...the pocket rocket is fixed I have resolved the issue of the missing Rarebear aileron using good old balsa, a material I haven't used for years. The issue was getting something that was light, easily workable and could be attached to the EPO. With EPO sheet not available, as far as I know, balsa was the best option, readily available in a range of sizes.
For the repair I selected for 4mm sheet, which required just a bit of filing to match the profile of the aileron edge. I used a plastic hinge to attach it, as well as taping up the edges of the repaired and original to avoid repeat problems. I also pinned the balsa prosthetic to the EPO aileron using, well, sections of steel pins (ie large sewing needle) which are stiff and thin. Hitting this lot with a bit of appliance white spray will have the podgy speedster good as new...
...don't film while you fly I was flying the Phoenix 1600 over the paddock and, with the glider coming in nice and slowly, I decided to grab the camera and do a little action filming. This, unsurprisingly, turned out to be a bad idea because, as the Phoenix floated lower, I couldn't hit power and add with my spare hand. The upshot was the Phoenix ploughed through a barbed wire fence. While it was flying slowly, the effect of the barbs on the EPO wing was not pretty, with chunks torn out the leading edge, and ugly scrapes underneath the wing.
Trying to repair this was a puzzle, as I'd actually lost foam, and trying to fill holes and match the leading edge profile was not easy. Having dug through the cupboards, I eventually came across some exterior gap filler. This stuff is waterproof, sandable and doesn't shrink. I've used this to fill the holes, and have then used a file to sand it flush and copied the shape of the wing. Now I just need to sand it and give it a paint, and the Phoenix should be good to go...
...put a pin in it The pin had somehow fallen out of the antenna joint on my DX5e, meaning the end piece would often come loose while setting the angle. I wasn't sure where I could find a replacement pin and didn't want to have to buy a whole antenna replacement kit.
Foraging around in the cupboard I came across a cheap household fasteners kit, which included a slim black nail, a near perfect fit for the hole, slightly tight so it wouldn't fall out. It was a little too long, but a quick trim with a pair of side cutters sorted that out. Now the DX5e's antenna's sorted out, I hope I can fix the chatter issue with a bit of a clean-up of the aileron potentiometer...
