stick man

Hahaha, I did not mean to start a war. And i guess you all have good points and I just need to stop worrying about a landing that hasnt happened yet. Its also good to know that i should be careful on take off with the Cub. First things first, right? I will heed that advice.

However, i do want to eventually work on mixes because i like the idea of having flaps, even if the Cub doesnt need them on landing I think they're cool and possibly useful in certain situations.

As far experience goes, I have much more seat time flying real planes than I do RC. Although I am very comfortable flying RC helis (and have been for a couple of yrs), this is my first (non-foamie) RC plane. I have been putting in lots of hours on the sim, though, mainly with the Cub.

So far I have had a blast just building and staring at this thing. So much so that my helis are now gathering dust!

Thanks, guys!

gboulton

My Feedback: (15)

Look who's talking.

===

stick man : whatever else you do, have fun, man.

jaka

Hi!
If this is your first R/C plane..Forget about any mixes and just concentrate the basic four controls.I Have been into this hobby for 36 years ,both helping others learn to fly but formost being into competition (pylonracing, scale ,aircombat and sailplanes) and I can assure you that a newbie cannot concentrate on such things as throwing switches when landing. All his (or hers) brain capacity is fully uccupied with just controlling the basic controls at that stage.

Some advise!
A CUB is not that good when learningto fly. A much better plane is a high winged plane without any resemblence to scale plane, like the Multiplex "Mentor" (electric) or the Kyosho "Calmato" (Glow). Both these type of planes are more forgiveable than a CUB. How I know!?
Well! I have flown many of them and this is a fact among experienced fliers! CUB:s are not suitable for newbies!
I don't like to sit on any high horses but I feel I have to tell it like it is to those that haven't been around as long as some of us have.

tony0707

HI
you have not flown A plane yetyou are not starting with a trainner as you shouldCUBS ARE HARDER TO FLY THAN TRAINNERs just so you know- bet you might be surprised by that -BUT YOU ARE WORRIED ABOUT THE PLANE COMING TO A STOP ? that becomes second nature -after you learn to fly
ALL DUE RESPECT-FIND yourself a club close to home as is possible and then chose a trainner who style of flying and teaching appeals to you at the flying field then you will have a fighting chance to succeed at this hobby with much less expense and a lot less emotional brusing
every club will have a few people who will train you to fly for freein most cases you will have the AMA licience fee and the culbs entrance feethat will include the yearly club dues-the process will reduce you greef and stress level greatly
you may even make a few friends having the same interest in RC you have
just my .02 cents-flying RC for 20 years-more than most ENJOY BEST REGARDS TONY

CGRetired

My Feedback: (1)

Anyone paying attention to this thread, I must say that Gordon (GBoulton) is a mentor, and a great guy. He has been a great help in straightening me out with aerodynamics and flight.

CGr.

Deadstick101

My Feedback: (5)

It's this simple on final flare your Cub to burn off air speed before touch down. When you are close to setting her down ease off elevator and let the plane land on the front wheels. If you have too much air speed you can always add throttle and do a touch and go. You can wait till you are close to the end of the field and use rudder to turn the plane. Cubs are more difficult to handle than some would expect. Heavy Cubs land fast, and cg point of ballance will also have a affect on your landing speed.

stick man

[/quote]

Possible? Sure. You'll just have to mix your own. The "on board" flaperon programming in the DX7 expects channels 1 and 6...your AR500 doesn't have a channel 6, so you get to mix everything yourself. (Yes, yes, the 2nd aileron port is CALLED 6, but it's actually simply a "copy" of the AILE port...essentially, there's a "y harness" built into the receiver)

Advisable? Eh...that's kinda up to you. At this point, you're getting into some pretty complicated mixing and programming, which, unless you just happen to enjoy that sort of thing (like some nerds I know...) can keep you from flying.

If you REALLY want to try it, the process involves using 2 programmable mixes.

