RE: 1/4 Scale Affordaplane Aluminum Ultralight
Thanks man. It was a fun project. I learned a lot and got her published and have some good pics and video. If I had it to do all over again I wouldn't change a thing. Can't beat that. Good memories are hard to come by. Still, I hope yours has a longer life than mine. Have lotsa fun with it and keep her flying. If you get any new pics or video please post it. I'll always be interested in checking out...Pete
Posted on: 5/19/2013 3:33 AM by Author "APLANEGUY" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11515816

RE: 1/4 Scale Affordaplane Aluminum Ultralight
Well, they say all RC planes have an expiration date and I guess the date on my Affordaplane was 5-18-13. A great morning for flying . The first flight was uneventful and routine but about 3 minutes into the second flight the engine went to idle and all control of any kind was lost. The plane was over the woods and about to bank back towards the field but without control she continued over the trees and went into a near vertical dive. We found her about 100 yards out in the woods and close to 100 feet up in a big tree. Totaled. Hopefully the next big wind storm will bring her back to Earth for salvage and possible diagnosis. She was a four year veteran of my little squadron and the most fun I've ever had with an RC plane of any kind. Rest in peace Iron Butterfly...
Posted on: 5/18/2013 1:43 PM by Author "APLANEGUY" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11515325

RE: another darn ryobi post (ryobi performance modification, analysis and comparison)
Music is there by choice. Video is very bland without. Didn't make it strictly for engine noise...
Posted on: 9/7/2012 3:14 AM by Author "APLANEGUY" in the forum "Engine Conversions"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11220452

RE: another darn ryobi post (ryobi performance modification, analysis and comparison)
Here's a little better video of my latest conversion project. Think I may actually be getting the hang of some of this 20th century technology (now that we're in the 21st)... [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ZS4PqiLanA[/youtube]
Posted on: 9/5/2012 3:44 PM by Author "APLANEGUY" in the forum "Engine Conversions"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11218716

RE: Let's show our Scale Planes off
Thank you! You're too kind. I've started work on a couple projects that could be very interesting. Next time I have interesting material I'll definitely post some video... Thanks again, Pete
Posted on: 9/5/2012 3:36 PM by Author "APLANEGUY" in the forum "RC Scale Aircraft"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11218707

RE: Let's show our Scale Planes off
Chevelle inspired me to make a more suitable video to celebrate a fun project completed successfully. I'm not half the cinematographer he is but I had fun with it nonetheless... [youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ZS4PqiLanA[/youtube]
Posted on: 9/4/2012 8:23 PM by Author "APLANEGUY" in the forum "RC Scale Aircraft"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11217795

RE: 1/4 Scale Affordaplane Aluminum Ultralight
Thanks Steve. It has really been (and continues to be) a fun project and a fun plane to take to the field. If you do get any video of yours flying I'd love to see it. Please make sure and post it if you ever get some you'd like to share. Thanks again man... Pete
Posted on: 9/4/2012 4:24 PM by Author "APLANEGUY" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11217552

RE: 1/4 Scale Affordaplane Aluminum Ultralight
One last bit of video documentation to celebrate a completed successful project. Some better digital camera footage and a little better editing knowhow and done is done... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_ZS4PqiLanA
Posted on: 9/3/2012 2:50 PM by Author "APLANEGUY" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11216060

RE: another darn ryobi post (ryobi performance modification, analysis and comparison)
Thanks for your concern but I was never in any kind of danger. I was wearing my lucky hat... :-)
Posted on: 8/25/2012 2:56 PM by Author "APLANEGUY" in the forum "Engine Conversions"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11205789

RE: another darn ryobi post (ryobi performance modification, analysis and comparison)
Here's a little video of my latest Ryobi conversion on my 1/4 scale Affordaplane ultralight. On this day she was spinning an 18x8 Master Airscrew Classic at just over 7900rpm on the ground. Really pulls the goofy little plane around nicely compared to the earlier Ryobi I was using. Love these little engines... www.youtube.com/watch
Posted on: 8/25/2012 12:07 PM by Author "APLANEGUY" in the forum "Engine Conversions"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11205659

RE: 1/4 Scale Affordaplane Aluminum Ultralight
A little video I made from some footage a friend took yesterday at the field. It's pretty low quality 'cause it came off my old school analog camera but it's all I have right now. He also shot some video on his good digital camera and I'll have that to work with soon so if I get something better I'll post that too. Just wanted to share a piece of an awesome day at the flying field. She has about a dozen flights on her now since the rebuild and she's flying very well with no mishaps... Peace, Pete I call this one "Hillbilly Top Gun" :-) www.youtube.com/watch
Posted on: 8/25/2012 12:00 PM by Author "APLANEGUY" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11205651

