FTFC23: Buildruary Build-off Challenge

[mastermalpass]

Today, I maidened the the Su-36 and it flew...

But it was barely controllable. 😂

It was simply too squirrely and hard not to overcorrect with, 'cause it was so inconsistent in how much throw it needed and when. Being as heavy as it was, it was eager to drop a wing as well. This was one of those planes that flew so badly that when I crashed it I was like 'whatever, it was crap anyway'. Shame, 'cause it did look nice! I think the next Su-26 I make will be much bigger and still lighter. My next 3D plane at all though, will be a Shock Flyer, I think. I was a bit ambitious with this one!

Just now, I flew the the MiG-29 V4 and it's an RC Powers design, so of course it ticked every box. 😁

I maidened it on a slope, rough terrain, gusty updrafts and various trees to weave around. Not an ideal place for a maiden really, but that's confidence in RCPowers that the Su-34 and Su-35 have given me and this one did not let me down.

I'll be honest, it was sketchy. The winds kicked it about and nearly took it away from me at one point. I knew it was a good idea to activate the rudders; they played a vital role in 'overruling' the wind's input. Maidens like this can be demanding and I was worrying I might be pushing my luck, so after a few circles, a loop, a few rolls and a test of full throttle, I brought it in early. The MiG-29 was chucked in the deep end and came out earning a paint job!

I'll get the videos edited uploaded before the 8th. So that's builduary for me. 3/4 planes made, 2/3 planes viable. Not a winning run, but I got a good addition to my hangar!

 

[FoamyDM]

UnEZ Bronco and Nano Scout (re)maidened today in slightly better conditions. Don't believe what my 7-year old Director of Photography says when she mentions that the weather is "nice and warm today". It was -2°C... Children are crazy.

It was nice out, though.

I love those ski add-ons

 

[FoamyDM]

Today, I maidened the the Su-36 and it flew...
View attachment 236005

But it was barely controllable. 😂
View attachment 236006

It was simply too squirrely and hard not to overcorrect with, 'cause it was so inconsistent in how much throw it needed and when. Being as heavy as it was, it was eager to drop a wing as well. This was one of those planes that flew so badly that when I crashed it I was like 'whatever, it was crap anyway'. Shame, 'cause it did look nice! I think the next Su-26 I make will be much bigger and still lighter. My next 3D plane at all though, will be a Shock Flyer, I think. I was a bit ambitious with this one!

Just now, I flew the the MiG-29 V4 and it's an RC Powers design, so of course it ticked every box. 😁
View attachment 236007

I maidened it on a slope, rough terrain, gusty updrafts and various trees to weave around. Not an ideal place for a maiden really, but that's confidence in RCPowers that the Su-34 and Su-35 have given me and this one did not let me down.

View attachment 236009
View attachment 236010

I'll be honest, it was sketchy. The winds kicked it about and nearly took it away from me at one point. I knew it was a good idea to activate the rudders; they played a vital role in 'overruling' the wind's input. Maidens like this can be demanding and I was worrying I might be pushing my luck, so after a few circles, a loop, a few rolls and a test of full throttle, I brought it in early. The MiG-29 was chucked in the deep end and came out earning a paint job!

I'll get the videos edited uploaded before the 8th. So that's builduary for me. 3/4 planes made, 2/3 planes viable. Not a winning run, but I got a good addition to my hangar!

Those are proof of flight, Sketchy as it was.

 

[Inq]

No videos for me.

• The DR-1 flew a couple of tight laps (to tight) and was not fully controllable. I let an "expert" take the second flight and he hit far harder than me and the top wing came off. It looks to be fixable.
• The D.VIII flew strait, but still went in and both these small planes can't take-off or land on our grass strip. Although there was no visible damage, the motor does not work. All controls and structure look fine.
• The F8 has only 580 grams of thrust and 880 grams ready to fly. It is my opinion between my beginner piloting skills and not being able to throw it hard enough for it to generate lift before crashing, I will not attempt it on this one till I put landing gear AND get better piloting skills.