Mix 1 is AIL as the master, GEAR as the slave, and the switch (SW) set to ON
Mix 2 is FLAP as master, GEAR as slave, switch set to FLAP

You'll almost CERTAINLY have to dink around with subtrim to get the spoilers/flaps to sync up, and will probably find yourself making a bunch of adjustments to linkage as well.

Not exactly for the faint of heart.

===

Of course, there IS always a much easier option. Buy a 7 ch receiver.
[/quote]

Well I cannot resist and there must be some nerd in me because I love this stuff. and I would like to learn this method if you dont mind explaining it to me.

Heres where I am so far; I tried your setup (mix1 and mix2 as you described above) but nothing changed, when I flip the flight mode sw i still get the Flaperons to activate (but in opposite directions) as before. Do I need to go back into "wing type" and switch off the Flaperons, or is there more to this setup? Thanks!

CGRetired

My Feedback: (1)

I can't say it enough. Forget the gizmo's and learn to fly that plane without them. Landings are a fundamental part of learning how to fly RC and 95% of student pilots learn without the need of any of that stuff. You are far better off learning to land that cub with the four controls at hand without flaps, mixing, or any of that stuff.

Take the plane up, and then practice practice practice... get those landings down. Do repeated touch-and-go's time after time.

The best advice anyone ever gave me is to do as I suggested earlier in this thread.. do long approaches.. point the aircraft right at you from the distance, which will help you with lining up with the runway centerline. Fly the plane, reducing throttle to minimum and let it glide and bleed off airspeed by itself. Believe me, it will do it. Extend your landing approach using slight additions of throttle, reducing it back when you have extended it to the point where you are comfortable with it's altitude. Once you get it right, you can get it to settle in on the wheels almost at your feet.

Flaps, spoilers.. they are crutches and really should be avoided by new RC pilots. YOU fly the plane, not vice versa.

CGr.

gboulton

My Feedback: (15)

I'm fairly sure the answer to your first question is "yes"....and I'm CERTAIN the answer to you second question is "yes" as well. *heh*

TO be honest, if you're in it to just fiddle around, then I'd suggest doing just that. If you're not sure if some setting should be on or off...turn it on or off and see what happens. It is, after all, only a radio. Worst thing you can do is get the program so cocked up that nothing works, and that's what the reset button is for.

IF you want to try that method, best thing to do is to start with a blank model and work from there.

Of course, it's also possible that I'm making all this up, and just have you fooled into wasting hours of your precious time on trivial pursuits...there is, of course, some evidence that I'm good at that sort of thing...

*lol*

CGRetired

My Feedback: (1)

All I can say is "Stick and Rudder". Good stuff. You didn't make that up!!!

By the way, where IS that reset button? I have both a DX6i and a DX7.. someone said that there was a magic button or a sequence to reset everything to factory specs that sets all model memories to "zero". I have a bunch of models in the DX7 that I don't fly any longer, some sold, some in mothballs.. and I would love to reset everything and re-do three of my planes. Sorry.. didn't mean to hijack this thread. I ought to post this in the radio section.. but, if you know, a quick answer would help.

CGr.

mike31

My Feedback: (67)

Finally, someone who can fly a Cub. Good advice. Fly the plane. No need for all that mixing garbage. Cubs are fun and can be well served to let them do their thing with some minor guidence from the pilot.

HighPlains

My Feedback: (1)

Cubs land slow, but if you have a hot airplane that lands fast, the best way to scrub off speed is to use a touch of down elevator to lift the tail up. This will cause a huge amount of drag from the wing and cut the roll out distance by 2/3rds. But you have to have the mains on the ground and rolling before you give the down elevator. Also as you slow down, release the down command and resume a normal attitude.

gboulton

My Feedback: (15)

Eh..for ME, personally, because balancing a tail dragger with fine elevator control, somewhere between "Crap, there goes a prop" and "Well, that was useless, tail never came up at all" seems a whole lot more complicated of a task for a new pilot than flipping a switch...but to each their own, I suppose.

