taran01

Link,

Thank you for all the great info. I would have concidered upgrading the motor and speed controler, however I'm not ready to lay out the cash for a new radio.

Was your speed controler ok, or did you replace that as well when your motor fried?

Thanks!!

taran01

Hello Mad,

I think I'll have to copy you with regards to the Z bend and the V adjustment set up.
It has been very hard getting home from work, and looking at my Spitfire sitting there in all its glory. I just want to fly it!

I looked over the links you posted and appriciate the info, thanks.

linkadrip

I replaced all the elctronics in the plane except for the Servos. I put an AR6000 RX receiver in it. the alighn brushless motor and an alighn 35 AMP speed control. and use a 3Cell 11.1 volt 2400 MAH 20C lipo battery in it. the Speed control has a built in BEC Battery eliminator circuit for powering the RX. Its much lighter and incrediably fast. But the main advantage i like about the upgrade is becasue the way i fly. I can get a 15 minute flight before i have to land. i fly it around at no more then half throttle and at half throttle it will really go. Full throttle is to unrealistic its just to fast and will fly out of site in a few seconds. i cruise it around about 1/4 throttle and can fly for a long time i have only flown it once for a full 15 minutes beleive it or not that is a long time to keep the plane in the air.

I'm not sure if the stock RX will work with another speed control i never tried it. i just gutted it and put all the new stuff in it.. but the speed control i have no idea if it was fried or not i didnt bother to test it to see. Since i had all the other stuff. I heard mention of someone trying to use the stock RX with a new Esc in this plane a few pages back somewere but i dont know if it was successfull. and have read about others putting landing gear on it and making a functioning rudder. But i like it the way it is simple and light.

But since you dont want to upgrade to another radio i would just replace the RX and motor in it probably the cheapest route and i'm sure horizon will cover it under warranty.

But the ESC i'm using in the plane now. tells me in beeps all the set up configuration. but it is alot more complicated then the stock RX/ESC that comes in the plane. the align 35 amp speed control has several setting for different size lipos, motor timing, Ect.

this is the motor i'm using
http://www.align.com.tw/shop/product...oducts_id=1566
and the speed control i'm using
http://www.align.com.tw/shop/product...oducts_id=1145
and the radio sytem that i'm using
http://www.spektrumrc.com/Articles/A...ArticleID=1535
In whitch case if you went to purchase everything would cost more then the plane does..

But its just Something you can do if you get a wild hair and have the Cash Nice thing is if the plane ever does get destroyed the equipment can be used in something else and that's the key advantage to upgrading other then performance. i can crash this plane and then get a different one and use the stuff in it. But i've gotten over 50 flights on it now and dont think i will be crashing it anytime soon. So it should last many many years. Good luck with your plane i hope you get the problem fixed with it.. I'm off to fix a GMS 120 on my Twist 150..

mad web tv scientist

taran, it is a pleasure to be useful to inspirational modelers like yourself. I'm looking forward to reading about your future adventures. The following is information about my progress in understanding LiPos and their optimum applications for various missions.

2.5 ounce Raidentech "Fusion" 900 mAh 11.1 volt batteries both provided over 15 minutes flying time on their first charge. This was significantly better than another brand of battery also weighing 2.5 ounces. Twelve discharge/charge cycles may show different results as the construction of the batteries is quite different. At 22.5 ounces the Spitfire glides a lot like my motor powered gliders and seems to have really great maneuvering capabilities at this weight. At some point in the future higher "C" rated lighter batteries will be experimented with to see just what kind of performance increase can be enjoyed with this otherwise stock airplane.

I replaced the stock plugs on the 900 mAh batteries with substantially larger plugs. Experience has shown that even at 7.4 volts those small red plugs can be at or beyond safe limits. I don't ever want another on board fire during flight.

A 1500 mAh 11.1 volt "fusion" battery flew the Spit for 27.5 minutes on it's first charge. The plane flies noticeably different, glides down from thermal height faster and penetrates wind and gusts better on landing with this heavier battery than it does with the two (2) ounces lighter smaller battery. So, since I need a lot of practice flying hours both the largest and smallest batteries will be kept on a 50-70% storage charge. Batteries with weight half way in between these two different batteries will normally be used most of the time so that stepping up or down with battery size won't be such a shock to the psychic.

