I'm feeling Bi. Biplane, that is.
- Thread starter Arcfyre
- Start date
TooJung2Die
Master member
Marvelous. Simply marvelous! You can't ask for better than that. She leaped into the air and the landing was like a feather. Very nice biplane!
buzzbomb
I know nothing!
Ha Haaaa! You owned it, brother! Beautiful maiden! Slow, floaty, maneuverable. I think you've only just begun to have fun with that plane. Congratulations! You wanted to see what flying a biplane was like. That's why you started this thread. What did you think?
Arcfyre
Elite member
I've flown two more batteries through it since this morning. I've had to replace the gear mount as I broke it on my second landing. It wasn't a hard landing as much as it was under-engineered landing gear. Gear version 2 is reinforced with plywood and hot glue, and has held up well.
As for flying characteristics, I am very pleased. I don't have any expo dialed in, as I wanted to get a feel for the bird before I softened the characteristics. Roll axis is very smooth, so I wont be adding any expo there. I may actually up the throws a bit to get a snappier response in roll. Pitch is very sensitive, so I may add some expo there. Alternatively, I may add a touch more nose weight, as that may be a cause of the pitch sensitivity as well.
In the meantime, the wind has picked up, and this is definitely a calm weather airplane. The power system I went with is highly efficient, but not overpowered. It crusies all day at 30-50% throttle, and at 100%, it just makes more noise and doesn't move much faster, haha.
All in all, I am very happy how this one turned out. I'll need to paint it eventually, but it's getting almost too cold for rattle cans here, so it may have to wait for a warm day. Well worth the journey. Now I need a new project...
As for flying characteristics, I am very pleased. I don't have any expo dialed in, as I wanted to get a feel for the bird before I softened the characteristics. Roll axis is very smooth, so I wont be adding any expo there. I may actually up the throws a bit to get a snappier response in roll. Pitch is very sensitive, so I may add some expo there. Alternatively, I may add a touch more nose weight, as that may be a cause of the pitch sensitivity as well.
In the meantime, the wind has picked up, and this is definitely a calm weather airplane. The power system I went with is highly efficient, but not overpowered. It crusies all day at 30-50% throttle, and at 100%, it just makes more noise and doesn't move much faster, haha.
All in all, I am very happy how this one turned out. I'll need to paint it eventually, but it's getting almost too cold for rattle cans here, so it may have to wait for a warm day. Well worth the journey. Now I need a new project...
buzzbomb
I know nothing!
Easy! You need ANOTHER biplane so that you can compare it to your design!
Arcfyre
Elite member
Easy! You need ANOTHER biplane so that you can compare it to your design!
This one will be pretty hard to beat. It flies as well as I hoped it would, and it's a one-off personal mod. It makes it special to me.
BATTLEAXE
Legendary member
That's a little self promotion of his MSBP
buzzbomb
I know nothing!
Well, somebody did call it the best flying plane on the Forum. Wait. That was me.That's a little self promotion of his MSBP
bracesport
Legendary member
super nice build and a super nice maiden - there is certainly some biplane fever in the air!
BATTLEAXE
Legendary member
That didn't look like so much of a test as more of a OOPS
. It's good it survived. Had the same thing happen to my Sportster a week ago, a branch tore through the wing tip undercamber and just fixed it last night. worked out well actually. I wasn't disappointed though, first time to do the knife edge
Arcfyre
Elite member
That didn't look like so much of a test as more of a OOPS
Lol, "durability test" was just me putting a positive spin on flying a perfectly functioning airplane into a tree on a calm, clear morning.
Arcfyre
Elite member
Dusting off this ancient post for some updates.
I've been flying the scout biplane prototype since last year and it has since become my favorite plane. Flies like a dream.
Today I finished version 2. Some changes, listed below:
-larger motor: 3515-1100kv
-larger prop: wooden 12x5 up from a plastic 10x4.5
-reinforced rear tail skid
-lower wing is now straight, no longer has dihedral.
-painted (badly)
The prototype was very tail heavy, and I needed to ballast the nose with $1 worth of quarters. Using a larger motor eliminated the need for ballast and allowed the use of a pretty wooden prop.
Got a quick maiden in, but it was a terrible idea. 15kt winds are way too much for this thing. Luckily got it down undamaged. Here's some pictures, enjoy.
I've been flying the scout biplane prototype since last year and it has since become my favorite plane. Flies like a dream.
Today I finished version 2. Some changes, listed below:
-larger motor: 3515-1100kv
-larger prop: wooden 12x5 up from a plastic 10x4.5
-reinforced rear tail skid
-lower wing is now straight, no longer has dihedral.
-painted (badly)
The prototype was very tail heavy, and I needed to ballast the nose with $1 worth of quarters. Using a larger motor eliminated the need for ballast and allowed the use of a pretty wooden prop.
Got a quick maiden in, but it was a terrible idea. 15kt winds are way too much for this thing. Luckily got it down undamaged. Here's some pictures, enjoy.
TooJung2Die
Master member
That looks cool
mayan
Legendary member
Looks sweet.