RE: Let's show our Scale Planes off
Awesome video!!! Well done!!!... :-)
Posted on: 8/22/2012 5:31 PM by Author "APLANEGUY" in the forum "RC Scale Aircraft"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11202651

RE: Let's show our Scale Planes off
Just finished a rebuild of the Affordaplane project. Balsa wings and balsa tail group this time, Monokote instead of fabric, CDI ignition and other hotrod mods to the converted Ryobi engine, fully sprung landing gear and carbon fiber wing struts. Shaved off a full two pounds (14.5 lbs all-up now) and increased thrust by about 4 lbs. Lines are a bit more scale and after successful maiden flights on Friday it's obvious she's gonna be just plain more fun to fly. Definitely a successful rebuild...
Posted on: 8/5/2012 6:23 PM by Author "APLANEGUY" in the forum "RC Scale Aircraft"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11182243

RE: 1/4 Scale Affordaplane Aluminum Ultralight
Thanks man. Definitely an attention grabber for sure at my field too (today was no different). Unique little plane. I'm thinking maybe if it proves to be as reliable and fun as the first version was and nothing bad happens to it I may take it to a couple of the local air shows/fun flys at other clubs' fields next year. There are some really decent clubs in this area with good fields but still a pretty laid back sort of atmosphere for good flying and that might be really fun to do. Who knows? I'm already working out the details for the next project. Should also be an attention getter but that's not why I build/fly. I just really like projects that are different. It's just a cool bonus that other people dig them too... Keep 'em in the air, Pete
Posted on: 8/3/2012 6:19 PM by Author "APLANEGUY" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11180186

RE: 1/4 Scale Affordaplane Aluminum Ultralight
Last one...
Posted on: 8/3/2012 1:21 PM by Author "APLANEGUY" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11179890

RE: 1/4 Scale Affordaplane Aluminum Ultralight
#2...
Posted on: 8/3/2012 1:19 PM by Author "APLANEGUY" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11179886

RE: 1/4 Scale Affordaplane Aluminum Ultralight
3 pics didn't upload for some reason so I'll post them seperately...
Posted on: 8/3/2012 1:15 PM by Author "APLANEGUY" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11179883

RE: 1/4 Scale Affordaplane Aluminum Ultralight
My 1/4 scale Affordaplane "Mark II" is officially completed and deemed a nearly 100% success. I just returned from the flying field and am happy to report that, with a couple minor exceptions, it went even better than anticipated. The reduced weight and increased thrust definitely make it a more "user friendly" aircraft to fly and because of all the inherent parasitic drag it still really looks very scale in the air. I think you could put 100hp in the nose of one of these things and it still wouldn't fly very fast. Just not a very aerodynamic design. I had an issue with vibration causing the hi speed carb needle to back out and richen up the mix during the first flight. Fortunately I got the plane trimmed out and back on the ground before it went too far. Just did a lot of "4 cycling" on that first flight. A fellow GVAM club member had a couple little washers and a piece of fuel tubing to adjust the spring tension/friction on the needle a bit and it stopped moving around. On the second flight she ran much smoother/stronger and flew quite well even though I think she may have still been adjusted just a touch on the rich side. Definitely no needle movement though. The only other issue I discovered was too little spring tension on my new-and-improved fully sprung landing gear. During taxi tests and take-offs everything was fine but a good hard bump on landing (which is VERY easy to do with this plane) and the gear would move too easily and too far and allow the plane to tip to one side rather drastically. On the second landing it was bad enough that it allowed the prop to touch the ground and stall the engine. Not good but the fix should be fairly simple. I intend to first try springs with more rate and just stiffen up the gear some and see what happens. If that proves to be inadequate I'll have to put something on the gear to give it a "maximum travel" sort of limit so if I do thump her down hard the gear will reach a safe limit and just stop. Either way it'll be an easy fix. The best news is that even with the rough landings nothing was broken or bent so the new design is definitely an improvement. So there you have it. Mission accomplished. Two pounds lighter, more thrust, more true-to-scale lines and still flying scale while being easier to fly as well. I've missed my goofy little plane and now I have her back and she's better than ever. I hope every model builder/flyer has as much fun with a project at some point as I have had with this one. That's what it's all about... Pete
Posted on: 8/3/2012 1:13 PM by Author "APLANEGUY" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11179879