Just a thought.

I don't know of one to reset the entire radio...though on the 7, at least, there IS the rather scarily named "REPROGRAM? YES - CLR KEY" screen in the service menu. WHAT it's going to "reprogram" or how it'll do it, I really have no idea. And I ain't that brave *lol*

Not sure about the system menu for the 6i...or if there even is one.

I know this wasn't what you were asking, CGr, but to cover it just in case:You can, of course, reset a single model.

For the DX7:

Hold Down+Select while turning on the radio, and select the model you want to clear.

Then navigate to the "MODEL RESET" screen, where you'll see "DATA RESET". Use the adjust rocker to move to "DATA RESET", and press the "CLEAR" key. That'll reset THAT MODEL to default settings.

DX6i is similar, but I don't have mine in front of me and it's been too long since I've done it to remember off the top of my head.

CGRetired

My Feedback: (1)

Thanks, Gordon. That is probably what I will end up doing (your last suggestion that is). I, too, am not quite that brave. I'll end up with a radio transmitter that operates like a digital clock or something...

And, I guess I have to agree, to a point. My real problem with flipping a switch, for a beginner, is that the beginner may... just may... take his eyes off of the plane to see if he/she has the right switch, flip it, then.... oh jeez.. where is that plane now!!! Remember that it has moved and won't be where he/she thinks it is. Beginners are not yet intuitive enough.. RC wise, to realize that it did, in fact, move. That usually comes with experience.

CGr.

HighPlains

My Feedback: (1)

A lot of tail draggers have a ton of ground clearance even with the nose down 15 or 20 degrees. The airplane does not want to roll on the ground with the tail high and the wings trying to drive the airplane into the pavement, because the wing is trying to push down against the tail holding it up. This makes for a huge aerodynamic brake.

Now if the fan is still turning and you have landed too fast, just go around and try again.

But if you have dead sticked, blowned the approach and arrived at the runway going way to fast to stop, pushing hard on the down elevator will stop the airplane in a very very short distance and keep you from running off the end of the runway.

RCER88

My Feedback: (25)

Here is another thing to help slow a cub down. Use a larger diameter prop with a lower pitch. That way at low rpm's the engine/prop will not want to keep pulling and act like a brake.

A few years back I seen a guy with a cub. He could not get it to slow down. He asked a couple of us at the field what he could do we looked at the engine and prop. I suggested going up 2 inches in diameter and reduce the pitch by two degrees. He had that prop with him he installed that prop and guess what. It stopped in twenty feet or less after he touched down.

For instance a normal glow 40 will run a 10x6 prop. change it to a 12x4 it will still run at the same rpms but pull less. It slows the airspeed down some and will help slow the airplane down at idle as the prop is not creating pull at low rpm. I use this technique when I need too.

Setting up your plane with the 4 channels and doing it properly you will not NEED any fancy gizmos.

I fly lots of planes with retracts. So I can play with that switch. Flaps are not really needed until you get into larger heavier planes. (warbirds)

My 116 inch wingspan Davis D1w Gas powered does not have flaps. (Much like a cub a high wing airframe.) It stops in less than 40 feet after I touch down. It weighs about 24 LBS. I use 5 channels. Elevator, airelon, throttle, rudder and engine kill.

How the airplane engine/prop is setup can also determine speed at landing.

GerKonig

I had quite a lot of cubs. Still have 2 1/4 scale ones a Sig clipped wing Z26 and a 1/4 scale Busa Quadra 42. No probloem landing those 2 because they are not light. But I had a Goldberg with a 2 stroke OS, that was very light, and it just wanted to keep in the air. It would glide all the length of the field.

The solution was of course to slow her down a lot on the approach, and not de 3 point landings with the thing. The best was to have the main touch the grass, and let her roll and slow down, and then the tail will come down. Any little up elevator got mine back in the air...

