FT Tiny Trainer (Mighty Mini)

Hai-Lee · Mar 9, 2017

Noel, You can buy separate prop saver assemblies that you could fit on your threaded shaft just as you would a prop. At worst you might need a bush but it should be fine without.

You could also try an old trick which is to set the trim of the throttle so that it always keeps the motor turning, (albeit slowly and with little real power)

Should this remain an issue for you you could seek an alternate brand of propeller. I teach newbies to fly and I use 3 bladed props meant for Quads which are very flexible and can be bent back at ridiculous angles without breaking. Recently I had a TT speared into the ground and the motor was totally mangled but the prop survived with just a few notches in the hub and on one of the blades.

The use of a folding prop seems a little expensive but it also should function well enough but their blades can still be broken as well as the pins holding the blades can wear and fall out in flight if abused.

It is your plane and therefore your choice. Good luck and good hunting!

Henry · Mar 9, 2017

grassy_noel said:
Any thoughts would be super helpful. If this question has already been answered, can you point me to the right thread?

Try a different brand of prop. The ones I got with the power packs break as soon as you look at them. I bought some others from a local supplier and haven't broken a single prop. The tips are all mangled but they haven't broken

mikeporterinmd · Mar 10, 2017

grassy_noel said:
Any thoughts would be super helpful. If this question has already been answered, can you point me to the right thread?

Thanks,
Noel

APC style 6x4 props work well with a TT, assuming an EMAX 1806 motor. I've never broken one. I had to order them from China as I was unable to locate an actual APC 6x4 from the US. So, I ordered and still have 20 or so. I have some DAL props from the FT store, but they are 6x4.5. I don't think they should be used on most 1806 motors. Perhaps on 2S - I'd want to run ecalc first, and also do a current draw check as well.

The 6x4.5 DAL props should work on an "F pack" 2204 motor. I've not tried since I haven't broken a prop that come with the F pack - mostly because I have 2-3 flights on that plane

Prop link:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/APC-6x4-E-T...886672?hash=item25b0ac86d0:g:irkAAOSwniRWOKl3

Mike

grassy_noel · Mar 10, 2017

Thanks!

Thanks All! I appreciate your advice. @Hai-Lee I didn't know a prop-saver was something that could be added to a motor, so I will definitely look into that. I will also look into more flexible props for newbies, thanks for the link @mikeporterinmd! I'll let you know how it goes...

Hai-Lee · Jun 24, 2017

docque · Aug 30, 2017

I built the Bixler nose for my TT. Did anyone actually figure out the thrust angle?

Hai-Lee · Aug 30, 2017

On mine I used the standard power pod with its built in side thrust and followed the article to set the up angle.

I later used a shim to reduce the side thrust but apart from that it was just standard.

Just ensure that the CG is correct and give it a good heave for your first flight!

Have fun!

docque · Aug 30, 2017

Hai-Lee said:
On mine I used the standard power pod with its built in side thrust and followed the article to set the up angle.

I later used a shim to reduce the side thrust but apart from that it was just standard.

Just ensure that the CG is correct and give it a good heave for your first flight!

Have fun!

I didn't see an exact angle but will grab something to measure what I see in the image. Will have to come up with a way to make it adjustable until I find the proper angle. Then I will put two or three sticks of glue on it.

Hai-Lee · Aug 31, 2017

Just make sure that the prop clears the fuselage when you mount the power pod. Adjust the up angle or fit a smaller prop if required. I used a 3 blade 5" prop on mine for a while though the 6" did seem to fly a little faster!

have fun!

JenkyT · Dec 12, 2017

Got my tt built and first successful flight in. It uses a £7 a2212 2200kv motor and 30a esc combo from ebay(china). I have an apc 6x4 on which give 160w at full power on a 3s 1000mah. Did my practicing on Phoenix rc sim which helped although it was a bit windy and ended with a nose plant. Prop and motor survived and the power pod took all the impact so needed replacing. Can't wait to get it in the air again.

