sedne

I fly in Alaska, it was 11*F just the other day and my lipos did fine. I keep my batts warm in the car just before I fly also. Although i don't keep them by the defroster, they go from the house to car to field, no problems. I have the park flyer skis on two of my planes, Hobbico Superstar EP, Parkzone J-3, but I don't have them on my Flyzone J-3 yet. They work great, it makes flying in the winter waaaay better!!

Cougar-RCU

My Feedback: (2)

OK ,OK ,you guys, I WILL Fly it for the first time in the snow! I will let you know how she does!
Maybe this week!
Jeff

derek2005

I just purchased the flyzone cub to practice flying with ailerons. There is very little aileron throw. Something like 3/16ths up and down. Does this need to be increased to give the ailerons more authority? Are there any other issues I should try to address before flying this model? Other than the normal flight checks, CG, and so on.

sedne

I would recommend flying it with the ailerons like they are and see how it does. You can alway give it more throw later if you need to. Just my 2 cents.

derek2005

I had my first successful flight today! My very first attempt ended with a shattered cowl, broken prop, bend shaft, broken wing, broken fuselage, and bent landing gear. Didn't phase me though. Just figured out what I did wrong, glued it back together and waited until the wind stopped blowing. The hardest part was the waiting almost a month for the wind to not be blowing 15-20 mph.

Last night we had three-four inches of snow, but the wind was light this morning, so I took my cub out to a huge field and tried again. Gave it a nice toss slightly up and watched in amazement as it actually flew and more than that, flew where I wanted it to. There was a slight wind which was great for the landing. I didn't have skis on it so I floated the plane in, flared and squatted it in the fluffy snow. It did sit up on the nose a little in the snow, but no damage at all. After the first attemp I was amazed at how well it flew. The ailerons are not authoritative, but they are effective enough to learn on. Nice and tame. The rudder and elevator are very authoritative and I had to keep their movement small and smooth. I am happy enough with this plane that I am actually going to replace the cowl and some other beat up pieces. I was going to leave these on the plane thinking I would be crashing more than flying, but that isn't going to be the case, although I'm sure I will crash again. From what I read, that just goes with the territory.

I am surprized there aren't more people flying this plane. If they are, they aren't talking about it. If anyone out there is enjoying this model, please post and share your experiences.

mike early

Congrats on the first successful flight. The first day I flew my cub was in october and I had permagrin I couldn't believe how great it was. But there were many crashes after that....many. A lot of fluffy snow would have helped minimize the damage in a lot of my crashes. So you have an advantage there.

I could not believe how the rudder would totally get this plane bent out of shape immediately. I altered it again and again till finally it is more realistic in flight. Same for the rudder. I did increase the throws of the ailerons but I put the back to stock throws...that's plenty for me.

I have a few more planes now, but I still fly the cub when the wind is down. I have three batteries and have converted it to a cheap but way more powerful brushless motor and I still love the low fly-bys.

derek2005

I'm sure brushless would help this plane along and out of trouble. My first crash was due to a bad stall and more power would have helped me get out of it. I wanted this plane just to learn the basics of flying until I get my slow poke sport 40 up in the air this spring. I think I am going to put a reciever for my JR radio in it. The tactic wasn't glitchy, I just don't trust it. I have had some glitches on the bench so I am a bit worried about it. Curious, what brushless motors/esc's would be a good fit for this plane?

mike early

http://www.hobbycity.com/hobbycity/s...idProduct=4709

Is the motor I ended up using. I didn't know about the combo at the time so i bought the ESC separately with one of the programming cards. But you can see how cheap the stuff is....

