill the tank. This valve requires no special fitting to fuel it, just a short length of brass tubing. Between flights I just stick a plugged piece of brass tubing in the valve to block it.

If you want to you can just let it leak out since it just dribbles out the back of the cowl and kills some kinds of grasses and makes an ugly mess on paved pit areas. Maybe other club members won't say anything to you about it:D.

RE: U-Can-Do 3d 46?
 

The Kangke Super Kraft Fun 50 ARF is slightly larger and weighs a half pound less. In my opinion, the Fun 50 is more durable, better crafted, and out performs the 46 UCD. It just does not look as good ... sort of a dull color scheme.

Rick

RE: U-Can-Do 3d 46?
 

Kangke Fun 50 - 227.00
UCANDO 46 - 150.00

Half a pound = $77

RE: U-Can-Do 3d 46?
 

The Fun 50 needs one less servo on the elevators and therefore needs no servo reverse Y-harness. It does not require more expensive ball bearing servos ... standard servos work fine. It comes with much better, heavier push rods so there is no need to spend money on upgrades. The weight difference leads to the ability to fly great 3D with a smaller, less expensive engine. The Fun 50 has an airfoiled ... flying ... tail section for better stall stunts. I have never heard of anyone having damaged wing ribs on a Fun 50 straight out of the box. It balances perfectly when built to specs. Its wire landing gear means you dont have to beaf up the LG block and add weight.

By the time you add the costs of servo upgrades, the extra servo for the elevator, the reversing Y-harness, push rod upgrades, cost of a bigger engine and add in the worry factor of "when will my wing break?" or "when will the landing gear fail?", you will see the Fun 50 is, in my opinion, a better way to go.

Rick

RE: U-Can-Do 3d 46?
 

Fun 50 Larger? in wingspan only.
UCD Fun 50
WS = 56.75 WS = 61
L = 58.5 L = 56
W/AREA = 904 W/AREA = 735
I got mine with out a spec or ding on it, I fly it with the stock hardware and gear and never had a problem that wasn't pilot error. Over 50 flights. It's the builders perrogative to put in upgraded servos, but don't confuse that with necessity. I run with S3003's for elv and throttle, and S3004's for ailerons. Not exactly top of the line. Same as the engine, you can put whatever you want in, it will fly fine with a .46. I chose a Saito .72.
A better pilot with a Fun 50 can out perform a lesser pilot in a UCANDO. And vice-versa.
It is good news that a Kangke Fun 50 has never been damaged in shipping, I wonder what they know that every other hobby manufacturer out there doesn't.

RE: U-Can-Do 3d 46?
 

:DLaughing@half a pound = $77.

Count me among those who built his UCD 46 stock right out of the box. I did make one modification though, I used a Sullivan tail wheel assembly because I like it. I think Great Planes put that little piece of plywood in the tail just for me to mount my Sullivan tail wheel.

After many flights I have yet to find a reason to replace any of the hardware provided.

I used no reversing Y-harness because my Futaba radio provides for using two elevator servos.

All my servos are standard Futaba S3004 that came with the flight pack I bought. There is no need to use heavy powerful expensive servos since this is a slow flying light weight plane. I guess I got off cheap.

MY UCD 46 is powered by a Saito 72 and the CG is in the correct location.

We don't all choose the planes we want to build for the exact same reasons everybody else does. There are many things to consider in our choices. Thats probably why there are more choices out there than Fun 50's and UCD's. But, it does appear that the UCD is hugely successful in spite of its faults.

I wonder if the guys who fly giant scale 3d aerobatics would listen to us if we told them they could fly great 3D with a smaller, less expensive engine?;)

RE: U-Can-Do 3d 46?
 

One other thing to add when buying a plane, and in my case is service. Tower Hobbies is awesome when it comes to replacing anything. When I called them and told them my wing broke, 72 hours later I had a brand new in the box complete UCANDO. When I told them I landed my UCANDO in tall grass and ripped the elevator off I had a new elevator within 48 hours. So it's not always the plane you buy, but who you buy it from. I would spend $150 on Towers site for new UCANDO rather then take my chances for $100 on Ebay without receipt or warranty.

The UCANDO is a UCANDO, it flies great, the Fun 50 is a Fun 50 and I'm sure it flies fine. However if I was looking for another plane to buy like the Fun 50 I would just do a RCU thread search. One has nothing to do with the other. Christ, we could sit here all day and debate which 3D plane is better then the other and why, but who gives a sh**. Unless of course you are a salesman for Fun 50's. Or the other reason could be you accidently bought a Fun 50 and now regret and trying to convince yourself that it's the better plane.

UCANDO's RULE. One of the best $150 bills you can spend on a plane. Service alone is worth twice that. It may need some beefing up on the landing gear block, control horns or whatever. I would also rather have an extra servo on the elevator, and I also added another to the rudder on mine, and I bet it hits harder then the Fun 50. Balanced perfectly with no weight on mine with Magnum 80 4S.

