nhk750
Aviation Enthusiast
That's a good idea, but I would also put those batteries in a fireproof lipo bag. If you had a fire with that setup, it would never go out...
No but we'd stay warm while at the flying field.
Hayduke27
New member
I made my coldest flight so far yesterday. It was -8 F. All in all, the plane and electronics worked fine, and the flight went smoothly. My thumbs paid the price a little bit, as both thumbs and my forefingers got totally frozen up and I had a painful defrosting session. I definitely am going to get myself a Tx mitt, that's probably next on the list at this point. I am also thinking about getting some skis. I have been just shoveling myself a runway through the snow, but even then I end up hitting the deeper snow on landing and flipping the plane. No harm done, but I wouldn't mind being able to slide to a nice stop instead.
I know this is just my first taste. There are months ahead of subzero temps and much deeper snow. Im just gearing up.
I know this is just my first taste. There are months ahead of subzero temps and much deeper snow. Im just gearing up.
Hayduke27
New member
I got a pair of skis ordered. I'm hoping they will be light enough for use on the Storch. It's finally started snowing here, and with the windy weather there are a lot of fields that are starting to get a nice crust over them. I am excited, and this will give me endless smooth areas for take offs and landings.
My girlfriend and I built a Tiny Trainer for her to learn on, and we took it out for the maiden flight today. It flew really well, and we had a great time. The thing that really impressed me was how smoothly it landed on the snow. I have been landing planes with wheels on the snow and just counting on the planes flipping over. The Tiny Trainer has no landing gear, and it made the landings so much more smooth and fun.
I have seen Andre's videos of him flying float planes off the snow, and it seems like a great way to go. there may be a Sea Duck in my future...
My girlfriend and I built a Tiny Trainer for her to learn on, and we took it out for the maiden flight today. It flew really well, and we had a great time. The thing that really impressed me was how smoothly it landed on the snow. I have been landing planes with wheels on the snow and just counting on the planes flipping over. The Tiny Trainer has no landing gear, and it made the landings so much more smooth and fun.
I have seen Andre's videos of him flying float planes off the snow, and it seems like a great way to go. there may be a Sea Duck in my future...
Bricks
Master member
kacknor
Build another!
From the 'How many Lipo's do you have" thread... Notice the box on the left. Has an insulated lunch bag with hand warmers inside a .50 cal ammo box. Works nice. I also use a TX Glove.
JD
nhk750
Aviation Enthusiast
That's awesome! But my wife might have a heart attack if I had that many batteries laying around...lol
kacknor
Build another!
Were it to have happened in the open I'd be in the same boat. I've gotten pretty good at having things "suddenly appear" while she's not looking.
JD
Bricks
Master member
Were it to have happened in the open I'd be in the same boat. I've gotten pretty good at having things "suddenly appear" while she's not looking.
JD
You have to do the 48 hour rule. Bring something home and set it out someplace it cannot be hidden but does not have to be on the kitchen table if she does not notice it for 48 hours you can tell her I`ve had that forever.
kacknor
Build another!
Oh yeah. That works, but it's a risk. I have storage. I just add the new to that. It's never seen and just becomes part of the 'stuff' kept there.
Once was told "Those rifle racks are getting pretty full!"
Learned then to leave the stuff in the open alone, and have the new under cover, but in legitimate locations. Works for RC too. JD
kacknor
Build another!
Back to Winter Flying... We have one season (5 Times) left to flying the Columbus Four Seasons Golf Dome. There was a legal issue that stopped the Horizon Electric Indoor event this year, but it's been cleared up enough to allow use to fly starting tomorrow night. The Dome will close permanently in March.
To that end, I built a new aircraft this week. Not an FT design, but nice. 16" wingspan at the rear. Electronics are AS3X brushless radio and servos from a Yak54-180, motor is a HK C10 2900kv. First flight tomorrow night!
No idea if this will work or not...
JD
To that end, I built a new aircraft this week. Not an FT design, but nice. 16" wingspan at the rear. Electronics are AS3X brushless radio and servos from a Yak54-180, motor is a HK C10 2900kv. First flight tomorrow night!
