Okay, Rob and Gary (gjeffers), I need an application to the "Inverted Flat Spin Landing Club." I've already paid my dues. [Waldo, listen up. You'll enjoy this.]

I crashed my #8 Twist.

I maidened my new Futaba 7CAP radio today, with the Katana .46, 3 long flights. I love the touch, adjustable, of the sticks, and I read the entire 81 page manual, plus FAQs on line while she was charging up--for 18 hours. Then I tried the Twist with the new transmitter. She, too, did well. I was hovering and flat spinning all over. Early in the second flight, the radio beeped at me. (It has a timer per charge which read 3 hours, 10 minutes. It took me a while to set it up before I got to the field.) Battery low. I landed, left the .61 at idle, turned off the receiver, then the radio. Grabbed my old Futaba 6EXA, made sure it was on the right model, turned on the receiver, checked out the surfaces and took off. I was doing fine, showing Rick how to get into the flat spin. Then, at 300 yards altitude, I put her in an inverted spin with ailerons only, went to zero on the ailerons and held full up on the elevator, then gave full rudder, first with half throttle, then at idle, then at full throttle, back to idle....

Well... I was losing altitude all this time, of course. At 50 yards, low idle, I decided to get OUT of the spin. IT WOULDN'T STOP SPINNING. I tried goosing the motor, giving full ailerons and down elevator. No effect. Then it was too late, and I just stood there watching her go down, moaning somewhere within, but I think I kept pushing up on the elevator, ailerons at zero. The Twist requires about 5 yards going nose down to pick up enough speed for the control surfaces to work. I didn't do a thing to take her out of that spin. (This is my #8 Twist, about three weeks old, brand new OS 61FX on it.) She hit the ground in the field.

Damage? One broken 13x4 APC and a slight bend in the top of the rudder balsa strut. That's all. THAT'S ALL! I won't say it landed like a leaf on a windless day, but I KNOW I've landed Twists harder on the wheels. I checked her out, battery, servos, range (Rick helped) from where I crashed [FIRST WITH THE AERIAL DOWN! Chatter, but control. That place where it hit was 75 yards from the flight line!], everything worked fine. Somehow the vortices created in that spin wouldn't release the plane. Weird, but I've heard of it before. DownTrodden had the same problem with a Sturdy Birdy once. Good thing Rick was there. Nobody here--or at RCUniverse--would believe me otherwise.

So I changed out the prop, fueled up, and took off again! Marvelous flight, including inverted flat spins, very high, of very SHORT duration. Now if that doesn't buy me admission to the "Inverted Flat Spin Landing Club," what does it take? [Gaw, don't answer MONEY!]

At least I don't have to send Horizon another $115.49 for Twist #9.

J

P.S. Waldo, I TOLD you you'd like this story.