3D Planes

[akent]

I really think that Canada and the US are screwing around with each others 'stuff'.

I had to order some Spruce wood from Canada for an E-F1 racer I'm building, as there is almost no more Spruce wood in the US for whatever reason. I later found a more local source, but at the time, it was in Canada.

Anyway, it took a friggen month to get here! Far longer than anything from China! The wood bill was around 20 bucks and the shipping was 28 bucks!!! WTF!?!?

I thought we had some kind of Nafta thing in effect?
Arrgghh...
Kent

Anyway, 19k, as I mentioned, you should make a template of the front motor mount (radial engine!).
Mine came apart last Sunday as you can see here. I was able to rig a design that is similar, but made of Birch ply. Way stronger.
It looks like it should fly like always! I did put a slightly bigger motor in there at the same time...
Kent

[akent]

Oh yeah, and if you look at the bottom picture, you will notice some white areas of the lower engine cowl that are maybe not quite symmetrical. I carved some EPP out of a sheet, glued it in there and carved it with an exacto.
It's not perfect, but not too bad. It's better than the missing chunks...

I hope you have some Welder glue!
Kent

[Solitaire]

We do have "a Nafta thing", Kent. Before NAFTA, you would have paid an import duty on that wood along with the high shipping.

It's the postal service...way too high between the two countries. Now you know what I have to go through to get stuff out of the US.

/whine off.

[19000rpm]

Nice job on the mount and cowl. You'd think they'd have those items as spare parts. Or do they?

Good old NAFTA ;D

[akent]

Jun 16, 2011 21:48:25 GMT -6 Solitaire said:

We do have "a Nafta thing", Kent. Before NAFTA, you would have paid an import duty on that wood along with the high shipping.

It's the postal service...way too high between the two countries. Now you know what I have to go through to get stuff out of the US.

/whine off.

Man, Sol, I feel for you!
I don't understand this postal service mess.
Maybe someday they'll get it figured out. At least I hope they do!
Kent

[akent]

Jun 17, 2011 5:22:55 GMT -6 19000rpm said:

Nice job on the mount and cowl. You'd think they'd have those items as spare parts. Or do they?

Good old NAFTA ;D

As far as I know, there are no spare parts available for these planes. I think once the foam is torn up really bad, it's time for a new one anyway.

The plywood engine in these is easy enough to make. The foam is easy to fix, too.

I have torn the nose completely off of my Sniper on 3 occasions. I just glue it back on and you can hardly tell!

I have crashed the Sniper and the SU-29 uncountable times! I haven't even lost one of the HXT-900 servos, yet!
Kent

[Solitaire]

Kent, I found this site with some RCFactory SU-29 parts (I think that's your brand). Looks like they have a cowling for that beast. I have no idea if they are a decent supplier to do business with.

shop.twistedhobbys.com/RcFactory-Spare-Parts_c46.htm

[19000rpm]

Great find sol. I've bookmarked them. I'm sure I'll need parts at some point.

[akent]

Wow! Thanks for that, Sol!!!

While the plywood motor in the front might be expensive, the hardware pack is maybe not! The G-10 control parts are very well done from Rc Factory.

Those and a Dubro pull-pull and you are home free, if those things get hosed up.

I see reference to a 1.2m version? I wonder what that is?

This is great info, Sol!
Kent

[scarface26]

Jun 20, 2011 22:10:30 GMT -6 akent said:

I see reference to a 1.2m version? I wonder what that is?

Kent

I believe that it refers to wing span, although they mislabeled it 1.2mm in one place. Twisted Hobbies also sells full kits of the RC Factory planes, but they are priced way high.

[19000rpm]

Yes, those prices are high. I'll spend for the parts though, like the cowl and motor mount.

The Su 29 showed up today. I haven't had time to open the package yet. I'll do a build thread on it. This plane will fill a void in my current inventory. Got to keep the inventory up to par.

[akent]

Jun 21, 2011 13:56:49 GMT -6 19000rpm said:

Yes, those prices are high. I'll spend for the parts though, like the cowl and motor mount.

The Su 29 showed up today. I haven't had time to open the package yet. I'll do a build thread on it. This plane will fill a void in my current inventory. Got to keep the inventory up to par.

Nice! I think you are going to like it!
If your instruction sheet is like mine, you better also get out the magnifying glass. Those are some tiny letters!

A couple of hints:
1. Use a brand new blade when cutting the slots for the carbon rods. Those rods are very thin, but you'll be surprised at how much rigidity they add to the airframe.
2. Cut the slot just deep enough to have the carbon rods just below the surface.
3. Use some sandpaper on the carbon rods to allow the CA to grab better. If you don't, they can pop loose when flying hard. You'll suddenly see a wing have huge dihedral or the whole fuse twist 90 degrees! If this happens, just reglue with thin CA. No biggie.
4. After installing the carbon rods and before applying the CA, make sure the wing is flat and that the fuse is straight. The carbon can be a fairly tight fit and cause these to become untrue. If you glue it that way, they will stay that way!
5. As I mentioned, if you use the pull-pull system, a Dubro micro pull-pull is FAR FAR better than the stuff they give you in the kit.
6. If you fly off of grass, you might as well put the wheel pants in a drawer somewhere. They are not very durable.

I did not glue the cowl on mine. Mine is held there with larger T-pins.

Just some thoughts.

Oh, and if I was building another one, I would build it with Welder everywhere except the carbon rods. Thin CA there...
I also put a small Dubro tail wheel on mine. I like to be able to taxi better.

I look forward to your build thread! I wish I had done that with mine. I was too impatient!
Kent

[19000rpm]

Great info kent. Thanks!

I'll probably fly off grass at least 75% of the time so I'll leave off the wheel pants. And, I'll add the tail wheel for when I fly off of a hard surface.

I opened it up yesterday. If those instructions were any smaller you'd need to use a more than a magnifying glass; you'd need a microscope to read them. ;D

I'm not loving the pull pull set up they provided. Is this the dubro system you used? secure.hobbyzone.com/DUB846.html

Maybe you can send me a pic of where you located the battery, ESC and radio. I'm going to use a 1000mA, 18A ESC and the 1650kV Rocket motor from hobbypartz.

I haven't ordered the motor yet and some misc. parts so I'll wait til I get everything to start the build thread.

[akent]

That's the Dubro system I used. I didn't remember it being that expensive though... Oh well.

Here's a few pictures of how I installed everything on the SU-29. I didn't do the best job, but it balances well enough.
Note the battery is adjustable a fair amount. I usually mount it right over the carbon tube.
Also note that I did NOT have a sharp enough blade when I cut the slots for the carbon tube!!! Shame on me!

[19000rpm]

Looks plenty good to me kent

I'll make sure I've got a sharp blade before I start.

The motor and a couple more 1000mA 25c's is on the way from hobbypartz. I picked up the dubro pull pull and 10x4.7 prop. Already have the ESC. I think I'm about ready to start.