TinyTrainer maiden failure!

[Ethernetguru]

What are we doing wrong? My boys and I built the Tiny Trainer, but both times I’ve tried to maiden it have turned out disastrous!

I think it’s something with the CG. I launch the plane, and it pulls straight up, does a loop, and buries the nose in the ground!

We’re flying an A motor, a 6x4.5 prop, an 850 3cell battery.

The CG is about 1.5 inches back from the leading edge of the wing.

What are we doing wrong?

 

[Foamforce]

Before you do anything else, do a glide test. Install the battery, turn on the transmitter so that your control surfaces go to their neutral position, and give it a moderate toss toward something soft like your couch or curtains. It should glide nicely and the nose should fall slightly as it slows. If the nose rises or if it nosedives, then your COG is off. Post a video if you can!

You balanced it with the battery installed, right?

If it’s not COG, maybe your elevator is just reversed. Check that.

Lastly, you could have a severe upward thrust angle, meaning that your motor could be pointed upward. This will pull your plane hard up, but only when you’re giving it a lot of throttle.

Good luck, post videos!

 

[Merv]

What are we doing wrong?...

It best to check the CG by balancing the plane on the wing, not the fuse. On the bottom side of the wing, there should be a small hole on each side. That’s your CG mark, put your fingers on the mark and move the battery around until you can balance the plane on the CG marks. You want the nose of the plane to be slightly down, heavy, while it’s on your fingers.

Question, how high will the plane go when it loops? You may need to give the elevator some down trim.
A video would help us diagnose the issue.

 

[MacClarkNC]

And don't get discouraged, I went through many power pods and many flights before I could deplete a battery. Fly over the softest surfaces you can find

 

[Ethernetguru]

Thanks for the replies. I did a glide test and it was severely nose heavy. So I moved the battery back in order to balance it for gliding. Next step is to power it up again! I’ll try to post a video!

 

[Foamforce]

Thanks for the replies. I did a glide test and it was severely nose heavy. So I moved the battery back in order to balance it for gliding. Next step is to power it up again! I’ll try to post a video!

Great! I thought you would say tail heavy, since it looped up, but maybe you had to give it a lot of up elevator and throttle to compensate for being nose heavy and pulled it over.

Now that it’s gliding well, you should only have to give it a modest toss and about 2/3 throttle to get it flying.

It’s a lot easier to have somebody else throw it so you can keep your thumbs on the sticks. Kids aren’t good at throwing planes because their arms are too short so try to find an adult for the first flight. Have the helper throw a few practice glides first. Go easy on the controls. Good luck!

 

[JDSnavely]

We have tons of planes but the Tiny Trainer is my oldest son's favorite. My first flights with a non-"safe" plane were about 15 seconds due to my trying to gain altitude too quickly. The tiny trainer flies great and glides great once you get the CG etc right. I've not flown with the A engine for the Tiny Trainer (we use the F Pack) but it might be a little under powered. We use the A motors for the Mini Scout though. All the more important to have a gradual climb and not stall when less power is available. Launch directly into the wind. And try to pick a calm day for the maiden. Keep tying. I think you love this plane once you get the hang of it.

 

[Adam F]

Thanks for the replies. I did a glide test and it was severely nose heavy. So I moved the battery back in order to balance it for gliding. Next step is to power it up again! I’ll try to post a video!

I had to put my battery just in front of the rudder/aileron servos to get it to balance properly. It slid around a lot, so I wedged in some foam, and it holds in place pretty well now.

 

[Lucas the plane builder]

What are we doing wrong? My boys and I built the Tiny Trainer, but both times I’ve tried to maiden it have turned out disastrous!

I think it’s something with the CG. I launch the plane, and it pulls straight up, does a loop, and buries the nose in the ground!

We’re flying an A motor, a 6x4.5 prop, an 850 3cell battery.

The CG is about 1.5 inches back from the leading edge of the wing.

What are we doing wrong?

View attachment 235162

So you said that it flipped and it buried it’s nose in the ground? I’ll try helping you for the nose part it must be going at a stunning speed for the nose to be buried into the ground I saw the picture of it and the nose was only partially damaged so either ur plane has a really strong nose or the ground was extremely soft. For the loop part try putting more weight in the front and/or making the back of it lighter. You also said it pitched straight up and that was caused by the weight or you took it off in so much wind that it pushed it out of control or the center of lift is really off

 

[HVB79]

Kids aren’t good at throwing planes because their arms are too short so try to find an adult for the first flight.

LOL
I think it has more to do with them not understanding the correct way to throw a plane. The goal is not to throw the plane hard or up. A wings level controlled throw is much better than a hard wild throw.

Like this:

 

[Foamforce]

LOL
I think it has more to do with them not understanding the correct way to throw a plane. The goal is not to throw the plane hard or up. A wings level controlled throw is much better than a hard wild throw.

You misunderstand, I should have explained better. It’s because they tend to clip the side of their heads because they can’t hold it as far away from their body, so they tend to throw it in an horizontal arc around their head. Alternatively they try to hold it high above their head and throw in a vertical arc over their head. My 11 year old does better than my 8 year old. So back to your point, yes, what you want is a level controlled throw, which is easier for an adult with longer arms.

 

[dylanbeaudette]

The TT is one of our favorites! We’ve upgraded to an F motor, aileron wing, and nav lights. Here is the latest model before a paint job.

 

[Adam F]

The TT is one of our favorites! We’ve upgraded to an F motor, aileron wing, and nav lights. Here is the latest model before a paint job.
View attachment 235348

The lights are a cool touch! What did you use for them? I'm having trouble with being able to see which direction it is going when I fly it far away, and I think these would help.

 

[dylanbeaudette]

The lights are a cool touch! What did you use for them? I'm having trouble with being able to see which direction it is going when I fly it far away, and I think these would help.

Thanks! I searched all over the place for a simple set of bright LEDs that could be run from the RX so that I could toggle from my TX. I was about to build my own when I stumbled across these little gems:

https://alofthobbies.com/products/navigation-strobes-green

They are surprisingly affordable for what they can do! With a y-harness (or similar), you can run several in parallel from a single RX channel. In OpenTX, I assigned a switch to that channel which sets the output to +25%. That is enough to trigger / power the navigation LED. Another nice feature: there is a small button on the module which will cycle through different blinking modes.

Overall, these little lights have made flying at the edges of daylight a heck of a lot more fun. The effect in the air (remote activation) is also kind of a fun conversation starter.

 

[Mr NCT]

Thanks! I searched all over the place for a simple set of bright LEDs that could be run from the RX so that I could toggle from my TX. I was about to build my own when I stumbled across these little gems:

https://alofthobbies.com/products/navigation-strobes-green

They are surprisingly affordable for what they can do! With a y-harness (or similar), you can run several in parallel from a single RX channel. In OpenTX, I assigned a switch to that channel which sets the output to +25%. That is enough to trigger / power the navigation LED. Another nice feature: there is a small button on the module which will cycle through different blinking modes.

Overall, these little lights have made flying at the edges of daylight a heck of a lot more fun. The effect in the air (remote activation) is also kind of a fun conversation starter.

I like these:
https://www.amazon.com/dp/B07N8X8W93/?tag=lstir-20

 

[Adam F]

Thanks!

 

[danskis]

@Adam F - the foam to hold in the battery works great. You might also want to put a very small amount of Velcro on the battery and the plane. Too much velcro and it just rips off the foam board so use a tiny amount. It also helps to smear hot glue on the foam board in the area you'll be putting the velcro. Just a thin layer.

 

[danskis]

@Ethernetguru - are you using the recommended travel throws for the elevator and rudder?