This plane balances perfectly with no ballast needed when using 2.5 ounce batteries. Heavier batteries all need tail ballast to keep the CG from moving to far forward. The current strategy is to use the lightest batteries only for mild weather missions where fancy maneuvers are less scary than they can be when attempted during wild weather.

Happy flying.

madwebtvscientist [sm=lol.gif][sm=cry_smile.gif]
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taran01

Not much to report.

I took out the old Receiver out and found a burned chip on it. I ordered a new one, then as an after thought I called Parkzone support. I have to say they were awesome!

After a short time on hold I explained my situation to one of the support people, and he said no problem I'm sending you a new receiver.

Pretty good.

I am still waiting, for the one on order from the store, I hope it arrives this week.

mad web tv scientist

FIRST HORIZONTAL FIGURE EIGHT

taran, good to hear about PZ fixing you up. After today's first maneuvering flying, and landing approach practice flight, I was so emotionally drained that almost all of my whole second flight was little more than relaxing "motor powered glider" flying. One time from around 600 feet altitude I timed a dead stick gliding flight down to about 100 feet to be over two minutes. That particular flight lasted twenty minutes on it's 11.1 volt 1200 mAh battery. Maneuvering allowed it's mate to last 16.5 minutes on the previous flight.

Today's practice session revealed a trimming procedure discussed earlier by another light Spitfire pilot that I finally grasped after thinking about how to best avoid stalling out on landing in windy weather. Trimming in some down trim at some point during the decent to land provides a little "insurance" against stalling in gusty conditions. Before today I never changed the trim from that of normal cruising flight when making a landing.

It turns out that this 23.75 ounce configuration of my Spitfire needs to fly at full power on a "strafing run" in order to allow a good "aileron only victory roll" in a climbing flight path after the pull out. By applying full power only after pulling out and up into an escape climb out doesn't provide enough flying speed for a really convincing victory roll.

A "comfortable way" that I have found to perform a bona fide horizontal figure eight (not a Cuban eight) is to enter the maneuver at full power and pull up to nearly vertical before applying full down elevator. This is then followed by applying up elevator after the ship comes around on its outside loop path and starts vertical. The maneuver ends after the inside loop in a vertical climb through the center. The plane can do it but my nervous thumb kind' a spoils the maneuver's shape.

I have found that an iron set on low heat just high enough to do the job can almost completely eliminate wrinkles from "overstressed" areas. The finished areas have an appearance that looks a little like war weary WWII fighters. I actually like the appearance of my Spitter better now than when it was new. From a distance you would never know there was ever a "problem." Yet, up close the plane provides enough evidence of residual damage that great "war stories" can be told.

madwebtvscientist [sm=lol.gif][sm=cry_smile.gif]
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bigmann292

hey guys my spit is acting up fresh abatteries and the ails dont work,elev works fine but as I give it throtle the ails move?i check the connections there ok and had batteries checked at LHS all good had deans plugs put on them.Im thinking bad reciever?

taran01

Hey Mad,

Thanks for the update. Sounds fun!
Are you flying on low, or high (A or B) setting on your receiver?

I was thinking your Victory roll might be easier if you were using the high rate setting. I assume you are though.

Take care.

taran01

Bigman,

For testing purposes try this...

On your recever, swap the plug positions for your ail which is acting up, and your rudder that works ok.
Then see if your rudder (which will be the ail action on your stick) is now having trouble. If so that will prove your Ail port on the receiver is the issue. If not and the trouble stays with your ail it could be the servo for the ail.

Good luck.

bigmann292

taran just did that pluged in the rud to ail. as soon as I pluged it in the ruder did complete up thrust as I gave it throttle rudder went to down thrust?

bigmann292

just got off the phone with the people at parkzone want me to send whole plane in to them?I thought they would just send new reciever.

taran01

Big,

It appears the aileron port on the receiver is going bad. Maybe something is causing it to go bad. Possible servo, or something, although I doubt it. At anyrate they will find out.

