PhilMill

Cool, I'm hitting the road around 5 am...!I'll have my tent set up , my planes put together and all charged up and fueled up ready to fly...Ready for "class".....Ready to race....

I'll be under the white tent with the black Chevy truck......Probably having coffee laying back in my lounge chair....

See ya there.....

Are ya bringing something to fly ckeene9?

Giant

Phill, I,ll be there the night before so I'll see yea early. Dick

PhilMill

The night before huh? Dang dawg! Be sure to have your Vapor's or Vippors or whatever you call those things you fly...Have em ready Dick....I got a little somethin for ya........Can you say - LAPPED!

I'm bringing my 2 Ninja's too.....Got yours ready yet? It'd be a great place to fly em....

Scorpion Racing

Well, looks like it will b a good turn-out so far! Glad Ray and Mario are coming, and I promise no more planes without switches!! I believe John & Jonathan Purdue as well as Lindwell and James, with 2 new pilots too! If Chris and his caller come, Dick and his wife, Phil and the 4 from my field, ... WHEW! I think we got 14 - 16 424 pilots, as well as at least 5 guys in 422 & 428 coming!

I need to hear from the central florida boys, where are you Dennis, Tim, Tom, Vern and Joe? I know the guys with the FAI world team will be in Cali., or they would be here too. I am sorry for the date conflict guys, I didn't have that date available to me prior to setting this test date. [&o]

I can't take all the credit here though, Phil came up with the idea, and the Purdues are bringing the lights and have talked for a couple of years about doing one of these. I am just glad we are going to try it, and I hope we have a good showing to prove that people are wanting this. It makes it easier to explain to the club why we do it!

We are doing some improvements to the pylon racing area soon, so stay tuned!

PhilMill

Dang Scott, Yea I came up with a teeny weeny idea and you took the bull by the horns and really got it going....We all appreciate what you're doing here....It's gonna be great and I thank you for all the time and effort you and many others are putting into this Workshop..
Tim Yousey will be there with me and he's bringing his Q40 planes..Rob Berry, a rookie racer from our club (Osceola Flyers) will also be there...Not sure about 2 other guys from our club but I am trying to get them to come...Sent the flyer to a few guys I met at Mac Hodges race..haven't heard back but I'll keep trying....

I saw Dennis the other day and he said he might be there. I'm gonna keep after him until he concedes..In fact, I wanna hand him one of my 424 planes and see if he'll race me...I'll give him the one with the brick tied to the tail...LOL .We can all benefit from these experienced guys for sure....and heck, this is gonna be a blast....

I'm gonna email Tom Dobyns and see if he can be a part of your workshop...I don't know many others but I'm doing what I can.

Yea , I would like to see a whole bunch of guys there too....with a bunch of planes...and a bunch of input and open to learning...sharing stories and secrets...

This may well be the first "Workshop and Testing" but I hope we can do it on a more regular basis....After we race a bit, "Bragging Rights" might rear it's ugly head.....!!

I know you've worked your butt off Scott, but you are the man for the job and your heart is truly into helping others..

And by the way, I'm ready for a couple grudge matches with some of my buddies....Talking "smack" is part of racing too...LOL

Thanks again Scott,

See ya soon,

Phil

PhilMill

Hey Boss man Scott,

It's gonna be hot and I'm sure that the guys will be working up an appetite.....What are your thoughts for food and drinks...?

Can we get one of those hotdog carts to hang out with us? Can we get a few water coolers?(ice) I'll have some towels with me that I like to soak in cool water and put em around my neck and rinse off to stay cool...Very important to stay hydrated and cool right?

Can we fill a big cooler with drinks..?...

Donuts and coffee? Pizza? Subs? Burgers? Brats? Buffalo wings? Cake and cookies? Gourmet dining? Hooter's girls? Oops....

Or do we bring our own...

Whatcha think boss?

Phil

ckeene9

My Feedback: (-1)

Yeah, I'll be bringing either one or two Preadators and not sure what my caller will have worked up then. My first predator should be ready for testing this week if I get my bladder tank soon. Getting really excited to go!

Scorpion Racing

I will see what we can do with the concessions idea, that sounds like a great idea for the "Heatstroke" grudge match! Man, I don't know if I could even beat Dennis with a brick tied to his plane! You might want me to "take a look" at his engine before the race! Smack talk? I don't have any idea what you mean!

I didn't know you flew there Phil; I work in Kissimmee and am up there 4 days a week! Do you know Tony Matosich (sp?)? I sure wish he would come back too!! He and Tim were a team a few years ago. Great guys to hang with.

It's gonna be a good time!

PhilMill

Scott, Yea it would be nice to have some kinda food available and thanks for checking into that. Gee, work nevers stops does it..?