I am using the stock batteries and get 8 minute flights with throttle control or about 6 minutes full throttle.

derek2005

Mike Early,

Did you have to do any mounting modifications with that motor. Thanks for the link, that is cheap and almost every review is very positive. I think I will order one of these.

mike early

I am using the stock motor mount...but with the engine "cup" cut off and the motor mount that comes with the motor bolted onto the flat part of the stock firewall. If that makes any sense. The result is the thrust angle that is incorporated into the firewall and the stock motor mount is applied to the new motor mount

derek2005

Thanks!

mike early

Hmm, after reading my post I am not sure it even makes sense. I will try to draw a photo, since my digital camera is currently misplaced

mike early

well scratch that too. too frustrating for a Saturday trying to learn to draw on particular programs... gl

derek2005

What type of aerobatics can this plane do? I know it won't do much. How about loops? I haven't attempted anything other than flying in circles and figure eighths, oh yeah and crashing.

aircraftking

Before I first flew my hz super cub yesterday, I was terrified this would happen to me too but to my surprise it did not. I like the idea of the 4ch and I looked at this j3 a while back but the sc had a bigger more powerful engine. Then the sc is a 3ch but it can fly in those winds with not much problem. I was crazy enough to try it out in 12-15+mph winds yesterday on my first flight, better yet I "thought" I was crazy but about 5 seconds after that bad boy took off and man handled those winds I was like ok, not a problem. So I passed on the ailerons for a bigger plane with a more powerful engine and this was the result which I was pleased with. My brother in law just ordered a 3ch j3 for only a little above $70, looks alot like this j3, almost all is same but it looses the 4ch, still not bad for the money I guess. I think the FZ j3 should be flown by more experienced fliers.

derek2005

Flew again last night. First flight ROG take-off! The lack of tail steering make this interesting. Line it up straight into the wind and hope for the best. The plane flew well and I was able to do some touch and goes and a nice landing to boot. One the second flight I was over confident and tried to land into a slight crosswind. All was fine until I over-corrected and the plane ended up doing a little cartwheel action. The left side of the wing broke off, but no other damage. I glued it together and the J-3 is ready to go again. I am really enjoying learning on this plane. I am planning on getting a brushless motor/esc to give it a little more power although I think it is wise to learn how to fly on the wing and not just power out of every poor decision. I am very glad I purchased this plane. It is giving me the confidence to fly the Slowpoke Sport 40 I have built. When I built it, I really thought I might just build it and sell the airframe, but now I just gotta fly it. I'm going to join AMA first and visit my local club a few times first to meet people and ask them for set-up advice.

mike early

I am sure that I am a better pilot as a result of flying this thing underpowered for as long as I did.
But....the brushless conversion will not give it anything resembling vertical performance. If anything it probably is more scale with more power than it has.
I crashed mine the 2nd time I flew it and bent the motor shaft. None available at the time anywhere. So I bent it back as best I could, but I am sure it lost some power from the vibrations....

derek2005

Got to fly a few times this winter when the wind cooperated(which wasn't often). Crashed about every other time. The good news is, the crashes were not due to pilot error. The first crash, the plane just wouldn't take off and gently nosed into the ground. I think my shaft was bent a bit and it just couldn't get enough thrust. That resulted in a broken wing. Fixed the wing. Fixed the shaft. Flew great. Next flight, noticed strange elevater behavior. Then from about 100' up, I watched the plane enter a nose down spin that I couldn't get out of. Great crash though. Totally folded and exploded the front half of the plane. Both sides of the wing broke off from the middle of the wing. Propeller was impelled into the side of the fuse. The motor shaft was almost an L shape and the motor mount busted. Upon inspection, the elevator failed during flight. The metal separated from the foam on one side and you know the rest. Fun to watch! I have since replaced the tail and fuse and repaired the wing. I have ordered a new wing but they have been on backorder all winter. I don't want to fly it again with the wing I have and end up with another failure. So I guess I will just be patient.

mad web tv scientist

[sm=71_71.gif] derek2005, Great to hear about your Cub successes as well as that of others on the thread. Believe me I can feel everybody's pain. The J-3 is much too pretty to be treated so badly. I am currently trying to "psyche up" to "detune" my Cub so that it will be more stable than it has been because of my "premature aerobatic adjustments" that resulted in some damage that needs to be repaired. The Cub tested out very well with 1.5 ounce LiPo batteries in gliding tests and may have flown "just right" under power if I had just let "well enough" alone. But no, I couldn't resist sticking a heavier battery in that changed the already critical dynamics just enough to produce the degree of instability needed to cause me much anguish of spirit.

