Fun with Flat Foam
03-30-2008, 08:57 AM
#3201
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RE: Fun with Flat Foam
I've used rcfoam.com once (order #19135)... and will look for alternatives next time I have to order. I only ordered in stock product, and it took them over a month to actually ship the order, and only after a few emails asking wth was going on. However I will say that it was packaged well, and the product was in excellent shape when it arrived
could there been some hold up on the shipping due to you living in another country? Just wondering.
I know it takes that long for us to get stuff from United hobbies....... but that is on the other side of the world (China) verses the other side of the border
03-30-2008, 10:42 AM
#3202
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RE: Fun with Flat Foam
ORIGINAL: Pecanpatch
Brian,
could there been some hold up on the shipping due to you living in another country? Just wondering.
I know it takes that long for us to get stuff from United hobbies....... but that is on the other side of the world (China) verses the other side of the border
I've used rcfoam.com once (order #19135)... and will look for alternatives next time I have to order. I only ordered in stock product, and it took them over a month to actually ship the order, and only after a few emails asking wth was going on. However I will say that it was packaged well, and the product was in excellent shape when it arrived
could there been some hold up on the shipping due to you living in another country? Just wondering.
I know it takes that long for us to get stuff from United hobbies....... but that is on the other side of the world (China) verses the other side of the border
No, it actually only took 3 days to get from them to me (which is pretty good). The problem was exactly as I described... they didn't actually ship the order for a month. I order from UH quite a bit, and it takes about 2 weeks for stuff to get here.
03-31-2008, 05:17 AM
#3203
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RE: Fun with Flat Foam
RCfoam is on my way home everyday from the ATL airport.
I've been wanting to go by there, but still havnt.
I havnt ran out of FFF yet.
Even my CF rods have been getting re-used.
Its important to try to keep these guys in business though.
Read the latest AMA magazine article about our hobby suppliers. it was an eye opener for me.
[8D]
I've been wanting to go by there, but still havnt.
I havnt ran out of FFF yet.
Even my CF rods have been getting re-used.
Its important to try to keep these guys in business though.
Read the latest AMA magazine article about our hobby suppliers. it was an eye opener for me.
[8D]
03-31-2008, 11:29 AM
#3205
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RE: Fun with Flat Foam
I dont know if its on-line....... but the gist of it is, the Companies that supply modellers with "stuff" could probably make a ton of money going after the masses with other products.......
Instead of making Radio Control units they could build any number of other consumer electronics that are sold by the millions worldwide. Laptops , Digital cameras, etc.
To a degree this goes for all the suppliers....
Balsa wood is used to insulate big massive oil tankers. enough wood to build more arfs than you can imagine.
It said rumours can so hurt a hobby manufacturer beyond belief.
Your not an AMA member? [sm=omg_smile.gif]
Instead of making Radio Control units they could build any number of other consumer electronics that are sold by the millions worldwide. Laptops , Digital cameras, etc.
To a degree this goes for all the suppliers....
Balsa wood is used to insulate big massive oil tankers. enough wood to build more arfs than you can imagine.
It said rumours can so hurt a hobby manufacturer beyond belief.
Your not an AMA member? [sm=omg_smile.gif]
03-31-2008, 02:31 PM
#3207
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RE: Fun with Flat Foam
ORIGINAL: Pecanpatch
I dont know if its on-line....... but the gist of it is, the Companies that supply modellers with "stuff" could probably make a ton of money going after the masses with other products.......
Instead of making Radio Control units they could build any number of other consumer electronics that are sold by the millions worldwide. Laptops , Digital cameras, etc.
To a degree this goes for all the suppliers....
Balsa wood is used to insulate big massive oil tankers. enough wood to build more arfs than you can imagine.
It said rumours can so hurt a hobby manufacturer beyond belief.
Your not an AMA member? [sm=omg_smile.gif]
I dont know if its on-line....... but the gist of it is, the Companies that supply modellers with "stuff" could probably make a ton of money going after the masses with other products.......
Instead of making Radio Control units they could build any number of other consumer electronics that are sold by the millions worldwide. Laptops , Digital cameras, etc.
To a degree this goes for all the suppliers....
Balsa wood is used to insulate big massive oil tankers. enough wood to build more arfs than you can imagine.
It said rumours can so hurt a hobby manufacturer beyond belief.
Your not an AMA member? [sm=omg_smile.gif]
I don't like to bash suppliers, or stores, even if I have had a negative experience dealing with them. But if someone asks what I think about my experience with them, I'll tell them honestly what happened (as I did above).
03-31-2008, 03:47 PM
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RE: Fun with Flat Foam
the balsa used to insulate ships probably isn't as thin as anything that's used to make airplanes with. I would imagine it to be at least 1/2" thick.
