E Sky LCD Voltage Indicator
Ok so I've got an idea of how much current the receiver battery monitor draws (about 10mA) but what about the voltage. What does a green light really mean. Can I rely on a simple green or red LED to base my decision on?
I hooked up an E Sky LCD Voltage Indicator in parallel with the Tower Pro monitor to define the actual voltage levels represented by each LED. Keep in mind the battery pack used is a four cell, 4.8V 1100mA Sanyo pack.
According to the Tower Pro thresholds then, a pack is in good condition only when the measured voltage is greater than the defined voltage (4.8V).
IMAC @ LVMAC, Lake Narracan
A few photos from the IMAC comp at LVMAC today. A bit of wind coming off the Lake kept everyone on their toes.
[gmap]
SC Models – Foamy Profile EDGE 540 build
With a model this simple, it's hard to find much to talk about for the build. Everything has gone together quite easily until tonight. Looking at the role of hinging tape that came with the kit I thought it looked a bit light on. I haven't wasted any but I gues I've used too much on the spars that run the length of the wing. Tonight I got to hinging the horizontal stab and I only got one quarter of it hinged before I ran out of tape. Easy, I thought with all this other tape I've got lying around I'll just make do but I don't have any suitable tape thats clear. I can't bring myself to use some ugly brown tape on my new foamy!
On the topic of foamies, check out this video of an indestructo foamy, the SupaFly...
SC Models – Foamy Profile EDGE 540 build
This kit is from SC Models and can be seen on the web here http://www.scmodels.com.au/electric-planes/sc-e540/index.html
First impressions. Well for $43 delivered I guess my expectations are enough bits of foam, wood and bits to put together a little foam Edge 540. I'll need to supply prop, motor, ESC, servos, battery and receiver (all of which I have leftover from a previous model).
On removing the contents from the box, one of the wheel pants was broken in half. A bit of glue should quickly fix that. Also when I compare the parts in the box to that shown on the photo on the outside of the box, I seem to be missing one carbon fibre spar. There are two in the box (one round and one flat) but there are three in the photo. *****UPDATE - I'm not missing a spar. The photo on the box shows a dark leading edge on the wing that I had mistaken for a carbon spar***** I've left the instruction manual at work over the weekend so I can't check with the manual till Monday. This is one of the reasons I reckon all suppliers of kits should supply manuals in PDF format on the web which can be edited with software as sodapdf online. Another foam model I bought second hand almost came to grief because the CoG was way out until I downloaded the manual from the net and moved the balance further forward. I'd always wondered what it'd be like to fly a model with the CoG way back behind the recommended and let's just say it was.... difficult.
Other than that, the kit looks good. I don't imagine the build process will be very long or complicated and the flying side of things will be much more interesting to discuss. So, check back when I've found the manual and started the build for more details.
Precision Aerobatics Bad Boy crash
My repair job on the PA Bad Boy after the midair collision didn't quite hold. Half the elevator come off in flight and it went straight in.
The lesson is not to skimp on repairs. It'll end up costing you more in the long run.
Repair job
The usual process to follow here, strip it all back, cut out the broken bits and start putting new bits in.
Precision Aerobatics BBV2 Midair
My first midair and I must say, overall, the BadBoy V2 came out of it well. The other guy didn’t have a scratch on his plane so I’m guessing I came into contact with his prop. I was surprised how well the elevator control worked as I landed.
All in all, for a midair, I guess I’m pretty happy with the outcome.
To top it off, I flipped the Corsair on a touch and go. No damage, just a heap of dirt in the cowl.
LDMFA Meeting – 02-09-2009
Seen here are an electric ducted fan apparently very forgiving and ecellent to learn EDFs one.
A Decathalon that was converted from a 70FS glow to electric powered.
