Augie11

Checked out the pics in your gallery. Muffler installation looks great. And I see you've had more than a little float flying experience. I have as well and currently have an Astro Hog and 80" Cub on floats. No pics though. Hope to have my 1/4 scale Cub on floats for the spring.

Just a quick comment. That 13x8 prop doesn't give you much clearance with the fuselage. My buddy Mike flys with the same prop on his Seawind and, after we did a series of touch and goes (some not so perfect) he noticed he had nicked the top of his fuse with the prop. I know it seems unlikely but it happened. I'm sticking with the 12x8 as it's done just fine for me.

Keep in touch.

Augie

seanychen

My Feedback: (4)

Does he have Master Airscrew? It flexes forward more than other brands.

gmgeeman

If there is that much flex in the hull, I think I would be more worried about that than the nick in the top. I prefer to load my engines up and not rev the crap out of them

gmgeeman

what engine are you running? 91FX??

Augie11

Yes, he's using a Master Airscrew 13x8 on a SuperTiger .91

Augie11

I agree with your engine philosophy. As you may have read earlier, we're flying up here at 5400 feet so power is a real concern. I fly almost exclusively 4 strokes but when I saw the clearance on this plane I decided to go with the OS 91 FX to get away with a smaller prop. She'll easily turn the 12x8 3 blade at 11,500 rpm but I run her rich at about 10,600 on 15% nitro and she runs cool with plenty of power for my taste.

Like you, I'm more concerned with the degree of flex indicated by this small mishap. This wasn't a crash, just a badly timed touch and go on choppy water. We were VERY surprised. I took mine apart last night just for a look see and noticed some small cracks here and there ---- nothing serious but still I've only got about 30 flites on her. Did some reinforcing inside with fiberglass cloth but I honestly can't see how you could beef up that pod to eliminate the flex without adding a lot of weight to the tail.

I'll keep an eye on things and let you know. But I think our float flying is about to end for the season and I have a bunch of planes to fly off snow so this baby will probably get some time off until the Spring.

Good flying!

Augie

hattend

My Feedback: (20)

If the tail/rear of the fuselage is hollow, I guess you could shoot some expanding foam in there to firm things up a little and it'll be negligible weight gain. It'll help keep it afloat in case of a crack or hole.

Just a thought, I haven't even bought mine yet. After the retract gear arrived I read about the quality problem so I cancelled my Tower order for the first run kits, I'll get mine after the first of the year.

Don

Augie11

Foam might be an interesting possibility! Your point on first run kits is well taken Don. But then I hate to miss out on all the 'fun' ..... hahahaha.

Augie

hattend

My Feedback: (20)

Well, it's too late to fly now, so there is no hurry getting the kit for me. The river is frozen and there's a foot of snow on the ground. No flying for me until breakup sometime the end of April.

You guys have fun, though.

Don

seanychen

My Feedback: (4)

You can always fly the float plane off snow.

hattend

My Feedback: (20)

Nah, it's no fun flying at 30+ below zero (C or F, take your pick)

I can wait. hehehehe

Don

gmgeeman

Hi, have just posted pics of my muffler in my gallery, was very easy to make, a bit of machining on the mill, some fabrication and some aluminium welding, don't know sound level as I have not run engine yet, noise not a problem at our lake sites. Have also checked for flex of the pod and there is quite a bit at about the throttle servo area which could cause the prop to hit the fuz top, may have to cut the 13in prop down a bit

gouda

My Feedback: (69)

A frozen lake with a foot of snow is a ideal flying site IMO. Other than the odd snowmobile [>:] or ice fisherman there is nothing in the way. yeah, not if it's minus 10 degrees though

FYI, I just ordered my Seawind, How would I know if it's a 1st or 2nd run kit?

Augie11

Tough to tell gouda. Unless they include an addendum to the instruction book. If they are still calling for mounting the engine 5 1/8" from the firewall it's probably a first run kit as most of us have found it should be about 4 15/16".

gouda

My Feedback: (69)

Thanks Augie. So what's the difference then other than what you mentioned. Do I need to be carefull of anything else?

Augie11

Right now there's nothing much more I can tell you except look over the fiberglass work for small cracks and defects. Reinforce from the inside. And check the (few) bulkheads to be sure they're securly glued. Oh, put some foam floatation in the wingtips and make sure to attach them very well.

Enjoy the anticipation!

gouda

My Feedback: (69)

Thanks again, I read that about the wing tip floats and will check out the seams. Now just to figure out a motor, A Saito 1.2, might be to much or a Saito 91. The 91 is a lot lighter (19.6 vs. 28 oz). I really want to go electric, but have yet to see any details on a conversion, and not sure I want to be first. But I have all winter now that the cold has set in and the water is getting hard.

Augie11

Might suggest you look at Saito 1.00. Weighs about the same as .91 and it's a powerhouse.

gouda

My Feedback: (69)

I believe you are right - 91 = 19.6 ox, 100 = 20.9 oz. But the 100 has only 0.1 hp more. Always trade offs.

gmgeeman

Hi all, got the seawind to the feild today,and ran the engine for the first time, sounds a wee bit on the loud side but I don't care as it runs well and is well hidden inside the cowl. Engine seems to perform well and I'm not bothered about the noise level as it is not a problem where we fly. when I got home from the field I stripped the plane out and removed all the forward bulkheads as I figured they were not required as I was setting this plane up as a dedicated sea plane and will ballast the hull with extra glass instead of lead. I will then replace the bulkheads to give some rigidity to the structure, till next time,

gmgeeman

Hookedonairplanes

Hey there,

Let me know when you complete the pictures of the rudder. I am interested, if you have the time. Thanks

Roy

seanychen

My Feedback: (4)

I believe the Saito 100 is 2.0 HP. It used to be listed as 1.8 HP in Horizon, but the new Saito 100 I got sure feels more than that. Saito Japan website lists it as 2.0 HP:

http://www.saito-mfg.com/single-files/fa-100.html

PaulG-RC

Snow here too so now I have the time to read the posts and check for potential problems.
I may decide to fly it off powdered snow

flying_phil

My Feedback: (4)

Hi,

I've been readying the forums about Seawind since I ordered mine. I received mine on Saturday after ordering a month ago and it is perfect except for a loose former in the canopy. Mine must be from the first run also as the instruction book had no amendments to it and it still says to mount the engine 5 1/8 inches out. Although all other formers are tight and in place I thought I would take the suggestions and glass the hull areas anyway and add the insulation in the tips. The extra weight upfront will result in less lead later. I noticed in a picture in another post that they side mounted a four stroke engine instead of inverting it. I 'm going to use a Thunder Tiger .91 4 stroke which the manufacturer recommends not inverting because of an updraft carburator. If I side mount the engine will this affect the thrust line? The engine mount seems to line up with the blind nuts either way. Am I missing something?

Thanks,

Phil

PaulG-RC

No Phil the mount that came with it has oval mounting holes and I was able to adjust it perfectly, I do prefer having the engine side mounted, looks better and runs better.
At least on mine the thrust line was not affected.
I will also have the fuel tank in the fuse at the CG, the engine should run ok with the pump.
I will also have the receiver and a 1100 bat pack as foward in the nose as needed to save on nose weight.

Paul