Pilot-rc PREDATOR 2.2m Sport jet / full composite
02-03-2019, 03:32 PM
#401
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I am a bit puzzled by that comment as well why fly high. That's why I asked. If my wanting to use the smoke tank as an extra fuel tank is too heavy then it stands to reason it would be to heavy to use as a smoke tank. Unless I'm missing something. I have been talking to someone using a K-210 without the vector tube and it's fine. Use just have to know what throttle management is. If you can use a 200 size turbine with the vector thrust, why can't you use it without?
02-03-2019, 04:57 PM
#402
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Tony, you guys shouldn't make the turbine rails wider than the "normal" flying recommended turbine range. I don't like the idea of 2 lightweight pieces of wood holding the weight of my turbine because it's to narrow for the factory rails. The rails should fit a 160 and left to the builder to remove some wood if they need to mount a bigger turbine. The only reason I considered going bigger is that a 180-200 size turbine actually fits on the factory rails without having to modify anything. Is a K-180G2 to big then for normal flying? I don't really want to buy a 2.7M predator as of now considering I have a 2.2M on my work bench. I want to first fly the 2.2M and see how I like it and then I will probably go bigger. I even have been looking at the 3.0M for a future plane. I first want to see how everything works out on this one. Also, how is using the smoke tank for fuel too heavy for the plane if you can use the same tank for smoke fluid?
02-03-2019, 05:05 PM
#403
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if use smaller turbine. can fill what ever fuel you like. some people like more fuel to fly longer. some people like to fill only 70% of fuel tank to make it lighter.
02-03-2019, 05:57 PM
#404
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That's good you're updating the turbine rails but that doesn't help me with the version I have right now. I have a K-160G2 as you can see from my pictures but I don't like the idea of my turbine being supported by add on tabs. Like I said, it is always easier to remove some wood as opposed to adding tabs and so forth.
02-15-2019, 05:44 AM
#405
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Did anyone else with a 2 piece fusealge have trouble getting the pipe thru the former in the tail? I understand tight tolerances but holy cow. The other thing I was curious about was the need for so many of the tabs just to support the pipe. Seems fewer but maybe a little larger tabs would be a better solution.
02-19-2019, 07:32 PM
#406
Add me to the Predator 2.2 club! Bought this with roughly 20 flights on it. Still in really good shape! But I have a few questions:
1. Are the factory servos all HV servos? Prefer straight 2s lipo over regulated voltage.
2. do the gear require their own battery? Even if they don't, I'll probable give it to them, but is it 2s or 3s? The manual does not specify.
3. approximately how much up/down elevator, in millimeters, is needed for each stage of flaps(close enough to get me started)?
4. Anyone else have a problem with this gap in the wing/fuse fairing(pic below)? If so, what did you do to remedy it? I tried pressing it in firmly while tightening the retaining clamp. No dice. I can even swing the wing fore/aft slightly, even with the retention clamp tight. I am not a fan of Pilot rc's wing retention method, not a fan at all...
Thanks!!!
1. Are the factory servos all HV servos? Prefer straight 2s lipo over regulated voltage.
2. do the gear require their own battery? Even if they don't, I'll probable give it to them, but is it 2s or 3s? The manual does not specify.
3. approximately how much up/down elevator, in millimeters, is needed for each stage of flaps(close enough to get me started)?
4. Anyone else have a problem with this gap in the wing/fuse fairing(pic below)? If so, what did you do to remedy it? I tried pressing it in firmly while tightening the retaining clamp. No dice. I can even swing the wing fore/aft slightly, even with the retention clamp tight. I am not a fan of Pilot rc's wing retention method, not a fan at all...
Thanks!!!
Last edited by bodywerks; 02-19-2019 at 07:34 PM.
02-20-2019, 05:50 AM
#407
Very nice paint!
1. Are the factory servos all HV servos? Prefer straight 2s lipo over regulated voltage. - depends on which version. 20AH are high voltage and 20AL are not. You can find that info on their site.
2. do the gear require their own battery? Even if they don't, I'll probable give it to them, but is it 2s or 3s? The manual does not specify. - I run a separate battery, but I needed the weight for CG. If your running high capacity flight packs I wouldn’t worry. After 6 flights they consumed about 6-900mAh. I run 2 5000mAh flight packs. I will probably do some reconfiguration to take out the gear pack. The gear run on 2s.
