Model Airplane News #04

Welcome to this issue of the Plane Talk newsletter.

We are having a blistering summer here in UK and I understand it’s much the same in many parts of the world. But it can still be changeable when it comes to flying conditions. I was at the British Model Flying Association National Championships a few weeks ago which was blighted by a vicious crosswind at 90 degrees to the runway – enough to cause some grief and physical damage on take-offs and landings – even to the top standard of flyers taking part.

A week later I was at the Large Model Association meeting at RAF Cosford when you could not ask for a more glorious weekend. Our American cousins may be more used to those forever blue sky days but they are still remarkable here in the UK despite the glorious summer.

Enough of this banter. In this issue you will find:

This issue’s Featured Article “Electric Flight – the Best and Worst of Li-Po”
A review of the eStar Models Air Tractor 802 Laser Cut Kit
Did you know…
The News roundup
..and this issue’s Pit Lane humour

Electric Flight – the Best and Worst of Li-Po

What happened to that mosquito snarl that always seemed to accompany the sight of model airplanes? The answer is they’re going electric and electric means silent – or nearly so. Li-Po (Lithium Polymer or Li-Poly) batteries are rapidly becoming the standard power source for electric model airplanes. Li-Po batteries are smaller, lighter and hold more power than their predecessors (Nickel Cadmium and Nickel Metal Hydride). There are three specifications that need to be taken into consideration when making a Li-Po battery purchase for your electric model airplane.

The voltage of the battery will tell you how powerful it is, the amperage rating will give you an idea how long it will last, and the burst/constant power rating will tell you how quickly the power will discharge. A major difference between Li-Po batteries and others available for RC model airplane use is that it is much easier to mistreat the battery thereby creating unsafe situations the consequences oc which can be dramatic. Li-Po batteries can be very dangerous if you don’t follow all of the safe handling procedures set out by the battery manufacturers.

In most cases, Li-Pos used for model airplanes come in two voltage ratings ratings; 11.1v and 7.4v. The rating dictates how many volts the battery will discharge to your brushless RC motor. Electric RC model aircraft motors themselves have ratings that relate to this voltage discharge specification. The voltage of a Li-Po battery is directly tied to the RPM output of a brushless motor in that a motor rated for 1000kvm will rotate 1000 times per minute for every volt it receives from the battery. In other words, a 1000kvm motor is capable of 7400 RPM when using a 7.4v Li-Po, and 11,100 RPM when using an 11.1v Li-Po. This information, combined with the prop type and weight of the plane gives you all the data needed to calculate the final thrust output of a given motor.

The amperage rating of Li-Po batteries is rated in milliamp hours (mAh). This technical term describes how long the Li-Po will provide electrical power in much the same way that the size of the fuel tank on a glow powered airplane will dictate how long the engine can keep running. Typical electric RC model airplane flights can last 20%-50% longer when using Li-Po compared to other batteries. The larger the mAh rating, the bigger and heavier the battery will be. This is a major factor to take into consideration when putting together any electric RC model aircraft.

Li-Po battery burst rates describe the output characteristics of the battery. Burst rates tell you how much power the battery is safely capable of discharging in one big burst. This number is often higher than the constant power rating. Once the burst of energy has been discharged, the constant power rating tells you where the power output will settle down to.

Li-Pos come with very strict safety guidelines that tell you how to care for them. Charging rates, charging times, and damaged battery disposal procedures just to name a few. Damage to your RC electric model airplane can be avoided by following these guidelines. Properly matched brushless motors and Li-Po batteries can provide hours of clean and quiet flying enjoyment. Take the time to understand everything that’s involved with a Li-Po setup and you will have more fun and more time in the sky with your electric model airplane.

Your First Trainer

I’m currently working to set up some deals with model suppliers. Assuming I’m successful I’ll be able to offer you some great special offers on first trainers and lots of other stuff as well. Hang in here and I’ll let you know just as soon as possible.

Learning to Fly

If you’re flying is still not quite as ‘under control’ as you (or maybe someone else!) think it should be then Andrew Rosz’s great ebook on “Basic Flight Instruction” is still available. Just click through on this link to “Basic Flight Instruction”.

Review – from RCGroups

Although much of the emphasis for beginners these days is on RTF (ready to fly) and ARTF (almost r..t..f..) there are still many who prefer to build before they fly. So this review sets out to look at a current kit from eStar.

eStar Models Air Tractor 802 Laser Cut Kit Review

By pda4you pda4you is offline

Jul 31, 2006, 01:23 PM

Introduction — A LASER CUT KIT REVIEW!


Wingspan:	49.6” 1260mm
Wing Area:	288sq” 18.8dm2
Wing type:	Flat bottom
AUW weight:	25.2oz 705g
Length:	30.9” 784mm
Wing loading:	12.6 oz/sq. ft.
Servos:	6 – Micro size
Transmitter:	Airtronics RD8000
Receiver:	Hitec Electron 6
Battery:	Dualsky 1700 mAh 12C 3s
Motor:	xMotor 400B (950 Kv)
ESC:	Velocity 18 amp
Distributor:	E*STAR Models
Power Equipment:	2DogRC

Well I hear many of you on the forums talk about how we do not review many kits anymore. I fear this is a bit of a sign of how busy we are and how the quality and short assembly times of the current ARF’s get us in the air so quickly. With that said I am a long time modeler and I truly enjoy the building aspect of the hobby.

