Hai-Lee
Old and Bold RC PILOT
Whilst this is not exactly the place to post such an ambitious thread it is the closest I can find. If the moderators Etc wish to relocate it please do.
With this thread I hope to publish my crashes list, (abbreviated because some crashes are just not memorable), and the causes for the crashes. Perhaps upon reading this some of my errors and the cost thereof can be avoided by others.
I have had a long time experience with aircraft and flying models but apart from a few stalled attempts I never managed the actual flying effectively. With being out of the workforce I had the time and a little money so I managed to start again about 2 or more years ago. My flying had every possible error and crash event/cause and so I began my own investigative program to eliminate the crashes and I have seriously found many causes apart from the dreaded, and often blamed interference. Modern radio systems honestly do not really suffer from that much interference.
Also excluded from this list are the hundreds, (possibly more), of poor landings, brain fades, What ifs, and dumb thumb moments. If i Was to try and include those FT would need a few more harddrives
Here goes.
Champ RTF - Store bought trainer.
1st entry: NUMEROUS crashes over a period of 6 months all attributable to pilot error, (I am self taught in flying!).
2nd entry: erratic and unstable elevator function - nose in roll and crash - cause poor preflight control horn slid down push rod in transport - Fix: Ensure preflight test includes physical examination.
STS - Depron scratch built - free plan
1st entry: Extreme veer left and roll on take off. Poor design/build quality insufficient right thrust combined with pilot error. - Fix: Revise motor mount and review poor control inputs.
2nd entry: Severe wobble in roll upon take off. crash on third flight. Over controlling due to control deflections being to severe and too rapid an attempt to take off. "P" factor causing forces to roll which where almost uncontrollable at high throttle/low speed take off. Fix: Reduce control throws, learn about and use Expo, revise take off technique.
3rd entry: Motor and firewall detached in flight but landed successfully. Found that Hotmelt does not adhere to plywood very well around a hot motor. Fix: Use epoxy for firewall/motor mount fitment in all future models.
4th entry. Roll in turn followed by severe dutch roll unrecoverable and crash. Very windy day turned across wind and the depron wings started twisting. No ailerons fitted and no way to exert control upon wings was just a spectator to the crash that followed. Fix: Never build single layer depron wing in a similar manner. Wings require serious torsional damping if flown in high wind.
SIG 4Star20 EP- Balsa crash rebuild
1st entry: - severe and permanent up elevator upon maiden take off. Found elevator servo had been damaged in previous crash. Fix: Relaced servo and crash survivor equipment tested more thoroughly and relegated to the FB designs.
2nd Entry: - Loss of signal event managed to avoid populace through roll and dive to ground from height. Was using HK T6A V2 entry level system which has a single polarity antenna system. Suffered from signal polarization loss, Antennas misaligned. Fix: Ensure correct antenna polarizations in future, (preflight failure again). System withdrawn from service and replaced with dual antenna system.
Quick Trick - 3mm FB Pylon racer emulation
1st entry: Wing folded in high "G" outside loop and battery catapulted across field from height. landed ok if out of control. Found that the Hotmelt glue joint failed as the FB aged and had absorbed moisture from the air. Fix: Revise design to fit dihedral or wing brace and retire hotmelt from wing joint connections.
Bixler 1.1 crash rebuild and FB Evans VP-1
1st entry: Bixler had numerous moments and a single crash, the VP-1 had the same issue and 2 consecutive crashes. Will describe last VP-1 incident as it was the most dramatic and easily evaluated.
Plane took off normally on a slightly windy day and suddenly servos jerked into different positions without any control input changes. Controls did not work and the plane stalled, rolled and crashed nose down. Found that I had overloaded the BEC within the ESC and the volts to the Rx had collapsed. Rx stopped functioning and servos twitched into random positions. I was able to replicate it at the flying field. Fix: Do an estimate of all future BEC loading and ensure that I have an adequate safety margin on BEC current draw for all builds and repairs. MY BAD!!!
Since starting to investigate my crash causes interference has disappeared from my list of causes completely and has been replaced in the most part by "Pilot Error or build issues/design problems" but I needed to investigate to weed out those crashes which had explainable causes for my benefit and hopefully the benefit of others.
