RE: Great Planes Goldberg Super Chipmunk
Since the control surfaces aren't attached yet, makes it difficult to set them up. I have the pushrod tubes in place though for the rudder and elevator, but I never picked up the links for the pull/pull for the tail wheel. No big deal, since the tubes are small, I can easily feed them forward when ready. I finally have it ready for painting, now I just need to run a line from my garage for dry compressed air so I can paint it.
Posted on: 5/20/2013 9:47 AM by Author "acdii" in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11517209

RE: Great Planes Goldberg Super Chipmunk
Taping around the post is a good idea! I had trouble with one sheet being hard, and cracked it, the rest went on nice. I didn do anything for the tail gear yet, I figure it out when I get there. The Fuse is fully covered now with cloth and in the final stages of painting. Have the last primer coat down and sanded so ready for color. Going to use Rustoleum. I did some tests and all the colors are fuel proof for days. I poured a few drops on each sample and left them, forgot I did it, and days later looked at them. The residue wiped off with no affect on the paint.
Posted on: 5/19/2013 7:21 AM by Author "acdii" in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11515948

RE: landing bounce
I've been trying to contact the guy for the club 20 minutes from me, with no luck. The other one is 40 minutes away and in another county so a park district pass is costly. The one close to me is unmarked and I have no idea where it actually is. Where I normally fly is not a bad place to fly, and I usually dont have mishaps unless I misjudge the plane from me. What happened yesterday was a fluke, and with a plane I have not a lot of time on, which coupled with the cross winds, led to me treeing it. Besides, repairs are half the fun, otherwise I wouldnt have much to do when I dont fly!
Posted on: 9/17/2012 4:16 PM by Author "acdii" in the forum "Aerodynamics"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11231603

RE: Flying field
That site is 12 miles away, 20 minute drive, there is one in Rockford, that's 18 miles and 40 minutes away, but you need to purchase a park district permit to fly there, and a 40 minute drive doesn't leave much time to fly during the week. I don't mind flying at my friends house, but I also don't like to impose and come over whenever I get the bug to fly.
Posted on: 9/17/2012 12:24 PM by Author "acdii" in the forum "AMA Discussions"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11231347

RE: Flying field
That's apparently the site, but it isn't marked on 14. The building on the right has a gated driveway. If you pan left and down you see what look like a north/south and east/west runway, but those are large enough for full scale planes. The contact listed hasn't responded to my earlier emails and I was hoping there was a member here who flew, or flies there.
Posted on: 9/17/2012 12:01 PM by Author "acdii" in the forum "AMA Discussions"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11231328

RE: NEW DLE 20cc Gasser! (Data & Links 1st Post)
You can find a PITTS style, muffler. I have one on my 4*120 that fits better then the stock one. http://www.milehighrc.com/muffler.html
Posted on: 9/17/2012 9:21 AM by Author "acdii" in the forum "Gas Engines"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11231144

RE: Goldberg Anniversary Edition Piper Cub
I briefly laid my DLE20 on the plans, and found I would need a rather large hole in the firewall for the carb. It would certainly fly the plane, but it would be a PITA to land, and if the engine ever quit, say goodbye to it quickly as it would drop like a rock. How do I know this, I have a Deweyville special which is slightly larger than this kit, and it does have enough room on the nose to mount the DLE, ignition etc. and balanced out perfectly, no added weight if you can believe this. BUT the plane flew too fast, was a pain to land due to the rather large sink rate, and eventually something had to give, and in my case, the rudder pushrod separated. The plane has been repaired, but the DLE is on a 4*120 and a magnum 91 FS took its place, and guess what, still too much motor for the plane. A 60 FS would probably fly it very well. Although I do have to say, dead sticks were wonderful on it now. I flew it once, and at half throttle on a new engine it flew really smooth, full throttle it felt like it would come apart with how it flew. Since the engine is barely broken in, and still needs tuning, it eventually loaded up at half throttle and quit, but I had enough altitude to do a proper landing, and it floated in very nicely. I know the cub and dewey are two different planes, but they are both high wing planes with similar flight characteristics, and based on that I can say a DLE20 is not the kind of motor to use on one. I'll bet my Magnum 52 FS would fly one nicely. The Great Planes ARF with the fabric covering flies very nicely with an OS 70 FS. My friend flew one, well, he did until a tree snatched it out of the sky and turned it into scrap wood. I had one of these kits back in the early 90's but never got to fly it, the radio I had was outdated and banned and I couldnt afford a new one.
Posted on: 9/16/2012 4:33 PM by Author "acdii" in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11230363