On the bigger ones, just like the full size, you have to turn with ailerons AND rudder (othrwise she might not want to turn). I just mixed those 2 in the radio...

Good luck. Get help for the maiden! Oh yeah, do not forget the toe-in. W/out it from tame handling it can get squirrely very fast...

Gerry

gboulton

My Feedback: (15)

Yours would probably blink 12:00 all the time.

Indeed...though, oddly (and by no means do I say this is conclusive, just random chance) the ONLY person I've ever seen do that was an extremely experienced club president!! He took his eyes off his plane to, of all things, find a trim button...next thing you know, several thousand bucks of high end pattern plane is creating a mark in paved runway that's STILL there, 5+ yrs later. *heh*

You make a pretty valid point though...and like I said above, I agree at least with the intent...KISS. The newer the pilot, the simpler we keep things, the better the chance of success and, as a result, continued enjoyment of the hobby.

I guess I'd just argue that what's simple for one may or may not be simple for another, and I DO think there is (in some cases at least) a little bit of "Well, I learned to fly without computer radios, so I'm superior!" going on at times.

Bottom line...if the pilot's comfortable giving it a try, and gets the plane up and down successfully with it, then I'm not much concerned if "it" is a fully automated UAV system, or a balsa glider with a bend in the rudder....whatever works, man.

CGRetired

My Feedback: (1)

I did it when I glanced down at the timer.. but I found the plane, it just wasn't where I thought it would be. I guess I bumped the aileron a tad and it had moved quite a bit to it's left at the time. Scared the heck out of me.. no crash, lucky me. I found that if I raise the radio up to in front of my face, I can just about see the timer as well as the plane. Man, that multi-tasking can be a pain..


But, even 12:00 is right at least once a day (24 hour time)

CGr

stick man

If it makes anyone feel better, I promise to just focus on flying and not the flaperon dealy. And like I've been warned, I'm sure I'll be too busy concentrating on the landing to be flipping switches, at least at first. I just want to learn how to do it so i can eventually play with that sort of stuff. btw can anyone suggest sim setup to better emulate a real (RC) Cub?

jaka

Hi!
There isn't such a thing!
Accept the fact reality is different than simulators! Simulators are good but they are not the real world.
Join a club, take help and enjoy!

FILE IFR

Best advice given

Reading here about the mixes, spoilers, side-slipping, down elevator or 'better radio' advice given to an airplane noob is painful and unbearable to read.

Protect your time and investment... join a club and get serious help for a sucsessful start in the hobby. [8D]

Gray Beard

My Feedback: (-1)

Jan etches all his answers in stone behind his house, I think this one should be etched at the top of the forum in sticky!!! That way when people state how much sim time they have we can throw Jans stones at them!!

jaka

Hi!
Believe it or not ...I'm a real humble guy !

stick man

SUCCESS!!! Today I finally gathered the guts to maiden my Cub and man you guys were right, the take-off was sketchy! It tried to lift off way too early, even with no elev ( or none that was intentional) and then immediately banked hard left. Yikes! I quickly reacted with right aile and full throttle, got her "straight" and then stayed on the gas to gain some alt. Whew, close one!

Then my heart was pounding out of my chest so I just tried to relax and circle around overhead until I could calm down. -took a minute- Then I got it trimmed up ( needed alot of down elev just to get her to fly level at cruising speed) and then made a couple of approaches to get a feel for how the landing was gonna go. Not sure how much batt time i had so on the next approach I got it close to the ground, killed the throttle and set her down nice and easy. Came to a stop with no drama, stoked!!!

Ithink i need to tone down the controls because it was pretty twitchy, there was also some wind that gave me a couple of scares but I cant tell ya how happy I am that I brought it home it one piece!

Also want to say thanks to all of you for the solid advice and heads-up on the Cub take-offs, probably saved me an airframe because I was ready for it. THANKS!!!