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Old 03-27-2006 | 06:59 AM
  #8  
da Rock
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Joined: Oct 2005
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From: Near Pfafftown NC
Default RE: balance

If you're within an ounce, and you're nose heavy, if I were you, I'd fly the thing before going to any effort. Matching up the exact CG when you're building is often a waste of time. Getting close is not. And you're close. Flying it to work out the CG the plane actually needs is worthwhile. But nose heavy and close when building it is good enough to go the next step.

When you first fly the plane, take it up high and see how slowly it will fly. Then keep it high and throttle it to go about 1/3 speed and trim it for level flight. All of this will take very little time. Now put it into about a 60degree dive and move the elevator stick to neutral. If the nose comes up fast on it's own, then take it home and add that ounce of tail weight. Don't worry about that CG until the plane flies nose heavy.

BTW, if the nose tucks down, then the model is tail heavy and you'd want to move the battery back forward. Yeah, those reactions don't sound right, but they are.

And btw....... If you're wanting to move a battery back into the fuselage to get weight back there then don't worry about adding extra wood back there to hold the battery with some supporting structure. Add the structure. You want weight after all. The rear fuselage isn't designed to hold concentrated masses like a battery, so if you move it back "into the stringers", give the stringers some help. Get a sheet of 1/8" balsa at the hobby shop and use it to build a box back there. It's really simple to do. Make sure the box spreads out to strengthen the fuse area it's in, and the plane will be better for it. You can also use balsa sticks to bridge and support. It don't have to be pretty, ain't nobody gonna see it nohow. But make sure it spreads the load. Nothing ruins a flight like having your battery g-force it's way through the aft fuselage covering.