No Pants for You!

People have told me not to wear pants on the grass field, and time and again I get them knocked off. In fact, I don't recall the last time I flew this MXBach without some how damaging one. They get caught up in every blade of grass, twisting and tipping planes on landing, and fouling take off runs. It's a real pain in the ass.

Today two pants came off. This one cracked on the MXBach, and I flew the Cosmic Wind today. She too depants herself.

Fine. You win. Ugly ass depanted wheels.

 

The tiny Cosmic Wind. Damn she is faaaast.

 

The MXBach.

I am keeping them on the Pulse XT. She almost never tips on her pants, being a lady and all that.

 

 

I flew the MXBach today, both sets of dual 5S. She and I are starting to come to an understanding. Although today she did something bizarre. In flight on final she decided her center rudder was hard left. Scared the crap out of me. Got her on the ground, skidding off to the left and sliding on her gear. That's how that pant leg broke. I taxied her over and at center rudder it was well off to the left. I have no idea what happened. The trim was centered on the DX8 for the rudder. The rudder bar was tight on the servo, it didn't strip. To get it recentered took all 125 right subtrim. When I got home I had to remove the servo, the top screw would not budge. On the servo tester she was way off left on center signal. So, I cut the top screw off, recentered the servo and the control wheel with the bar, and reinstalled her with 12 right subtrim. WTF?

On another note, I hovered the Trex 600e. Her tail had a fine wag. No matter how low or high I set the gyro gain. It was almost off. What is it with every single Align gyro'd heli I have, the tail wags? Don't even...

 

Charged the MXBach reciever pack, and her 5S batteries. Fly her again tomorrow. Without her pants.

 

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No gas for you!

For a couple of days I have been trying to get the DLE 30cc gas engine from the Sbach, now on the MXS-R, to start. Several times...

I know the CDI is sending a spark to the plug, or was, but more on that in a moment. I know gas is getting through the QuikFire to the engine, but it doesn't seem like gas is getting to the cylinder. I have taken the carb apart and cleaned it, again. Then realized that the hall sensor wasn't picking up as it usually registers every prop start attempt on the inline tach. And there doesn't appear to be anything wrong with it. I confirmed that it's no longer sending a spark to the plug.

Well... They are hard to find, but I have ordered a couple of niverslamhall sensors. I bought a couple as rcextreme says it's a sensor and bracket but on the PayPal order it says bracket and doesn't mention the sensor. Then I found one at GravesRC, which I have used before, they call it a Valhallsen sensor, which I hope is what I am looking for.

A couple of days break from the gasser is just what I need. It has been a downer. Work tomorrow, then three days off with flying friendly weather!

I think it's time to start building the Eflite PT-19 Cornell.

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MXS-R Ready For Shakedown!

 

Today was a bit of a marathon build day. I installed the engine, fuel system, electronics includingThe new electronic ignition, the old igntiion pack and reciever pack, and the reciever. I checked things out electronically, the kill switch light illuminates when the ignition switch is powered on, the receiver bound fine and all the servos seem to do what they are supposed to do (though in after thought the throttle servo needs to be reversed). I set a few limits and tweaked a few programming settings in the DX8. I essentially just renamed the old Sbach and adjusted the settings. I haven't checked the wing flap and aileron settings, instead using extra servos just to make sure the signal was right.

 

I installed the QuikFire fuel filter and sump, and a nice big fuel dot. I built up the fuse for the dot and the screw for the QuikFire. The tank is 380cc. I soldered the third pipe closed and its setup as a two pipe system: fill/vent and fuel-to-engine. Pic is before electronics installed.

 

I installed the ignition pack behind the firewall, and the reciever pack just forward of the rudder servo, right behind the Spektrum AR 7010 reciever.

The red thing is the ignition pack. In addition to the fuel lines you can see the carburetor metering vent tube ending in the orange cap. The blue control horns are the throttle linkages. You can also see the back of the Miracle switches, and the tachometer (the dark rectangle just behind the firewall at the top of the pic).