03-31-2008, 07:00 PM
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RE: Fun with Flat Foam
Hey Guys, I am a Newbie here but I have been watching this website forever. I built up a stealth look alike plane that I designed and I put the guts from a Parkzone typhoon in it. I used a hobbyzone challenger pusher prop. It has a brushless motor and I even used the the stock typhoon battery. I have been itching to try it out and was hoping that the weight would not be an issue. What do you know, It flew really well. I didn't have enough throw in my servo so I was basically flying it around with the throttle wide open and the elevons trimmed all the way up. It floated in the wind like a leaf when I cut the power and brought her down. With the wind, the airspeed was non existant upon landing. I made two great flights and then I tried some tricks. It rolls so fast that it looks like a dart and it will loop if I let it slight dive and build up some airspeed. It will fly upside down easily and it even will do a hover for about 10 seconds on full power before it falls off. It is touchy to turn and I was over controlling it for a while till I got the feel of the controls. I just wanted to chime in and say I am hooked on the flat foam models. This thread has really gotten me hooked. I am going to experiment with this one for a while before I try to build another. Foam alone I spent 8 bucks. Can't beat it. I'll be watching this area for awhile and I will chime in every so often. Later Sorry no pics for now, because the wife has it on a trip with her.
04-01-2008, 05:47 AM
#3210
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RE: Fun with Flat Foam
The ideal balsa wood tree for harvesting is between six and ten years old. After ten years, the inner core of the tree begins to rot and the outer layers become useless. A balsa wood tree is naturally fortified by water stored in large cells. There may only be one or two balsa wood trees in an entire acre of land, so harvesting is usually performed by one or two native workers with axes and carving knives for bark removal. The hewn trees are carried to the river and bundled for easier water transport to the processing plant. Barges carry the trees all the way to ports in the United States.
Because raw balsa wood has such a high moisture content, it must be dried in a kiln for at least two weeks before it can be used commercially. The drying process creates an ultralight wood which is usually cut into sheets or round dowels. Balsa wood does have a grain, so consumers should be aware of what type of cut they need for a specific project. Some balsa wood is cut across the grain, which makes it suitable for carving but not for weight-bearing struts. Many of us may remember the toy balsa wood airplanes sold in stores, so it is easy to imagine how fragile balsa wood can be.
Because raw balsa wood has such a high moisture content, it must be dried in a kiln for at least two weeks before it can be used commercially. The drying process creates an ultralight wood which is usually cut into sheets or round dowels. Balsa wood does have a grain, so consumers should be aware of what type of cut they need for a specific project. Some balsa wood is cut across the grain, which makes it suitable for carving but not for weight-bearing struts. Many of us may remember the toy balsa wood airplanes sold in stores, so it is easy to imagine how fragile balsa wood can be.
04-05-2008, 09:16 PM
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RE: Fun with Flat Foam
j.m., yes, rudder would make the acft more responsive. However, for this acft I was experimenting with a few things. One of those was seeing how simple the build might be. Only two servos were used.
04-06-2008, 05:27 PM
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RE: Fun with Flat Foam
j.m., if acft in #3210 seems so un-airworthy, how about this one? No rudder/elevator/aileron, just the elevons. Think it has a chance?
04-06-2008, 07:18 PM
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RE: Fun with Flat Foam
absolutely.
I don't think the other one will have any yaw stability is because it has almost more area of the vertical stabilizerers in front of the cg than aft.
I don't think the other one will have any yaw stability is because it has almost more area of the vertical stabilizerers in front of the cg than aft.
04-06-2008, 07:50 PM
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RE: Fun with Flat Foam
yes it has a chance... but it's very dirty... not good air flow over the wing/servos/motor/esc etc.
If you built it up or put a cover over all that it would help.... but bring it down over the trailing edge also so you have a smooth back edge...
leaving a gap on the trailing edge will only add major drag!
let us know how it goes!...
-Rod
If you built it up or put a cover over all that it would help.... but bring it down over the trailing edge also so you have a smooth back edge...
leaving a gap on the trailing edge will only add major drag!
let us know how it goes!...
-Rod
04-06-2008, 08:05 PM
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RE: Fun with Flat Foam
04-06-2008, 08:16 PM
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RE: Fun with Flat Foam
Today's maiden flight could not have gone better. Winds were a bit gusty but the acft handled them fine. Flew as if on rails. Needed only a couple of clicks of down trim. The acft seemed the slightest bit tail heavy but I was happy with 1st guess at cg. It was a fraction of an inch off and very close. 1/2oz of weight has been added as far forward as possible. Hopefully that will negate the need for the trim and smooth things out. Tracking was stright and true. Yaw stability was never a concern. With verticals as large as they are, the acft can not have adverse yaw. Control inputs were just right.
04-07-2008, 05:46 AM
#3224
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RE: Fun with Flat Foam
Jumper,
another fine job, congrats.....
put a streamer on that thing and lets do some combat!
I'll use fan fold and do it in German camo..... the bottom would already be the necesary sky blue [sm=thumbs_up.gif]
another fine job, congrats.....
put a streamer on that thing and lets do some combat!
I'll use fan fold and do it in German camo..... the bottom would already be the necesary sky blue [sm=thumbs_up.gif]
04-07-2008, 12:07 PM
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RE: Fun with Flat Foam
Pecanpatch, thanks. It was a spur-of-the-moment build. Several things on it were new to me and I wanted to see how they might work. They did fine. The only "plans" were some pictures from the internet so there was some guessing going on. It is a little heavier than anticipated but even that turned out to be okay. The weight lets it better handle gusty winds.