ash 26

Now I have 30 flights on my Dolphin all of grass today on a very spongie grass runway the u/c got really tested and was not up to the task material proved to be to soft and suspension not up to the task I will change the legs to to Jet 1 A had them in my ELAN for 300 plus flights and are still perfect I will also do the mod on the stab as per Dave W as on a real calm day I did find that elevator response got very poor on flare out exactly what Dave was on about .

cheers

Andy

acabrera11

Hello guys, I need to change the main wheels, which one can be use? Thanks

Si_B

Andy,

Dave's mod will help with stability in pitch but not lack of elevator control. His mod doesn't enlarge the elevators it just extends the tip (or a least that what it looked like, I'm sure Dave will comment).

Running out out of elevator is normally a sign of the model being nose heavy.

Simon

Dave Wilshere

The small tail means the model is nose heavy, it also means the aircraft pitches and loses energy in an instant, no airflow, no control!

The extended tail is needed. There are so many factors with the pilot model, the 78" Dolphin I sold today has a 9mm thick TE-which would be more stable than a thin one, I have still extended the tail for the customer.

Dave Wilshere

Mods done on the kit we just sold.
[ATTACH]2170055[/IMG][ATTACH]2170056[/IMG][ATTACH]2170057[/IMG][ATTACH]2170058[/IMG]

Si_B

Tempting to do the mod as its such an easy bit of balsa bashing, but obviously mine is the most random colour which no one seems to stock (the green/yellow/silver).

Simon

Dave Wilshere

[TABLE="width: 454"]
[TR]
[TD]05[/TD]
[TD]21-033
21-091
21-043
21-071
[/TD]
[TD]HANU885
HANU881
HANU903
HANU874
[/TD]
[/TR]
[/TABLE]


Orafilm or Hanger 9 Film

acabrera11

Hello. I need to change the main LG wheels, can somebody help me whit the options and size? Thanks

acabrera11

Somebody whit a full set of LG to sell?

Kim Couturier

My Feedback: (120)

Interesting to read this thread. I had one that was set up to factory specs. On third takeoff, it rolled left and piled into the ground. I just picked up another kit from a guy who is getting out of the hobby.....would be interested to know about any and all mods that will help make this a good flyer.

Si_B

Flew mine last weekend. Has sport wing and modified tail. Bit sedate on the 100 but flew perfectly with no issues. Maybe a couple of mm in front of factory cg position.

Set controls as per instructions except I went with less flap for landing and about 8mm of crow. Mind did not need up elevator mixing with the flap on take off or landing.

Can't comment if the tail made any difference as I never flew mine stock, but it was really smooth in the air and did not rotate by itself. Came in nice for the landing with a strong cross wind, no dramas. Never got to try out the gyro as it flew nicely. It's a little sedate for me and it's already been sold, but was a fun project to build.

Simon

Kim Couturier

My Feedback: (120)

Rotate by itself....that's exactly what was going on with the one I lost,,,and Chief said I had set it up wrong, didn't know what I was doing! I would really like to know more about the tail mods.

Si_B

The set up instructions call for up trim mixed in with the flaps. I had to remove all of that and add a bit of down trim for both take off flap and landing flap. My model just ballooned up otherwise, I guess this might have caused your model to rotate too early?

Dave has posted pictures above for the mod to the tail. Didn't take long to do.

Simon

gilslo

Dave

Can you give some explanations what you call U/C mounts and modifications (pics if it's possible). Thank you.

Dave Wilshere

The two bearers that you screw the retracts to need reinforcing, glass cloth and resin like ZAP40 is best.
The tail mods are like this photo sequence. The factory have now done this on the small 71" Dolphin as std. The larger one is still shipping with the smaller tail as far as I know.

[ATTACH]2178576[/IMG][ATTACH]2178577[/IMG][ATTACH]2178578[/IMG][ATTACH]2178579[/IMG][ATTACH]2178580[/IMG]

Kim Couturier

My Feedback: (120)

I found out that the flap elevator mix was wrong. Needed a little down, not up. Never used flaps on takeoff, however.....really would like to more about the stab modifications.

Tony Babington

I bought a pilot rc dolphin some weeks ago and in spite of first impressions was surprised to find so many mistakes in the models construction. Dave Witshire has mentioned that the undercarriage blocks are glued to the thin balsa top sheet of the wing however glassing around those blocks does not cure the problem of the blocks coming through the skin with even minor hard landings. The only solution is to take the blocks out completely which is a time consuming task which took me about 4 hours with a dremmel and sanding discs. Having glassed the underside of the balsa skin I decided to double up the thickness of the wing ribs that the new u/ c blocks would be attached to as the pilot wing ribs are totally inadequate. I was careful when I glued in the new blocks not to attach them to the top sheeting of the wings. If pilot rc cannot do the construction properly they should be advised to put the blocks separately in the kit. The nose leg blocks are again attached to 2mm ply formers which again are inadequate. To make matters worse they then put 3 inch lightening holes in those formers making them even weaker. Why? The plane in massively tail heavy and needs weight in the nose to balance surely substantial formers and blocks would be advantageous. Fortunately I did not have to remove the nose blocks I filled in the 3 inch holes and glued hardwood strips either side of the formers and underneath the original blocks to make a sound construction. All the strengthening added about 6 oz to the model. The electric retracts look superb on first examination however they do not work as they should. I believe pilot rc know this as they fill the leg Rams with a sticky glue like substance rather than grease to get a cushioning effect. When I put the assembled model on the ground and pushed down, the u/c contracted as it should but failed to rise again when I took my hand away. In other words you get one compression and the legs are solid after that. I am going to modify the units into a jet a1 configuration with external springs we all know they work. The model is very tail heavy and the double walled tail pipe weighing a Hefty half pound does not help. In my long experience with turbines single walled pipes are perfectly adequate and I have never yet seen any heat discolouration on one. For those that worry about heat in the back of the fuzz it's far better to line the inside with sticky backed aluminium duct tape, it's cheap and incredibly light. I intend to cut off the nose section so that the weight that has to be added to get the c.g correct can be as far forward as possible I am concerned having read this thread that other owners have moved the c.g even further forward than recommended as this means more weight in the nose. My model at present weighs about 18 pounds dry I doubt if a wren 54 would be an adequate choice of engine as some suggest.

paultzr

How are you getting on with all the work Tony? I have a JetCat 140 in mine but I've haven't weighed her.

Desertlakesflying

My Feedback: (28)

Think I'll just stick with this one. All composite too............

https://www.pacificrcjet.com/collections/t-one-models

Tip22v

I have experienced the same elevator ineffectiveness on flare when using more than about 10 degrees of flaps. I've been reading this thread on extending the tail to correct, is there another thread with more detail on the specifics of how to do this?

Thanks,

Tom

mkomsa

I have a new in box Dolphin 77.2" sport wing, charcoal/red for sale. $100 + $25 for shipping. CONUS sale only.

Tip22v

Does it have a tail tube?

Kim Couturier

My Feedback: (120)

What's the catch on the dolphin for 100? Why so cheap?

rcflyguy_26

My Feedback: (8)

I think he's just selling a set of sport wings... not a whole airframe.

Kim Couturier

My Feedback: (120)

Makes sense.........