here is my BABY!!! done and fresh OUT THE OVEN!!!!! hehe... what do you guys think of my first covering JOB?

here MORE!!!!!

It looks great!!!!

Great job, now let us know how it flys.

YEAH!!! don't worry i will... i will try to get a picture of it hovering!!! ( i don't know if the engine would be able to do that) would a Fox 40 w/ a 12x4 keep it hovering?

Hey xoon, that's a fine looking model. I'm sure you'll have a great time flying it.

One little thing I would mention, I notice you have the adjustable arms on your servos. I have used these in the past on control surfaces, and never had a problem with them. However I was informed that these are intended to be used on throttle servos only--light loads, not control surfaces. So I got with the program, and now use the solid arms for all control surfaces. As you get into bigger models, more power, heavier servo loads, etc. the issue becomes more important. They are a convenient way to adjust your throws, but not as convenient as the adjustable travel settings on digital transmitters.

Anyway, not to quibble, you should be proud of a good piece of work. Have a blast with it!

12*4 is a pretty darn big prop for a .40 to spin. My Fox .45 would spin it OK...but spool up was kinda slow. I'd stick to the 11" props. 11X4 would be OK I"d think. It'll have to come in under 4 lbs to have good hover power. Tell us what our all up weight RTF comes to. I'm interrested.

i have a small weight thingy at home but it's not sensitive enough... i will find some way to find out. i hope it can hover that's why i went to PROFILE planes... i know this one can hover but i don't know about the engine, i didn't have any money left that's why i scratch built. and for the prop... i don't know about 11x4... last time i tried that in my super tiger 40... it spun too fast and the ball bearing can't take it can the rear ball bearing break. is that true... some guy told me at the field that it spun too fast can broke, will a 11x4 break my engine? also, would the FOX engine be enough? because last time i tried the 11x4 i didn't see a difference in thrust on my super tiger

hehe... ok.. i found out how much it weigh... it weights ( drum roll please!!!)........... 2 lbs ... give or take .5 that my bathroom scale. it activates at 7 bl or up... so i put a monitor on it can did it for around ten times all i got 34 lbs. and when i put the monitor and the plane on i got 36 so simple subtraction and i got 2 lbs.. and my scale is correct give or take .5 lb. there you go... is two pounds too light? the engine is still not on yet and the FOX engine is 9 oz w/o the muffler

Nope.

Weather or not the fox 40 hovers your plane completely depends on the final weight. The newer "fat free" taco designs from Swany are much lighter. The Taco is fully 3D capable but a tad twitchy for the uninitiated.... if you want a good 3D trainer then the Burrito from Swany is the best. They're just as cheap as scratch building, too. But I'm a big believer in using what you've got...so see how your setup works. IF you need to step up the power..the TT 46 Pro is a good, cheap, reliable engine.

is two pounds good? what is the weight of the fat free taco?

good job, yes i agree with majortom, i have heard of those type servo arm failing.

Run it with the 11x4 APC.

If you are even at 2lb 12oz, the 11x4 will hover it great and the fast spool-up is what you need.

what's a "spool up"?

If you're at 2lbs minus gear then I think you're OK as long as you don't put heavy gear in it. You should come in under 4lbs. The Fox 40 has alot of pull. "Spool up" basically means the speed of throttle transition. With a 12-4 prop...there is alot of load on the engine and when you hit the throttle there will be a measurable delay in reaching max RPM which is bad news for 3D flying. You need quick throttle transitions. An 11" flat pitch prop is as big as I'd go with the 40. If you're light enough....a 10" prop might be to your liking. I can't say for sure since I don't run any .40 engines.

thanks for the input... i was looking at the crash forum, and saw a picture of a crashed Borrito. i made me wonder what was the CG on my plane. so here i am asking the question...

What is the CG on this plane? remember i scaled it up for a .40 engine... so can i have the percentage.. please try to be exact as possible because this is my first 3d plane and i don't want to goof anything up on the maiden... thanks a lot

Target 25 - 30 percent of wing cord for CG...

great.... just the guy i was looking for. what would you recommend for just flying around maybe some aerobatic? 25%? i just want to get a feel for this plane first before i try anything crazy

I think you can probably push it to 30 percent without it being too tail heavy... or you can set it more conservatively and fly it.... Get it trimed straight and level, then flip it inverted.... if she sinks, she's nose heavy... climbs, tail heavy...

is the 30% measure from the wing center? or 30% from the MAC?

Measure it 30% at the fuse

ok..i'm getting confused now... why at the fuse? where at the fuse?

measure your wing chord where the wing and fuse meet. When you measure it take that number and divide by 3. or divide by 33%. 1/3 of the wing chord! Measure from your leading edge back the number you just came up with. Right where the fuse and wing meet. That is your C of G.

the fox engine came... and it was great. when i was tuning it... i put it to full thottle and let go a bit of the plane and it would just fly out of my hand. so i am now confident that this plane will hover. the throttle response is fast, this is a great engine. she is ready for the maiden. i'm planning to go out to Chatfield.. and maiden it this Sat if it's not too windy. i will keep you posted on the maiden ( look for a new thread)

ok... today i had my dad took me home from school. on the way to pick me up i had my dad brought the plane to school. i took it in.. and weight it w/ my engineering class scale. the plane came out to be

3lbs and 7oz

light? heavy?

ok... i went out to maiden yesterday. the wind was calm and the sun was almost out. took it up and all i can say is THIS PLANE ROCKS!!!! i trimmed it out needing some up elevator. then i trie out some aerobatic tricks. flat spin is flatter than a pancake!!! at low rate the roll rate was fast... and snap roll is VIOLENT!!!! all i have to say for this plane is THIS IS THE BEST PLANE. i want to thanks everyone here that helped my in anyway.. w/o you i don't think i would have made it.

the CG was right on i balanced it at 30% of my root chord of my wing and it came out balance nothing was needed to balance it. and at 30% it flew great. thanks a lot