Golden Goose

[Theuglycamel]

Howdy,
Looked like the best place to post this. I've got quite a few builds under my belt but this is my first foam board. Never like the name Guinea. So here's the Golden Goose.

 

[Theuglycamel]

Well yesterday was an atmospheric phenomenon here in NE OK. 50 degrees with 5mph north wind. Maiden went awesome, I've got a short crappy vid here. I'm running high rates, no expo, 50% differential. She did fantastic except for the nose gear collapsing on takeoff (hence the woopties at the beginning). After this vid I did a durability test against a Red Oak and I must say, I'm impressed. Dented the nose and broke a prop, 10 min later I was back in the air. Flew 6 times last night and even with these off brand 2212's she'll hover, invert, knife edge, and crappie flop without breaking a sweat. What's more, if I had differential thrust at 100%, she would fly EXACTLY like the PhoenixRC model (except for the durability settings of course). Anything I tell this bird to do it does it without any bad habits. My only complaint would be how low the tail wants to drag when banking. Takes quite a bit of rudder to keep it level. I'll see how 100% diff thrust helps. Sorry I didn't get the landing, but they've all been very uneventful so far. With this gear setup, it's actually difficult to crap a landing.
I'm going to go with larger gear, a new spring setup for the nose gear, and work on the drop hatch linkage next. We're back to rain again here so I should have a few days to get the details finished up. I do believe she's earned her name badge and a few more stripes. I've got a few more threads started on this plane so I'll try to link them all together with this vid.

InShot_20190312_084731265.mp4

• Theuglycamel
• Mar 12, 2019
• ft guinea pig maiden flight

 

[Mad_Mechanic]

I like the paint scheme you have going there, looks like your flight went pretty well.

Also loving the Fallout Vault sign you have in your hobby cave!

 

[FDS]

Nice tree dodge! My mini guinea is silver. Not had a break in the weather to fly mine yet, hope my maiden is as successful as yours.

 

[sprzout]

Congrats! These big planes like this are so much fun to fly. I keep trying to get my dad to fly my Sea Duck, because that thing is SO forgiving; looks like the Golden Goose is along the same lines!

 

[Theuglycamel]

Thank ya! That tree dodge had me puckered up. I think you can hear me saying I was gonna cut that out lol. I'm blaming that on the nose gear collapsing but it was really panic mode dumb thumbs.
I'm absolutely in love with these big foamies. Here where the wind blows non-stop, I've lost, killed, and completely destroyed several 1/2 A sized planes. This girl not only is SO easy to see, but the wind doesn't seem to phase her at all. I do believe the Sea Duck will be my next project. Never had a sea plane before and I've got two large ponds that should be perfect for her.
My favorite thing about BIG FOAMIES??? They fly like you actually know what you're doing, when obviously doofises like me cannot lol...

Fallout's been one of my favorite games even before it was cool! Back in my 20s when Fallout and Fallout 2 came out, I don't think I saw sunlight for months. Nothing like turn based hex battles lol...

 

[CarolineTyler]

So.....does it?????

Lay golden eggs, or at least drop them from a height

 

[Theuglycamel]

Absolutely! Weather permitting, I plan to run "Egg Drops" at Easter this year. Amazon is selling golden Easter eggs for about .50 a piece right now. I'll do some testing, but I'm thinking either simple streamers on the eggs or a very basic parachute. Don't want them winding up in Kansas lol.

 

[Theuglycamel]

Got my new landing gear yesterday, going from a 2" to 3" foam tire on the rear and a 1 1/4" to 2" on the front. I'm also going to bend the nose gear aft to try and get more spring out of it. Might wind up with a bush goose before it's said and done. I'm also adding an aluminum nose gear caster off of an old set of retracts. Should be plenty strong and still be free to spin. Plus it's purdy lol.

 

[Theuglycamel]

Ok well I went too big for my caster to work, so I'm reusing the ft style nose gear setup. Made a HUGE difference in taxing though. I can actually use the cowpatties as ramps now lol. Had a great wind test this morning. She wollered around some but down trim fixed that right away. I'm just happy I've finally got a plane that will take the gust (and a hard landing).
Side note, I'll throw this in scratch builders too, i'm always buying up good deals on foam board. I found a box of 48x36 trifold 18 count for 22bucks Amazon prime free shipping. Took literally 30 hours to arrive. What's better, it's black. Not just paper black, but foam black! And of course I go to buy more and it's out of stock. I've got the sku number now though!