RE: 1/4 Scale Affordaplane Aluminum Ultralight
Well, after a couple more busy days in the shop she's almost done. Wings, main struts, jury struts, seat/pilot/harness, all the flying wires... All are done. The only things left to do are covering the wing center section and applying the vinyl stripes/decals. One more good day in the shop and she should be ready for some taxi tests. When I top off the fuel tank it'll be weighing in at just about 14.5 lbs. which is a full 2 lbs. lighter than the original version. Combine that with the added thrust the new engine/prop combination is making (over 4 lbs additional static thrust) and it should be a very different flying airplane. Shouldn't be long now...
Posted on: 7/31/2012 5:34 PM by Author "APLANEGUY" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11176503

RE: another darn ryobi post (ryobi performance modification, analysis and comparison)
Here's a question for all you hardcore Ryobi vets. Once you get your engines set up and tuned and running well the way you like them (idle, top end, transition, etc.) do you find that you can leave them alone and not have to be turning needles every time you go to fly and the weather's a bit different or do you have to tune a bit every time you fly? I've been flying Ryobis for a few years now and it seems that more times than not I have to give the high speed needle a little nudge one way or the other to be good on any particular day. Once done I'm good for the day. The reason I ask is up until now the needles have been very accessible on any installation I've done. The next plane I'll be assembling and using Ryobi power will be a Gee Bee R2 and with the massive round cowl that's not easy to remove and the carb right in the center of it behind the engine I'm kinda scratching my head as to how I'll do any quick tuning on a day to day sort of basis. Are all of these engines a bit sensitive to weather or is it just mine? My string trimmers always seem to run just fine without ever tuning them at all but I definitely don't ask as much from them as I do my airplane hot rods. If regular retuning is the norm does anyone have any good ideas how I can make that happen on my Gee Bee project? If it's not the norm them does anyone have any good ideas why I seem to be doing it all the time?...
Posted on: 7/23/2012 7:24 PM by Author "APLANEGUY" in the forum "Engine Conversions"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11166691

RE: 1/4 Scale Affordaplane Aluminum Ultralight
Another pretty productive day in the shop. I'm running out of free time but still on schedule to be flying for the club picnic in two weeks. All the wiring is done, batteries/radio are installed, switches are in and working, Rcexl ignition is mounted and wired... Just about have the mechanicals all set. Next will be the fuel tank and lines, the seat and pilot, then on to final mounting of the wings. It's getting pretty freakin' exciting... :-)
Posted on: 7/22/2012 5:23 PM by Author "APLANEGUY" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11164960

RE: 1/4 Scale Affordaplane Aluminum Ultralight
Progressing slowly but surely. My target date (GVAM club picnic) is three weeks from today and I'm still on schedule to have 'er back in the air by then. My work schedule is really difficult right now but I managed to get the tail group all mounted and all the servos and linkages installed. The radio/battery box is mounted and I got some minor cosmetic concerns taken care of (aluminum Rustoleum is a wonderful thing). I'd like to think I had a great idea for wing struts but the more I think about it I may have read about it somewhere before. I needed a strong lightweight substitute for the 1/4" aluminum rod I used the first time around. Solid rod was just too heavy. I have some 1/4" aluminum tubing but it's really thin and I'm not sure how it would handle negative loading (not that this plane will be inverted intentionally but you never know what might happen accidentally). I passed a sporting goods store on the way home the other day and a little bell went off in my head (it was even loud enough to drown out the voices). I thought to myself "Carbon fiber arrows... Hmmmm..." I stopped in and looked around and what did I find? Carbon fiber arrows that were just a shade over 1/4" in diameter and plenty long to make my wing struts out of and they had a package of six that had damaged tail feathers and were marked down 50%. So for $15.00 I got lots of good indestructo-material to make wing struts and a couple other pieces out of and it cost just a couple bucks more than aluminum rod would have. I'm scoring that a win all the way around...
Posted on: 7/15/2012 5:20 PM by Author "APLANEGUY" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11156515

RE: 1/4 Scale Affordaplane Aluminum Ultralight
Everything that's supposed to be yellow is yellow now. MonoKote is definitely not as sexy as the fabric was the first time around but I have to say it is VERY nice to have this step finished with a single afternoon in the shop. Off to Dream Land then hopefully back at it tomorrow...
Posted on: 7/7/2012 7:16 PM by Author "APLANEGUY" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11147051

