Tiger 60 Question
 

I put together a Tiger 60 arf, with a Super Tigre 75. The cg is said to be 3 3/4 to 4 3/4 from the LE. It balances at about 4 1/2 by using 7 oz. of lead in the nose. Is that unusual, or did I possibly read the manual incorrectly?

RE: Tiger 60 Question
 

Not Unusual, a lot of people put 4-strokes in it, and it balances very nicely. 2-strokes need some weight added

RE: Tiger 60 Question
 

Minn, you are a virtual well of knowledge. Thanks for the reassurance on that. I had tried to get it to balance at the recommended 3 7/8 from the LE, but with 9 oz of lead in the nose, you could tell it was nose heavy. I took it back to 7 after the last flight.

Would someone be able to reccommend some kind of pipe system to get the exhaust under the plane? I can spend nearly an hour wiping down the wing and fuselage after just 1 flight. I was thinking about using some soft aluminum tubing to bend to shape. I was having to remove the canopy to clean the inside because of the oil residue.

RE: Tiger 60 Question
 

Think you can turn that wieght into extra large battery stuffed under the tank? My tiger has a G90 and has no balance issues. Im starting to think the arf's might all be that way.

RE: Tiger 60 Question
 

I just finished the Tiger 60 I built from a kit. It has a Saito FA-100 and I needed(?) to add 1/2 ounce of weight underneath the engine to balance (slightly nose heavy) at 4" back from the leading edge of the wing. I did convert to a tail dragger and mounted the engine as far forward as possible. My total weight came out at around 8 pounds, as measured on a bathroom scale. I sure hope this thing flies....

RE: Tiger 60 Question
 

There are exhaust deflectors on the market, but they can cause a loss of power (Been there - Done that) however, recently I've been wondering if cutting a channel in one (Red area) wouldn't reduce the back pressure while still diverting most of the exhaust. Might be worth a shot.

RE: Tiger 60 Question
 

rk - I built it as a taildragger, I wonder if this has any bearing on it...

Minn - I already lost one of those off the plane. I had it mounted to divert as far out and up at the same time as it would go, and it helped from about mid canopy forward. I landed after shooting several touch and goes, and found it completely gone. I know they're only a couple of bucks, but they are ugly too. I found a Pitts style muffler, but had to change the batteries in my pacemaker when I found out it was $60. Then I would have to remount the engine with the cylinder horizontal to make the Pitts work. I was just hopeing to find something inexpensive to do the job until I can re-engineer the front of the plane...

Mars - If I could figure out how to get a battery pack in there, I would have done just that first thing. The access hole is just too small to get a battery in there. For now, I just stuff the extra cable in there from the Y cable. I am going to hook up the ailerons as flaperons when I get a chance to get another pair of servo extensions.

RE: Tiger 60 Question
 

Just a suggestion, but you could kill two birds with one stone if you stuck a 91 4-stroke in it. Turn the nose weight into usable power, and 4-strokes run MUCH cleaner

RE: Tiger 60 Question
 

Perhaps, like me, you have the outlet from the exhaust pointing down. My OS 61FX powered Tiger also gets extremely oily, especially the top of the right wing.

A friend at the field suggested rotating the exhaust nozzle up instead of down. The theory here is that the exhaust will then flow over the wing instead of splattering on the wing. My only concern here is that the oil in the exhaust would have a "tougher" escape path, especially at idle.

I plan on taking a good part of tomorrow afternoon off to get ready for a pattern contest, so I will probably test the theory then. I'll check my C.G. and weight too, for your reference. My plane was kit built (partially by someone else, finished by me) and has no additional weight added, other that a 1000 maH battery instead of a 600 maH located as far forward under the fuel tank as possible. I probably would not even have had to do that, but I converted the plane from a "trike" to a "taildragger" shifted the weight of the third wheel from the front to the back.

RE: Tiger 60 Question
 

Stuk - I had the diverter pointed out and up, prop wash and vibration puts the oil all over the inboard side (upper) of the wing, but also from mid canopy back to the entire tail, vertical stab, horizontal. By the end of a second tank of fuel, the oil drips off the low side of the fuse and around the tailwheel during flight. Engine and prop vibration were making the outlet whip around in about a 1" circle. I would like to get a thin wall aluminum tube, bend it down at 90 and slightly in to terminate about 1/2 to 3/4 of an inch below the main gear at the fuse. As far as the battery goes, how do you get it below the tank? I slid a 14oz tank in there no problem, (it came with a 10, and so did my trainer), but I never saw enough room to get a battery in there. I am using a 1200 mah nimh.

RE: Tiger 60 Question
 

There may be a difference between the kit and the ARF that could account for the fact that I have room for the battery. My battery is a flat, four across configuration, but you probably assumed that. If I remember correctly, the tray for the fuel tank had a rectangular hole cut in it. I was able, with a little "convincing", to slip the foamed and "baggied" battery through the hole so that it would sit wedged between the bottom nose sheeting and the fuel tank floor. Of course, I may be thinking of another plane :D, but I'm 90% sure of this. I'll confirm when I do my "bow to stern" check later tonight.