I get nothing but ooohhh's and aashhh's when a spectator watches me touch the tail. It's a very pretty plane that can excel ANY new pilot fast.

In my opinion and I am sure in most other in this thread, the UCANDO rocks and is no better or no worst then any other 3D plane. It is what it is.

RE: U-Can-Do 3d 46?
 

How did you mount the Saito 91? The carburetor runs into the head of the engine mount bolt. I can't slide the engine any further forward because it runs out of engine mount to bolt the front of the engine.

Thanks

RE: U-Can-Do 3d 46?
 

The supplied motor mount is for 2 stroke engine. You need to get a longer one for 4 strokes.

RE: U-Can-Do 3d 46?
 

STLPilot, Flew my UCD 46 today with a Mag 61 with both a 13x4 and 14x4 as well as a 12.75x3.25 the other day. conclusion: not enough power to hover. I see you are using a Mag 80 FS. Well I have a fresh Mag 91 FS.....what do I need to make it work, what tank and mounts are you using as well as prop? Pls let me know.

RE: U-Can-Do 3d 46?
 

I ran into the same problem with the .91. I just used a countersink head screw for that one. Since you can't use lock washers, you should make sure you use LockTite on the monting bolts, though.

First flight with mine today. first thought was, "Man, this thing flies sloooow". Second thought was, "Man, this Saito has a BUNCH of power!" Third thought - "Man, this is gonna be a LOT of fun!" I never got it over about half throttle. Didn't need to. Hovers were around 1/3 or so. I suck at hovering, but I was able to take my hand off the right stick and hover it for 5 seconds or so.

One thing I realized, though, is that with the Saito .91, that 8oz tank isn't going to be quite enough. Has anyone else tried a larger tank, and if so, which one fit the best?

RE: U-Can-Do 3d 46?
 

I just bought one and will rely on the TCU reviewer to tell me any special things that need to be done and also motor size

RE: U-Can-Do 3d 46?
 

The supplied motor mount works just fine for my O.S. 70II Surpass. I could space it 5" from the firewall as the instructions indicate.;)

RE: U-Can-Do 3d 46?
 

joebob,

Great to hear that your first flight was a success. I cant wait to get mine going. This coming Sunday will be its maiden. My buddy has the same plane. On his maiden the stabilizers came lose luckily he brought it down in one piece. He then epoxied the stabilizer back and took it back out. As he was flying again with less than half throttle he said heard a "POP" Luckily he got it back down with no problems. He noticed that the tail section where the stab comes together with the fuse had broke, cracked or something in that nature. I wasn't there to examine. He told me that that part needed to be strengthened. Did you strengthen that area? If there is anybody out there that can tell me how to do it will be great. you think soaking it up with Thin CA strengthen it? Was it just a bad batch? I want to take care of it before i fly it this coming weekend. Thanks a bunch guys.

Santi

RE: U-Can-Do 3d 46?
 

santi,

After talking with a few guys at the field this weekend, I decided to add some flying wires to the tail for safety. I was talking to Ed Moorman, who writes for RC Report and he uses small weed-eater line. Light-weight, and plenty strong. You just drill a small hole in the tail, put the line through, and hit it with thin CA. I also got hold of some iron-on carbon fiber about 3" wide that I thought about putting on each side of the fuse around the stab area. Still might do this, but I think I'll try the bracing wires first.

I was extremely careful with mine this weekend. Kept it real slow and didn't do anything more violent than a roll. I was getting a lot of 'fish-tailing' flying into the wind. When I landed, I found that my pull-pull rudder cables were a little lose, allowing the rudder to move back and forth a little. Gotta tighten them up.....

RE: U-Can-Do 3d 46?
 

here are some pics of the ucd im repairing. this was a friend of mines plane. his rx went bad and hit pretty hard. he gave it to me because he was moving to florida for the winter and didnt want to take it, and repair it. the wing wasnt bad looking. just a broken rib and broken wingtips. have that repaired and covered already. im working now on piecing the fuse back together with the parts i have. im re-enforcing about every break there is. i will also be re- enforcing the lg mount with fiberglass cloth. ill keep the updates coming. jeff

RE: U-Can-Do 3d 46?
 

here they are .. i hope.

RE: U-Can-Do 3d 46?
 

you're a good man easy2fly,
I'm glad to see that you are actually repairing the fuse yourself. I don't think as many people do that as I thought they would. I always figured that it was just balsa wood and if someone put it together in the first place then just about anything could be repaired. I have noticed a lot of guys just scrap the plane after that kind of damage. It's tempting with a new fuse only being about 50 bucks. But, good luck with the repair, I believe that after a repair like you're doing, it will be more robust.

I sheared 1/3 of the wing off of mine during an encounter with a tree on landing. I went ahead with the repair, but also decided to give the plane an entire new color scheme. I have about 70 bucks in covering and paint, plus, I haven't been able to fly it for the last four weeks (I cover SLOOOOW) so I probably would have been better served to purchase a new wing for 50 bucks from Tower. I'll post some pics soon.