Four Star 40 ARF
I have the 120, and considering a yellow 40 size. Question, will a Magnum 52 fly it well?
Posted on: 9/16/2012 2:57 PM by Author "acdii" in the forum "ARF or RTF"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11230264

Flying field
I have been trying to find the Big Foot flying field as it is not marked, and the person who is listed as contact hasn't responded, so dont know if it still exists. Is ther eanyone in the Harvard area in IL?
Posted on: 9/16/2012 2:55 PM by Author "acdii" in the forum "AMA Discussions"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11230260

RE: landing bounce
All depends on if its an ARF or Kit. If an ARF, the thrust angles are pretty much dialed in for most engines. Kits can be off depending on how it was built. I am adding a couple degrees right thrust to my 4*120 because the DLE20 has it yawing left. Texas, I have a place I fly on Tuesday evenings that has more room, and once the corn is cut down, the landings will be much easier. The weather has been bad the past week and doesn't look good for this week either and needed to get some flying in. I have park flyer room but park flyers and wind dont mix. I am considering getting another 4*, a 40 size to put the Magnum 52 on. I can fly the 120 here, but dont want to take a chance on a bad landing, which if history shows, means landing on the fence, which would not bode well for the plane.
Posted on: 9/16/2012 2:46 PM by Author "acdii" in the forum "Aerodynamics"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11230250

RE: Band saw blades
1/4 x 8TPI, sounds like a plan, wasnt sure if the 1/4 would be too wide for rib making, and thought 1/8 was what would be needed, but if 1/4 works, thats perfect, I think I have one that didnt rust and break.
Posted on: 9/16/2012 11:30 AM by Author "acdii" in the forum "Scratch Building, Aircraft Design, 3D/CAD"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11230102

RE: Eflite T 34 Mentor E to Glow
Well I have a few flights on it now, and although the engine runs superb, the plane is not that great a flyer even with the added power. It is very sensitive to control inputs on ailerons, its one that you really need Expo on to keep it from twitching. Elevator and rudder are OK, flaps finally got balanced, and you must use full flaps on takeoff, but have to zero them once off the ground or it will climb straight up. It is all over the sky in any sort of wind, and its size makes it difficult to really fly it, you lose orientation when it gets out, and it gets out quickly. . Landing is the worst part, If there is enough runway, you grease it in with some throttle, but if you have a defined space to put it in and an obstacle to get over first, landings are very rough, and this plane lands nose first too. I smunched the belly again with the nose gear. My last flight it would up in a tree due to a strong crosswind from behind me that yawed the plane towards me, with the tree just to my right, I tried to power around it, but just didnt have the room. I pulled the droops off, and need to fix one servo linkage, and reconnect the nose gear wire. I will see how it performs without the droops, and if I still am unimpressed with it, I will convert it back to electric and use the really good running Magnum in something else. To sum it up, adding more power with the Magnum, didn't make the plane any better performance wise. It flies just about the same, just a little faster.
Posted on: 9/16/2012 11:26 AM by Author "acdii" in the forum "Electrics to Glow Conversions"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11230101

RE: landing bounce
LOL, Took my Eflite T-34 out for some flights in my backyard. I converted this to glow with a Magnum 52 FS. This plane is a PITA to land. You have to grease it in, if you stall it in, it slams to the ground. I dont have a lot of room to land it, and a fence at both ends, so I have to clear the fence before I can land. Tried it with flaps, pitches up and stalls out, or climbs with a little throttle. Need to play with the flap adjustment for landings, takeoffs use full flaps, landings about 1/3 of that. When I get the speed just right for it to land properly it goes long. If I didnt have that fence to contend with, I could get it to land good every time, but man what a PITA on short runways. Now I can land my Kadet LT40 in the same space with room to spare, and except for the bumpy ground, looks good when it lands. This may be the last flights on the plane though, A 13 MPH crosswind kicked up when trying to bring it in for a landing and it yawed it towards me, and I didnt have the speed to bank away and couldnt get enough speed up to climb and flew it into a tree. Plane is OK, the nose gear wire popped out and a servo arm snapped off, and lost the link, but the plane is fine. I have never really liked this plane like I thought I would. So going to fix the servo arm and give it one more try without the droops and see if it makes a difference and if not, going to strip the goods out of it for a different plane. I resolved the long takeoff, now it takes off in a short distance, but this plane has always been a pain to land. I never bounced it though! It almost always hits nose first when it lands, unless I land it hot. I just dont have enough runway to do that.
Posted on: 9/16/2012 11:10 AM by Author "acdii" in the forum "Aerodynamics"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11230091

