Good suggestions. I haven't gone back and checked horns or servo at neutral. I did purchase two CRC gauges to help with the diagnoses.

On high rates, full up, the elevators are 2 degrees different. On full down, high rates the elevator halves are 4 degees different. This is so little that it isn't visible. However, It is enough to roll the plane significantly in a very tight loop.

Everything pretty much lines up on normal rates. This also gave my a scare on a landing when I hadn't switch off high rate elevator. With full up I dropped a wing tip at the last second. Yikes.

You will find that it takes very little control surface movement to make something happen.

I am in the process of adding 1 oz of tail weight right now.

Ahhh, come on LooneyTunes, just run a couple of tanks through, richen it up real good and take to the air. You will find that you will spend all of your time well under 1/2 throttle.

Unfortunately I spent my kitchen pass for the weekend flying one of my other planes. The wife only gives out one per weekend. The rest of the weekend is for honey-do's and family stuff(mostly honey-do's). But I did get to run the engine in the backyard. The wife thought I was mowing the lawn.

I did learn something. If anything is loose, the fourstroker will shake it off the plane. While running the engine, the muffler fell off, the cabane strut screws I put loosely into the struts disappeared, and the throttle servo fast connect came loose. Oh, and it helps if you get the pressure and fuel lines straight. Engines don't run long off the pressure line.

But next weekend is it! She will fly or else.

I finaly got everything set up to my satisfaction and took her up for the maiden flight. In one word this plane is awesome!

I started with some taxiing on the runway to get the feel for it. After a little of that I just firewalled the throttle and off she was. Unlimited vertical hardly describes it. She went up like a rocket.

I didn't do anything fancy on her first flight. Some loops, rolls and hammerheads. Heeding the warnings posted here, I brought her in with a little power on for a nice landing. All I can say is that I ended the flight with a big grin on my face.

I only put in one flight because during break-in that .63 fourstroker shook a few things loose. So I wanted to be on the safe side and go over everything before flying again.

The recommended control surface throws are somewhat conservative. Plus she is a tad noseheavy. I'll have to put some weight in the tail before the next flight. That should improve the rudder and elevator authority. And maybe tweak the ailerons a little. Oh, did I mention that this plane rocks!

Well, today was my day to fly the DP Ultimate 40 for the first time. I used a Saito 72 for power which is mounted inverted. The plane came out 5 lbs, 8 ounces. That's with 3 standard Hitec 425's in the fuse and 2-Expert micro's for ailerons. I mounted the aileron servos with wood instead of using the plastic hatches. I had some scrap covering to seal around the servos. The standard 4 cell pack was mounted in the tail behind the canopy for balance. I threw out the crappy plastic spinner and installed a Tru-turn with an APC 13x6 prop.

On the first flight I noticed the plane rolling left with up elevator. After landing, I adjusted the pull-pull on the left elevator and took the plane up again (I don't care for the pull-pull on elevator). This seemed to correct the problem and I then had the chance to test the plane. It rolls nice and axial. Knife edge has some pitch and roll coupling but not horrible. I was able to knife edge loop the plane several times and it looked quite good with some elevator and aileron input. Four point rolls are not real precise due to the coupling. Torque rolling is possible. With 3 attempts I got one decent 3 turn (fairly fast) torque roll. Inverted flight needed some down, more then I thought it should but I had plenty of throw for inverted loops. I felt comfortable enough to do some low level inverted passes. Snaps are fast and furious with sometimes a slow recovery. I have 2 inches of rudder throw which will bring the plane into a deep stall. Less rudder would slow the snap and probably help on the recovery.

Landing was a no brainer. I carried some power until the threshold of the runway, cut power to idle, flared before touchdown....very easy.

I think the CG is pretty good. Im at 3/4" in front of the rear cabane. I would'nt mess with it the way that it's flying.

Considering it was a pretty windy day, Im very happy with the plane. The crosswind affected the performance but it was managable.

The Saito 72 is a very good combination. It's not overpowered. I was concerned about mounting inverted but it runs great and idles fantastic.

