FERNDALE AIR FORCE

I think Ron said it is on the way, just getting all the stuff sorted out.

Tim

Ron, the giant bug is 47"!! Tim

Flypaper 2

Jeez. That must be a giant roach.

darticus

A cool giant roach

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ShZs4...ightflite.com/

darticus

Looks like the 47 inch super bug won't come out till the summer. I need practice anyway. Ron

FERNDALE AIR FORCE

As much as I love the bug, right now it only performs well for me in wind. I think I need to go back to basics. Use the provided y connector, get it trimmed out, the switch back to elevons. I'm sure Ron put that in the manual and I skipped it thinking that as long as I got everything square I'd be fine. I flew out half a battery today trying to figure out what I have done wrong. I did something that makes the plane fly tail heavy. I know it isn't the plane. I moved the battery all over the place this afternoon and the problem continued. So it's not a cg issue. I can't mix with my radio, I have a set mix for elevons, so if I setup for 3 channel nd trim it out I should solve my problem.

That said, I flew about the front yard area just fine, no crashes. A couple of hard landings and a mid air with a wire rope/cable that I flew out of. I'm half tempted to split my trim and see if that solves the problem. My problem is with my radio I can't use the trim buttons to do what I need. They just trim both servos, instead of trimming in the elevon mix.

Tim

Flypaper 2

Do you have one servo plugged into the AIL. channel and the other in the elevator channel.?? The elevon or delta mix, depending what make it is, needs to be turned on too.

FERNDALE AIR FORCE

Flypaper, I have the ail. ch and ele ch set up. I have been flying my bug for a while, but I keep chasing a "tail heavy" condition. I think if you read my first flight report, I noted that I wished I could just add a couple of clicks of down ele. The bug as I have it set up now is great for wind, but in a low wind environment it flies tail heavy. Since in my reading on the plane and in e-mails with the creator, Ron, I seem to be the only one to have this issue. Therefore it must be something I have done.

So my thought is to trim it in 3 ch mode and then switch back to elevons. I'm flying with a Hitec flash 5 radio, I assume that more recent radios allow you to add the couple of clicks of down ele, mine simply allows me to adjust the servo then puts it through the mixer then movement. So an adjustment to channel 1 gets spread across both channels 1 and 2.

Tim

Flypaper 2

Tim:
I'm lazy so I set the CG so that when I flip it inverted, the trim doesn't change. This is about half throttle. Can you set the trim on the fly or do you have to land and set the trim for each servo??

Gord.

FERNDALE AIR FORCE

I have to switch to 3-ch mode and guess at the servo, and then fly again.

Tim

darticus

Following your conversation but new to the bug. Can't fly at present as rain has flooded the area. Plan on flying as soon as it dries up and the wind stops. Using the DX7 and set it up as Flypaper 2 told me. Delta wing and the switch the aileron and elevon channels. Have the both flaps set flat with no pitch and wondered if that's the way you set them. For learning I also have the rate set at only 50% movement. Any suggestions? Ron

FERNDALE AIR FORCE

Here's an oops landing. I thought I would try again in dead wind. I let the bug get behind me. Power lines and a nettle jungle lay there. I cut the power to 1/4 and nearly made it out. But, not quite. BTW, I couldn't do this on purpose if I tried for a month.

Carp, no pic's. I hung the plane about 15' up a pole on one of the rungs. Tim

Here are the pics.

darticus

Hey Tim
That looks like mine.
Really getting to fly this but wind is driving me nuts. I fly usually low about 8-15 feet off the ground but when wind kicks up she seems to stand on its tail and wants to go straight up. What do you suggest when this happens to get it into a normal flight. When she bucks the wind I guess you just give it throttle and try to push through. If it gets inverted is the only way to get it back is to roll it or go down which I think is up, or PRAY. Any help would be great!

Flypaper 2

Tim: that's classic. Would love to print it out but don't know how.
Darticus.
Have you tried some down elev. trim?? Should be able to push the nose down a bit and pour on the coal. To light to take the wind very well.

Gord.

darticus

10-4

FERNDALE AIR FORCE

Ron, Mine loves wind and is a blast in it. No wind and I'm in trouble, see pic. I have asked the guys at rcg if they can figure out what's up. but I think it will come down to I can't trim the plane with my radio.

Tim

FERNDALE AIR FORCE

Ron, I roll out of inverted flight. Try taking it to a good size ball feild and send it up to about 60', I am assuming you have a line of sight rx, and play with it at altitude. That's the old 3 mistakes high rule. Just get the feel of it. Did you buy a second battery? I recommend it. That will give 20-25 minutes per session, which gives you more time to get comfortable with the plane. Once you have some flights under your belt, you can bring it down lower. I know it sounds wrong but altitude is your friend. I tend to fly my cessna between 20-60' high.

I took mine to hs and flew for 20+ minutes and had a blast. Tried a new trick, a climbing roll. Gave the plane some extra power as I fed in a left roll pretty cool stuff. Not vertical but 75-80*. I turned 4-5 times before I quit.