RE: Band saw blades
No kidding, without power you cant set any angles. Nice move. The least they could have done was a backup scale on the cover!
Posted on: 9/16/2012 8:37 AM by Author "acdii" in the forum "Scratch Building, Aircraft Design, 3D/CAD"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11229989

RE: Top-Flite T-34
That is SICK man!!! Awesome work!
Posted on: 9/16/2012 7:48 AM by Author "acdii" in the forum "RC Scale Aircraft"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11229953

Band saw blades
Hi all, going to start building from plans, and pulled my 12" Craftsman band saw out of the barn, and need new blades. What suggested blade to use for cutting the balsa ribs and such? Hopefully I can find the right one in 80" for this thing, and hopefully it still runs. Its an old one that has the digital interface that eats up batteries, so I have to find the adapter for it that I made so I can adjust it, provided the sensors still work. Now to get the darn thing down stairs, it doesnt fit through the door fully assembled. :(
Posted on: 9/16/2012 7:21 AM by Author "acdii" in the forum "Scratch Building, Aircraft Design, 3D/CAD"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11229926

RE: landing bounce
Not arguing that. The first couple landings on my 4* were no different than I land it now, no elevator when the wheels kiss. It bounced the moment the wheels touched, but now that I have the nose weights glued on so they dont fall off sitting in the truck, landings are fine, settles in nicely, wheels touch and the plane rolls out on the mains then drops the tail. The Kadet does the same thing on landing, settles on the mains and rolls out till the tail drops. The 2 ounces that fell off didn't affect flight that I could tell since I flew it for such a short time. I still have some trim to do, it tends to yaw left on vertical, so I added some right thrust to the engine, and have yet to test fly it. Overall the plane always handled well in the sky. Now if I can just keep it out of the corn on landings......
Posted on: 9/15/2012 7:55 AM by Author "acdii" in the forum "Aerodynamics"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11229232

RE: landing bounce
What it boils down to is how you land, nothing more, nothing less. The 4* manuals state that in plain english. Then again, not everyone can read english. :D When you land a properly balanced 4* right, it doesn't bounce. If the balance is towards the tail though, the plane has a higher tendency to bounce, as mine proved to me.
Posted on: 9/15/2012 6:53 AM by Author "acdii" in the forum "Aerodynamics"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11229192

RE: landing bounce
Most likely inherent with the design of the plane. The Pulse is very close in design to the 4 Star. Long fuse, wide wing, tail dragger. Looks like the Pulse LG is just a wee bit further back than the 4 Star. Sounds like you do the same thing I do, touch and go on the mains. Really helps to get the speed just right for a smooth landing.
Posted on: 9/14/2012 7:11 PM by Author "acdii" in the forum "Aerodynamics"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11228856

RE: Radios
Futaba "Attack" 4NBL 4-channel AM system
Posted on: 9/14/2012 7:03 PM by Author "acdii" in the forum "Questions and Answers"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11228851

RE: landing bounce
Here is a section from the 4*60 ARF manual. The kit manual online is missing the last sections. [quote]Landing the FOUR-STAR 60 ARF is typically a pleasure. We suggest using a standard landing approach, beginning with a throttled back downwind leg and base turn to the final approach into the wind. During final approach, keep just a little power on the engine until the airplane is over the end of the runway. In crosswind situations, a little rudder input will likely be needed to keep the airplane lined up with the runway. The FOUR-STAR 60 is best landed in the three-point position.[/quote]
Posted on: 9/14/2012 6:36 PM by Author "acdii" in the forum "Aerodynamics"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11228829

