...beautiful afternoon to be in the sky I love clouds, especially crisp fresh clouds. Or wispy clouds driven by high chill winds. But especially good are those times when you're treated to a dramatic combination of developing clouds made more dramatic, in this case, by warm afternoon glow from the opposite horizon.
The conditions were windy and a little turbulent, as you might imagine, but nothing to deter the Raptor from having a bit of fun cruising around and surfing the breeze. Fying with such gorgeous sky scenery is a real treat, and one of those occasions on which I'm so happy to be able to get something in the sky and be a part of nature's beautiful spectacle.
...kept on getting better Taking the Raptor into the hills for some late afternoon sloping ended prematurely as the breeze dropped off to nothing at the approach of evening. So, making the most of what looked to be a lovely sunset, I set the Raptor to cruising down the ridge filming our disappearing star.
It turned out to be one of those surprise sunsets which start of a little dull and then develop as the sun clears the low cloud. As such, I kept the raptor flying laps up and down, only turning it in when the sun was just a glimmer on the horizon...
Having managed some soaring at the seaside, I turned my attention to the nearest inland sloping spot; a set of ridges about half an hour’s drive away. These ridges provide lift in a variety of directions, but today it was blowing southerly. The location for southerly lift is a little tight on landing space and has trees about which makes things a little less relaxed, however I wasn't going to let that put me off.
I launched the Raptor into the strong southerly under power, just to be sure, and was soon getting reasonable lift. Some sections of the ridge were better than others, the far end seeming to be poor and the narrow clear section right in front providing the best lift.
Once I'd trimmed the Raptor to slow it down a little it was performing pretty well, until eventually the breeze ebbed away and I resorted to sending the Raptor on lazy missions away from the ridge over the picturesque farmlands until the battery ran low...
Slope soaring is something I've wanted to do for a while but the lack of nearby locations has been a bit of a damper. However, I finally decided on an excursion to the beach, a well-rated spot for getting lift from the ocean breeze rising over the scrub-covered dunes.
The promised southerly wind unfortunately had an easterly component which meant less lift from the south easterly beachline, however I was determined to have a go anyway on the understanding that it wasn’t going to be ideal.
The most confronting feature doing this for the first time is, of course, the wind; I would normally never consider getting the Raptor out in this kind of wind and yet, here I was. This location flies from the beach, so I launched the raptor under power to make sure it didn't end up in the surf. Climbing into the strong breeze, around 30km/h, the Raptor rose sharply. After getting a bit of a feel for the wind I eased the Raptor towards the dunes and some lift.
The other interesting thing is, of course, the wind; I had barely settled the Raptor in when I was dropping the flaps more and trimming it up to slow it down. And wishing the wind was a little stronger. And this is with a slow glider!
The sloping was challenging and fun, although the oblique wind angle meant I had to resort to occasional power-boosts to get the Raptor up again. Nevertheless, it was a good first try, a proof of concept…
...gentle flying on a beautiful morning Winter mornings are often dull and overcast, sometimes with drizzle, mist or rain. However, on occasion, they deliver outstanding sunrises and, on this occasion, a five-star morning with mist, pretty clouds, sun, blue skies and no wind.
I haven't been flying in the mornings lately as sunrise around the solstice comes too late. However, having missed my alarm on this particular morning, I assed the field with sky alight with the sun about to rise.
With the Raptor on board this was like receiving a written invitation, so I headed to the field. The cold winter morning air makes the Raptor extra floaty, so that with flaps down it approaches so slowly as to appear in slow motion.
And, with no turbulence, one is able to make low passes and low turns in absolute confidence, adding to the tranquil mood of the morning...
...a pleasant afternoon out Sunday afternoon turned out sunny and mild, a nice opportunity to take the Raptor for a leisurely cruise around the field. With the local venue busy, I headed for a field at which I'd previously considered flying but never got around to going there. The field had had the grass cut back for some reason, leaving it with an interesting geometric finish, combined with its contrasting brown colour would make an excellent spot for a first FPV flight; you'd easily be able to find where home was!
Getting the Raptor out, I installed the Mobius atop the fuselage and sent the big glider soaring skywards. There northerly wind was quite mild but choppy, making the flight a little interesting when the Raptor approached ground level and curtailed most low and slow flying, which is can be the most fun. Nevertheless it was a lovely afternoon to be out, and floating a slow glider around is likewise a suitably relaxing occupation. The most anxious bit was a brief inverted flight towards the end when, pushing the Raptor in an inverted pull-out, I realised there was insufficient charge in battery to execute this power-sapping manoeuvre. Rolling the Raptor out, I pulled up steeply and came awkwardly close to a flood light pole, hitting which would definitely have ruined a lovely afternoon outing...