Yea I know Tony...I have been trying to get him to race again. He still has his planes and he's even flown them at the field now and then...

But he doesn't seem very interested in racing again...Yea, I wish he would to...

I've kinda teamed up with Tim ..I called for him at the NATS...He has been a huge help to me, along with John and Steven Vaclav...

Ya just can't do this racing stuff by yourself...At least I can't....

Hey Ckeene, Yup, I know all about the Predators...I've got 11 of em now...Some II's and some I's....and 1 Viper...and 2 Ninja's...

Careful on the first flight, idle down and take it easy.....Get her all trimmed and adjusted and "dialed in"....We'll all be learning more about all that stuff at the workshop....and then it'll be time to RACE......

See ya soon....

ckeene9

My Feedback: (-1)

Your Predator II's, where have your weights been on those. Seems like mine may be over-weight while even cutting weight by watching how heavy the components I put in the plane are.

Thanks for your help in advance!

Christopher

PhilMill

Hey Christopher, 11 of my Predators have all been underweight....I've had to add weight to all of them to get them to the 3 lbs 12 oz.....

I use mini servos for ailerons and rudder/elevator....Micro servo on the throttle....Some of them have been 2 to 3 ounces underweight...

I put standard servos in one of my orange Pred II and it came out to be 2 ounces overweight..So I simply changed the servos

to JR 3121's.....Now it weighs 3 lbs 11 oz. I added 1 ounce. They all balance perfectly with a little shifting of the battery and the added weight.....

The difference between Standard servos and Mini's is almost one ounce each........

I don't use the metal wing screws, I use nylon and on the landing gear as well....And only 2 on the gear and not 3....

I'm on 2.4 gig so the receiver is very light....that helps a lot.....

I keep the batteries smallish.....720 MAH NiMH......Short wires too....

Will that help ya? Hope so.....No sense racing a heavy plane.....

Allrighty then.....

ckeene9

My Feedback: (-1)

Okay, thanks for the info. The only thing that you have different is the mini servos, everything else I have done. Gonna have to get different servos for the other one I have yet to put together and keep this one as my secondary plane.

Christopher

PhilMill

Cool Christopher, If you use 3 mini servos instead of 3 standard servos , you'll be saving around 2.7 ounces of additional weight....

One other thing, I started using the bubble wrap with the little bitty bubbles instead of foam to wrap the receiver. Much lighter..Heck, it's mostly air.

I weigh everything on a very sensitive and accurate postal scale...down to the gram.....!

I leave the plane say,2 ounces light and balance it perfectly.....Then I add the needed weight exactly on the CG and check the balance again.

Usually there is no difference...In some cases , just a teeny weeny bit.....

That way, I can take out the weight when I race a couple buddies at the field, and add it back in when I race....

I keep notes on every plane..My mind isn't what it used to be....

I bought a book on "How to increase your memory". But I forgot where I left it....

Did ya put the fuel tank right on the CG? Most of mine are that way....I can check the balance with an empty tank, and then with a full tank..

Very little difference....Some of the planes it wasn't possible to do that because of the location of the aileron servo...

Okay Christopher, That's all I got for now......

Build em light,

Phil

scausey

My Feedback: (2)

Is this workshop going to be on Sunday, August 24th ????? and how far is it away from Orlando? I will be there on business for a couple of days and will be coming in on Sunday morning. Maybe I could come over for a couple of hours and try to help out. I would be more than happy to give a class on calling or what ever you might need, set up, flying tech....... let me know

Scott

PhilMill

Hey there Mr "8th at the NATS" Causey...

Nice of you to volunteer your time......I can only speak for myself but I'm pretty sure I echo the sentiments of most of the guys when I sayC'MON DOWN.......!!!!!!!!!

We'd love to have ya there man.....We want as many people there as we can get..

It's probably 40 - 50 minutes from Orlando.....

Yup, it's the 24th of August, Sunday......

I'm sure there's a lot you can contribute to our Workshop......Glad to have ya.....

See ya on the 24th Scott......

DonStegall

My Feedback: (1)

I added links on [link=http://pylonworkshop.com/]PylonWorkshop.com[/link] today and I uploaded some documents that Scott Smith sent to me. See the [link]http://www.pylonworkshop.com/Event_IRCC.aspx[/link] page.

ckeene9

My Feedback: (-1)

I already tried to get my fuel tank over the CG put the aileron servo/push rods got in the way. I don't even wrap my receivers in foam, so there is no weight issue there. Only thing I can find is the servos. Looking forward to getting this machine up and flying.

Christopher

PhilMill

Hey Christopher,

I just finished building my 2nd Orange Predator II...#12 in the hangar....Gonna take her out for her first flight tommorrow..Right after I mow the grass at the field...

I took a chance and put standard digital servos for the rudder/elevator....Futaba 3152's.....