 

[kilroy07]

I found a box of 48x36 trifold 18 count for 22bucks Amazon prime free shipping. Took literally 30 hours to arrive. What's better, it's black. Not just paper black, but foam black! And of course I go to buy more and it's out of stock. I've got the sku number now though!

Just teasing us are you?!!
(You KNOW I'm working on a SR-71 right?....)

 

[Theuglycamel]

I kid you not Kilroy! Here's the link: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B017BDI6U4/?tag=lstir-20

Here's my email to Adams requesting another vendor source:
"Dear Sir or Ma’am,
I’m writing you in regard to a product you manufacture. Your Redi-Board 8018 Black 18 count has become a staple in many of my projcets. Unfortunately, I’m having a very difficult time finding a supplier. Would it be possible to get some information on who may carry this in stock and if there are any online vendors available? I appreciate your time and any information you may be able to provide. Thank you!
Daniel L. Wilkie
IT Manager"

I'm looking now at some different waterproofing methods with this board. It's just as light as white and reacts to anything acrylic exactly the same way. I saw a vid with the cat from Projectair using a Valspar spray sealer. I haven't found exactly what he used yet but when I do I'll put it to the test. I'm not keen on pealing paper and re-adhering especially when the color is perfect already.

Actually I wasn't aware you were on a Blackbird project! I've been watching the one by squirreltail though as the SR-71 is in my top 10 favorite airplanes. I built a BEAUTIFUL Estes rocket model when I was 12 (which I successfully launched once... into the gulf of Mexico). I was actually looking at rebuilding that model as a micro rc (perhaps twin 1104s with clear 3 blade 4" props... hmmm.....).

I'll repost when and if I hear back from Adams. I actually didn't even know the foam was black until I got it out of the box.

One word of warning. There are LOTS of foam board vendors that believe their board is made of pure straight grain balsa. I've seen prices as high as 97 bucks for 25 sheets of white. Much much higher when looking at trifold. I actually think I may have scored this as a mistake as the vendor shows unavailable for all of their boards now...

 

[Theuglycamel]

Ok so I spent way more time flying than building this weekend, I did get the poop chute done though! I've got two vids here of the setup. I'm running one blue gem 9g mounted 3" above the bottom deck of the cargo bay. The angle messed me up a bit on the "closed" position, but a little endpoint adjustment fixed that. I have the door braced on the inside with a popsicle stick and a nylon control horn mounted on the lower end. I might mirror this setup on the other side if it starts tweaking the door. I've decided on the two position switch setup (I just thought the potentiometer looked cool) and it actually worked out well with loading that way. I set the first position to load my cargo (it can sit directly on the door with it being level), close it up, then when bomb time comes, open it all the way up.
I was dropping pine cones all morning yesterday but they kept hanging up on my servo wires. I moved to empty 8oz plastic sprite bottles from there. Not only did they slide right out when dumped, they kind of drifted a bit before landing. Made it TONS of fun for the kiddos to chase em down and help me reload.

As soon as I get a better camera I'll post some more in-flight videos. I've got a few sparrows built last week that I think need to get piggy back launched this week as well...

 

[Theuglycamel]

Well it was a gorgeous evening last night so my co-pilot and I did some bomb drops until sunset. I got the bright idea of cutting a hole in the nose and shoving my cellphone in it for some aerial footage. You can see where I make my pass and had to toss the plane around to get the load to drop (we overloaded a bit lol). I'm running her with belly and wing skids, which worked out great for landings but not so much on takeoffs. Gonna have to work on a Bush Goose or something...

 

[OliverW]

I kid you not Kilroy! Here's the link: https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B017BDI6U4/?tag=lstir-20

Here's my email to Adams requesting another vendor source:
"Dear Sir or Ma’am,
I’m writing you in regard to a product you manufacture. Your Redi-Board 8018 Black 18 count has become a staple in many of my projcets. Unfortunately, I’m having a very difficult time finding a supplier. Would it be possible to get some information on who may carry this in stock and if there are any online vendors available? I appreciate your time and any information you may be able to provide. Thank you!
Daniel L. Wilkie
IT Manager"

I'm looking now at some different waterproofing methods with this board. It's just as light as white and reacts to anything acrylic exactly the same way. I saw a vid with the cat from Projectair using a Valspar spray sealer. I haven't found exactly what he used yet but when I do I'll put it to the test. I'm not keen on pealing paper and re-adhering especially when the color is perfect already.