Ever since the Fox started using its designated battery, the 1800 Nanotech, it has suffered from a buzz. Initially I thought this was because the motor mount wasn't tight enough, and then I thought that perhaps it was because the firewall wasn't sturdy enough, gluing in a second mount in tandem to beef things up.
And so the imbalance persisted since I'm not sure how to balance folding props. However the other day I found a spare set of Walrus props and decided to install them on the Fox.
This works surprisingly well and they seem to provide quite sufficient thrust for the Fox, which is much sleeker than its portly donor plane.
So, the Fox now has white props to match its colour scheme, and is flying quite happily with cheap plastic instead of swishy carbon fibre...
Having an opportunity to get into the hills I decided to pack the Raptor in the hope that I might be able to find a good spot to have a go at slope soaring, a sadly outstanding item on the RC list of things I want to do.
As it worked out I wasn't able yo find a suitable slope, however I did manage to get the Raptor out for a fly.
Having finished an enjoyable walk to a hilltop with a beautiful scenic lookout, I found a spot flat enough to get the Raptor landed. It was a beautiful afternoon with clear skies and barely a breath of wind. And, with hills in the background and rows of brilliant green pine saplings in the foreground, it was a beautiful setting.
Flying the Raptor here was actually great fun, with the thinner air meaning it flew flatter and faster, and enjoying the sun glinting off its long wings as it soared and turned in the cool afternoon air.
The awkward bit was the landing; the field wasn't all that flat and I was without flaps as the switch on my radio was broken. Also, the fluffy little saplings turned out to be much more solid than I thought, knocking one of the Raptor's tailplanes loose on landing...
...lovely contrast The weather this morning wasn't great, with imminent drizzle threatening to cut short any attempt at flying and overnight rain meaning wet shoes would be guaranteed for my efforts. The afternoon was, however, somewhat better so I headed to the field with the DC-3 and the Rarebear. I punted the docile Dakota around for a while and then, feeling like something a little more energetic, brought it in and got the little buzzy ready. By this time heavy storm clouds had rolled in, providing a lovely contrast to the few adjacent patches of blue and, of course, the little white form of the Rarebear. Being quite picturesque, I landed it and dashed off to the car to get the Mobius. Now, low light conditions aren't the Mobius' strong point, but I hope that the footage will at least capture a little of the lovely variety of cloud textures and colours...
For some while, after having seen footage of wingtip cameras, I've been meaning to give this a go on one of my planes. The plane I'd choose would be the Raptor glider, given its very large wing area meaning it wouldn't be likely to miss a bit of lift from the spot occupied by the Mobius, and also it being very stable.
There was a catch however, given that I most often fly it in the morning when the grass is saturated with dew and, being a glider, the wingtips drag through the grass, meaning that the Mobius was likely to get a soaking.
However, having dallied about this for some time, I decided to bite the bullet and give it a try regardless. As regards the yaw and roll likely as a result of the bluff form of the Mobius on the wingtip, I decided on two clicks each of right rudder and aileron and, as regards keeping the Mobius dry, the mitigation was to land the Raptor as slowly as possible, with flaps deployed, and then use full right aileron as it was coming to a standstill to keep the left wingtip off the wet grass.
Throwing the Raptor into the air I was amazed that the few clicks of trim were sufficient to keep it flying straight, at least at low speed, so I was soon able to fly it with confidence that nothing untoward was going to happen. It turns out that the angle at which I set the Mobius was a little too forward-pointing so that the tail is lost from the view, which is a pity as it's nice to see the controls at work during the flight.
Nevertheless you get to see the aileron twitching right next to the camera, and the view is great, especially during loops and sharp turns, the latter particularly at low altitude as towards the end of the flight.
And so to the final hurdle; I brought the Raptor is super-slow, touched it down and hit full right aileron to keep the Mobius up as long as possible. The extra mass meant that, eventually, the camera touched the grass.
Running to retrieve it, I picked up the glider to check the Mobius; it was completely covered in dew. I gave it a quick dry-off and then stuck it atop the air vent as I drove to work, and then parked it at the back of my computer to dry out in the warm breeze. Finally, plugging it in, revealed that fortunately the Mobius was no worse for wear...