My next plane will be back to a more training level plane. I had no real issues with the Storch until it caught fire because I was pushing it too hard to get back upwind to the landing strip. I'll go with something on the same scale as the Storch but with more power in reserve... A 4S, D3536 should be adequate.

 

[FoamyDM]

No videos for me.

• The DR-1 flew a couple of tight laps (to tight) and was not fully controllable. I let an "expert" take the second flight and he hit far harder than me and the top wing came off. It looks to be fixable.
• The D.VIII flew strait, but still went in and both these small planes can't take-off or land on our grass strip. Although there was no visible damage, the motor does not work. All controls and structure look fine.
• The F8 has only 580 grams of thrust and 880 grams ready to fly. It is my opinion between my beginner piloting skills and not being able to throw it hard enough for it to generate lift before crashing, I will not attempt it on this one till I put landing gear AND get better piloting skills.

My next plane will be back to a more training level plane. I had no real issues with the Storch until it caught fire because I was pushing it too hard to get back upwind to the landing strip. I'll go with something on the same scale as the Storch but with more power in reserve... A 4S, D3536 should be adequate.

Sounds decent though, I imagine, somewhat disappointing. There is always next year.

 

[mastermalpass]

Here's the videos of yesterday's flights: 🙂

 

[FoamyDM]

So... March 8th was the video pencils down point. The challenge is complete.

I want to thank everyone who signed up and gave it a go, and for those following along cheering on the contestants.

It is a deceptively simple, but not an easy challenge. I hope everyone had some fun

I will now score the entrants.

 

[Yankee2003]

So... March 8th was the video pencils down point. The challenge is complete.
View attachment 236146

I want to thank everyone who signed up and gave it a go, and for those following along cheering on the contestants.

It is a deceptively simple, but not an easy challenge. I hope everyone had some fun

I will now score the entrants.

Thank you Matt for sponsoring the Build-ruary challenge. I had a great time failing in spectacular fashion.
Here’s to next year..

 

[hankflies03]

So... March 8th was the video pencils down point. The challenge is complete.
View attachment 236146

I want to thank everyone who signed up and gave it a go, and for those following along cheering on the contestants.

It is a deceptively simple, but not an easy challenge. I hope everyone had some fun

I will now score the entrants.

yes thank you! this challenge is a great and fun way to push us all to get some planes done for the flying season.

 

[FoamyDM]

I will be trying to get the result together this week.

 

[FoamyDM]

My Apologies:
Ok... I hope everyone can appreciate my inability to score this in a Timely manner... And accept my heartfelt apologies. My reasoning is sound though... If you listen to the Aviation RC noob Podcast you may have noticed that I took on a number of projects starting in March that ate up my focus. Like having our very own plane ( the "NOOB" variant of the Wonder.) And then building o
Not one, but Two Giant scale (3x) DTFB versions of the plane.

Thanks
One last thank you to everyone for taking part of the challenge and also embodying the spirit too. Most of us gave a valiant effort and seemed to enjoy the challenge of it and community along the way! Excellent!

This years findings (Approximately):
100% Most of us got through the planning and setup part of the challenge
65% finished 1or 2 planes and documented it somewhat/mostly.
30% completed 3 and we're working on the forth at the buzzer
15% completed the challenge with all four planes, Each had documented details, and videos of their maiden voyage "flights". (I'm looking at you F-117)

10% Created compilation videos of the maiden flights

This race was tight, as both @AgentC and @hankflies03 are great examples of what the well done challenge looks like. Both had 4 fully colored Birds. I am awarding bonus points for the custom skins that accompanied 2 of his builds, which were shared with they community too.

Give it up to our '23 Buildruary challenge winner:
🥇@Agents 🏆

Giving the silver
🥈 to @hankflies03 .

And I think I earned the Bronze (technically). But I would like to award the Bragging Rights to
🥉@Inq

I will be in touch regarding prizes, or PM me.

