Paint Makes A Difference

[KJ4DCE]

I lightly spray painted the wing tips on my FT Mini Trainer to help with visibility. This was a very light single coat and didn't think it would effect the center of gravity. However once the paint had dried and place the battery on the mark I had made before painting, I observed a good bit more "nose down".

Is this common when applying paint?

 

[FDS]

Did you remove the wings to paint them? If so it would be most likely that you put them on in a slightly different position after paint, or that they moved whilst being painted if you left them in situ.
Even a full covering of paint will not weigh more than a few grams. Paint thickness is usually measured in microns. The balance point is not that sensitive.
The TT does usually have a slightly nose heavy tendency, due to its double thick modular design.

 

[Merv]

I agree with @FDS, the paint didn’t change your CG, I would looks for another cause. That is why you should always check CG before takeoff, to see if something changed.

 

[KJ4DCE]

Ok, thanks for the help.

Yes I did remove the wing in order to paint it. However I had mark both the forward and aft in order to ensure it was located it in the same place.

I did find that with the more nose down CG that the plane flew better. So this afternoon i flew it on a more windy day. Same battery location, same wing location, same little nose down balance point. I was able to fly the Tiny Trainer with more controlled turn.

I guess I'm finding what suits my flying style.

Again thank you for your help. This forum has helped me out tons.

 

[FDS]

On windy days you get free airspeed into the wind, which can help a lot with takeoff and landing.
Another neat trick is to put a 1mm or so shim in the front of the wing, between it and the fuselage, to give the wing a little incidence, @Hai-Lee taughtbme that trick and my TT flies better with it. I used a bit of Velcro for that, which also helped locate the wing.

 

[KJ4DCE]

Outstanding tip. I certainly will try that.