I encourage others who are not ashamed to admit that they crash to post the real causes if known so others can avoid the same problems
HAVE FUN!!
With this thread I hope to publish my crashes list, (abbreviated because some crashes are just not memorable), and the causes for the crashes. Perhaps upon reading this some of my errors and the cost thereof can be avoided by others.
I have had a long time experience with aircraft and flying models but apart from a few stalled attempts I never managed the actual flying effectively. With being out of the workforce I had the time and a little money so I managed to start again about 2 or more years ago. My flying had every possible error and crash event/cause and so I began my own investigative program to eliminate the crashes and I have seriously found many causes apart from the dreaded, and often blamed interference. Modern radio systems honestly do not really suffer from that much interference.
Also excluded from this list are the hundreds, (possibly more), of poor landings, brain fades, What ifs, and dumb thumb moments. If i Was to try and include those FT would need a few more harddrives
Here goes.
Champ RTF - Store bought trainer.
1st entry: NUMEROUS crashes over a period of 6 months all attributable to pilot error, (I am self taught in flying!).
2nd entry: erratic and unstable elevator function - nose in roll and crash - cause poor preflight control horn slid down push rod in transport - Fix: Ensure preflight test includes physical examination.
STS - Depron scratch built - free plan
1st entry: Extreme veer left and roll on take off. Poor design/build quality insufficient right thrust combined with pilot error. - Fix: Revise motor mount and review poor control inputs.
2nd entry: Severe wobble in roll upon take off. crash on third flight. Over controlling due to control deflections being to severe and too rapid an attempt to take off. "P" factor causing forces to roll which where almost uncontrollable at high throttle/low speed take off. Fix: Reduce control throws, learn about and use Expo, revise take off technique.
3rd entry: Motor and firewall detached in flight but landed successfully. Found that Hotmelt does not adhere to plywood very well around a hot motor. Fix: Use epoxy for firewall/motor mount fitment in all future models.
4th entry. Roll in turn followed by severe dutch roll unrecoverable and crash. Very windy day turned across wind and the depron wings started twisting. No ailerons fitted and no way to exert control upon wings was just a spectator to the crash that followed. Fix: Never build single layer depron wing in a similar manner. Wings require serious torsional damping if flown in high wind.
SIG 4Star20 EP- Balsa crash rebuild
1st entry: - severe and permanent up elevator upon maiden take off. Found elevator servo had been damaged in previous crash. Fix: Relaced servo and crash survivor equipment tested more thoroughly and relegated to the FB designs.
2nd Entry: - Loss of signal event managed to avoid populace through roll and dive to ground from height. Was using HK T6A V2 entry level system which has a single polarity antenna system. Suffered from signal polarization loss, Antennas misaligned. Fix: Ensure correct antenna polarizations in future, (preflight failure again). System withdrawn from service and replaced with dual antenna system.
Quick Trick - 3mm FB Pylon racer emulation
1st entry: Wing folded in high "G" outside loop and battery catapulted across field from height. landed ok if out of control. Found that the Hotmelt glue joint failed as the FB aged and had absorbed moisture from the air. Fix: Revise design to fit dihedral or wing brace and retire hotmelt from wing joint connections.
Bixler 1.1 crash rebuild and FB Evans VP-1
1st entry: Bixler had numerous moments and a single crash, the VP-1 had the same issue and 2 consecutive crashes. Will describe last VP-1 incident as it was the most dramatic and easily evaluated.
Plane took off normally on a slightly windy day and suddenly servos jerked into different positions without any control input changes. Controls did not work and the plane stalled, rolled and crashed nose down. Found that I had overloaded the BEC within the ESC and the volts to the Rx had collapsed. Rx stopped functioning and servos twitched into random positions. I was able to replicate it at the flying field. Fix: Do an estimate of all future BEC loading and ensure that I have an adequate safety margin on BEC current draw for all builds and repairs. MY BAD!!!
Since starting to investigate my crash causes interference has disappeared from my list of causes completely and has been replaced in the most part by "Pilot Error or build issues/design problems" but I needed to investigate to weed out those crashes which had explainable causes for my benefit and hopefully the benefit of others.
I encourage others who are not ashamed to admit that they crash to post the real causes if known so others can avoid the same problems
HAVE FUN!!