DeltaZulu · Sep 19, 2018

hi there, my daughter and i are about to build a TT, we're in the UK and here the it's sold by graupner. they also sell the power pack A, but the specs are different, especially the Pop is a 5x3 not at 6x3..

could this be because they recommend a 3s lipo with it? (the esc is XT30, i haven't found a 2s with that. as yet)
or is the motor much faster?

ps were total beginners with wings, we have a toy quad.

The set contains

1x Flite Test LiPo storage bag
4x Linkage connections
1x 300 mm Y cable
2x 200 mm extension cable
1x 2 mm hex-key
1x Phillips screwdriver
1x Motor ULTRA 2804 2300KV brushless Motor CCW
1x ULTRA 20 A SBEC BL HELI S 2-4S XT-30 speed controller
4x 5g servo
2x Propellers C-Prop 5 x 3 inch CCW

regards
DD

nhk750 · Sep 19, 2018

I used 3s in mine, xt30 connector, and had great success. I cant remember prop size, but battery was 800mah I think...

DeltaZulu · Sep 19, 2018

Nhk that’s the one the recommended, but didn’t they say to start on 2s?

nhk750 · Sep 19, 2018

If your new to flying then 2s would be slower and more mellow, not sure about prop selection though.

DeltaZulu · Sep 23, 2018

In the uk the powerpack A by Graupner is £78!
That seems quite expensive. (About 100 us dollars)

And it doesn’t look like it has the servo adjustable stops.

I’ve looked at HobbyKing website to work out how much all the components are from there, but I just can’t figure it all out, as what Kind of motor and weather the esc works with that...etc

Can anyone shine some light on the issue... please

rickp · Sep 24, 2018

DeltaZulu said:
In the uk the powerpack A by Graupner is £78!
That seems quite expensive. (About 100 us dollars)

And it doesn’t look like it has the servo adjustable stops.

I’ve looked at HobbyKing website to work out how much all the components are from there, but I just can’t figure it all out, as what Kind of motor and weather the esc works with that...etc

Can anyone shine some light on the issue... please

Hi DeltaZulu,

Can't directly answer your question, but one approach might be to look at the components shipped with the FliteTest powerpack A.

https://store.flitetest.com/flite-test-power-pack-a-minis-flt-3001/p674262

I built my Tiny Trainer using their speed build kit and powerpack A, and have been pleased with it.
Perhaps you could order similar components from HobbyKing at less than the Graupner price.

Good luck, rick

rickp · Sep 24, 2018

My Tiny Trainer story - seems like a good time to share my Tiny Trainer experience as I've done a few things differently than most.
For perspective, though I've been flying RC for a few years now, this is the first model that I've built.
All my others have been pre-built UMX size aircraft - Corsair, J3 Cub, Pitts, etc.

Build - bought the FliteTest speed kit and powerpack A directly from FliteTest and was pleased with how it all went together.
Couldn't have done it without their excellent build video though. My blog has building details starting at post #117.
Blog: https://www.rcgroups.com/forums/showthread.php?2338848-F7F-Phoenix-Model-Build-Log/page6&perpage=20
Almost forgot - I added a mod to keep the rubber bands from interfering with the ailerons - see the last picture below.

Batteries and CG - I've been using 430 mAh 2S and 3S batteries found at my local hobby shop. They're much lower capacity and lighter batteries than the recommended, so the flight times are shorter. The upside is that they balance nicely!

Flaperons - built my Tiny Trainer with a 6 channel receiver so that I could play around with flaperons, and it's been an interesting experience. Had to learn how to use the "dual aileron" wing type on my DX-6i transmitter to get things going. Still experimenting with different flap settings, but for now 75% seems to work well. Balloons a bit when the flaps are deployed, so I added an elevator mix to mitigate that.