7.4 volt LiPo batteries work very well with the Cub and makes possible a really great upgrade in performance capability. The "new generation" of LiPos and chargers are very price comparable with the older outclassed stock battery technology that I now use only for special purposes.

The included thread url(s) brings up some other information you might find useful.
"Slow down a Piper J-3 cub"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_71...tm.htm#7314751

Do you fly with gloves? I was reluctant for some time but when I finally had all of the "frozen finger" pain I could stand in cold weather, I found that gloves work fine with my well trimmed planes. It is amazing how irrational about planes, etc., it is possible to be at times.

Okay, since confession is good for the soul, I feel better now and I am going to get up and get to work on my Cub.

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

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mike early

I was not happy with gloves, so I cut the tip off the right-hand thumb and was happy.

derek2005

I don't use gloves, but it doesn't get too fridged cold here in southern Missouri. Winter is usually 40 degrees. The day I flew in the snow, it was around 30 degrees. Since I only have two nicad batteries for this plane, I am not out in the cold much.

I got to fly the cub today after work. It was a bit windier than I would have preferred, but I guess my skills are getting better. The plane barely had enough power to fly into the wind and turning crosswind was more eventful sometimes than I would have liked, but it was a lot of fun. I did a couple of aerobatics today. Sort of a loop and wing over type things. The wind made these ugly, but it was fun. Landing into to some wind is the way to go with this thing. It just floats in slow or not at all and you can almost set it down softly on the spot. Gusts are not friendly though. The sad thing is, I have crashed this plane on landings more when the wind was calm or nothing than when it is blowing a bit. Usually due to loop outs. I haven't done that in a while though.

The confidence I gained from flying this led me to buy a mini-pulse. I actully find that to be an easier plane to fly. Especially to land. I still enjoy this plane a lot however, and fixes are just a matter of glue.

derek2005

Hand launch is the way to go. I really enjoy watching the planes take off from the runway, but since this has no tailwheel, save yourself some frustration and just hand launch it. Most of my crashes with this plane happen on take offs. It is sad to get ready to go flying and find yourself benched before you actually get in the air. I still like to try ROGs, but hand launch is much more consistent.

I will say, the more I fly this, the more I like it. It does need a bit more power, but as long as you just putter around, it is great. I have been pushing it more lately. Flying in wind, doing loops, rolls, wing overs, and seeing what interesting things the wind will do to it.

Wind is interesting. A little is great. 10mph is dicey, but fun. Gusty is bad. I have started landing this in the grass with a little wind because I can just plop it down softly into a headwind. Today, the wind was strong enough to fly backwards with a little power and slowly forwards with full power. Landing was like hovering. Pretty cool watching your plane stay horizontal in the air yet moving up and down vertically. Easier than landing this on the runway in no wind.

mad web tv scientist

derek, when I got tired of crashing on takeoff from a very bumpy area I also resorted to some hand launch started flights. It turns out that with the 2" wheels discussed on: http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_71...tm.htm#7314751 I can enjoy good grass performance on two different soccer field locations.

Mike's idea with gloves is great and next winter will be used on those breezy cold damp days. Another idea is to use a plastic bag with the antenna sticking out of a hole on top which is what I will use when I just have to fly in some rain - I also put protection around the receiver under such conditions.

Something that might be useful for beginning flyers with landing gear that I don't ever remember learning about is to be sure to allow at least a brief period of time "skimming over the runway" just as the plane lifts off before hauling the stick back. I blamed most of my crashes on take off to "side winds," lack of experience using my left thumb to control rudder, and an out-of-trim airplane. Although all of these factors surely played a part in my disasters, after careful "flight recorder data" examination I am now convinced that most of my recent trauma could have been avoided by simply disciplining myself to "skim over the grass" briefly to build up enough air speed to avoid any stall inducing circumstances before "gingerly" easing the stick back.

Using rudder instead of ailerons is vitally important when flying near stall speed. I got so spoiled flying with coupled aileron/rudder control on my modified motor powered gliders using right stick only, that it is taking time to "unlearn" an otherwise instinctive reaction that can destroy.

