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Re: Western Aero Design Plane

Posted: Fri Mar 10, 2017 10:03 am
by Beavertail
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

Re: Western Aero Design Plane

Posted: Fri Mar 10, 2017 10:50 am
by steve
That's awesome Gary. Great teamwork man!

Re: Western Aero Design Plane

Posted: Fri Mar 10, 2017 8:00 pm
by Beavertail
Some pictures from yesterday!

Re: Western Aero Design Plane

Posted: Fri Mar 10, 2017 8:02 pm
by Beavertail
Here is the picture of us testing the motor and trying to hit 14000rpm... it should consistently hit it now

Re: Western Aero Design Plane

Posted: Wed Mar 15, 2017 9:28 am
by Beavertail
So finished competition and back home now... what an exciting weekend! lots of up and downs since last update :) On Friday, during inspection, we had a few minor issues like a faulty connector for the tail and also a mess with the GPS and telemetry system which didn't work properly. Due to the lack of electronics working we had to fix the plane Friday night and get reinspected Saturday morning before the flight rounds. So when we got back to the hotel, i fixed up the servo issues and the software team worked OVERNIGHT and got a working drop algorithm for the plane! so Saturday morning we rushed to the re inspection and made it just in time for the first flight rounds, not knowing if the picky engine will start as we were not able to test that morning due to the time constraint. So when it was our turn as rolled onto the runway and had three minutes to start the plane and takeoff. And of course after three minutes of attempting to start, the dubjet refuses to turn over.... so its back to the test bench and after a quick glow plug swap boom it starts right up..... we ran the engine on the ground for a good while to let it warm up, tested a few different props, and handed the plane to the software team for more coding. Few hours later it was second round, as we got on the runway, the plane started great this time! but it was the FPV that refuses to connect... luckly nearing the three minute mark it was a good to go. Plane starts rolling and about five seconds later... i knew it wasnt gonna end well... motor sagged majorly from 14000 to more like 10000rom from the engine note... slowly the pilot got it up but it struggled to climb but to no use and it came around the turn it tip stalled and crashed :( After the safety team retrieved the plane they told us the exhaust was too hot to touch.. leading them to believe that the engine ran lean (expected) on the runway and overheated which explains the major sag in the motor. We considered a rebuild on site which was doable air-frame wise... but the motor was gone... exhaust ripped clean off. So that was our competition over. HOWEVER we did still end 5/15 planes overall as only about 6 planes flew and we aced the report and presentation :) so it was still a somewhat of an success! Here are some pics of the competition.

Re: Western Aero Design Plane

Posted: Wed Mar 15, 2017 9:30 am
by Beavertail
More pics

Re: Western Aero Design Plane

Posted: Wed Mar 15, 2017 9:32 am
by Beavertail
There is a Video of the flights but i cant post it here but there should be a final promo vid which i will post once its up!

Re: Western Aero Design Plane

Posted: Wed Mar 15, 2017 6:54 pm
by steve
Well if everything always worked all the time we wouldn't learn very much. One thing is for certain Gary, looks like you had a great time.

Steve

Re: Western Aero Design Plane

Posted: Wed Mar 15, 2017 9:56 pm
by Beavertail
It was great fun steve! haha learned many new things... lots of laughs! haha couldnt ask for a better five days away in texas!

Re: Western Aero Design Plane

Posted: Thu Mar 16, 2017 10:08 am
by RocketManRC
Great project Gary! I think electric power would be the way to go next time :-)