Paint - my kit used brown paper covered foamboard, which showed up well in flight but needed a bit of decoration to help with orientation.
I pondered several alternatives and settled on printing my own decals on full size label paper. The resulting scheme was inspired by the Citabria and is shown in the attached pictures.

Simulator - before "painting" my Tiny Trainer, I decided to build a PhoenixRC model to try out different paint schemes.
You can download both 3ch and 4 ch versions here: https://forum.flitetest.com/index.p...enix-rc-model-index.27096/page-22#post-431121

Flight - the maiden was delightful - a nice 2S hand launch with adequate power and a single click of trim. Used the polyhedral wing at first and liked it more than I thought I would. Eventually began using the aileron wing and it's now my favorite - gotta love aileron rolls.
Found that the 3S had gobs of power - it wants to leap out of my hand at full throttle, so I now launch with about 3/4 power.
The plane balances nicely with both my 2S and 3S 430 mAh batteries, and works well inverted with just a touch of forward stick.
I'm loving it!

Cheers, rick

DeltaZulu · Sep 24, 2018

nice one rickp.

are you on a 6x3 prop?

rickp · Sep 24, 2018

DeltaZulu said:
nice one rickp.

are you on a 6x3 prop?

Thank you.
And yes, I'm on a 6030 prop - just checked to be sure.

rick

PoorManRC · Nov 19, 2018

Hai-Lee said:
For those who build, fly, crash, repair, modify, and retire their Tiny Trainer, I have gathered a few links to posts for modifications to the standard Tiny Trainer to help those who are looking for something more without just throwing, or giving, their Tiny Trainer away.

The following links are for different configurations for the Tiny Trainer or outright modifications.

Bixler type nose https://www.flitetest.com/articles/bixler-nose-for-ft-tiny-trainer-free-plans

Tiny Trainer Stick http://forum.flitetest.com/showthread.php?17996-Tiny-Trainer-(stick-version)

Clipped Wing http://forum.flitetest.com/showthread.php?34015-The-Clipped-Wing-Tiny-Trainer-Racer

Slow Wing http://forum.flitetest.com/showthread.php?33350-Building-Hai-Lee-s-Tiny-Trainer-Slow-Wing

Soaring Wing http://forum.flitetest.com/showthread.php?19055-Soaring-wing-for-Tiny-Trainer

Single Piece Fuselage http://forum.flitetest.com/showthread.php?33108-Tiny-Trainer-Mod

Cabin Fuselage www.flitetest.com/articles/ft-tiny-trainer-fuselage-modification

Tube Fuselage http://forum.flitetest.com/showthread.php?33867-Tooby-Trainer

Pusher Power Pod http://forum.flitetest.com/showthread.php?17395-FT-Tiny-Trainer-with-Removable-Pusher-Pod

Canard http://forum.flitetest.com/showthread.php?29171-Tiny-Trainer-based-Canard-anyone

Balsa Tiny Trainer http://forum.flitetest.com/showthread.php?16703-Balsafied-Tiny-Trainer

Tiny Glider http://forum.flitetest.com/showthre...Glider-(Tiny-Trainer-Mod)-Kittenz-First-Build

Large tiny trainer https://www.flitetest.com/articles/not-so-tiny-trainer

Tricycle landing gear http://forum.flitetest.com/showthread.php?35176-A-real-challenge-or-request!

Tailless http://forum.flitetest.com/showthread.php?35127-My-Squadron

Is it no wonder that the TT is such popular and timeless design?

Peruse the links and see if anything takes your fancy?

Have fun!

THANK YOU!!! This list actually makes me want to play with a Tiny Trainer!

FT Tiny Trainer (Mighty Mini)

Old and Bold RC PILOT

Member

Still Learning

New member

Old and Bold RC PILOT

Active member

Old and Bold RC PILOT

Active member

Old and Bold RC PILOT

New member

New member

Aviation Enthusiast

New member

Aviation Enthusiast

New member

Active member

Active member

Attachments

New member

Active member

Master member

Similar threads