Tim

FERNDALE AIR FORCE

Ladies and gentlemen, we have a winner. I tuned the cg with a GP G Machine to 3 7/8 and a tough nose heavy and flew in the yard for 2 batteries. I did not get as crazy as I do at the HS but flew with no hitches. I guess there is a reasonable possibility that I could be flying 3d by summer. Here's what it took for me to get the plane working. Several 2 battery sessions at large fields and some reading and applying the lessons of the "park flying 1-2-3d" training manual. The most important parts so far are, set the angle return to center and pull to turn and the realization that once you set the angle of the turn just a bit of ele will pull the turn through.

Tim

darticus

Fantastic Tim
I just started to have some luck flying it also. I'm flying in a smaller area but flying about 15 laps before I settle her down and take her up again. Flying in an area the size of a baseball diamond+. What is the park flying 1-2-3d" training manual? Where can I get a copy of it? Did it really help? Thanks Ron

FERNDALE AIR FORCE

Ron, I have jst read the basics, but it was definately helpful. Heres a link http://www.rcflightschool.com/ParkFlying_Manual.asp

Tim

FERNDALE AIR FORCE

Ron, for the tiny field I have the cg set for 3 7/8" a touch nose heavy. For a ball field I use the 4 1/8 cg.

Tim

FERNDALE AIR FORCE

Hey guys, still flying a couple of batteries a day, so I figured I had a handle on the plane. So I added some expo. I didn't know whether to go with pos or neg expo, so since I had a 50/50 shot, I chose positive expo. Wrong choice. The bug was 1000 yards away in no time. I recovered and reset the expo to neg. Much smoother flight.

So for negative shift radios, use neg expo. For positive shift use positive. The DX radios are positive.

Tim

darticus

Flying 4 packs and doing good. Taking my time but flying with rudder, ailerons and elevator. Getting there slowly. Now at least I can stay up a full pack at 5 to 15 feet above the ground. Got to watch the wind.
Whats the next plane Tim? Ron

FERNDALE AIR FORCE

Ron, put some air under those wings! I'm flying at about 60'down to 20', at altitude I do outside loops, hover, flip turns etc. It is good to hear that you have the plane tamed though. Really good in fact. What expo are you flying? Or did you do it the same way I did and learn to fly the bug on 0 expo. At the moment I've settled on 30% for outdoor flying.

As to what is next, Let's get your slow stick going. The bug is great at teaching you how to use the controller and how to fly smoothly, unless you do what I do and fly it in the wind, bad Timmy. The bad part of the bug is that it teaches you to fly a delta wing, not a traditional T-type plane. Let me know the spec.'s on your SS. Between the cessna and the Bug you are ready for this plane. Another option is the GWS e-starter, I shredded mine on it's first flight, but it is close to being flyable again. I do lean towards getting you squared away with the stick first. Here's a link to a new thread just about the SS, http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_7214765/tm.htm . And this thread has more airplane stuff going on, but it is fast, you might need to ask twice, http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_6371525/tm.htm , read the first post and then jump in.

Tim

darticus

Hi Tim
My expos are Elevator high 70% low 65%, Aileron high 70% low 65% and rudder 0,0. Don't know it I should change it or leave the settings. What does this do?

My Slow Stick is a Pico Stick. Wouldn't this be the same as a Cessna 210 only bigger???

GWS Pico Stick: Slow & Relaxing Park Flyer ARF

Newbies, beginners, intermediates, experts..this Stick's for YOU!

GWS Pico Stick is a perfect "first plane". Its slow and gentle flight characteristics are enhanced by its light weight which also makes it very durable in case of a mishap. In slightly more capable hands, Pico Stick will loop and even do mild aerobatics!

We have specially combined the stock GWS Pico Stick with our ever-popular Westport "Blue Thunder" brushless CD-ROM outrunner motor. This combination makes for no-maintenance, super-quiet, long and relaxing flights!

Specifications:

Wing Span: 38.2” / Length: 26.2”
Wing Area: 237 sq in / Loading: 3.34 oz/sq ft
Flying Weight: 5.0 to 6.0 ounces
Motor: CD-ROM, Westport 20T recommended
Servos: Any 6 gram, 2 required
ESC: 9-10 Amp brushless, Thunderbird-9 or Phoenix-10 recommended
4 Channel Receiver: Any 4 to 9 gram
Battery: 2 cell Lithium Polymer.
Kit Features:

Assembles ready-to-fly in less than 2 hours.
Detailed Instruction Manual + online photos.
Pre-painted red + stick-on graphics.
Landing gear with "upgraded" super-light wheels.
Powerful & light-weight CD-ROM brushless motor.
EZ to assemble and fly.
Carbon fiber wing rods (optional)

FERNDALE AIR FORCE

Ron, I have not flown the pico stick, the pico stick tiger moth and the pico stick fokker, yes. But essentially, put on a bit of smooth surface give it some throttle and go. Or perhaps just give it a toss. It should fly similar to the cessna.

Tim