Went out to RC Aces field in North Hampton, NH, home field for my flying friend, Gary Hoffman. This would be my first real flights (I don't count thr UMX Debacle) on the iX12. I was going put to SNHRCC at Hudson, but when Gary told me he was going out, I invited myself.
Baby's First Trip in her carrier!
The Stik flew well! The RCGF 10cc ran fine, lots of power. The twitch in the left aileron came back. In flight she did an un-commanded aileron roll at about 720 degrees a second! Snap, over as quick as it started, level to level. That quickly ended that flight. Inspection revealed that with the engine running the LA twitch was back, subtle.
The very old AR610 that was in there died during preflight before I left, but I had the new antenna-less AR620, still in it's box. Like all of us, I was a bit worried about how this would behave, but I have faith in Spektrum. At the field we range tested it, and as hard as I tried, never more than -70 db loss, no holds, and in flight only 1 fade. Love the telemetry on the iX12! The snap roll was not a radio issue. The new radio and new reciever worked fine!
Is this gap in the webbing the cause of the twitch?? The wire covering is gapped and frayed, not just here, so the ignition does need to be replaced. Ordering one tonight from RCGF-USA. I checked the servo and wires, and they are fine. Hope this is it.
I had set up the Pulse XT60 in the iX12, and set the throttle end points the same as they were on the DX8. A small adjustment to the low end and she was set! The idle is still high a touch. Gary suggested a THR<THR Mix set at 5% to a switch. He has it set up on one of his. This would allow me to hit the switch a foot above ground, dropping the idle 5%, which she can sustain for almost a minute before stopping, if she does, allowing power up if needed, or a slower touchdown. We couldn't figure out why it wouldn't work, so I'll be seeing what the folks at Spektrum come up with. Hit about 40 min over three flights!
This 26cc engine is LOUD. The twin exhausts produce a lot of noise. On my RCGF 30cc on the MX-Bach, I have a DLE Muffler Silencer from Mile High RC. It really softens the sound. I measured the external diameter of the pipes at 14.4 mm, and these fit an internal diameter of 14.4 mm, so, we'll see. It really needs some silencing.
I did get to watch Gary fly the crap out of the 6S Edge made with a carbon laminate frame that was so thin a sneeze should break it. I think it was far less than a pound. Man got skillz. It was beautifully built, expertly flown.
I forgot how wet the field can be, as it is on the edge of a wetland. Wet, cold feet... Called it a day. 45 deg, breezy, wet... bad combo.
Another good day! I really love this sport!