I put a mini for the ailerons and a micro for the throttle.....

I cut a new hole for the aileron servo. Moved it back about an inch and a half.....That gave me enough room to put the tank on the CG....

I was kinda thinking that it would be heavy....But...I put it on the scale and it weighed EXACTLY 3 lbs 12 oz....0 grams....Amazing.....Lucky....

The only question then was - how would it balance... Put it on my balancer set for 3 3/4.....unbelievable.....It was almost perfect...1/2 inch nose heavy....

I guess you get lucky every now and then....We'll see how she flies....Might move the CG to 2 7/8 later.....

Never had one this easy.....I'll bet it flies like a brick!!! LOL

Allrighty ckeene, get that Pred up in the air...It's almost time to race...! When you get to Mulberry, it should be all trimmed and flying great huh?

Practicing lately?

You DO have a back up plane too right?

Phil

ckeene9

My Feedback: (-1)

This plane I'm building right now is going to be my back up plane. I have one more predator II in the box that will become my primary, since now I can take what I learned on this one and make my second one better!


Yes, getting really excited about Mulberry, should be a good time!

PhilMill

Yo Christopher, Wanna sell that new Predator in the box..?..I'll pay cash....

How much ya want for it.....?? Did I say CASH?

Know where I can get some more?

Lemme know before ya build it huh? CASH !!!!!!!

Phil

PhilMill

Yo Christopher, What color is it? CASH.............................................. .......

I can meet ya in Oviedo.......CASH........!!!!!!

Scorpion Racing

2 weeks out, are you ready to play!! Just a few updates for the participants. Rick (my caller and bud) asked The club about offering concessions for you guys, and the club said it will provide drinks as well as a cookout for the event,... for FREE! Can you beat that price? I think that was a wonderful thing to do.

Just to make sure everyone knows here is a rundown of the events on August 24:

1.) Workshop with info/data packets (on racing, set-up, etc...) for all who would like them.
2.) Group session on general racing, wha the course workers are judging as well as going over some of the documents together.
3.) 1 on 1 help with anything you need to race and get you ready to practice.
4.) Flight trimming, testing set-ups and tweaking.
5.) On the field 1 on 1 with helpers at the corners assisting you in flying a good line around the course.
6.) live practice heats (or you may call it, actual RACING! )

** All guys who are coming to test and are not new to racing, may feel free to fly and test at will! We will set up some heats by classes, if you guys want to. **

There is no cost for this Pylon Workshop and testing day.

The club will provide free concessions to all participants.

Everyone needs to bring your own fuel, or make some arrangements for fuel if needed (for you, Scott!) .

We will have the poles up by 8 am. The turn lights will be up as soon as we can get them up and running.

we have the field for the entire day.


The guys from South Florida will be transporting the light trailer up to the field, and have not asked for anything in return. I would like to try to take up a collection for them to help with the gas and equipment wear and tear on it. So, if you can, bring a few dollars to help them out.

for those of you who have raced at Mulberry before, we are replacing the mobile pylons with a single pole in the ground. So, you will no longer have those supporting legs sticking out in the way! We are trying to have this done prior to the testing day for you guys.

I guess that is all for now, lets get ready to RUMBLE!!

ckeene9

My Feedback: (-1)

Nah, I can't sell it. These two I have were like the last two available for sale. It is Orange though if you were wondering. Started working on it tonight.

Christopher

PhilMill

Well Scott, Looks like this thing is shaping up quite nicely.....You have done a wonderful job. The free concessions - what a nice thing for them to do...

We can all reach into our pockets and make a donation....

And yes, a donation for the lights is another great idea.......Will do....

I am psyched.....And oh so ready to take in all the info you've gathered for us.....And put it to good use....

And Oh yea, I'm ready to race......

It's gonna be a terrific time....

Thanks,

Phil

PS - I put a Nelson short stroke on one of my Predators....But I wrapped most if it in duct tape and wrote TT Pro 40 on it in magic marker,,, so's no one would notice...LOL

Scorpion Racing

I think that would work, Phil. The duct tape always throws 'em off! Just make sure you issue earplugs prior to the start-up! somehow that sound is a little bit of a give-a-way! I got my SS too, I wonder if I could sneak it out too...

I never had a Predator, but I had a Viper that I shook apart with a Nelson! I did all the glassing and reinforcing stuff, but the vibration ended up taking the muffler bolts out and costing me a new muffler. Bad thing was the muffler was more than the stupid Viper cost! [:@] Never again...

The club is not looking for any donations from you guys, I just want to offer the MPPA guys something for bringing the lights up. I appriciate them allowing us to use their stuff, and we usually help them with gas money for the race weekends. Just an idea, don't anyone feel they have to bring anything but their airplane stuff! This is a fun, free practice day for all.

See you guys soon!