2m Raptor Glider

...sleek thermal rider

I've been searching for options to replace the Phoenix after its disastrous crash. It may be repairable, however with its foam wings already susceptible to deformation in the warming weather and combined with a massive crash repair, I don't think it would be flying very straight.

Hence looking at composite gliders, although one soon realises that carbon wings are very expensive, with a two metre ARF carbon glider in the region of five hundred smackers.

The Raptor, therefore, provided an intermediate solution, with a fibreglass fuselage and fibreglass/balsa combination wing hopefully providing more durability than EPO, and the ARF package coming in at just over a hundred bucks.

It'll need six servos, more expensive metal-geared bearing units being recommended, and I'll probably use the spare Phoenix motor I have along with the carbon prop which survived the crash.

To that just needs to be added an appropriate spinner and we should be good to go using a trusty 2200 3S pack to get the Raptor soaring into the air...

Fox Glider

...should be good.

I've splashed out on a 1.5m PNF Fox glider, a fibreglass fuselage and balsa creation from R2Hobbies, available for the very modest sum of just over a hundred bucks all up.

So what's the catch? Well apparently there's an issue with the tail plane angled too low, causing the Fox to be nose-up which apparently causes instability. The upshot is rework required , with the full fix being cutting out the tail plane mounting slot, raising the incidence by 3mm and then filling the gap with a wedge of balsa.

A lot of work, yes, however at the end you get a speedy and maneuverable composite glider, which can also double as a speedy slope soarer.

Not a bad deal...

Canadair New Motors

...more speed!

I fitted the Canadair with three-blade props of 7x4.5 on the basis that dropping a size from the standard 8" twin-blade props is recommended. However, in this case, the originals are big paddle-props so a change to regular three-blade props of the same size would probably have been a better equivalency.

An issue with the bearings in one of the motors, which I was unable to remove for replacement, had me shopping for new motors and I came across the more powerful 250W version of the specified motor. Being the same size and weight, although with a lower quoted current draw, it seemed a natural choice, now that I had a better appreciation for the performance of the Canadair having flown it.

Also, given that the 7x4.5 props were undersized for the original motor, the higher kV rating, 1650 vs 1400, suits them very well, and the Canadair seems happy with the new combination and generates an impressive turn of speed at full throttle...

Trainstar Monster Wheels

...nice!

The first time I ever took the Trainstar to the field, someone remarked that I should put bigger wheels on it. I replied that the wheels were quite big already, to which Sensei replied, "Bigger wheels equal bigger fun".

Having recently started flying the Trainstar from the field again, in what I think will be its summer metamorphosis, I got a rush of blood to the head and decided to get the bigger wheels. The standard units on the Trainstar, installed in spats, are 75mm and looking at what was available I decided on a pair of 100mm foam wheels.

Now 25% larger doesn't seem that much but, to quote one of the reviews, the wheels were much larger than he expected. Ditto. I think it's the square law, or something like that, but it translates into a substantially larger wheel.

The wheels, of the same variety that I fitted to the Canadair, are very light and firm. However, because they are very much over-size in the case of the Trainstar, the firmness will be exaggerated.

However, with a springy undercarriage and landing on grass, I don't expect this to be an issue at all...

Rarebear Slow Prop

...shows how good the original is!

I recently had a minor incident with the Rarebear; the result of me somehow reversing the elevator, probably while I was adjusting settings on the transmitter. The result was the Rarebear nosediving straight into the turf, although fortunately with the ground being very damp there, the damage was limited to a broken prop.

Unfortunately I'd used the last of my Funfighter props on the Radjet, which now uses the same propulsion system as the Rarebear.  The only alternative were some APC style props which I'd bought based on reviews, so I got one out the bag and fitted it to the Rarebear.

This morning, a lovely cool and calm start to the day, I took the Rarebear along to try it out.  Flying on the 3S 1300 battery the Rarebear is usually pretty quick, although manageable, so I was quite amazed at how much slower it was compared to flying with its original prop.

While you would think there wouldn't be much difference between a 6x4 and a 5.5 x 4.5, it just shows what a brilliant combination the original prop and motor are together...

Floater Jet Ground Take-Off

...unlikely but groovy

Some while ago, while trying the throttle with the Floater Jet on the ground, it occurred to me that, since the Floater has a high-mounted prop, it would be feasible to take it off from the ground. Theoretically anyway.

Without undercarriage, however, and just a smooth-bottomed fuselage, control on the ground wouldn't be very good. Also, as my first attempts showed, the Floater can tend to skid around, especially if the controls aren't all centred, as I sometime have them in order to keep it trimmed straight for power flight.

Nevertheless, as you can see from the Floater's take-off run, ground launch is possible and a novel change to the usual hand-launch. And its pretty cool as well...

Ride on a Radjet

...high-speed fun

For some while I've been meaning to get an on-board video with the Radjet but, given the weather and choice of planes on the day, I still hadn't got around to doing it. 

The Radjet it the fastest plane in the fleet, now running the Funfighter motor and prop as well as the mini 4S battery. It's also that plane which is flown with most abandon, given it's rock-solid behaviour in the air. It's twin-tailed configuration and bold markings also make tracking its orientation easy, so I'm always confident that I know what it's doing. 