Actually I wasn't aware you were on a Blackbird project! I've been watching the one by squirreltail though as the SR-71 is in my top 10 favorite airplanes. I built a BEAUTIFUL Estes rocket model when I was 12 (which I successfully launched once... into the gulf of Mexico). I was actually looking at rebuilding that model as a micro rc (perhaps twin 1104s with clear 3 blade 4" props... hmmm.....).

I'll repost when and if I hear back from Adams. I actually didn't even know the foam was black until I got it out of the box.

One word of warning. There are LOTS of foam board vendors that believe their board is made of pure straight grain balsa. I've seen prices as high as 97 bucks for 25 sheets of white. Much much higher when looking at trifold. I actually think I may have scored this as a mistake as the vendor shows unavailable for all of their boards now...

Me making a SR-71? I wish. I still am working on my nemisis.

 

[Theuglycamel]

Well snap, SquirrelTail... sorry bout that. It was actually Horsemans thread I was following...

 

[OliverW]

Well snap, SquirrelTail... sorry bout that. It was actually Horsemans thread I was following...

Haha no biggie. At some point I have to design a prop n slot one! Profile of course!

 

[Theuglycamel]

I've had a dozen ideas myself on how to attempt a Blackbird. I've thought about a pair of 1804s using the jet cones as prop spinners. with a pair of clear 5030s you wouldn't even know they're there...

 

[Theuglycamel]

I had a few more shots of our Bomb Drop on Tuesday evening that needed cropped. The second video is a pretty good flight, but you can see at the end of the first (they're labeled backwards) I had some problems. I had moved the battery back toward the cargo hatch to compensate for my 30 pound brick of a phone. In true unprofessional form, I taped the first battery down which worked fine, but I then reused the tape for the second battery. Needless to say all 2200 mah of her came loose when I banked and CG went from tail to nose to wing to tail to nose to wing, etc, etc. I didn't get a good shot, but it actually made the nose easier to see over by shoving it back into the fuselage lol. I'm working on a 4 wheel setup for my next run. I'm actually thinking about using CDs to get some more wheel circumference. Until I get a runway built, I'll have to make do with what I've got. We've got wind and storms for the next few days so I can get some more Band-Aids and modifications put on.
As much as I hate to say it, the turns are WAY more coordinated with the tail fins removed... I actually think there was too much Yaw stability. It seemed like the tail always wanted to track straight when banking into a turn. This is my only complaint with diff thrust as it makes it a little difficult to track your turns with rudder. If I turned the % down I'm sure it would help... But it's too much fun at 100%. I suppose the easiest way to compensate would be to setup another model on my TX with diff turned off or at least turned down to a more manageable level. Not that I don't like crappie-floppin in the Goose, but I do want to start taking more FPV video so I should probably tone her down for better quality.
If I haven't said it before, I LOVE this airframe!!!

 

[Theuglycamel]

Well I'm ending this thread with a death roll. I've actually got another started "Golden Goose Mk II" to pick up where I'm leaving off here. Sorry for copy/paste, but here it is.

After last weeks fpv run the starboard wingtip got mangled pretty good and the upper control surface on the rudder was torqued. So I hacked em off and strapped my phone back on. My crux to the run yesterday was an elevator servo that I replaced 10 min before flight. I lost my trim on the elevator and maxed the radio trim out trying to get more up. You can tell by the video she was fighting me the whole way. So I can't say that the clipped version was a failure, but I can't say it was a success either. Too many variables. I can say that the short rudder made the tail track TERRIABLE. And I did notice that it seems to gain ground speed quicker which made for some better takeoffs. The vid posted here is just the last 2 min of flight. I landed her, maxed out the trim and tried moving some weight around. There was something buzzing the whole time that I couldn't put my finger on until I got it back to the shop. You can hear a distinct motor change right before my roll-over. The port nacelle actually tore loose and was hanging on by some tape I had on the front 2". needless to say it changed the already sketchy flying characteristics and I couldn't counter the roll. I actually tried rolling with it in the end to get it back on her feet but it was a day late and a dollar short...