Scale Jets and grass take off
10-12-2014, 11:45 PM
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Scale Jets and grass take off
Hi all,
I am flying a Boomerang Nano and Elan at the moment and enjoying it very much.
We fly from a 120m (could be longer, I am not sure) grass strip, which is obviously long enough for the sport Jets.
For my next project I am thinking to get a scale Jet and I was wondering whether there are any issues with starting from grass runways.
Are certain models not suitable at all for grass and should only taken off from tarmac?
My understanding is that most scale Jets need a much longer runway compared to sport Jets, so which Jets would be suitable for grass?
My favourite Jet is a Phantom, how would this Jet cope with a 120m grass strip?
Any advice is appreciated as usual.
Ulrich
I am flying a Boomerang Nano and Elan at the moment and enjoying it very much.
We fly from a 120m (could be longer, I am not sure) grass strip, which is obviously long enough for the sport Jets.
For my next project I am thinking to get a scale Jet and I was wondering whether there are any issues with starting from grass runways.
Are certain models not suitable at all for grass and should only taken off from tarmac?
My understanding is that most scale Jets need a much longer runway compared to sport Jets, so which Jets would be suitable for grass?
My favourite Jet is a Phantom, how would this Jet cope with a 120m grass strip?
Any advice is appreciated as usual.
Ulrich
10-13-2014, 12:11 AM
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Ulrich,
120m is a good length strip for most scale jets on grass, however your approach and departure are also important with regard to obstacles to clear. Some of the smaller scale jets will have higher wing loadings and can actually require more space than a larger model particularly on take off especially with smaller wheels dragging more on grass. The length of the grass and whether it is wet or not does also make a significant difference to take off distance - especially again with the smaller jets, although the extra drag does help on landing.. For example my Habu 32 with P20 turbine took a lot longer to take off on grass than my 1/5th scale CARF Hawk.
Trailing link undercarriage is always your friend on grass, particularly for your first scale jet so models like the L39 and Hawk are a good start. I can understand your love for the Phantom - I love them too but I would generally advise against a Phantom for a first scale jet, particularly on grass. There is one hell of a buzz to be had from flying a Phantom but most of them come out quite heavy and don't have trailing link undercarriage. IMO flying a Phantom is a bit like "taming the beast", damn good fun but not for the faint hearted !
There is a huge range of scale jets to choose from with an array of different manufacturers and prices as well as a number of different scales but if I was to pick one model that does everything fantastically well and operates brilliantly off grass its got to be the 1/5th scale CARF Hawk. Strong, well made model, wing loading is perfect, decent size wheels, great presence in the sky, flies well at all speeds, knife edge to die for - you can tell I'm in love with mine
regards
Colin
120m is a good length strip for most scale jets on grass, however your approach and departure are also important with regard to obstacles to clear. Some of the smaller scale jets will have higher wing loadings and can actually require more space than a larger model particularly on take off especially with smaller wheels dragging more on grass. The length of the grass and whether it is wet or not does also make a significant difference to take off distance - especially again with the smaller jets, although the extra drag does help on landing.. For example my Habu 32 with P20 turbine took a lot longer to take off on grass than my 1/5th scale CARF Hawk.
Trailing link undercarriage is always your friend on grass, particularly for your first scale jet so models like the L39 and Hawk are a good start. I can understand your love for the Phantom - I love them too but I would generally advise against a Phantom for a first scale jet, particularly on grass. There is one hell of a buzz to be had from flying a Phantom but most of them come out quite heavy and don't have trailing link undercarriage. IMO flying a Phantom is a bit like "taming the beast", damn good fun but not for the faint hearted !
There is a huge range of scale jets to choose from with an array of different manufacturers and prices as well as a number of different scales but if I was to pick one model that does everything fantastically well and operates brilliantly off grass its got to be the 1/5th scale CARF Hawk. Strong, well made model, wing loading is perfect, decent size wheels, great presence in the sky, flies well at all speeds, knife edge to die for - you can tell I'm in love with mine
regards
Colin
10-13-2014, 12:21 AM
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Ulrich,
Colin has given you good advise, so I will not repeat what he has already said. But let me add; it is always a good idea to go for the high end power range of any scale jet when flying from grass. So if the kit calls for a 16 to 18kg turbine, get the 18kgs. I own and fly almost all the large Skymaster jets, and they all fly perfectly from grass.
Cheers,
Jan
Colin has given you good advise, so I will not repeat what he has already said. But let me add; it is always a good idea to go for the high end power range of any scale jet when flying from grass. So if the kit calls for a 16 to 18kg turbine, get the 18kgs. I own and fly almost all the large Skymaster jets, and they all fly perfectly from grass.
Cheers,
Jan
10-13-2014, 04:53 AM
#4
3 years ago I moved to an area that does not have a hard runway and now fly off of a 1000 closely mowed strip. I sold all my scale jets. Avonds F15/Avonds F-16/ YA F-22(crashed)/ MR Hunter/ Fei Bao Mig-21. No matter how smooth you think your field may be the grass is still rough on the jets. I screwed up the gear on the 15/16 several times, the F-22 died when the tail pipe ruptured from the beating it endured on the grass and then sold the Hunter and Mig to preserve them. I highly recommend if you fly from grass you only fly scale jets that have trailing link gear as it can absorb the bouncing around much better.
