Re: Western Aero Design Plane
Posted: Fri Mar 10, 2017 10:03 am
Thanks for the support guys!!! I didn't make it down till the second day of testing However the plane flew! --Ish.. So here's what I gathered from what I was told. On takeoff the payload door failed, therefore the loads all came out, however not an issue. The plane took off with no issued however as it turned around the rudder started twitching and then eventually would jerk to full lock for a second randomly..the pilot... Who is amazing! Got it down with the occasional side slip from the rudder with no damage to the plane. I was also told that they were having issues starting the engine, and after they got it started it wasn't running very well(I don't have details on this sorry!), they manage to find a local flyer familiar with dubjet engines and managed to tune it and hit the recommended 14k rpm at max throttle. So the next morning, I arrived here (after driving 22 hours straight overnight... ) I made a new hinge as well as swtcihing to two servos versus one for the payload doors. While I did that another member of the team fixed the issue of the rudder which was due to a bad solder and it was shorting on itself. Along with the two major issues some small issues were resolved as well like bad control horn mounts etc. In the afternoon it was back to the field! The field was amazing and actual rc field with pilot stations and paved walkways and A PAVED RUNWAY!!! Anyways so here's the video. https://goo.gl/photos/V2BPgQVG9UEJ6faS9
We fired up the engine with no issues at all, then after small tune adjustments we took off! However as you can see in the video it realllllyyyy struggled, on the first run it took off, but the minute it took off the engine ran lean and lost majority of its power. The plane came down on the grass with no damage other than breaking the control horn for the payload doors. We then put three thanks of 15% nitro attempting to retune the engine slightly but with no luck, the rpm maxed at 12K if lucky and with a sluggish throttle response. However on the fourth or fifth tank it managed to get up and hold 14500rpm! So we got it on the runway and flew (this was the videoed flight) however as you can see for some odd reason it failed to hit 14k on the run down the runway and takeoff, it was estimated it hit barely 11k rpm. The plane took off but would not climb, which is why the payload was dumped early. (We still have not been able to find that payload LOl) after it was dumped the pilot was able to fly it up around and land the plane. Afterwards we ran another three four tanks on the ground with no luck, so we managed to get 20% nitro gas and tried it and HOLY it shot up to 14700 rpm and stayed there right off the bat! And only lowered to 14300 after a minute and stayed for the rest of the tank. Throttle response was much faster and ran a lot smoother. Unfortunately it got dark before so we couldn't try flying again. Today is presentation and inspection, however we should be able to test again today. Plane has been re mono coated in the nose to make it nice looking again and some small things added to appearance purposes. Well that's all the excitement for today! I'll keep "y'all" updated! :p
We fired up the engine with no issues at all, then after small tune adjustments we took off! However as you can see in the video it realllllyyyy struggled, on the first run it took off, but the minute it took off the engine ran lean and lost majority of its power. The plane came down on the grass with no damage other than breaking the control horn for the payload doors. We then put three thanks of 15% nitro attempting to retune the engine slightly but with no luck, the rpm maxed at 12K if lucky and with a sluggish throttle response. However on the fourth or fifth tank it managed to get up and hold 14500rpm! So we got it on the runway and flew (this was the videoed flight) however as you can see for some odd reason it failed to hit 14k on the run down the runway and takeoff, it was estimated it hit barely 11k rpm. The plane took off but would not climb, which is why the payload was dumped early. (We still have not been able to find that payload LOl) after it was dumped the pilot was able to fly it up around and land the plane. Afterwards we ran another three four tanks on the ground with no luck, so we managed to get 20% nitro gas and tried it and HOLY it shot up to 14700 rpm and stayed there right off the bat! And only lowered to 14300 after a minute and stayed for the rest of the tank. Throttle response was much faster and ran a lot smoother. Unfortunately it got dark before so we couldn't try flying again. Today is presentation and inspection, however we should be able to test again today. Plane has been re mono coated in the nose to make it nice looking again and some small things added to appearance purposes. Well that's all the excitement for today! I'll keep "y'all" updated! :p