RE: Primer bulb???
Gotta say I'm giving this some serious thought. My gassers so far have been exposed and If there's ever any starting issues when the choke alone won't get it done (mostly only after not running for extended periods of time) I've kept a little eyedropper thingy I made handy to shoot a little fuel directly into the carb and away it goes. The next model I'll be putting together has a full cowl with no way to easily access the carburetor. I'm thinking most tuning will be done with the cowl off or I might have to make some kind of small access hole to allow access to the needles. To facillitate easy starting in all circumstances I do believe a primer bulb is just what the doctor ordered. All my carbs are set up for it anyway. If I can manage to locate it somewhere that's fairly inconspicuous I may just do it...
Posted on: 7/6/2012 4:21 PM by Author "APLANEGUY" in the forum "Engine Conversions"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11145790

RE: another darn ryobi post (ryobi performance modification, analysis and comparison)
Yep. All the long shafts I've seen are 3/8"-24. I might feel better just having a bigger prop nut on there anyway. 5/16" always seemed a bit small when bolting up an 18" or 20" prop. After some checking of the plans and some careful measuring and figuring I think the long shafts will be fine "as is" for my twin project as long as I choose the spinners carefully and make the appropriate length spacers for the prop nuts. The blank "stub" on the end of the shaft will have to come off but the threaded portion should be fine right where it is...
Posted on: 7/4/2012 1:53 PM by Author "APLANEGUY" in the forum "Engine Conversions"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11142992

RE: another darn ryobi post (ryobi performance modification, analysis and comparison)
Thanks guys. When I get closer to working on that project I'll take a junk long crank (I have a couple in pretty rough shape) and run a die down it and see how it works out. Should make the whole project come together better if I can get the cranks just the length I want... Pete
Posted on: 7/4/2012 4:49 AM by Author "APLANEGUY" in the forum "Engine Conversions"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11142329

RE: another darn ryobi post (ryobi performance modification, analysis and comparison)
The problem is, for the project I have in mind, the short cranks are too short and the long are a bit too long. I may end up using a custom hub to get the length I want out of a short crank or maybe if I use just the right spinner I can conceal a long crank and keep it looking scale. I have to review my plans closer when I get the time. I was really just curious if the threading could be done by hand before I start cutting cranks and experimenting. I'll definitely keep your offer in mind though. Thank you...
Posted on: 7/3/2012 5:03 PM by Author "APLANEGUY" in the forum "Engine Conversions"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11141872

RE: another darn ryobi post (ryobi performance modification, analysis and comparison)
Larry, You mentioned cutting down the long crank and threading it. Man, that would be so VERY handy if I could mod a couple brand new long shafts I have to use on a crazy twin project I'm gonna build this Winter. I really would prefer to have a shorter shaft so nothing has to hang out in front of the engine much either ahead of the prop or behind it. I may be able to hoogie-doogie something with spinners and leave the shaft out in front of the prop but I'd really rather not. You said you did "single point threading." Can threads be cut on these cranks by hand with a regular die or does it require a lathe or other fancy equipment to get it done? I guess I just always assumed crank material would be way too hard to thread by hand. Please let me know. Sounds like you have lots of knowledge in the machining department... Thank you, Pete
Posted on: 7/3/2012 4:28 PM by Author "APLANEGUY" in the forum "Engine Conversions"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11141835

RE: 1/4 Scale Affordaplane Aluminum Ultralight
I want to keep 'er looking as scale as possible so I incorporated aluminum rod "tubes" out the bottom of the fin and they will bolt to brackets on the fuse just like the real plane. The stab will bolt on with two bolts directly to the top fuse boom with spacers to get the angle correct as per the plans. That worked out great on the first version so this time around I'm just changing to mostly balsa construction to save weight and get the shape closer and other than that I'm reusing the hardware from the first build and away we go. Getting psyched about this project all over again...
Posted on: 7/2/2012 3:43 PM by Author "APLANEGUY" in the forum "Giant Scale Aircraft - General"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11140368

RE: another darn ryobi post (ryobi performance modification, analysis and comparison)
I was just saying I don't have a need to push my engines any more than they already are right now. I wasn't really questioning reliability. I spun up the twin ring engine today for the first time (identical setup to the last single ring engine I put together). I have to say I'm impressed but not quite how I really expected to be. I found a little more top end (about 150rpm) but the idle was much improved over any of my single ring engines. A full 200 rpm slower (reliably) and much smoother sounding and then the transition back to "power on" resulted in less hesitation (not that there was very much before) and a stronger sounding "pull" up to full throttle. I'm gonna stick with dual rings from here on out. I'm a believer...
Posted on: 7/1/2012 6:58 PM by Author "APLANEGUY" in the forum "Engine Conversions"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11139212