That is really bad news--I really feel for you-(after killing my GP Pitts yesterday, I can say I know how you feel)--It seems the great ones never last very long.

Sachs 3.7 (yes a bit much ) / flying weight 17.25 #'s. still trying to learn 3D. I had not set the plane up for 3D yet just easing it around and WACK

anyone performing blenders???

I have done a few with no problem. How many flights were on the airframe when this happened. Had any other little dorks or hangar rash accidents happened. hopefully (for the rest of us) it was a fluke and GP will furnish you a new airframe as it really looks like it just blew apart. I have thought before it seems like the wing tube doesnt go all that far in to the wing

Sorry to see and hear that happened. I just wanted you to know that Great Planes (Hobby Services) is EXCELLENT in taking care of problems. My Patty now has 79 flights on it and with a few minor problems, that Great Planes took care of immediately, it's still alive. I've been told by Lisa at Hobby Services that the best way to rectify problems so that they too have an idea of what's happening with their products is to send the defective part to them. Maybe a phone call with e-mails and picture attachement will suffice for them. I too am interested in the amount of flying time you had on the plane. Again, sorry to see such a beautiful plane go down... I guess I'm sorry to see any plane go down.

Cap Tain, What were the few minor problems?......John

The aircraft had less than 20 flights all which we wonderfull exept for this one. And yes it is very evedent that the wing blew apart in the air.

I spoke with Lisa today and She said to send the wreckage in and they would replace it ( HOPEFULLY )

Flyn - I know you're probably tired of the requests...but there's lots of us who would like to know...

The photos don't show much in the way of spar longerons. Were there any? What condition?

Looks almost like a fracture could have started from the aileron inboard cutout. What's your thought?

As you examined the mess....was it structural, or adhesive related? Do you have any idea?

Is there no aft spar where the aileron leading edge joins the wing?

Were there any symptoms of any structural stuff during assembly? Did anything feel weird??

It does seem to be structural and not adhesive related, to answer the question about how the wing is built it looks to be in the same manner of a 40-60 size wing with no extra longerons or webbing. The spars seem to be made of 1/4 x 3/8 stock. I have never built a large scale aircraft before so I honestly can't compare it with another wing of this size. This is actualy my first 1/4 scale aircraft comming from 60 size birds. I heard that the bigger they are the easier to learn 3D. I love the way the aircraft flies, it tracked well and was easy to handle the plane had a Sachs 3.7 With electronic ignition swinging a 22x10 prop. All up weight was 17.25 lbs. with 30# of thrust.This motor is a bit heavy for the plane but,it is still in the recommended range. I do believe that the wing is a little under built for the motors recommended.
(BT-50 Weighing about 2or 3 oz less than a G 62 ) but I also believe that my Failure was a freak thing.I hope to hear good news from GreatPlanes about the mess. And I hope to hear from you guys on my quest to learn 3D. BTW I'm not giving up.



PS does anyone have any info on the linkage set up for the timming advace on the Sachs 3.7? I think the motor is ok exept for the linkage due to the muddy ground it hit.

Flyn:

I had to replace the linkage on my Sachs 4.2 last year and called CH Ignition. He told me that i could just use DuBro bellcranks to fix it. Worked great. The only thing is setting the timing. If i were you, i would just give them a call and maybe send it in to them for inspection and repair. Very good people to deal with and for me was quick service. He can also check to see if anything else was damaged. (sensor etc.) when you get it back it will be perfect.

Lee B : do you have the number for Ch Ignition ?

I am just about finished with extra and as I was installing the dual rudder servos it occured to me that I'm not sure how to connect them to receiver. Does anybody know how to dual rudder servos on a JR 10X without using a "Y"? I figured out the elevator servo connections.

Thanks,

Andy

Flyn:

The number is: 1-307-857-6897. There hours are 9-5.

There Website is: www.ch-ignitions.com

Hope this helps

Thats the funny(or not so funny) thing.It was on a 45 deg downline at IDLE rolling to level when the wing decided to file its own flight plan

Andy,
Look at Horizon Hobby's website on the main page. In the article section, there's a pretty big adobe file that gives you the setup of a giant scale plane with the 10X. Hope this article helps. http://horizon.hobbyshopnow.com/articles/1169.asp

Flyn, what were the wing spars made of-- balsa, spruce or some other material. Hanger 9 had a problem with the Edge 540 a few years back with its wing. Seems the wing spars were only balsa stock and broke apart in the air. Hanger 9 replaced many planes because of that mistake in production. I hope our PW300s have more than a balsa spar in the wing.

That is just what I needed. Thank you.

Andy

hey

I have got one side of my tube completely stuck in a wing half will someone tell me how long the tube is or the half way point thanks

The tube length is 26" And inserts in my wing 8-1/8" hope this helps. good luck.

I had a similar problem yesterday. The wings did not sit flush with both sides of fuse, was like the wing tube was too long, then of course the wings were stuck on! Well after 35 minutes of "gently" twisting and pulling the wings finally came off. A closer inspection revealed that the sheeting was cracked a both wing tips, not to mention the dings and bruises encountered during the 35 minute extraction process. If this keeps happening there will be no wings!

hey, i know what happens when there are no more wings (right wing anyways) It aint nothin nice 17# comes out of the sky like a hunk of s!#t. Very ugly. Inspecting the motor closer just happy to see no more than the linkage is damaged.

Thank you very much for the info, just the answer I was looking for I'll call tomorrow

Did anyone else find grinding the OEM spinner harder than the norm? I have only had Tru-Turn aluminum spinners in the past and with a dremel, the Tru-Turns seem to grind away much easier.

I know they are made differently but I ended up chewing through six dremel bits and still none of my four different brand of props fit!

I made such a mess of the OEM spinner that I just bit the bullet and bought a Tru-Turn 4" Ultimate spinner direct from the factory drilled for my BME 50 w/prop nut and machined for all the brand props I am going to try. While it cost me $130, which is ridiculous if you ask me, it does look absolutely gorgeous and I know I have a perfectly balanced spinner.

My largest engine that I've flown with before this is a Saito .80 and I would always just hack away and balance on my Top-Flite magnetic prop balancer. Problem is that once I started hacking away at this thing, I realized that the spinner would not fit in the prop balancer. Being this my first gas engine and a plane of this size I felt I should get it done right as I am working with a 22 inch prop now instead of a 13 inch.

I thought the OEM spinner was a great idea with not having to buy a special prop nut for it. I only wish Tru-Turn would adapt the same on their spinners.

d4a2n0k

I used the Dave Brown Ultimate Spinner cut for the 3W48B2 and a 20 X 10 prop. The whole deal with the adapter cost me around $55 direct from Dave Brown.

Du-Bro makes a prop balancer that uses wheels instead of magnets. It is possible to configure this balancer so that the large prop overhangs the workbench and the axle rests on the lower set of wheels the back part of the axle pushes up on the bottom of the second set of wheels. This way your prop can spin all the way around and it is possible to get a good balance on the prop.

Andy