...beautiful glider, beautiful morning Every now and again one is treated to exquisite weather, and this was one of those days; a crisp, clean morning with lovely clouds draped high across the sky and fresh warm light from a just-risen sun.
And having a beautiful plane to fly like the Fox just makes it that much more enjoyable. The little Fox is sleek, elegant and very quick; perfect for making the most of a big sky and open landscape. This morning wasn't for being restrained, and I was in my element having fun with the Fox, fast low passes, big loops and big vertical climbs. A gorgeous morning and a great start to the day...
...trying it out The dull grey and rain cleared early this afternoon and I was down at the field with the Raptor glider, keen to get it in the air for a more expansive run now that its new Turnigy motor had been tested. There were a few fluffy cumulus drifting across the field in the westerly breeze so, after a few runs across the field to double check the trims, I had the Raptor climbing. Initially I had it at three-quarter cruise but, becoming impatient at the pedestrian rate of climb, I soon flipped up to full power.
The 2217 brushless motor, as I've mentioned before, is an impressive little unit, comfortably swinging the fairly large 11x6 props and with the capability to have the Raptor soaring almost straight up. With the glider diminishing rapidly, I eased off the power and, with flaps down, headed under an approaching cloud. Now, similar to my previous experiences, I have to say that trying to thermal without a telemetry radio is rather hit and miss, with the glider that high that accurately determining its behaviour is unlikely. I did, however, manage to get the Raptor in lift for some minutes before slipping down. I climbed the Raptor up several times before eventually calling it a day as the lift clouds passed on and the breeze stiffened. Not a spectacular success, but a pleasant afternoon's flying nonetheless...
Today I eventually got the Raptor glider into the air again after a protracted delay while waiting for the replacement motor to arrive.
Not having flown it for a while I was a little nervous and, to add to that, flying in warm conditions contributes to a significant loss of lift, affecting even something with as much wing area as the Raptor.
Nevertheless the flight went well, with the Turnigy 2217 performing well, and providing generous power to the 11x6 prop, sufficient to keep the Raptor climbing almost vertically.
The motor is both smooth and quiet and, although I had concerns regarding the tight packaging of it in the slim fuselage, it has performed fautlessly...
...beautiful glider, lovely morning A few days ago, having returned from the beach, I took the Fox for a morning flight at the field. It turned out to be one of those gorgeous mornings; cool, calm and sunny, with a hint of low mist and some clouds lending character and colour to the rising sun.
The Fox flew beautifully, as clean and crisp as the morning, with its slender swings at a slight forward angle making a very elegant figure against the fresh morning backdrop. A lovely way to start the day...
...a tight fit The replacement motor for the Raptor glider, a Turnigy 2217 1050kv unit, arrived a few days ago and I've just finished installing it into the Raptor glider. Replacing a Phoenix motor, which has a bell mount, the Turnigy was an unexpectedly tight fit due to the motor installing straight onto the firewall, with the result that the motor cables are squeezed between the motor and the fuselage.
To move the motor back a little, and to strengthen the mount which is just 3mm ply, I glued in a second firewall which is provided as a spare with the Raptor. The motor is turning freely so I think there's just enough room for the outrunner to clear the cables. The downside to pushing the motor back , as I discovered when I installed the motor, is that the shaft stickout is marginal. However the spinner has tightened up and the prop is turning fine, so it might be OK...
...good and bad This morning I plucked up the courage to get the Raptor Glider out for its first flight at the paddocks. The morning was eminently suitable if not spectacular; cool and overcast with a gentle northerly blowing across the field. The Raptor was flying with a 2200 25C 3S battery and 11x6 carbon props, powered by a spare Phoenix motor I had on the spares shelf, a setup-up which should provide sufficient urge to motor the Raptor along. Not that one needs an over-powerful setup for this type of glider; with broad two-metre long wings anything exceeding a pedestrian pace will have the lightweight Raptor heading straight up with the amount of lift it generates.