3. approximately how much up/down elevator, in millimeters, is needed for each stage of flaps(close enough to get me started)? - I have about 2mm for mid and another 2mm for full. Also with my current CG ( as recommended) I have about 3mm of up Elevator as my neutral. I also use about 6mm of crow at full flaps. Helps to slow down and keeps it even more stable on approach.
4. Anyone else have a problem with this gap in the wing/fuse fairing(pic below)? If so, what did you do to remedy it? I tried pressing it in firmly while tightening the retaining clamp. No dice. I can even swing the wing fore/aft slightly, even with the retention clamp tight. I am not a fan of Pilot rc's wing retention method, not a fan at all... - I have about the same gap, I couldn’t close it. So I used clear duck tape to keep it sealed, over 100 flights and no problem. If we have the same clamping method (metal tab on the wing/tail surfaces and metal clamp in the fuelselage) then I wouldn’t worry. I fly my predator pretty hard and have never had a problem. Neither the wings or tail have never moved, there isn’t a whole lot of force pulling the wings/tail out of the plane, most forces are up and down, so it really doesn’t take much to keep them on the plane.
Thanks!!!
[/QUOTE]
1. Are the factory servos all HV servos? Prefer straight 2s lipo over regulated voltage. - depends on which version. 20AH are high voltage and 20AL are not. You can find that info on their site.
2. do the gear require their own battery? Even if they don't, I'll probable give it to them, but is it 2s or 3s? The manual does not specify. - I run a separate battery, but I needed the weight for CG. If your running high capacity flight packs I wouldn’t worry. After 6 flights they consumed about 6-900mAh. I run 2 5000mAh flight packs. I will probably do some reconfiguration to take out the gear pack. The gear run on 2s.
3. approximately how much up/down elevator, in millimeters, is needed for each stage of flaps(close enough to get me started)? - I have about 2mm for mid and another 2mm for full. Also with my current CG ( as recommended) I have about 3mm of up Elevator as my neutral. I also use about 6mm of crow at full flaps. Helps to slow down and keeps it even more stable on approach.
4. Anyone else have a problem with this gap in the wing/fuse fairing(pic below)? If so, what did you do to remedy it? I tried pressing it in firmly while tightening the retaining clamp. No dice. I can even swing the wing fore/aft slightly, even with the retention clamp tight. I am not a fan of Pilot rc's wing retention method, not a fan at all... - I have about the same gap, I couldn’t close it. So I used clear duck tape to keep it sealed, over 100 flights and no problem. If we have the same clamping method (metal tab on the wing/tail surfaces and metal clamp in the fuelselage) then I wouldn’t worry. I fly my predator pretty hard and have never had a problem. Neither the wings or tail have never moved, there isn’t a whole lot of force pulling the wings/tail out of the plane, most forces are up and down, so it really doesn’t take much to keep them on the plane.
Thanks!!!
[/QUOTE]
02-20-2019, 06:30 PM
#409
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Tony, so is it ok to use a bigger fuel tank since I'm putting a K-210 in my 2.2M predator? Also, where does one order the vector thrust pipe? I didn't know if the 2.7M fuel tank would fit or if I should or could plumb the smoke tank for extra fuel. Also, how do you order the smoke tank?
Jason
Jason
02-27-2019, 02:45 PM
#411
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Quick question. I'm to the point of mounting my turbine and was curious what you guys used to get into this tight space to drill and mount the turbine. Didn't know if you removed some material from where the hatch sits or just curious. I was trying to see if someone made a small drill made for 90° angles but haven't seen anything yet.
Jason
Jason
03-06-2019, 04:48 PM
#413
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So in the manual it only shows one set of rates for all surfaces. Are these the rates everyone is using or did you find something more suitable? Also, with the factory flap setting where or what is a good place for elevator to flap settings? I'm guessing it won't take much down elevator to mix in.
Jason
Jason
03-07-2019, 03:20 AM
#414
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So in the manual it only shows one set of rates for all surfaces. Are these the rates everyone is using or did you find something more suitable? Also, with the factory flap setting where or what is a good place for elevator to flap settings? I'm guessing it won't take much down elevator to mix in.
Jason
Jason
03-07-2019, 11:05 AM
#415
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Does the crow seem to help with the full flap setting on landings? I was thinking about adding some crow just curious if it actually helps with slowing it down.
Jason
Jason
03-08-2019, 03:31 AM
#416
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I suppose it does, but then again I've always had it in on this plane so I don't have anything to compare it to. No complaints being able slow down with full flaps and I've not seen any tendency to tip stall when getting slow on final. It was recommended by a club member that built one for a friend of his, I personally never saw that one fly but the builder (who has decades of experience in RC jets), thought it would be a good idea.
