BATTLEAXE
Legendary member
@FoamyDM got you hooked on the Bird of Time huh...
Super STOL Idea
- Thread starter Yusernaym
- Start date
Yusernaym
Well-known member
A friend of mine got me hooked on the bird of time, but he's not willing to sell his, so I'm building my own. FoamyDM's plans have been great so far, and I'm glad he has the project on here.
Hondo76251
Legendary member
Haha, yeah, so to continue with this total hijack of your thread...
Ive wanted to do a STOL type challenge for a while but its so hard to do a reliable, verifiable stystem of measurement given all the variables we would have. In the right conditions I've taken my UMX timber up essentially VTOL numerous times. I was thinking would be more of a STOL "stunt" challenge, hence the voting on the winner at end rather than just go srictly on measurements. For example, i was thinking of taking off and landing on my flatbed trailer deck.
Ill start up another thread tonight if any of y'all wanna join in...
Ive wanted to do a STOL type challenge for a while but its so hard to do a reliable, verifiable stystem of measurement given all the variables we would have. In the right conditions I've taken my UMX timber up essentially VTOL numerous times. I was thinking would be more of a STOL "stunt" challenge, hence the voting on the winner at end rather than just go srictly on measurements. For example, i was thinking of taking off and landing on my flatbed trailer deck.
Ill start up another thread tonight if any of y'all wanna join in...
L Edge
Master member
Make it even tighter. I took off and landed on a table(guessing 3"wide and 10 ft long) at the flying field.
That one is easy for the pilot who knows the trick!!!
1) Go to the throttle curve and find the position(or %) that the UMX is just able to flare and hold it. (SAY 33%)
2) Add new points to the curve so the throttle jumps quickly to say 30%(plane stalls out), the next point is 33% and the next point say is 40%.
T/O is full throttle and landing you start to flare (33%) your throttle curve is on the very flat slope so you now massage the throttle and you get very little RPM change. To drop down, your under 33% and over, hence you change your glide slope.
Have you ever flown backwards in a good 10mph wind with a UMX. It's easy
Learning to hover 3D, same, under you drop(plus gravity) and over you rise slowly, not bolt out.
It is nice when you understand the tricks of the trade.
Hondo76251
Legendary member
@L Edge exactly, i have a switch on my timber for various throttle curves, really helps when floating her in...
Thats what i was referring to when mentioning VTOL. Ive taken off on the hood of my truck, climbed a few feet in the air, then landed exaclty where i took off in about a 10kt breeze.
Granted, that will be a bit more challenging with a foamboard built plane but it does highlight the challenges with judging a STOL competition with various planes on different runways in different weather...
Thats what i was referring to when mentioning VTOL. Ive taken off on the hood of my truck, climbed a few feet in the air, then landed exaclty where i took off in about a 10kt breeze.
Granted, that will be a bit more challenging with a foamboard built plane but it does highlight the challenges with judging a STOL competition with various planes on different runways in different weather...
Hondo76251
Legendary member
BATTLEAXE
Legendary member
The hood of a truck was a bold statement, unless your hood on your truck is double size of a Cadillac
Hondo76251
Legendary member
For the UMX timber, no problem. For something like a bushwacker... maybe theres the real challenge! 🤣
Hondo76251
Legendary member
L Edge
Master member
How about basing it on a video what it does without the STOL device and then a video with the added device to improve the plane? Otherwise it's down to how good a pilot stuff.
BATTLEAXE
Legendary member
I think I have a little trick, before it was mentioned that one would use wheel brakes, adds signifigant weight though...
BATTLEAXE
Legendary member
Separate is always best of both worlds for control, weight is negligible
Yusernaym
Well-known member
That's what I was thinking, but I figured it's better to check with people who have more experience. An increase of ~25 grams is not insignificant, but it might be cancelled out by being able to get more usable angle out of flaps while keeping the roll authority of ailerons.
Hondo76251
Legendary member
Yusernaym
Well-known member
Actually, it'd be less than that - I could use 5g servos instead of 9g
BATTLEAXE
Legendary member
Some might disagree here but when it comes to weight there are advatages and disadvantages. I find I like heavier planes just because they penetrate windy conditions better. The lighter the plane the more susceptible they are to less then perfect weather. Beginners are told lighter is best because #1. plane has a slower stall speed making it easier to control at a speed meant for a beginner to learn faster on, #2. beginner pilots tend to be beginner builders as well and are notoriously good at adding un-necessary weight to a plane, EX. wanting to reinforce the hell out of everything for fear of crashing and wrecking their heart and soul they put into the first builds... (trust me I made myself a victim of this early on so this is from experience as well). So it is the best interest of the beginner to go with as light as possible and to influence them in that direction just makes sense.
That being said, a new pilot will not feel a difference of 25 grams on their plane, there is just to much else going on the their head that they usually forget their name once a plane is in the air. Again I know from experience. And I am not saying you are a rookie but it is a fact for most. Now I agree with you I think the 25g weight penalty will be nothing compared to the advantages you will see in control and coordination of your experience... if that makes sense
Hondo76251
Legendary member
Like what @BATTLEAXE said, lighter is good but weight can have certain advantages too. I like to keep my airframes as lightweight as possibe then i can add extra weight as weather requires by adding useful weight like extra or larger batteries.
And for one last hijack, got the Bush plane challenge posted:
https://forum.flitetest.com/index.php?threads/bush-plane-build-challenge.65060/
And for one last hijack, got the Bush plane challenge posted:
https://forum.flitetest.com/index.php?threads/bush-plane-build-challenge.65060/