It sucks not having the palne though.

Good luck.

bigmann292

taran I plugged in the DAMNN forgot wich spot DAAA[sm=confused.gif]and guess what it worksI have ele, and the throttle, and aileron so OFF to fly or at least try to simulate flyn ( not that great only been flyn my Parkzone J3 10 times)thanx for the help

taran01

Big,

Awesome!!

Have fun.

the belgian

For those who want to create the impression their spit has a retracted undercariage.
These can be (laser-)printed and with a transparent layer(sorry but i don't know the enlish name for it;it's a thin transparent whit glue on one side,like packing tape but A3 format)glued on the wings like shown(the plane* is photoshopped with the wheelson it to show the scale).
coution!first stretch the picture to the desired scale before printing.
The last pic. is the "better" version,the glued surface is bigger and it ensures the color of the case is the same as the underside of the wings.


*the one on the photo crashed...

taran01

Belgian,

Nice work. Its nice how this hobby draws the creative spirit out of so many people. Its fun to see all the neat things people come up with.

mad web tv scientist

taran, yes, high rate is used. Also as pointed out earlier aileron deflection angles are increased by drilling holes in the horns about 1/16 inch lower than the lowest hole in the horn. Just today I applied a little "Plumbers Putty" around the control rate switch as insurance against accidentally switching it to low rate. I still need a lot more flying time on the Spit before I will feel comfortable flying it. It is possible to fly a "Victory Roll" at slower speed by "cheating" a little by adding some up elevator during the roll.

Good trouble shooting instructions for big's equipment. I suspect that the trouble was either a poor electrical connection or maybe even a dreaded "intermittent" component failure that could show up later, maybe even at the most inopportune time - "Murphy's Law!" I hate intermittent electrical/electronic problems - oops! I mean "Challenges."

big, did you ever figure out what the situation was with your plane? That offer by PZ was very nice of them. If anything like that ever happens to my Spit, that would be my excuse to upgrade to the new "interference free R/C" technology. I trust that this new PZ transmitter and receiver technology will work with the rest of my original Spitfire equipment.

belgian, neat "landing gear" idea. We are still curious about what you did to fix your plane's "motor running challenge" a few posts back. Was your mechanical failure due to the ESC and/or something else? Inquiring minds want to know.

Thanks everybody for keeping the thread so interesting.

madwebtvscientist [sm=lol.gif][sm=cry_smile.gif]
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taran01

Hey Mad,

Well, My new receiver came today. I have installed it and all seems ok again. The only problem I now have is, I took off my prop thinking I was going to be replacing my motor, and now I dont remember how it all goes back together. You would think it would be common sense, however its not.

I have 3 small nuts, and 2 white plastic washers along with the black plastic nose cone.

Could you tell me what order these all go back on the prop shaft?

mad web tv scientist

[8D] taran, this is really fun. I am so glad you asked that question. I might very well have thrown my prop again had I not taken my new spinner off in order to be sure to get this procedure right.

I will tell you how I am going to get it right this time, then I will confess my blunder (on my next post) that you saved me from in pain and anguish of spirit.

The Spit's system is ingenious. with the two nylon spacers you can adjust the spinner spacing for efficient operation. I use both nylon washers installed first on the shaft. Next I will use a mild "locking compound" that will hinder the tendency for the nuts to work loose on the shaft. The first two nuts need to be tightened against each other but only snugged loosely approximately 1/32 inch space between the nylon spacers. Next, the prop fits nicely on the front nut, then the back section of the spinner that I "clean up" a bit with a # 11 bladed knife so it fits nicely on the prop and has a uniform space around the back of the spinner. I like to use a washer under the final nut to minimize stress on the spinner. Pop the front of the spinner on, give the nut locking compound a few hours to cure and if the prop is balanced many hours of trouble free flying should be virtually guaranteed.