 

The Miracle switches and charge ports. I built up the wall f the fuse for the switch too. Repaired and reinstalled the LED for the ignition power on indicator.

Tomorrow I will pick up some two-cycle semi or synthetic oil, and gas, and see if I can get her to start!

 

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30cc MXS-R Build Update

Well, I'm a bit behind on updating the MXS-R build, but it's going rather well. A few minor headaches, but all in all well. Skyline usually provides good quality ARFs, and this one isn't an exception, but there were some hardware issues uncharacteristic of them.

A few days ago I installed the tail assembly, including the surfaces and the servos salvaged from the 30cc Sbach. This went pretty smoothly.

 

 

Installing the Pull-Pull rudder system met with a fit challenge. I made a minor fit error that made me short on wire, but Macgyver'd a nice fix.

 

Today I setup the drill map for the engine hard points after gas-proofing the wood of the anterior half of the fuse (15 min epoxy diluted quite thin with alcohol, brushed on). I like to think it also adds some strength to the frame.

 

To get the right distance for the prop to clear the front of the engine canopy, I need three wooden spacers and a washer. I considered using nylon spacers, but think this is better distributing the forces of the bolts. The original 25mm bolts are fine, but tomorrow I will pick up some 35 mm bolts (I think they are M4) for added security and strength. Then I can install the engine.

 

The tail wheel assembly was a problem. None of the parts were correct. I took some of the parts that did come with the assembly and Macgyver'd them together. It was like the wrong hardware kit was tossed in. The rudder wire's soldered in wheel collar wouldn't fit over the wheel strut. It was too small. The tail bracket was a bit shallow so the screw in collar (the black both headed piece) was too long. So I have to cut the screw shorter, drill the strut hole wider, and adapt the rudder position transfer wire to the cap that secured it to the strut. It's a bit looser than I would like, but I couldn't tighten it further. It worked out pretty well otherwise. I think I will add a piece of wood under the carbon fiber wheel strut to raise it away from the fuse. This will allow some space for the wheel assembly to flex without hitting the fuse.

 

One of the main wheel axles went together fine, but on the other the collars wouldn't fit. They all came from the same bag, but two of the four were too small. Fortunately I had some new Dubro one's that fit perfectly.

 

On her wheels for the first time! I had some ideas to give the main gear strut some fore-aft freedom/shock absorbing capability, but I couldn't come up with something simple that worked, some just bolted them on.

 

Cowl fit test sweet!

 

Electronic ignition installed. I bought a new one since the spark wire on the old one was burning through. I also wondered if the motor was 4-cycling because of the old one? Not sure how that would work.

 

I had ordered a carb rebuild kit for the motor, in case the year of sitting around ruined the gaskets and parts, but when I rebuilt and cleaned the carburetor and the engine today it was in really good shape. I also installed a servo horn onto the throttle linkage. I think it will give me better throttle resolution than the very short stock linkage. I painted the muffler black with high heat tolerant paint (for grills), and I installed the new ignition sensor and wire. I am a little anxious about the pipes being long enough to clear the engine canopy and am not looking forward to cutting the muffler holes in the fiberglass canopy. The motor fits entirely inside, but the pipes will need access outside...

Tomorrow I will get the longer engine hard point bolts, and install the engine (a DLE 30cc) and the fuel system with a Quick-Fire filter. I am eager to start the engine! I love that sound!

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"Here, hold my beer..."

Got out this morning, after a late night working on the MXS-R, and the fields were empty of lacrosse players, the sky clear, the wind calm. Perfect!

Took the Pulse XT, the 1000mm Sbach and the F-86 Saber jet out. Flew the Pulse, always a great flyer, and as I was flying Jerry came out and introduced himself. He's an RC pilot, new to the hobby, so I took him up on a buddy box with the Pulse. He did an amazing job, and is completely hooked if he wasn't already. I suggested the Alpha Sport 450 as a great first plane (he tried starting with the Pulse, but being an engineer, he over engineered it :-), and I realized I have the extra new one and offered to sell it to him. It will be great to have another pilot out at Joppa Hill.