Chris

Looney Tunes - Congrats...sounds like you had a blast with it. Question...I'm in the process of deciding between Saito 80, Saito 72 and YS 63 for this plane and curious if the nose heavy was due to the .63? Did you move the battery back as far as possible?

Also....anybody else who has flown this curious if they have opinions on which of the above 3 motor choices you would recommend or discourage if any.

RCadmin;
My CG came out right between 3/4" and 7/8". It is very close. I have the battery mounted just aft of the servos between the formers. It could be that I came out a little noseheavy because of the few 'improvements' I have made. Things like hardwood blocks on the landing gear block and triangle stock on the firewall. Plus I think the Perfomance Specialties muffler I am using is a little heavier than stock. The lateral balance came out perfect.

As for engines, I have no experience with the Saito's. But the .63 YS is just great. I am turning a 12X8 APC prop at 10000 RPM. She peaked at around 11200 RPM. But I am still running her rich. The throttle transition from idle to full is nearly instant. It is like pulling a trigger.

As for performance with this airframe, I am very pleased. Plenty of power to pull that Ultimate around. 1/4 to 1/3 throttle for most flying. If you decide to use the .63, you won't be disappointed.

LooneyTunes,

Congrats on the maiden flight. Sounds like your attention to detail paid off for you. Do you have a rocket driving license?

I ended up adding 1 oz of weight to the left wing tip and 1.8 oz of weight to the tail to get the CG right. That is with the battery to the rear of the servos.

My DP ultimate expired late Friday evening. After many flights and a long week, I became disoriented one mistake high in the red/orange twilight and froze on the rudder. Two mistakes later the soy field ate the bird. Needless to say this arf is built for flying. The top wing was the only thing to survive along with all the electronics. The CF gear made it unscathed also.

My wife thinks this is all very funny because I am not known as a crater creating flyer. She now knows how to get my goat.

I think the experience with the plane was positive enough to go out and get another one. I will be accepting any and all donations to the cause.

jwatwood - sorry to hear of the loss...that does stink It's one thing I do hate about this hobby...

From what it sounds like from both of you is that with a Saito .80 I'll need some weight at the tail on this perhaps....must decide soon???

jwatwood;
I too am sorry to hear about the loss. That really sucks. I hope you can get another one soon to get over it.

RCadmin;
I got her balanced. With a FZ .63 it took 1 1/2 oz of lead in the tail to get the CG in the middle of the specified range. She should handle much better now.

Interesting. LooneyTunes, have you flown it with the new tail weight?

I found mine came off the ground in a much shorter distance and landing was much easier. Didn't run out of elevator. I spent the second to last flight doing continuous touch and goes.

How is the engine torque? I found that I had to add in a considerable amount of right rudder to maintain a straight 45 degree up line. Are you experiencing the same?

jwatwood;
I haven't flown it with the added weight yet. But I expect that she will handle a little better. Should slow down the landings a little too.

Yes. I believe it took some rudder to couteract the torque. Especially on takeoff. But I wasn't really paying much attention. I was having too much fun just throwing the sticks around. I'll have to pay more attention next time I fly and take mental notes.

LooneyTunes,

Any more comments or observations on the flying capability of the Ultimate 40? Any other tips you might add?

I am going to try it again. I acquired a new Ultimate 40 yesterday. I was harrassed (In fun) by the wife. Something about the anniversary present she gave me not being good enough.

JDub

Maiden flight yesterday with 5 subsequent flights.
Inverted YS 63 with MACS 90 degree adaptor and 7.5" flex pipe.
Fut 9404 on ELE and RUD.
JR 3421 on AIL.
Fut 3003 on THR.
700Mah NICD up front (cg @ 3/4" per inst.)
Tru-Turn 21/4"w/APC12x7.

Great flying sport plane! no drag like big bro. Plane speeds at
half throttle! Lands like big-bro!

jwatwood;
I spent some time flying the Ultimate last weekend. With the CG in the middle of the specified range, she is one great flying machine. I haven't found anything that she won't do. She makes me look like I know what I am doing.

But seriously, I don't think you can go wrong with the Ultimate. As you already know, she is great flier. Good luck and enjoy.


