rbort
09-03-2006, 07:41 PM
Well I showed up at the field this morning at 9am, skipping over taking a shower in case the rain was going to start as I checked intellicast and it looked like it could rain any minute...
Old timers at the field, in the parking lot with models in the cars. I pull in, they're chatting. I get out, hey, I'm here early, wanna fly before the rain you know!
You gonna fly in that?! Its a hurricane out there!! Yeah why not, I don't care! Only you they say... So I whip out the Spectra-g and the T-rex, the wind is pumping hard so I figure let's go with the Spectra.
Gas it up and I'm off. A little circuit here and there and I look back and all the old timers scattered, no-one in sight and only my car in the parking lot. Guess they all left in a hurry!
A couple of flights with the Spectra and I got comfortable with the wind no problem. Started doing some stationary moves into the wind and some even drifting backwards. After 3 flights I decided to fly the T-rex, so I put 2 flights on her no issues but the wind was throwing it around up and down 2 feet with no collective changes. It was gusty and I'm thinking 30mph in a good gust, otherwise a good 15mph constant.
After the T-rex batteries are drained, I put them back on charge and went back to the Spectra. Flight after flight, I went through about 2/3rds of a gallon putting on 7 flights with that machine until I was totally out of gas. By the time I got that done the T-rex battries were full again, so I put it away and went back to the T-rex for 2 more before departure.
Got the t-rex up in the air and started screaming down back and forth full speed with the wind. I made some serious high g turns back into the wind at knife-edge and I had to crank full power and ease the angle of the turn to initiate some altitude gain as it looked like it was sinking towards the ground as the wind was trying to push it down. Wow, a little scary there as the hair in the back of my neck stood up! That thing is hauling ass! Surprisingly enough it did well in the wind, you just had to be on your toes more with corrections near the ground level. I decided today was not a good day to do autos, so I skipped over that all together.
Last battery I'm flying and next thing you know I hear the low battery alarm from the TX. Wow -- how about that!! I just flew a whole TX pack in a day (rather like 3 hours), first time for me! (OK greyeagle, I see where you are coming from asking to charge TX packs now!). I was in the air just about most of the time I was at the field, as some spectators showed including the pooper scooper, but no brave flyers. Tom called while I was on my last tank of gas on the Spectra, and I said you can come but I'm been flying since 9-nish so I'm outta gas!! In any case I figured I had enough TX charge to finish the T-rex flight...
Then next thing you know I'm doing this pass upwind and I realize I have little control on the cyclic. What? Something weird is up...I think quick, this is ccpm, make little moves with collective and/or cyclic and try to land it as quick as possible. I get it slightly nose up slowing, and I drop cyclic slightly and wait for it to slow to a stop and start to sink as I chase it down the runway to the northeast side. As it stops I somehow keep it level and as soon as it gets to 6 inches off the ground throttle hold and it settles into a landing way down the field. Ok good, now what the hell happened? Close inspection shows one of the links to the flybar popped off, so the flybar was effectively not working. Glad to be able to land it!!! Didn't want to crash for sure.
How about that, 11 flights for the day, use up all the gas for the Spectra-g in 7 flights, 4 t-rex flights (well 3 1/2) and finish the TX pack. Now that's what I call a good day of flying especially since it ended with a save!! :-)
Spectra-g now at 141 flights after today's record 7 in a day!
-=>Raja.
Old timers at the field, in the parking lot with models in the cars. I pull in, they're chatting. I get out, hey, I'm here early, wanna fly before the rain you know!
You gonna fly in that?! Its a hurricane out there!! Yeah why not, I don't care! Only you they say... So I whip out the Spectra-g and the T-rex, the wind is pumping hard so I figure let's go with the Spectra.
Gas it up and I'm off. A little circuit here and there and I look back and all the old timers scattered, no-one in sight and only my car in the parking lot. Guess they all left in a hurry!
A couple of flights with the Spectra and I got comfortable with the wind no problem. Started doing some stationary moves into the wind and some even drifting backwards. After 3 flights I decided to fly the T-rex, so I put 2 flights on her no issues but the wind was throwing it around up and down 2 feet with no collective changes. It was gusty and I'm thinking 30mph in a good gust, otherwise a good 15mph constant.
After the T-rex batteries are drained, I put them back on charge and went back to the Spectra. Flight after flight, I went through about 2/3rds of a gallon putting on 7 flights with that machine until I was totally out of gas. By the time I got that done the T-rex battries were full again, so I put it away and went back to the T-rex for 2 more before departure.
Got the t-rex up in the air and started screaming down back and forth full speed with the wind. I made some serious high g turns back into the wind at knife-edge and I had to crank full power and ease the angle of the turn to initiate some altitude gain as it looked like it was sinking towards the ground as the wind was trying to push it down. Wow, a little scary there as the hair in the back of my neck stood up! That thing is hauling ass! Surprisingly enough it did well in the wind, you just had to be on your toes more with corrections near the ground level. I decided today was not a good day to do autos, so I skipped over that all together.
Last battery I'm flying and next thing you know I hear the low battery alarm from the TX. Wow -- how about that!! I just flew a whole TX pack in a day (rather like 3 hours), first time for me! (OK greyeagle, I see where you are coming from asking to charge TX packs now!). I was in the air just about most of the time I was at the field, as some spectators showed including the pooper scooper, but no brave flyers. Tom called while I was on my last tank of gas on the Spectra, and I said you can come but I'm been flying since 9-nish so I'm outta gas!! In any case I figured I had enough TX charge to finish the T-rex flight...
Then next thing you know I'm doing this pass upwind and I realize I have little control on the cyclic. What? Something weird is up...I think quick, this is ccpm, make little moves with collective and/or cyclic and try to land it as quick as possible. I get it slightly nose up slowing, and I drop cyclic slightly and wait for it to slow to a stop and start to sink as I chase it down the runway to the northeast side. As it stops I somehow keep it level and as soon as it gets to 6 inches off the ground throttle hold and it settles into a landing way down the field. Ok good, now what the hell happened? Close inspection shows one of the links to the flybar popped off, so the flybar was effectively not working. Glad to be able to land it!!! Didn't want to crash for sure.
How about that, 11 flights for the day, use up all the gas for the Spectra-g in 7 flights, 4 t-rex flights (well 3 1/2) and finish the TX pack. Now that's what I call a good day of flying especially since it ended with a save!! :-)
Spectra-g now at 141 flights after today's record 7 in a day!
-=>Raja.