fangin.com RC, photos & tech

Wheel spats

25012009259, originally uploaded by mattmc.

One turned 90° in flight to vertical. I thought landing might be messy as the spat would catch, and cartwheel the plane. In the end it rotated all the way around and became a skid on the grass 🙂

Eagletree Airspeed sensor

Well, the undercarriage is definitely not a good spot for the airspeed monitor. Tried it on the ground at full throttle and it measured 165km/h.
Altimeter appears accurate. I had three flights and deliberately flew higher each time registering 114, 124 and 144 meters.

Eagletree Sensor Install

Pitot tube - definitely not the ideal place for it to get clean air but for this "trial" run I wasn't willing to cut open the wing.

Eagletree Sensor Install, originally uploaded by mattmc.

edge 540 – 6 flights strong

edge 540, originally uploaded by mattmc.

The Edge is going nicely. Still haven't really wrung it around the sky. The time will come. For now I'm happy with those nice big loops.

Today I tested out my new Sigma wide angle lens. Does the prop look in proportion?

Edge 540 Maiden

Edge 540 Maiden, originally uploaded by mattmc.

Edge 540 took to the air for the maiden flight today. I'd put 114 grams of lead in the engine bay to move the CG forward. It was probably a bit much as I needed a fair bit of up elevator trim. Otherwise trim was good.

Had 3 fairly brief flights while I got used to it. The hardest part about landing was she wanted to float forever. There was a moderate wind straight down the strip and I was conscious of stalling it on approach. No such problem there.

All in all, the OS 160 (26cc) engine seems to be a good match. As I get more confidence with it I'm sure I'll find the aerobatic capability quite good. Until then, I've got the little Bad Boy to throw around. I've been toying with the idea of replacing the OS46AX with an OS70 Four stroke. Maybe over the Christmase break I'll get around to it.

gs 40 vs mojo

gs 40 vs mojo , originally uploaded by burlington_rc.

good timing

40% Yak 55

40% Yak 55, originally uploaded by mattmc.

Don't often see them these size down at Lilydale. 170 CC engine, 40% scale.

Edge 540 Build close to finish.

edge 540 003, originally uploaded by mattmc.

""All I want for Christmas is my 2 stroke engine......
An OS 160 with a Pitts Muffler I reckon will do nicely.

Bad Boy elevator missing

Bad Boy elevator missing, originally uploaded by mattmc.

Almost made it two for two (two crashes in two weeks).

The funny thing is, I visually noticed it when I went into a vertical hover but I thought my eyes were playing tricks because it was still handling pretty well.

I opened up the throttle for some height before coming in for a bit of a wonky landing.

Giles 202 Crash

Giles 202 Crash, originally uploaded by mattmc.

Everything was going so smoothly! Trimmed nicely, rolls were sweet, then everything went pearshaped. It started a spiral dive to the right. Left aileron didn't have any noticeable effect. Just before it fell below the treeline, I gave up, cut the throttle and concentrated on exactly where it was going down. Our club is right next to the Yarra River and near some thick bush. I've never had to search in there before but I know it can get pretty thick amongst the trees.
I picked out the tree (second biggest gum) where I thought it went down and headed off to search. I was a fair distance away went it went down. I was pretty sure I heard it smack into a tree and was praying it hadn't gone into the river. This time of year (winter) the river is full, fast and cold.
After searching for about 20 mins and no sign of it , I was pretty sure it had come down on the far side of the Yarra. The problem is, to get to the other side of the river, I have to go the long way (10-15kms) via Yarra Glen and into private property.

Google map of the area. Found the remains in the paddock to the North- East, about 25 meters from the river.

I thought it might be a long search so I called a friend who was close by for help searching. After a quick drive to the other side of the river and about 20 minutes searching, I found the remains in a paddock about 15 meters from the tree / fence line. Thankfully the cows had left it alone.

I was actually pretty happy when I found the wreckage. I'd already written it off, I was just hoping it hadn't gone in the river and I'd lost everything.

My theory for the cause. Right aileron failure. You can see from the photo, the covering and aileron looks like it's been ripped off and is consistent with the flight performance as it went down. Both the aileron servo's were still mounted and connected ok.

The lesson? It was bought as a reject that had faulty covering. I tried to keep the colour scheme by using clear cover over the main panels. Could the aileron covering have cracked as the fuse and wing had and ripped the aileron off? That's the theory I'm going with.

The bright side is, now I have a spare engine and gear to put in a new plane!