Here are my final specs:

YS FZ 63 engine
Stock tank (~ 9 Oz, ~ 9 mins at WOT)
2X Hitec HS 5245MGs(rudder, elevator)
2X Hitec HS 225MGs(ailerons)
1X Hitec HS 85MG(throttle)
Airtronics 92777Z micro receiver
700 MAh Airtronics battery pack
APC 12X7 prop (I will try a 13X6 next time out)
Tru-turn 2 1/4" jet style spinner

Dry weight: 5 1/4 lbs
Balanced in the middle of the specified range. (1 1/2 oz lead in tail)
Lateral balance came out perfect, no weights needed.

Mods:
Used Dave Brown engine mount and 6-32 hardware
Wing cabane strut lug holes were 1/8" off. I filled the holes and drilled new ones.
Triangle stock firewall reinforcement
Hardwood landing gear reinforcement
Converted to 1/4-20 nylon wing screws
Replaced metric interplane strut crews with 4-40X1/2 hex cap crews and blindnuts
Replaced aileron connecting rods with carbon fiber
Replaced axle bolts with Goldberg bolt-on axles.(No wheelpants)

Couple Questions:

1) Anyone who has put Hitec 225's in this plane do you have a pic you can upload? I want to see how you centered the elevator servo in the tray and how big & what kind of arms you used on pull-pull

2) On the cables the instructions call out to pull cable through servo arm...use CA etc...did anyone solder the cables or is the method outlined in the instructions sufficient in your opinions

3) Has anyone attempted mounting rudder or elevator (or both) servos in tail of this plane? I see many were nose heavy so curious if anyone tried it and if so had some pics.

thanx

Hey did anyone suggest a Saito 72 instead? It's like 1.23 oz lighter than the YS 63. It can swing a 14x5N APC @ 10500 rpm. Is that more powerful than the YS 63?

I listed the HP ratings in an earlier post in this thread...Saito 72 has less power than the YS...YS is at 1.5HP and think the Saito was 1.2 (check earlier post of mine on that one though)

Looneytunes - I have the same problem as you I think....center holes on top wing appearto be off 1/8" - 1/4" so I have to drill new holes...when you did it was it apparent if there was a hardwood block in there for reinforcement? I don't want to drill forward and go into soft wood there.

Also can you describe how you reinforced landing gear plate? I ripped mine off an Extra 300 this past week so I'm going to want to beef up landing gear plates for now on....do you have pictures of how you did it?

RCadmin:
I see you already went ahead and redrilled the holes.

As far as the landinggear block goes, I glued two hardwood blocks in the corners between the fusalage sides and bottom. The blocks are about 1"X3/4"X1/2". Sofar the landinggear has survived my less than perfect landings quite well.

LooneyTunes,

I am almost finished with number two. I experienced the same problem with the second kit as you did. You know, the center cabane holes not lining up. Mine are a full 1/4 center to center to far to the rear.

I think DP had a run of kits with the problem.

jwatwood...as stated above mine were off too so I filled and redrilled...ok now. Glad to see in a way it wasn't something I did to misalign the holes...I always blame myself first...

looneytunes - I reinforced firewal with some triangle stock and also some blocks on the landing gear plate for a little extra support. Minimal weight added from either but worth the extra bit of security.

Hey guys!

I finally got mine yesterday and am looking forward to putting her together and getting her up in the air with her big sister DP330L that I also am flying. DP sure makes a nice kit!

Have any of you heard about or thought of putting a smoke system on yours? If so, I'd love to hear about it. I think we have the room and the power to add it onboard. What do you think?

I've gone with the YS63 since I've been following all of your comments before deciding on what to do. I've enjoyed all of your help and you all should get a kickback from Dave for helping me with my purchase.

Thanks, Jim

Jim,

Smoke sounds real interesting. I have never done a smoke install so if your decide to do one I will expect to see some pictures.

Have fun with your assembly!

Jim

I have an OS .61 SF ABC (2-stroke) lying around and I'm considering getting this plane for it. I shot an e-mail to Dave Patrick Models asking them what they thought but they refused to say anything other than insisting on using the recommended engine size. What would happen if I put this engine in the DP Ultimate 40? Would it be too heavy? Too big? Too much power? Please let me know what you think.