The only minor concern I have regarding the Canadair 415 is whether the props are sufficiently large; I traded in the 8x3.8 slow-fly props for three-bladed 7x4.5's following the methodology of dropping one size going from two blades to three. However, in this case, the original prop is a slow-fly paddle version, so I'm thinking that going for a regular eight-inch three-blade would have been a better equivalency.
Anyway, I might do a power test on a scale just to get a rough idea of how much thrust to expect; the 210W bell motors are rated at a max 880g thrust which, pushing the lightweight Canadair 415, would probably give it unlimited vertical performance...
...a real pusher prop The Floater Jet has been out of action for a long time due to minor wing damage, elevator pushrods needing replacement, motor removed and being short of prop adapter.
Finally, all the pieces were in place, literally, with the last piece of the jigsaw, a three-bladed pusher prop. What's special about this prop is that it's actually designed for pushers; if you've ever had one you'll know they're very noisy using standard propellors. I'm not sure why, but I can tell you that's the case.
The pusher prop is a 6x4 which fits the Floater well, and being a three-blade looks pretty cool as well. The one catch is it's spins anti-clockwise, i.e. in the opposite direction to most propellors. However this is easy enough to fix, as you just need to swap two connectors on your ESC.
So this afternoon, as soon as I'd finished refurbishing the Floater, I headed out to the field to give it a test flight. Having been a while since I'd flown it, and with it having the different-style propellor, I was a little nervous. However, my concerns soon vanished as the Floater climbed into the sky.
The prop is quiet, in fact remarkably so, spinning with just a bit of a whine, and certainly nothing like the droning buzz it makes with the regular prop. It's even pretty quiet on full throttle and producing plenty of thrust as evidenced by the rate at which the Floater climbed.
The flight was actually most enjoyable with the quiet performance, improved elevator response and gorgeous backdrop of dramatically illuminated evening clouds.
...all lit up and ready to go I finally received the extra set of LED strip lights for the underside of my Floater Jet after what seemed like a minor eternity. I needed these for the underside of the wings as, while the LED's on the wings and along the sides of the fuselage looked really impressive in the study, it soon became apparent when I'd got the Lightship Mk1 into the air that under-wing illumination was an absolute necessity. This is especially so as at the local field, being bordered by trees, flights are generally above treetop level to avoid awkward situations.
Anyway, the Floater Jet is decked out and ready to go, along with its new 6x5 prop. The latter works well, making it easier to launch, I think due to the larger prop-wash area of the wing, and also make cruising quieter as it develops quite a bit more thrust (about 20% more at low throttle and 40% more at full throttle)....