The Raptor, while significantly different in construction to the Phoenix 2000, is not dissimilar in overall proportion and design, so it was fair to expect similar performance. The main difference was the V-tail which, although having flight characteristics no different to a conventional layout, is a little concerning nonetheless. Although the CoG was spot-on, I moved the battery to the front of the tray just to be sure, based on my experiences with the big Phoenix. So, having checked the control surfaces and reassured myself once more that the V-tail controls were really moving the right way, I powered up the motor ready to go. The Raptor was instantly tugging at my hand, straining to be let free, so with a touch more power and a good throw, the big glider slid into the air. My immediate reaction was how gently it flew and, after a few seconds, that one needed to be careful on the power as it was nosing straight up, just like the Phoenix 2000. Dropping the power and levelling it off had the Raptor cruising slowly over the paddocks, my unease over the V-tail having dissipated with it behaving quite normally in all respects, except that I needed to adjust again to the slow roll rate of such big wings. Things were going along peacefully until an ominous rattle was heard from the prop, so I cut power and glided down the raptor. Although I didn't manage to get much flying in, this brief opportunity to glide it showed just how well it flies, appearing to have an excellent glide angle and very stable manners. A quick check under the hood once the Raptor was down revealed, rather startlingly, that the motor had come loose despite the mounting bolts still being well secure. It appears that the motor came loose from the bell mounting, perhaps the fault of a loose grub screw, despite it being brand new...
...an interesting turn of events From the first few flights it was apparent that, in my opinion, the little Fox was over-propped, especially running just an 1800mAh battery. Also, the R2Hobbies spinner setup is very dodgy - the inset pivots mean the props cannot fold flat as they foul the fuselage by a mile, and the prop mounts only fit a 6mm base, meaning the props have to be filed thinner to fit, weakening them considerably. I discovered this first-hand when, landing the Fox with the prop still windmilling because of the unbraked ESC, a sudden snap indicated that one of the prop blades had given up. Consequently I've ordered a new 32mm carbon spinner and a 9.5x9 carbon folding prop to match, slightly smaller than the original prop to spin a little more freely. I've also ordered a 25-50C 1800 nanotech battery to give the Fox a little more grunt than the pedestrian pack it's running on at the moment. However the biggest surprise came from the spare parts shelf. Hunting around for a replacement prop, I came across some Walrus props, about 8.5 size, which I thought might do in the meantime, and filed these down to suit the Fox's mini-mounts. As well as being a bit smaller, the Walrus props are also cranked forwards which help the props to clear the body and fold better. Not expecting too much, in fact virtually expecting the rework white plastic blades to disintegrate at the first hint of full throttle, I was amazed at how sweetly they worked, with the Fox humming happily through the cool morning air...
...fast and fun The little Fox is certainly no common-or-garden glider; it has real turn of speed, as well as looking beautifully elegant in the air with its slender wings and short fuselage. Once comfortable with the Fox's characteristics, which doesn't take long at all, I was able to having flying steep banks and low passes over the field at speed.
It's remarkable that this was possible on just its second flight; a testament to just how straight and true the Fox flies.
The only concern with the fox, as I believe, is a propensity to spin at low speed. As such, I think I'll be treating the Fox as something of a speed machine, flying it well up on power for the most part and coming straight in for landings...
...high quality with some missing promises The Raptor glider arrives double boxed and with all the components inside bubble wrapped and bagged and taped in place; in short no likelihood of anything getting scratched or damaged in transit. The fuselage is very impressive; nicely moulded with a smooth finish and a remarkably curvy shape. The wing mount also looks very secure, with the leading edges of the wings tucked into the fuselage and located with a small pin, and then screwed in place at the trailing edge.
The wings are also nicely covered, and apparently feature GRP reinforcement of the D-box leading edge. I say apparently as no GRP is visible at the wing root and it sounds like balsa when you tap on it, so I'll have to take their word for it. The wings are also supposed to include "smarty pull-wires" for installing the wing servo extension leads, however these wings seem to be without that handy feature, unfortunately. Also apparently also lacking are the promised Cunning Simple-Lock Cabin Cover, and the Finished Servo Horn Screw-hole, of which I can find no evidence in either the wings or the tailplanes. A pity, as these minor annoyances rather spoil the enjoyment of what is a very high quality and well presented ARF package...
...so you don't break your prop The 1.5m Fox from R2hobbies comes fitted with a 30A Flycolor ESC, the default setting of which is "unbraked". Unfortunately I only realised this as the Fox came in to land off a short approach, with the prop still busily whirring.
The Flycolor ESC is a Shen Zhen Electronics unit, with manual available here. As far as the setting the brake is concerned, it's the second noise-tone heard after you power-up the ESC, with transmitter throttle stick having been set to full "up" beforehand. Flipping the throttle from fully "up" to "down" at this second noise-tone should change the ESC setting from "unbraked" to "braked", what you need for a glider. Additional setting changes can be done as required, following the table on pages 5-6 of the manual...
