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Thanks Ron, I am thinking along similar lines, just need to come up with something simple that always works.
Will finish off the Bix 2 Sport today then fix the front wheel on the “Li’l Eagle” biplane then it will be a clear slate to begin work on the “Dolly Trolley”
Moose that is just a new generic “Snippets from Around The Field” startup screen. I was just trying something a bit different for 2022.
To quote Arthur Conan Doyle, “a change is as good as a rest”.
Thanks Chris, yes it was another fine flying day you picked. Very little wind about till after our break for BBQ lunch & then as the sea breeze was getting quite strong we all decided it was time to back up & go home. A good morning of flying none the less
Only a couple of videos from me today as too busy flying & our other cinematographers were no shows today. Gerald was off sailing @ Forcett Lakes & Kermit must not have been able to find his mask !!
Got the RHS wing fitted up with servos & CF bars today so that is about if for this build until the motor arrives.
Also started on the Livery
Will add some coloured tips to the wings & tail as well as some stripes on the wing bottoms for better visibility then it will be back in the box till the motor turns up, hopefully by the time we return from our Annual West Coast camping trip for Australia Day.
Still plodding along slowly (no need to rush as the motor wont be here for several weeks) and the left wing is now complete, fitted with servos for ailerons & also flaps, CF brace, etc.
Tomorrow, if not fishing, I’ll start the right one. It’s a bit of stuffing around as the servo leads need to be significantly lengthened (no room for plug in extensions in the slimline wings) and then tack glued in very precisely so that the wing covers (over the CF braces, wiring etc) will fit flat.
The wings are designed to be removable when completed but hopefully it will fit in the Outback with wings attached. The ASW28 just fitted & the wingspan on that was almost identical.
Unfortunately the motor I was hoping to use won’t fit & all the other spares I have are either not powerful enough or have the mounting on the wrong end & are not reversible.
To that end I have at least made the adaptor plate to fit modern motors to the mount in the TechPod (which has wider spacing) & have ordered an appropriate motor capable of spinning a 12″ prop @ < 30 amps. The specified E-Flite Power 10 was around $130.00, the cheapie I got from Banggood was over $100.00 less.
Managed to find enough new or used servos (6 required) in my various stashes so now the elevator & rudder are fully functional and the Wing build is under way.
The wing needs some very slight mods to fit standard 9gm servos as they are just a wee bit taller than the specified Hitech ones (but a hell of a lot cheaper.
The left wing has been modified to fit the servos & now just need to extend the servo wires by a metre or so then the wing can be assembled.
I won’t glue the pod together until the motor arrives & is installed but at least the wings can be completed and decorated appropriately.
A great way to pass a couple of rainy days !!
Unfortunately I didn’t get a lot done on the TechPod build today as we had visitors for most of the afternoon.
The 3D printed mods were of no real benefit (as I don’t need to remove the tail for transport) and just added more weight to the tail area.
I did manage to get the tail assembly built & epoxied in place (including the elevator servo).
Hopefully will install the motor & rudder servo tomorrow then should be able to glue the main pod together & finally move onto the wings.
Looks like everyone had an enjoyable day although perhaps not Sky Jumping Kermit, that final chute opening was a little too close to the ground for comfort.
I missed flying today as we were supposed to be going fishing but unfortunately it got cancelled at the last minute.
Rather than waste a day I decided to start building the TechPod. When I first looked at the build instructions they appeared to be lacking a lot of clarity, once assembly starts you soon realise just how bad they really are.
Anyway I’m in no hurry so just plodding along.
First part was to build the fuselage & its now coming along nicely.
The parts were identified & assembled without glue just to make sure it was right.
This is the “Wing Box” that holds the wing CF rod & also the CF tail boom
Now with the vertical brace & motor mount in place (still not glued)
Time to epoxy it all together
Then fit it to the EPO Foam fuselage & install the tail boom
Now waiting for the fibreglass reinforcing around the motor mount to cure before more assembly.
The fibreglass reinforcing for the motor mount has now been installed and the tail boom epoxied in place. Next job is to fit the T Tail tail plane/rudder/elevator however I have found some upgrades online consisting of some 3D printed parts that allow for easy assembly/removal of the tailplane assembly so I have downloaded the files & will print the 3 parts tomorrow and see how it all goes together before simply epoxying the assembly in place.
No “About the Field” video from me today, we had Ross & Kermit on their respective video cameras so I took the opportunity to get a bit of extra flying in today.
I had the 2 metre Prowler FPV plane with its new Low Profile Pan/Tilt gimbal finally printed & installed. This was the first flights with the low profile gimbal but it seems much more stable than the original gimbal I was using. Still need to change how the camera mounts on it as the velcro still allows the camera to move round a bit.
Also had a couple of flights with the retro Das UglyStik (no video – I think Kermit got some) and a couple with the AR Wing