I took the Jet up. Or tried to. She has to be hand launched, always a moment of truth, and she went to ground. The wind was behind us, what there was, so she ended up in the dirt, where she FOD'd herself.

 

See that? No blades. They went shooting out the back...

I took the Sbach up, and she was twitchy, hated the grass, but she was settling in and becoming fun to fly. She needs a lot of power to keep flying. I brought her down and started to toss her around. I decided to do a low loop. You know that thought, where you say to yourself, "I really don't think she can do this, but WTF, let's see what happens?" The "Here, hold my beer..." moment. And then without thinking about it much you start the manuever and it ends a badly as you expected? Yeah, all too well. In talking to Jerry, I realized this, and that I really wasn't upset at all. TLDR: I tried a low level loop, she couldn't pull out, she dieded.

 

Oh well, parts for a new project!

It was nice to meet Jerry, and I look forward to flying with him again soon!

Oh, BTW, in our last of three buddy box flights my Master box started doing that disconnect-reconnect thing again. Recall I had sent the DX8 to Specktrum to see if it was my box, and it wasn't I changed the cable and the problem resolved. It's back...

 

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MXS-R 30cc Build Begins!

I have had some interesting flying days lately. It's tough working around my work schedule, the kids schedule out on the field, and the weather, but I have gotten a lot of flying in these past couple of weeks.

Yesterday, after a good day of flying (more on that later), I finally started the build on the Skyline MXS-R 30cc Breitling. Over the course of about 3 hours I built the wings, using the Hitec HS-5685 servos from the doomed wings of the MX2. (They are an upgrade from the ones that were on the 30cc Sbach from which the electronic and engine are from. I put the Sbach ones on the MX2). Over the next few weeks I will be working on the rest of the build.

 

 

I picked up a Hobby King Wing Bag for a 30cc plane for about $20 plus shipping. I continue to be impressed by the value Hobby King products provide. I could not have touched this bag from another maker for less than $60 plus shipping, with most being near $100. This bag is so well made and designed I will never buy another company's bag again! They come in various sizes, offer nice styling and excellent storage and protection. I especially like the external wing tube pouch.

 

 

I have some updates to follow after I grab some screen captures from video. The MX-B flew so incredibly well! The C-47, not so much. She really hates the tall grass.

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Introducing the MX-Bach!

You will recall that a couple of weeks ago it ended badly for my giant sized MX2 when I underestimated the trees....

I got the idea to take the wings off the 30cc SBach that died in a fuel deprivation crash a year ago back in Mississippi on Trash Day.

Fitting the SBach wings to the MX2 works in theory as they are the same scale. The wings are about the same length, but the SBach wing is much longer in the chord, and runs a good length down the MX2 fuse. The SBach fuse also is wider, and does not taper as quickly as the MX2, so the wing required extensive modifications.

 

The fresh uncovered wood is the finished wing wedge I created to fill the gap that the unmodified wing had. I built them on both sides to follow the airfoil, the wing, and the fuse, allowing me to use the original wing tube on the MX2 and the SBach wing. I had to move the aft anti-movement pin into the new built up section so it fit the fuse and added it's required fixation for the wing.

 

 

 

These are the new wedges drying. To add strength I coated them with alcohol diluted epoxy. The ribs sopprt the wider aft of the chord. I super glued them to the original wing and drilled pass thru holes for wires, wing tub and wing screws.

 

 

 

Tailored to fit!

 

 

 

This is what the original MX2 wing looked like.

 

 

Yeah... The landing gear hard point is tilted to starboard. I will fix that... The wheel pants were demolished in the crash, but I rebuilt them. Had the struts from the SBach and just modified them to fit. Had to epoxy the SBach hard points to keep strength with the new holes drilled to fit the MX2.

 

All in all I am quite pleased! I gave no idea where the real CG is, but plan to use the wing tube when I balance her. That first flight will have some kinda pucker factor!

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