Good luck!

madwebtvscientist [sm=lol.gif]
[sm=cry_smile.gif]
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Modeling's rendezvous with destiny will surely be unstoppable when something greater than the narcissistic pleasure of an esoteric chosen few is adopted in modeling.

the belgian

Well,i've checked the engine(afte the planes' final crash)and it seems to work fine.I afterwards made a controls check at a distance from about 100 meters and even then all servo's and trottle response where normal.
Although when "dismantling" the plane i noticed the double sided tape that helps to keep the engine packing(firewall?)in it's place was only glued to that part not the fuselage,as it was supposed to be,never the less...
Final verdict;"It must have been the pilot's fault."...me in other words...
Flying a piper cub isn't the same as a warbird but one day i'll manage!
Up towards the store!!!

taran01

Mad, Thanks. Ill set mine up the same.
I cant wait to get home from work and fly some strafing run's! [>:]

Have a great week end!

taran01

belgian,

Keep up the good fight! Climb back in the saddle and all that. We need all the Spit Pilots we can get

taran01

My neighbor and I have decided that after we get a bit better at flying our planes (mine the Spit, his FW-190) we are going to try out the sonic combat module. The deciding factor is our flying area. One side of the road is very tall weeds. The other side is a field of beans. These are very hardy bushy plants. In the event of a shoot down, the target plane only has to maneuver into a moderate angle to the ground and the weeds, or beans will catch the plane, totally avoiding the ground. Of course the road is evil and bad and we must not go there!

I think the Spit will rule the sky with its faster speed and better turn rate. All I need to do is NOT crash on my own.

mad web tv scientist

[8D] taran, some useful information that I shared on the SC thread could be useful for new warbird pilots. ( see post #6897)

http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_43...tm.htm#7774595

In checking thrust angles I noticed that the Spitfire seems to have significantly less right thrust (as viewed from the pilots prospective) than my Piper Cub. This may explain why my Spit requires a little rudder trim tab adjustment (I cut the trim tab and it is held in place with some clear packing tape) deflected to the left as well as the application of a little "Plumbers Putty" stuck to the underside of the left wing tip. These trim adjustments allow my ailerons to trim out equal for stable level flight.

Practice sessions will now always include a few landing approach maneuvers to become "one with the controls" including optimum trim adjustments under different flying conditions.

It's a little embarrassing to admit how I had my prop/spinner mounted. I did not have the back two nuts locked together. Thankfully, the locking compound on the spinner nut did hold but was uncomfortably loose when I just recently disassembled the prop mounting system. I actually had a nylon ring between the back two nuts with the remaining nylon ring between the nut and the gear housing. Except with my wobbly spinner described on KILLER SPITFIRE thread this system actually worked.

Just for fun I cut one of the rings in the middle, saved the other half by first taping it to some clear packing tape to minimize the chance of loosing it, and then putting in the package with my spare spinner, and am now enjoying a smaller gap between the spinner and the front of the "engine" compartment.

One last little question - The X-Port Advantage page in the parkzone Charge-and-Fly"Park Flyers brochure that came in the box with my Spitfire says that the Sonic Combat Module, ". . . temporarily disables the motor of other SCM equipped planes."
Has this been changed so much that a "shot down fighter" has to land?"

WARBIRDS ARE ON THE MOVE!

madwebtvscientist [sm=lol.gif]
[sm=cry_smile.gif]
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Modeling's rendezvous with destiny will surely be unstoppable when something greater than the narcissistic pleasure of an esoteric chosen few is adopted in modeling.

taran01

Mad,

The sonic combat modual will disable the target crafts motor for 8 sec. You can still use your controls. 8 sec is a long time, so if you are med to low altitude you might want to find a clear spot to put er down. []
I think it would be neat if instead of cutting the motor a hit was indicated with a smoke trail. Then the hit aircraft would have to land. Of course you could have both 8 sec motor cut off, and a smoke trail. Just not sure how it could be done with the electrics.


My neighbor and I flew 5 full batteries tonight. We had a BLAST!
We were chasing each other all over the sky. It was pretty neat to see. It really pushed us both to do things we would not normally do while flying solo. We both are utterly addicted to these little war birds.
The last two 13 min flights were almost completely intuitive flying. You have to be that way when trying to stay on the tail of another plane.
I am also pleased to say, nether of us sustained any damage. I already have three batteries charged and ready for Monday eve air combat.

Cheers!