...after the first flight
Finally getting the Trainstar floatplane into the air was quite something; I was uncertain whether the additional weight and drag would render the Trainstar waterbound and, if it did fly, how well or indeed, whether it would be manageable at all.
The first, very brief, flirtation with the sky did at at least confirm that it could fly, and that it actually even floated on the air quite well, giving me a little confidence so that, when I returned a few days later intent on getting it flying, that I could anticipate at least some success.
The Trainstar flew unexpectedly well, I suppose given that I hadn't expected that it would fly at all and, that it manages to maintain a turn at all, with the weight of the floats, is quite remarkable. However, in this case, I think the water rudder plays a part in keeping the floats up in the turn, meaning that you need to keep the rudder on or the self-centering effect very quickly brings things on an even keel.
The generous proportions of the floats makes the Trainstar virtually unsinkable, righting the plane even when it has tipped over with the prop flicking the water and when the wingtip has been on the water at speed during an attempted launch.
The flip-side, however, is that the Trainstar is very slow, and turning into the wind on approach turns moderate pace into pedestrian approach. I've only flown it with the flaps down, in addition to the slight down attitude I dialled into the ailerons, meaning the the Trainstar is flying in a very high-lift configuration. As such it becomes very floaty when the power is off.
I'm interested to fly it without flaps to see whether the reduced drag improves it's flight. Also, it seems the floats contribute to lift up front, which helps to keep the nose up. However I think the consequent drag also tips the nose down under power.
Lastly, another apparent effect of the additional mass and drag is that the flight times are reduced significantly. I'm looking at a slightly larger battery, which is also only slightly heavier, to improve this. However I think that with a better appreciation of how it flies, that I may be able to improve on this and reduce the amount of full throttle flight required...
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