With today’s laser cut kits assembly is also very quick, a fact that may have eluded some current modelers. So this review will be a kit building and flying. One great advantage of kits is the manufactures frequently offer projects of rarely modeled planes. This is the case with E*STAR models. Do not be afraid to take on your first kit!

E*STAR Models is indeed one of those using laser cutters that make our assembly easy and fast. They offer a number of amazing models, the one that caught my eye is the Air Tractor 802. A close second is their new Feiseller Fi-156 Storch. Check out all their offerings at their website: E*STAR Models

The full scale Air Tractor 802

Many of us seek unique full scale ships for our scale model builds, and I have a long time love of crop dusters. Although primarily used for crop dusting, the Air Tractor 802”F” model is used for firefighting! Yes this single engine plane has an amazing 800 gallon capacity and is used to drop water or fire retardant chemicals as a front line fire fighter!

From the Air Tractor site: “Reflecting state-of-the-art technology in computerized fire gate controls, the AT 802F is an ideal initial attack fire fighter with the ability to get to fires quickly and the maneuverability to put them out accurately and efficiently. The reliability of the turbine engine, low maintenance and operating costs, ruggedness and safety features make it an excellent choice for fire fighting.”

Kit Contents

The kit arrived well packaged and sheets were taped together for protection.

The shipment from Korea was quick, although when the box arrived it was clear that it had a very rough ride. Upon opening the contents were well packaged in bubble wrap and although the box was damaged none of the kit contents or parts showed any damage.

I was immediately impressed by the look and quality of the balsa and especially the laser cutting. There was no sign of laser charring – even on the thickest balsa parts. Very impressive and no question they have great control on their cutting system.

More…………click here for the full review.

Did you know…

Roy Orbison was a model airplane enthusiast…

Country exhibits rock Cleveland
Robertson County Times – TN,USA
… Called ”Haunting and Yearning: The Life and Music of Roy Orbison,” the exhibit includes clothing, instruments and pieces from Orbison’s model airplane exhibit …

News roundup….

U of T built ornithopter takes off University of Toronto achieving man carrying sustained flight with flapping wings. This is a ‘must read’ – and, of course, they used some model airplane parts…
News@UofT – Toronto,Ontario,Canada
… Equipped with a 24-horsepower engine and a model airplane turbo booster, the ornithopter flew for 14 seconds at an average speed of 88 km/h, in the process …

Taylor U. hopes to help aerospace industry soar Some more serious efforts by Taylor University to use model aviation to bridge the gap between young people and the aerospace industry.
Marion Chronicle Tribune – Marion,IN,USA
UPLAND – Their eyes following a brightly colored model airplane as it darted through the sky, 9-year-old Cameron Yeakle and his 6-year-old brother, Austin …

999 crew called as batteries overheat I would guess that this was li-po batteries again. I put an entry on my blog at the time but it’s worth repeating here. The batteries are predictable, the users are not. We might be the cleverest animals on the planet but we can also be the stupidest. It looks like this modeller lost an expensive battery pack and may have lost a model or two – but he almost lost his van as well. Make sure it doesn’t happen to you.
Shropshire Star – Telford,England,UK
… caught fire. The fire broke out in a Mercedes Sprinter van at RAF Shawbury at 10.05am yesterday during a model aircraft meet. A …

Worn AstroTurf to make happy landing This looks like a remarkably good idea for improving your clubs flying field. But do please wait until the sports field has finished with it!
Inside Bay Area – Oakland,CA,USA
… Harry Smith and Gary Ware from the Peninsula Channel Commanders, a radio controlled model airplane club near Half Moon Bay, hauled away 17 rolls of the turf.

South Sioux City hosts fun fly
Sioux City Journal – Sioux City,IA,USA
… AMA). IMAA planes are bigger than what most people think of as a model plane. “These are giant size model aircraft,” said Nagel. The …

Of particular interest to our American readers who may not have a dedicated flying site available yet. It’s always a good idea to use the Governments money…. After all, it’s always worth remembering that Governments have no money, whatever they have is really ours!

Air club seeks friendly skies: Nyanza site eyed by model airplane …
MetroWest Daily News – Framingham,MA,USA
Model airplane fliers itching to explore great blue skies are starting to look toward a new horizon for flying space — federal Superfund sites. …

Pit lane humour…

Some reputed actual entries in Quantas tech logs (seems like ‘chickenpit’ is the Quantas version of ‘cockpit’) where the pilot reports a problem after flight for the tech dept to fix – and report what they have done.

Pilot: Test flight OK, except auto-land very rough.
Tech: Auto-land not installed on this aircraft.

Pilot: Something loose in chickenpit.
Tech: Something tightened in chickenpit.

Pilot: Dead bugs on windshield.
Tech: Live bugs on back-order.

Pilot: Number 3 engine missing.
Tech: Engine found on right wing after brief search.

Pilot: Aircraft handles funny.
Tech: Aircraft warned to straighten up, fly right, and be serious. - seems appropriate to the way I fly!

Visit my blog

Don’t forget to visit my blog from time to time. You can even take an RSS feed from there.

This is a great time of year for modellers. The weather is glorious, well, just for the moment, and there are shows and open days all over the place practically every weekend.

So I’m not going to keep you from your flying fun any longer. Happy flying till next time.