You say the outlet is "spinning" around? Are you saying that sometimes it points up, sometimes points down, etc ...?

RE: Tiger 60 Question
 

I have 3 holes, maybe 1 - 1 1/2" in diameter in the lower tank support. It was a real pickle to get the blind nuts in for the landing gear. I have a set of curved forceps that I could finally position the blind nuts with to get them in there. No way a battery would fit, unless I cut that section out, and fit something else in there. I had thought of doing just that because I wanted to make it a taildragger.

The exhaust deflector "flopped" around the mounting as it's axis, not rotating on the exhaust flange, but just due to it's flexibility, like a hose under pressure. I think it was a Hobbico, with the support web to the inside of the bend. To keep the exhaust off the majority of the plane, it would have to be about 5 - 6" long and rigid, to keep it from flexing too much. That was why I thought that you may be able to make what I wanted to do out of some thin tubing, and get it down just below the belly.

RE: Tiger 60 Question
 

Just finished prepping mine for tomorrow. Total (dry) weight is 8lb, 4oz. This is as weighed on a postage scale, so it's pretty accurate. CG is 4.75 in back from the leading edge. Sounds like at your weight you should have no problem flying yours, although you will probably want to move the C.G. back as you get comfortable flying this plane.

I was mistaken about the battery. I do have two rails holding up my fuel tank to the correct level, and there is suffecient room for a battery underneath it, but I must have been thinking about another plane with the rectangular hole in the center of the fuel tank tray. The battery on this plane is directly under the receiver, mounted as far forward in the wing saddle as it can. No additional weights, fore or aft added.

I chickened out and only rotated the exhaust a little bit up from where I had it. If I see any change in the "rate of mess", I might try moving it some more. I keep telling myself, baby steps, take baby steps!

RE: Tiger 60 Question
 

I have a new Tiger 60 ARF and find that the nose gear lacks strength. I typically do about 8 or 9 minutes of flying then several touch and goes before landing it. When I finish, I find that the nose gear is always bent slightly to the left. Other than it's potential political leanings :), anyone have that problem? All my landings were soft yet the gear still bent slightly to the left.

I have considered replacing it with Fults nosegear but they are a tad heavy, albeit very strong.

Suggestions? Perhaps going to tail dragger will fix that problem. I dunno..

RE: Tiger 60 Question
 

I built mine right off the bat as a taildragger. One word of caution, if you do convert, in the manual it tells of a dimension to measure, that dimension is the extent of the bracing and a small former in the bottom. Remove the fuel tank and you will see what I mean. When you go to put the blind nuts in, you must remember to compensate for the width of the flange of the blind nuts, if you accidently drill too close to the former, you won't have enough room to install them in. Also, you will have to find a way to reach inside the "compartment" where the blind nuts go, I have a set of curved forceps that worked, with a little fanangaling.

RE: Tiger 60 Question
 

Ok, here is the opening, and a spare battery pack. I took a look from the tank side, 6 holes, and they are more like 3/4". The tank bracket is glued in.

RE: Tiger 60 Question
 

As far as the CG goes, it is right now at 4.5". Not quite the rear maximum, 4 3/4. It is simplistic, but that is my CG machine.

RE: Tiger 60 Question
 

Homebuilt prop balancer. The device to hold the prop is a finger balancer, suspended between 2 magnets from discarded computer hard drives. They are fairly powerful magnets, and have held all of my props. I made the one side somewhat loose to accomodate the insertion and removal of the balancer with the prop on it.

RE: Tiger 60 Question
 

I too had nose gear probs with my ARF tiger 60. But Fultz nose gear fixed that solid as a rock.. Mine came in nearly 1 lb tail heavy with Saito 91.. Iso mounts, Big bat, Heavy spinner, and battery solved that prob.

RE: Tiger 60 Question
 

Another option would be to cut a hatch on the fuse bottom under the tank.

RE: Tiger 60 Question
 

I don't think that I have anything that would cut like that. Very thin. Plus, since it is lite ply, it would have to have fine teeth to keep from splintering it, right?

RE: Tiger 60 Question
 

Since it's light ply, you could just use a razor blade or hobby knife. then add blocks in each corner to screw into.

RE: Tiger 60 Question
 

My "tiger 90" seems happy with balance, have not wieghed it. Not quite finished yet... Im a slow builder I guess. G90 in nose. Im very pleased with the kit version.

RE: Tiger 60 Question
 

Make sure Mars that you seal that canopy. If the G90 slimes like my 75 does, you will wear out the screws cleaning it up. I am trying to find a way to get the exhaust under the wing, without flipping the engine on the mount.

RE: Tiger 60 Question
 

BIngo, If you want to , you can use a home-made exhauxt diverter. Thin walled tubing will work, but it should be larger than the exhaust pipe. Here's a diagram of one that I made for my son's first trainer. It was thin walled aluminum, and strapped to the side of the plane. It didn't add much weight, and it worked very well. I think the secret was using the large diameter tubing (I don't remember exactly, but it was about 5/8 tubing), it was about twice as large as the "Tail Pipe" and it allowed outside air to go through it (No tight seal).