i crashed the nexstar
 

[&o] well i was doing se well. 40 or so flights. but i guess the rookie bug will still come out and grab ya. was comming in for a landing and the plane was going to be a little long in the landing. it was early in the am on saturday. so i decided to power up and come around for another try. as the plane lifted it banked to the right. just so happens the sun was comming up just to the right of the runway. lost the plane in the sun. duh!!! the next sound i heard was a thud. split wing in half and cracked the leading edge of one wing half. the receiver/battery tray was cracked. engine incased in mud. but its fixable my instructor said hell get it back together. might take him a couple of weeks. anyhow. since i had extra free time this weekend i was able to get my kaos put together. and hope to maiden it some time this week. take heed stay away from the sun.

RE: i crashed the nexstar
 

Yep. good ol' Murphy get even the best of us sometimes.

that's why I always recommend sunglasses AND a hat with a brim (Note to some of you younger folks out there that don't know any better: The brim is supposed to face the FRONT to keep the sun out of your eyes!)

If you get near the sun, dip the brim for a second or two just so you don't look directly into the sun as the plane flies through it.

Zurich Sunglasses are also a really great asset, if your assets will allow you to purchase a set.

I saw them for the first time last year, but let me state that there are millions of cheap knock-offs out there that are no better than plain ol' sunglasses, but while the Zurics are quite pricey, they are really outstanding.

RE: i crashed the nexstar
 

Speed good, altitude good, sun [:'(]. Sorry about that. Was helping a guy the a while back and lost one to the sun gods. It was struggling to stay in the air due to a poor running engine (OS-LA) and as I was trying to bring it in it got into the sun and since it was already in a marginal flight regime it stalled and went in. My fault in the long run but at least it is fixed now and we flew it again 8 days ago.

RE: i crashed the nexstar
 

the thing that got me was is that the sun had just come up over the horizon. and that thing is like 10 times bigger when it first comes up.

RE: i crashed the nexstar
 

Technically, the sun's not any bigger when it rises and sets. It just appears bigger because you see it in close proximity to objects on the ground (or at least that's what i've heard).

Sorry to hear about the crash. Sounds like otherwise everything was going great. I've had problems with the sun before. I usually am able to just let go of the sticks and let it fly out of the sun. It's when we panic that we get into trouble. Sound's like that wasn't really an option in your case.

-Scott

RE: i crashed the nexstar
 

Thanks, Minn, now I have to clean coffee off my monitor...

:DDave Olson

RE: i crashed the nexstar
 

Actually, the sun's rays travel through a longer atmosphere at sunup and sunset that's why it looks so much larger. It gets magnified somewhat by the atmosphere.

RE: i crashed the nexstar
 

If I wear the brim in the front, how do I keep the sun off of my neck? I don't want to become a redneck!

RE: i crashed the nexstar
 

Grow long hair to keep the sun out!:D

RE: i crashed the nexstar
 

minn. you need to come up with a certificate for the crashers. instead of an attaboy.. maybee have a dumb thumbs cert. or something like that

RE: i crashed the nexstar
 

Thats why i stay clear of the sun , I look to see what direction its in and i wont even bother with going that way ...too bad you messed up your plane , guess you got more time to fish now ![:-]

RE: i crashed the nexstar
 

Hi,

I had a similar experience some time ago. One of the other club members pointed out that I was holding a sun shade ( the transmitter)[:@]. Now when this happens I hold the transmitter up to block out the sun, by definition it is also pointing at the model. If it isn't it's back to the workshop.

In Australia we have the dubious claim to having the highest rate of skin cancer in the world. For your own protection always wear sunglasses, hat with brim, and sunscreen. Clothes help too:D.

Cheers,

Colin

RE: i crashed the nexstar
 

HAHAHAHA... man, that one line really got me. :)

RE: i crashed the nexstar
 

I also vote for the clothes, otherwise you may get a rather embarrassing sunburn.IMHO

RE: i crashed the nexstar
 

Sunburn??? What about that pesky prop??!!

RE: i crashed the nexstar
 

Sorry to here bout the plane. But 40 flights is not too bad. At least it wasnt the first

RE: i crashed the nexstar
 

Second what Minn says about the Zurichs. Our field faces East and a lot of guys don`t fly in the early AM because of it. While I don`t do it purposefully, my dark grey Zurichs will let me fly right through the sun if I mess up and head into it. I use a rose tint pair for every other light condition. They are definitely worth the price IMHO.

RE: i crashed the nexstar
 

well like i said it was early am and when it hit the sun it was only about 10 feet off the ground. it wouldent have been to bad if there where any space under the sun to work with but i did not have that option. crap! going to maiden the kaos tommarrow. hope i dont go 2 for 2.

RE: i crashed the nexstar
 

Please stay away from the sun and remember the Kaos is much more responsive and faster landing.

Good luck. :)

RE: i crashed the nexstar
 

ya thanks bruce, fortuanatly my instuctor is meeting me tommarrow and i will be on a buddy box. my computor radio has not come in yet so we will be maidening on high rates. and ill tell ya that tt 46 screems. we broke it in this am. and even my inst. was saying that hes gonna have to get a few. ill start a new post tommarrow and let yall know how it went.

RE: i crashed the nexstar
 

you should be happy, now you defenetly got a reason to buy a new plane :D (sry 'bout the loss though)

RE: i crashed the nexstar
 

The better engines are worth it for sure. My OS 40la was acting up (How surprising) and my instructor put his 46 AX on there with a graupner 3 blade, And it was awsome. Till i brought the nose in too low for landing. I owe him a prop now.

RE: i crashed the nexstar
 

We're lucky enough to have a north-south runway, and the sun to our back in the morning. But as and instructor my students sometime get into awkward situations and I have to take control of the plane as it's getting ready to cross over the sun. I have polarized clip-ons for my glasses that do a great job of cutting a lot out, but I do something else that has kept me from ever losing sight of one. As I know that I'm going to have to cross the sun, I make a quick mental calculation of the planes path and project that to the other side of the sun. I then direct my eyes to the other side of the sun, cross my fingers and toes and wait, and hope it comes out where I predicted. This keeps me from looking directly into the sun. Hasn't failed me yet.

Hope this helps

RE: i crashed the nexstar
 

You probably already know this but it's worth a reminder. You can also set the throws by using the outer holes on the aileron/elevator/rudder control horns. That will at least reduce the severity of the action by these control surfaces until you can put in the computer radio and set dual rates.

RE: i crashed the nexstar
 

Yeah, some of the guys at the club that have OS LA's have gone away from the LA to the AX and FX engines. I don't own an LA but do own several OS engines in the 40 - 50 size all of which are FX or AX models. All run strong and have good throttle response.

Another outstanding engine for the cost is the Evolution series from Horizon Hobbies. I have an Evolution 40 and it runs very well with great power and the price is about half of the OS engines, not that I would replace an OS with one... just bought one as an experiment and was pleasantly surprised.