I just recently finnished building my driect connection eclipse Trainer, and was wondering what is everything i should check before flying. i am having an experienced professional (mike Barbee of columbus) look at it, but i was wondering if i could look it over myself before see'ing him. any help would be appriciated.




p.s......the direct connection eclipse is a trainer manufactured by capstone hobbies in westerville ohio. it is by far the best trainer i have every seen.. it is very stable, and can be a simple sport plane with an increse of servo throw......if you have any ?'s of where/how to get this plane p/m me or post here...Thanks!

just take it to him. It is tough to say without actually being able to inspect the plane, and there is nothing wrong with him finding a couple little things that he would change. when somebody wants to help a beginner, that means that is what they would like to do to help out.

Hmm, some obvious things:

1) Check the center of gravity with everything installed less glow fuel.

2) Check, check, and triple check all bolts and screws are nice and tight.

3) Check throws per manual.

4) Check for servo binding and try to eliminate as much as possible (battery drain).

5) Check for reversed servos (not a big deal because it can be fixed in most radios easily).

6) Check prop is nice and tight on crankshaft and check engine mount while you are at it. You should be able to pickup the plane by the nose of the engine.

7) Check that fuel tank has appropriate configuration, a) hose to carb goes to klunk in fuel tank b) klunk should not be rubbing against the back of tank and should move freely c) hose from muffler to tank and up to top of tank (vent) d) check for leaks in the fuel tank if possible

8) Pull all hinge locations firmly to ensure that you don't have any loose control surfaces or poorly glued hinges.

9) All sensitive components (battery, fuel tank, receiver) should be wrapped in foam.

10) Check control horns, linkages, EZ connectors, pushrod snaps, etc for breaks or loose fit.

11) Check servo mounts are installed per instruction manual including rubber grummets.

12) Ensure receiver antenna is not tangled or wrapping around any metal parts (push rods) and if it exits the fuselage at any point, it should be secured appropriately to prevent it from catching on anything during takeoff or landing.

13) Stress the landing gear to ensure that it is installed and doesn't falloff. You can do this by bouncing the plane around a *bit* on a table or the ground. Try pushing the plane around on the ground to ensure the nose gear is close center and not veering off to one direction too much.

14) Have at least one or two experienced builders/flyers check it over because something that might be considered OK for you may be blatantly wrongly configured to someone with more experience.

That's some stuff I can think of based upon what I and my instructor(s) did on my pre-flight checks with my Tiger 2 this season.

I think xed covered it pretty well.

I'd also mention that you should have some type of "keeper" on the clevises, like fuel tubing, to prevent them from opening on their own.

Put the plane on the ground or a table, stand a ways behind it and make sure that the tail is vertical, and that the horizontal stab is in line with the wings.

Mike Barbee is a well known name in RC. You're in good hands.

Good luck and have fun!
Dennis-

thank you for all of the fast replies. also, anybody have any tips on checking the cewnter of gravity? my fingers slip whenever i try it, b/c it is hard to get a good grip from right under the wing.

That's all pretty much covered...

Maybe check the prop for balance.. and the model for laterally
balance.. And of course good charged batteries..

okay, here are a couple. first, just stick your fingers straight up and try it that way. 2nd, get a plumb bob and hang it from a decent height, hang it from an eyehook on a beam somewhere. next, tie a string around the very tip (i mean the very tip) of your rudder and slip the string through the eyehook and hang it down. Tie the other end as far forward as you can like the tip of your spinner or close to it. make sure the plane is level, then lower the plumb bob down to where it is just above the fuselage. close all doors and windows, let it sit for a while so that it ends up standing completely still. after a couple minutes, walk back in and mark where the plumb bob is pointing to. this is your cg. see, the cg will want to be directly under the centerpoint becasue of gravity. you can test this by adding weight to the nose. you will notice the plane will slide back a little. this is a great tool also because it makes it easy to laterally balance your aircraft. if it wants to tip to one side, add a little weight to the other side until it does not tip over by itself. this is not really that important for a trainer but when you get into sport planes or 3d planes it becomes necessary.

....Buy, beg, borrow, or steel a GP balance machine....

Use sandpaper on your finger tips. If that fails try some Medium CA to help hold them in place!

JUST KIDDING!!

that actually worked......it left a big white blotch where the cg is, but other than that, it worked great!!!!(other than a bunck of clumped CA on my hand....
















JUST KIDDING!!