My one concern was whether the camera, mounted just forward of the tail fins on the curve fuselage, would be secure enough, considering it was only in contact with a narrow strip of velcro. Consequently I was a little conservative in flying the Radjet and happily the Mobius was still there when the radjet touched down...

Fun with the Trainstar

...I've changed my mind

This morning, cool and overcast with just a hint of a northerly, I took the Trainstar to the field for its second fly back on its wheels. Having suspected the large battery, fitted to give it a little extra punch and duration in floatplane guise, to be a bit heavy it its native guise, I switched to the regulation power pack and sent the Trainstar on its way, needing to give it a nudge to get it rolling in the longish damp grass.

As before the Trainstar was flying nose-down, needing a few clicks of up trim. However, flying it whilst in the process of trimming it, I discovered that it's actually quite entertaining flown needing a little up elevator, like I do the Radjet. What this does, instead of it wafting around the sky, is to change the high-wing cruiser into a ground-hugging machine, flying in low and purposely, not unlike its high-speed brethren except at about a third of the speed.

The lighter battery, also located further back to balance a little better, seemed to make the turns a little cleaner as well, although the Trainstar still drops like a brick as it turns as well as tightening turns as well both of which make it challenging to fly.

I understand that this is a trainer and that good training aircraft challenge you so that you can learn. Nevertheless I'd be amazed if someone could actually to teach themselves to fly with this plane, its got that many quirks...

High-Speed Afternoon

...blue skies and beautiful clouds

Today was one of those days when the weather continually surprises you; this morning was heavily overcast and still, giving one the anticipation of a dull day, possibly even rainy. Then, looking out the window a little later, one is surprised with the grey dissolving into little patches of cumulus, feeding off the warming earth. And then, a little later still, the sky is almost clear and a cool afternoon is blowing, a gift from the Southern Ocean.

Although a little breezy, with such lovely weather I decided to make a turn past the field just in case, and happily found a steady and quite flyable breeze, especially as the car had a boot-full of little buzzies.

The recent smash, and possible destruction, of the Phoenix (now there's irony; perhaps I should set it alight as a shortcut to repairing it) has left me a little nervy to fly, especially the high-speed brigade, despite the crash not being pilot-related for once. Anyhow, the opportunity to get out and enjoy the lovely afternoon whilst the planes headed skywards towards the pure white clouds was too good to let go begging.

It was the first outing of the Stinger since its repair, following its three-day stay in the paddocks after it went MIA. While suffering only minor damage, test-flying something that's been repaired has potential to be heart-stopping. Fortunately, apart from a slightly hair-raising launch, largely as a result of me throwing it skew causing the Stinger to hang on knife-edge, it flew perfectly well.

Having not flown it for some while, however, I'd lost a bit of touch with its, well, touchy behaviour, and for most of the flight I felt as if I were courting disaster. Nevertheless, all went well and the Stinger ended up in a long glide in for a safe landing.

The Radjet, flights of which book-ended proceedings, once again enhanced its reputation as a solid high-speed platform, giving relatively effortless performances and outrunning the Stinger in most departments, except the distinctive jet whine and apparently effortless performance. I have, on a number of occasions, especially since I learned how to launch it properly, have considered getting a new Radjet kit, my rough-lived example bearing barely any resemblance to the original.

However, despite appearances, which would be desirable especially during low fast passes when its chequered past becomes more evident as it approaches, as it still flies remarkably well, and fast, trading it in for a replacement would seem like a rather poor deal for a faithful plane which wears the scars of lessons learned discovering how to actually fly it...

Trainstar. Back on the Ground

...and still a handful to fly

The advent of warmer weather, combined with access to the lake being restricted, meant that it had been a long time since I'd flown the Trainstar floatplane and, feeling rather sorry for it hanging around in the study, I decided to take it off the floats and restore it to it's original undercarriage.

A simple process of removing four bolts and unplugging the added rudder servo had the floats off, and the the aluminium undercarriage strut was quickly back in place. Whereas on the floats the Trainstar looked rather diminutive, with the undercarriage it looks positively oversized, making me think I should get a pair of outsized wheels for it, bush-plane style.

At the field the next day, on a rather dull grey morning, the Trainstar was soon launched and into the air. For some reason the elevator needed a lot of up-trim, however this was soon sorted in flight although I brought it in just to check that nothing was awry. Satisfying myself that everything was OK, I gunned the motor and had the Trainstar straggling into the air, its left wing dipping towards the turf as ever.

The one change I made was to fix the tailwheel, and I found that this helped it to track straight on take-off, something I'd discovered similarly when I added the rudder servo which helped keep things on an even keel, literally, during takeoff with much better control than the cable system ever could.

Having the Trainstar now flying a bit more evenly, I was amazed at how difficult it is to fly. I think I've remarked before that it's quite engaging because of it's idiosyncrasies. It is, but also quite frustrating when you're just wanting to cruise something around the field without having to be on guard at every move.

This is especially evident after having been flying the Canadair which, also having the same wingspan, is completely easy to fly and as docile as you could wish, while still looking like a character plane and having capability for some aerobatics.

Nevertheless, it's good to have the Trainstar back in service, and I'm going to be working to get familiar with its characteristics again so that it's less baffling and more enjoyable to fly...