Syd

Question for you planegoneby: refer to the pics above to see what I have to work with; should I try and dig the broken stick out, or? I went to the LHS and did manage to get an 11 X 3.8sf prop, but they didn't have any 10mm sticks of any kind, neither did the hardware store so I'll have to order one if I don't just put a firewall mount on the front of Snoopy. A firewall wouldn't be hard to do, but I also wouldn't be able to move the motor further out front for balance, so I'm looking for some ideas; got any?

Syd

Answered my own question pgb, I'm ordering this :  http://www.headsuprc.com/servlet/the-1618/Plastic-Mounting-Stick-wi... . It can be used as either a stick mount or on a firewall, I also will order one of the aluminum bearing tube mounts shown on that page. I'll attach the 1.5" base to the front of Snoopy and the motor out on the stick; gotta love HeadsUpRC!

Syd

The HeadsUpRC stick and firewall mount came in, so I cut the old stick off flush and will build a ply firewall to mount it on tomorrow, (see pic). This will get the motor out front for better balance and hopefully lessen the amount of ballast needed to get Snoopy more flyable. The mount and aluminum bearing tube mount for the motor was under $5, so I think I found a good, cheap fix. HeadsUpRC is a good place for inexpensive parts like that, and shipments usually arrive in two days. More pics tomorrow when I install the firewall.

Syd

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Finally found a minute to mount the new motor mount on Snoopy. I cut a ply mount the same size as the 1 1/2" base of the 10mm stickmount tube, then drilled a hole tow inches into the cut off basswood stickmount to accept a dowel, I drilled a hole in the ply mount to match and epoxied the dowel into the old stickmount and the round motor mount base to the dowel and to the front of the "fuselage". These stickmount tubes seem very strong yet are very inexpensive, ($1.75ea), so I epoxied the plastic base to the ply motor mount, I'll put 3mm screws through the base and mount and secure them with nuts to complete the installation. Mounting the motor mount below the top of the deck allowed me to use the aluminum 8mm bearing tube mount on the top of the 10mm tube centering the motor with the deck and control surfaces, and allowing me to move the lipo pack further forward to help attain CG. Having the motor further out front will bring the CG forward too, I just hope the tube and mount will hold up in a nose-first landing; if it doesn't, hopefully it will break off at the tube which will be easy and inexpensive to replace. Next I'll do some bench tests with a 11x3.8sf & a 11x7sf prop to see if I can get more thrust while keeping amp draw at 25A or under. Planning on a trip to San Simeon on Monday for a test flight, more later.

Syd

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Well, Snoopy had a bad day. I'll post a pic first of Snoopy ready to go. You can't see them in the pic, but I added 1/8" wire landing skids to the bottom of the deck to keep the motor up to try and avoid another broken prop and to bring some weight forward. Looks ok sitting there, but it was all to no avail; the video tells the very short story. Before I could even get my hand on the right stick Snoopy was down. You can hear the wind in the vid so that may be a possible cause, but who knows? The last pics are of the damage; nothing a glue gun can't fix, and I already have another stickmount on the way. The impact bent the aluminum bearing tube mount too, (see the pic), but the motor is still securely attached and the shaft wasn't bent. So back to the drawing board! What's not shown is the 3 oz of lead added underneath in an attempt to bring the CG forward. Obviously Snoopy needs some trimming, I just wish there wasn't so much damage every time I try to fly him. I have no idea why he went over so quickly today, like I said I didn't even have time to get my hand on the stick before he was down; do overs....I guess?

Syd

Here's the video:  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vj7SCOx1fp0

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Finally a good flight report and vids to prove it! Snoopy is still a bit tail heavy, but all in all very flight worthy; and a blast to fly! First I'll include a pic of the new firewall motor mount, I used an 1 1/2" fender washer between the motor mount and the plastic stick mount remnants to try and bring some weight forward, (see pic). I also added 3 oz of lead underneath the deck and still he's tail heavy using a 3S 2800mah lipo. Other than that he flies great, and I'm happy to say the landing skids I installed on Snoopy did their job very well and the prop survived 3 landings. Sorry for the short and shakey vids, my buddy was somewhat discomboobilated by my camera, but at least you can see that Snoopy flies. I'll include a short launch sequence, and a short one of a landing; all the other vids just show a white dot and an occasional shot of the bottom as Snoopy does a fly by; I'll go through the clips again and add any that show a good profile.

I also will include a pic of my new official "Order of the Flying Bone" hat my buddy found somewhere and awarded me after Snoopy's successful day; I think planegoneby deserves one too, so if I can find another pgb I'll send it to you.

Next step is to get another ounce of weight up front and Snoopy I'm sure will become my favorite everyday "plane".

 Here are the link to some Snoopy vids: (still can't figure out how to upload the video itself to this site; sorry):

  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r4BuxttBxMY

  http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zro6FHqfFO0

Syd

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Thanks P51, after I got enough weight forward it made all the difference in the world, I could fly and control it fairly well at high speed and slow alike. I didn't get vids of it, but he will almost hover and probably will if I can keep him oriented properly, more practice and I think it will hover! You can see the tail heavy attitude in the vid, especially at lower speeds, but despite that he went where I pointed him; I'm stoked!!

Couldn't get your link to open for me P, I'll try and copy and paste it; I'd love to check it out.

Syd

Edit: I got it! Great vid, the Witch flies great, and what a great flying site, thanks!

Hi pgb, (aka; Boomerangler!), the stick mount was $1.75 from HeadsUpRC, but I broke the stick on the first go around. I did some mods, added a firewall mount and a fender washer for extra weight up front, (adding down/right thrust in the process), and though a tad tail heavy Snoopy actually flew quite well. I'll add a little more ballast under the deck and we should be golden. I tried a hover, (at altitude), and though it was a little wobbly Snoopy kinda could hover; at least he maintained altitude to be more precise. Slow speed flight handling was actually better than the Spad, and I could just cruise him around at half throttle all day. Loops were possible, and I might try some aerobatics when I get more stick time, but he was happiest just chugging along at about 2/3 throttle. Snoopy is actually easier to fly than the Spad IMHO, though I wouldn't want to think about a dead-stick landing with him; I don't think "glide" is in his vocabulary. At the moment Snoopy is my favorite flyer, I'm looking forward to many hours of fun with him; thanks again pgb!

I'd love to see some pics of that Boomerang when you get a chance; is it proper to call it a jet, or a turbine?

Syd