03-08-2019, 09:04 PM
#417
Started with the factory throws but I increased the aileron throw by about 4mm after the first 3 flights as they weren't quite as responsive as I like them, I have full throw on the rudder (didn't measure it). I have about 2mm of down elevator on my first flap setting and about 3-4 with full flaps, I also have about 8mm of aileron crow on full flap.
03-09-2019, 01:18 AM
#418
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Since sleeving the new wing tube I felt a lot happier flying the plane. And when it landed after the first few flights also noticed that the wing hadn’t come apart during flight. I think the reason it was separating was the tube was flexing during flight and forcing the wing to separate.
Anyway all sorted now. Will look for something else to sleeve the elevators and I’ll be way more happier.
Anyway all sorted now. Will look for something else to sleeve the elevators and I’ll be way more happier.
03-09-2019, 02:49 AM
#419
I've noticed this on the wingtube of my jet, that it is already bent! I bought a 16mm ID x 20mm OD x 500mm carbon tube as a center section reinforcement and then sleeved it with two 20mm ID X 22mm OD x 500mm carbon tubes, one on each end, then cut it to length to match the original tube. Then sanded as needed to fit inside the original tube and it actually straightened the aluminum tube by 90-95%.Only added like 6 ounces.
03-09-2019, 03:18 AM
#420
Quick question. I'm to the point of mounting my turbine and was curious what you guys used to get into this tight space to drill and mount the turbine. Didn't know if you removed some material from where the hatch sits or just curious. I was trying to see if someone made a small drill made for 90° angles but haven't seen anything yet.
Jason
Jason
https://m.aircraftspruce.com/catalog...iABEgKaA_D_BwE
Danny
03-10-2019, 05:13 AM
#422
Also read in several areas of this thread where up elevator trim was used with flaps on landing. I was surprised and unprepared when DOWN elevator trim was required on my Predator maiden late last year.
03-10-2019, 07:12 AM
#424
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So typically flap should require a down elevator mix. As you put the flaps down you move the center of pressure on the wing forward. This will cause a pitch up. Down elevator counteracts that shift. There are other things that can effect this which is why it is not true on all aircraft. But for most, a flap deployment will require down elevator.
03-12-2019, 09:12 PM
#425
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Hi All, I was the original owner of the Predator 2.2 in the military paint scheme.
I can share some of my flying experience.
1. Crow: I try it without and with crow. Without the crow, the wing would tip stall more easily when it gets too slow. I like to land it at walking pace with two wheelies landing. Had scratched the wing tips a couple of times until I added crow into and it would land slower without tip stall. I definitely recommend adding crows.
2. Flaps and Elevator mix. I like to use a lot of flaps for landing, I had the landing flaps set at about 70 + degree. With that setting I had to add some up trim. ( I think it's 3-4 click up) to maintain at level. I add a few click up to release the back pressure on the elevator stick and set the nose at good slight 1-2 degree up and carry 1/4 power on base to final. At this setting I really don't have to apply anymore elevator. I just use throttle to control the descending rate.
The aluminum spar can bend easily. I was going to try putting a wooden dowel in the spar to keep it straight since I flew it with a Jetcat 180RXi. It has a lot of power but I can management to take the spar out easily so I was not aware that it had bent. I hope the gaps can be smaller. It has the gaps since the day one I got it. Hope they can improve in the future
Regards,
Mike
I can share some of my flying experience.
1. Crow: I try it without and with crow. Without the crow, the wing would tip stall more easily when it gets too slow. I like to land it at walking pace with two wheelies landing. Had scratched the wing tips a couple of times until I added crow into and it would land slower without tip stall. I definitely recommend adding crows.
2. Flaps and Elevator mix. I like to use a lot of flaps for landing, I had the landing flaps set at about 70 + degree. With that setting I had to add some up trim. ( I think it's 3-4 click up) to maintain at level. I add a few click up to release the back pressure on the elevator stick and set the nose at good slight 1-2 degree up and carry 1/4 power on base to final. At this setting I really don't have to apply anymore elevator. I just use throttle to control the descending rate.
The aluminum spar can bend easily. I was going to try putting a wooden dowel in the spar to keep it straight since I flew it with a Jetcat 180RXi. It has a lot of power but I can management to take the spar out easily so I was not aware that it had bent. I hope the gaps can be smaller. It has the gaps since the day one I got it. Hope they can improve in the future
Regards,
Mike