✈️I hope to see everyone next year.🛬

 

[Yankee2003]

My Apologies:
Ok... I hope everyone can appreciate my inability to score this in a Timely manner... And accept my heartfelt apologies. My reasoning is sound though... If you listen to the Aviation RC noob Podcast you may have noticed that I took on a number of projects starting in March that ate up my focus. Like having our very own plane ( the "NOOB" variant of the Wonder.) And then building o
Not one, but Two Giant scale (3x) DTFB versions of the plane.
View attachment 238753 View attachment 238754
View attachment 238749 View attachment 238750 View attachment 238751 View attachment 238752

Thanks
One last thank you to everyone for taking part of the challenge and also embodying the spirit too. Most of us gave a valiant effort and seemed to enjoy the challenge of it and community along the way! Excellent!

This years findings (Approximately):
100% Most of us got through the planning and setup part of the challenge
65% finished 1or 2 planes and documented it somewhat/mostly.
30% completed 3 and we're working on the forth at the buzzer
15% completed the challenge with all four planes, Each had documented details, and videos of their maiden voyage "flights". (I'm looking at you F-117)

10% Created compilation videos of the maiden flights

This race was tight, as both @AgentC and @hankflies03 are great examples of what the well done challenge looks like. Both had 4 fully colored Birds. I am awarding bonus points for the custom skins that accompanied 2 of his builds, which were shared with they community too.

Give it up to our '23 Buildruary challenge winner:
🥇@Agents 🏆

Giving the silver
🥈 to @hankflies03 .

And I think I earned the Bronze (technically). But I would like to award the Bragging Rights to
🥉@Inq

I will be in touch regarding prizes, or PM me.

✈️I hope to see everyone next year.🛬

Congrats fellas, well done. I hope I can do as well next year.
And a big thank you to the host..I had a blast Matt.

 

[AgentC]

Congrats fellas, well done. I hope I can do as well next year.
And a big thank you to the host..I had a blast Matt.

Thanks for the contest, @FoamyDM!
I enjoy this as a community event to push us to make our planes for the warm flying season over a contest, but that being said, it's an extra push of the contest aspect to make a polished attempt all-round

Three of my four are still flying, so it's definitely been a successful endeavour! With the v2 EZ pack out, I am soon to test that on the UnEZ Bronco to see how that handles it.

Congrats really to all who participated and came out with something flying, or at least a successful experiment!

 

[mastermalpass]

This was a fun one to take part in. I’m glad I gave it a shot; it’s been a while since I last felt the push to just get models done and in the air. Congrats to our winners, they really went all out!

 

[FishbonesAir]

My Apologies:
Ok... I hope everyone can appreciate my inability to score this in a Timely manner... And accept my heartfelt apologies. My reasoning is sound though... If you listen to the Aviation RC noob Podcast you may have noticed that I took on a number of projects starting in March that ate up my focus. Like having our very own plane ( the "NOOB" variant of the Wonder.) And then building o
Not one, but Two Giant scale (3x) DTFB versions of the plane.


Thanks
One last thank you to everyone for taking part of the challenge and also embodying the spirit too. Most of us gave a valiant effort and seemed to enjoy the challenge of it and community along the way! Excellent!

This years findings (Approximately):
100% Most of us got through the planning and setup part of the challenge
65% finished 1or 2 planes and documented it somewhat/mostly.
30% completed 3 and we're working on the forth at the buzzer
15% completed the challenge with all four planes, Each had documented details, and videos of their maiden voyage "flights". (I'm looking at you F-117)

10% Created compilation videos of the maiden flights

This race was tight, as both @AgentC and @hankflies03 are great examples of what the well done challenge looks like. Both had 4 fully colored Birds. I am awarding bonus points for the custom skins that accompanied 2 of his builds, which were shared with they community too.

Give it up to our '23 Buildruary challenge winner:
🥇@Agents 🏆

Giving the silver
🥈 to @hankflies03 .

And I think I earned the Bronze (technically). But I would like to award the Bragging Rights to
🥉@Inq

I will be in touch regarding prizes, or PM me.

✈️I hope to see everyone next year.🛬

Great job Foamy. Looking forward to this next year, and will try to get my poop in a group.

Capt Fishbones (Dave)

 

[Mutley]

congrats to the Winners!