RE: landing bounce
As I mentioned before I have a 4*120 that did bounce the first couple times I flew it until I discovered it lost 2 ounces of nose weight. Now that I have the nose weight back on, it no longer bounces. My 4* is balanced right in the middle of the range spec'd in the manual. In addition the manual does state that the best way to land it is 3 point. Right out of the manual [quote] Slow the model down during the entire approach by slowly feeding in "up" elevator. Just before the model touches, flare the landing by carefully feeding in more "up" elevator. Hold the model just inches off the ground until your elevator stick is pulled all the way back. The Four-Star 120 should settle in for a perfect "three-point" landing with a short rollout. If your model always seems to make a nice landing approach but bounces when you touch the ground, you are simply trying to land too fast. If you're concerned about stalling during the approach, try doing some fake landing approaches about 50 to 80 feet high to build your confidence. You might be surprised at how slow the "120" will actually fly without stalling. [/quote]
Posted on: 9/14/2012 6:29 PM by Author "acdii" in the forum "Aerodynamics"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11228825

RE: landing bounce
[quote]ORIGINAL: flycatch You my sir have summed it up in a nutshell. I have a hangar full of taildraggers and no two land the same. Some require landing on the mains were others' require a three point stall. [/quote] The 4* manual does recommend a 3 point landing to reduce bounces. I found that a slight nose up when the mains touch goves the smoothest landings.
Posted on: 9/14/2012 10:19 AM by Author "acdii" in the forum "Aerodynamics"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11228443

RE: Missing parts from kits
The only problem I have had, aside from the wheel pant falling off, is the covering. It just doesn't want to stay stuck. In fact I peeled off a trip on each wing from the main spar forward, and it came right off. I replaced it with purple Monokote so now I will be able to tell which way the plane is hanging. Even with the checkerboard bottom, when it is up and out I cant tell the difference. Other than that, no problems that I haven't caused. As far as manuals go, the Kadet was pretty straight forward, I had no areas in the build that I was like, huh? Top Flite OTOH, many many parts of the build so far are confusing.
Posted on: 9/14/2012 6:52 AM by Author "acdii" in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11228229

RE: landing bounce
Well, 2 ounces in the nose fixed my 4* bounces. [:D]
Posted on: 9/14/2012 6:35 AM by Author "acdii" in the forum "Aerodynamics"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11228212

RE: Are Pattern Planes Good 2nd Planes?
I LIKE THEM BOTH! hehe thats the problem. I dont have $240 for both kits. LOL. However I saw your posts in that thread with your 3 models, the yellow one with flames and 91 FS. That is a very good build thread, and answered my question regarding a wing jig, and his was simple and looks like it works good, too bad his met an early demise. Surprised he hasn't chimed in on this thread.
Posted on: 9/13/2012 6:31 PM by Author "acdii" in the forum "Beginners"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11227825

RE: landing bounce
If its an ARF the landing gear is pretty much set. Mine is an ARF, but now that I have the CG dead on again, it lands fine. The one the OP posted about didnt say if it was an ARF or kit.
Posted on: 9/13/2012 5:03 PM by Author "acdii" in the forum "Aerodynamics"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11227726

RE: Propeller Question
The wood should be of a tight grain, usually maple or hickory. The grain should be as straight as possible with no knots. You want to avoid having gain run cross wise on the prop and should run the entire length. Too bad you cant use a variable pitch prop, so you can increase thrust on take off, and trim it for best flight.
Posted on: 9/13/2012 4:51 PM by Author "acdii" in the forum "Questions and Answers"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11227714

RE: Missing parts from kits
SIG really is a good company, too bad there aren't more like them. The one thing I dont care for on my SIG 4*120 ARF is the covering, but otherwise a nice plane. The Kadet LT40 kit was great, so SIG will be my kit of choice, and knowing how well they treated you for missing parts, is great.
Posted on: 9/13/2012 4:43 PM by Author "acdii" in the forum "Kit Building"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11227704

RE: landing bounce
The plane is tail heavy. Doesnt take much either. I have a 4*120 and the first couple times I landed it, it would bounce. Turned out to have lost almost 2 ounces of nose weight from the time I first ran up the engine, to the time of the first flights. I found the weights in the back of the truck and glued them back on, now the plane lands good, without bounce no matter what the speed is.
Posted on: 9/13/2012 4:35 PM by Author "acdii" in the forum "Aerodynamics"
http://www.rcuniverse.com/forum/fb.asp?m=11227695