An unintended benefit from all the above adventures was to gain experience in structural reinforcement improvements that helps provide a greater level of confidence against the increasingly unlikely event of a crash as a result continuous flight training. Confidence based on solid facts eventually pays off in valuable flying practice that builds even more confidence which, in turn, provides motivation for continuing experimentation and growth.

Although I still have one "400 speed" size airplane that is "very happy" using NiMH batteries and will continue to do so for the foreseeable future, All of my other planes have demonstrated a very noticeable improvement that is well worth the $20 price of the "new generation" LiPo batteries. I enjoy the slower flight characteristics possible with the lighter wing loadings, as well as the tendency to sustain less damage when attempting to fly "outside the envelope."

One of my main reasons for using LiPos has been to see just how much aerobatics performance I can "squeeze" out of airplanes that are otherwise mainly intended for beginning pilots. Because LiPos have so much power capacity that, in addition to astonishment at daring unusual maneuvers, spectators tend to also be surprised at how long your flights are.

Modeling really is the ultimate way to excite scientific activity. Once science rather than the "religious defense of the status quo" becomes the emphasis in culture, modeling is going to really take off!

FlyZone has a real winner in it's J-3 Cub!

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.

derek2005

I do believe you are right on with the patience needed to build a bit of air speed before applying too much rudder. I know at least two of my takeoff crashes were probably due to this. I do have had trouble getting the J-3 to track straight down the runway if there is any wind. It needs to be lined up very well straight into the headwind. I am really enjoying this plane though. The past two days I have been flying this winds I wouldn't have dreamed flying in a few weeks ago. I have performed loops, rolls, wing overs, and impromptu aerobatics caused by the wind. The cub does not love wind, but it makes the flying experiece interesting.

I had two deadstick landings today. I thought I had two charged batteries. I put the first in and soon found out that it was not charged. It took off fine, made 3/4ths a circuit and the motor cut out. I switched batteries and pretty much the same thing happened. I was glad I was able to handle the dead stick situation both times without and damage and the second time, I actually made a very nice landing. The first time, it landed in a ditch about 250 feet away that I did not know was there. It just disappeared. No problems though, it landed on its wheels without any damage.

I wish my new wing would get shipped. It has been backordered since January. I have reglued the current wing 5 1/2 times. It is still going OK, but the aelerons are not working as well as I would like. Too many repairs. The good news is, I have not even come close to crashing in over a month. I am getting used to this flying thing. What a great hobby!

mad web tv scientist

derek, your progress as a J-3 flyer is inspirational. I am still flying mine a lot like my motor powered sailplanes until My left thumb gets trained to work that rudder competently. Once the ESC kills the motor at "cruising altitude" the Cub is very easy to glide down wind to set up for an up wind and predictable easily accomplished dead stick landing. My "floating gliders" are often a little tricky to set down right where I would like. After I am finally confident I will begin "touch-and-go" power on landings, etc., with my little yellow and black beauty.

I think it is okay to use a "little" rudder but stay off that elevator for that brief moment after lift off to prevent stalling. This is where I need a lot of practice.

Found out that there are a number of hobby outlets for "carbon fiber tow (yarn like material) in searching the web last night that you and other Cub owners might be interested in, especially before you get your new wing. With negligible weight gain CF can really make an enormous difference in airplane strength. CA thin "instant glue" and ordinary baking soda used to glue approximately one fourth (1/4) of a 12k strand of CF tow applied three fourths of an inch ( 3/4" ) back from the leading edge of the wing top and bottom out to the wing struts, and about half way out on the back of the wing just in front of the ailerons really works great. I use a black "Sharpie" and "1169 flat yellow" Testors paint to touch up my "messy work."

Ran across some interesting information about the Cub that made me LOL. I tried to share it with Fokker fans - post # 49 [ http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/m_59...tm.htm#7342611 ] and learn about the Red Baron's plane's outside maneuvering capabilities. So far no Fokker flyer can or will answer my question. So it looks like the Cub will be my only airplane with wheels for some time to come. Since I am still able to have warm feelings toward Spitfire flyers, the spit is the winner, the Baron will have to wait.

HAPPY FLYING!


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

____________________________________________
Modeling Promoting Blog:
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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.