No idea if this will work or not...
JD
Hayduke27
New member
Kacknor- How'd the maiden go? That plane looks like it would be ready for some snow use. Is it just for indoors, or do you plan to use it outside as well?
I set my new cold weather record on Sunday flying when it was -18F. I had my shooting gloves on and it worked out fine, though I still got a little thumb freeze. I haven't ordered a Tx mitt yet, but I keep promising myself it will happen soon. I can say that on some of these sunny freezing days, the Tx screen is working very sluggishly, and I know that getting the Tx into a mitt and out of the cold air is going to be a little better on it. All the same, overall the electronics are working fine and I've been having a great time.
The skis I ordered showed up today. I got some DuBro skis, and they are really cool. At first the price seemed a little steep to me, but considering how well designed and well built these are, the only reason I'd ever need to buy another pair is if I need them for more than one plane at a time
Zarich12: I haven't jumped into building skis yet, but just today I was thinking about how fun it would be to have them on my mini Scout. As I was thinking about this, I remembered that back when I was flying small control line planes with my dad, we made a pretty good pair of small skis out of the handles of plastic milk cartons. The 1 gallon plastic cartons have a pretty nice angle in the bend of the handle, and if you take your time cutting it off nicely, it can pretty easily be modified into a small ski. I was thinking about trying these out for my Scout. I don't have a full plan together yet, but I'm picturing a couple of milk carton handles with holes drilled through them, maybe a couple of rubber bands to hold the tips up, and either wheel collars or a little hot glue to keep everything on the axles. I'll post an update if I get a test rig pieced together.
I set my new cold weather record on Sunday flying when it was -18F. I had my shooting gloves on and it worked out fine, though I still got a little thumb freeze. I haven't ordered a Tx mitt yet, but I keep promising myself it will happen soon. I can say that on some of these sunny freezing days, the Tx screen is working very sluggishly, and I know that getting the Tx into a mitt and out of the cold air is going to be a little better on it. All the same, overall the electronics are working fine and I've been having a great time.
The skis I ordered showed up today. I got some DuBro skis, and they are really cool. At first the price seemed a little steep to me, but considering how well designed and well built these are, the only reason I'd ever need to buy another pair is if I need them for more than one plane at a time
Zarich12: I haven't jumped into building skis yet, but just today I was thinking about how fun it would be to have them on my mini Scout. As I was thinking about this, I remembered that back when I was flying small control line planes with my dad, we made a pretty good pair of small skis out of the handles of plastic milk cartons. The 1 gallon plastic cartons have a pretty nice angle in the bend of the handle, and if you take your time cutting it off nicely, it can pretty easily be modified into a small ski. I was thinking about trying these out for my Scout. I don't have a full plan together yet, but I'm picturing a couple of milk carton handles with holes drilled through them, maybe a couple of rubber bands to hold the tips up, and either wheel collars or a little hot glue to keep everything on the axles. I'll post an update if I get a test rig pieced together.
Hayduke27
New member
On another winter flying note, I had been thinking of something I learned while getting my pilot license. Cold temperatures give us cold air, and cold air is denser than warm air. This lowers the density altitude. Because I learned to fly at a high altitude airfield, density altitude was a serious consideration, especially in the small planes I was flying. The cold air in the winter months, though it made for chilly flying, also resulted in really great aircraft performance. The air was so thick that you could fly at higher altitude, and the overall performance of the plane was a lot better.
As the cold has intensified around here, I know that this same principle applies. What I don't know is if there is a noticeable difference in performance with RC planes. When your total climb from takeoff is 100ft versus the thousands of feet you are dealing with in a full sized airplane, density altitude just might not be a major factor. Any thoughts?
As the cold has intensified around here, I know that this same principle applies. What I don't know is if there is a noticeable difference in performance with RC planes. When your total climb from takeoff is 100ft versus the thousands of feet you are dealing with in a full sized airplane, density altitude just might not be a major factor. Any thoughts?
