The NOT-ALWAYS-UP-TO-DATE

News

8/03/09

 Minor Updates

6/29/04

Raptor 30/50 head flip pictures added

Those that say that the 50V2 Raptor doesn't need the head flip to prevent flutter (A.K.A. "woof-n-poof") have been lucky enough to not experience it - yet.  Since the head geometry is the same as the V1 Raptor 30, which clearly can experience flutter,  I built my 50V2 with the head flipped right from the start.  Some pictures and link measurements are shown for my particular setup.  Go to the Raptor 30/50 page or click here.  It's near the bottom of the page.  

 

3/21/04

Becky's Aeronca Website Updated

We finally located a copy of the Vintage Airplane magazine article about the Aeronca, and have posted in on the Aeronca website located here (reprinted with permission of EAA and the Vintage Aircraft Association).  There's also been a few minor updates and corrections.  This aircraft was sold in the fall of 2005.

Foamies, Foamies, Foamies

We've both discovered the fun of fan-fold-foam (FFF) and built up quite a few new electric aircraft models over the winter using this inexpensive material.  Fan-fold-foam (brand name DOW BluCore) is a 1/4" thick blue foam that is both lightweight and strong, and is normally used as an underlayment material in home construction.  The only source we've found locally is Fleet Farm.  You can buy similar products in other colors (such as pink) from other manufacturers, but it's not the same product and is inferior in strength and durability.  We recommend the blue stuff.

Here's some pictures of a couple of our new toys!  There are more, and hopefully we'll get to posting them soon ...

Roger 3DX.jpg (128979 bytes) Beck 3DX.jpg (105378 bytes) Both of these foamies are modified versions of Tim Hart's 3DX (no relation), but with built-up wings (FFF ribs with balsa stringers and spars) and 3/4" white foam fuselages, among other changes.  Roger called his a "4DX".  They keep the outstanding flying capabilities of the original design, but are much sturdier and don't flex.  All-up-weight is nearly comparable to the FFF-only version.  Great flyers! (the airplanes, not necessarily us ...)

12/06/03

RC simulation in REAL Stereovision. Wow!

After reading some recent RunRyder posts discussing the use of 3D glasses with RC simulators, I decided to give it a try.  After some experimentation,  success has been achieved with both Reflex and RealFlight G2 simulators, although the G2 is a little buggy at the moment.  The glasses used are of the LCD shutter type (not the headache-inducing red and blue anaglyphic lenses).  I bought mine online from  eDimensional for $69.95, and they arrived quickly and seem to work very well.

The stereo effect is too cool to describe, and adds a level of realism that I never would have expected.  The flying space can be adjusted to appear several feet deep beyond the frame of the monitor bezel, and it can also be adjusted so that the objects in the foreground appear projected in front of the monitor.  Another thing that was totally unexpected was the amount of added detail that is seen in the models.  On Reflex, the Futura SE helicopter normally appears as possibly the most accurately detailed and rendered model of any simulator.  But in true Stereovision, it appears as a finely detailed miniature metal and plastic model floating inches in front of your face, more like a painted pewter collector's model that you would get from the Franklin Mint.

The eDimensional glass set comes with software drivers for nVidia and ATI video cards and a dongle that inserts between your video card output and the monitor cable.  The glasses plug into the dongle.  When stereovision is activated via keyboard shortcuts, the normal screen image splits into two alternating ghost images of the same scene viewed from the two different angles as seen by your right and left eyes. The LCD glasses alternately block each eye in sync with the alternating image frames to let each eye see only the correct view.  

The interesting thing that was news to me, but probably not to gamers, is the fact that stereovision glasses work with most 3D games as well (which are really designed in 3D coordinate space which is projected onto 2D space via scaling) .  You don't need special games for stereovision since most are modeled in true 3D space anyway, and the two different vantage points required for left and right eyes are just like two slightly different camera angles.

This explains why G2 works (with some issues) in stereovision, even though they don't advertise it.  Reflex does advertise the stereo capability, but as far as I can tell they don't have much information on any of the glasses currently available.

There are enough quirks with both simulators that a separate page will be forthcoming with setup details.  G2 has some annoyances, but flying a jet in "follow" mode (with the jet floating right above your controller) over the 3D terrain is truly worth the effort.

Did I say wow?

 

Some comments about Reflex simulator software

                  

If you are unimpressed with the appearance of the screenshots of Reflex on their website, there's a lot more to it than that.  While Reflex currently has only one flying site, and the models that come with it look basic, there are plenty of downloads available for both airplanes and helis, some of which are modeled in incredible detail (far better than in RealFlight).  A significant upgrade is around the corner, and will reportedly be offered free or on a donation basis to current users (US distribution may be different).  That's just the way they are.

Control surfaces move, the models sink and bounce in the grass, and the aircraft can sustain visible damage, which can be quite fun in itself.  The Kyosho FLIP airplane is one of the highly detailed models available, and it is hilarious to try to impact the ground and fly out of it.  After a few impacts you can be flying a plane that looks like a pile of trash with smashed wingtips and a flattened landing gear.  

The look and handling of the aircraft in the air in gusty conditions, the realistic ground surface interaction, and the tight controllability of helicopters make it my favorite sim.  You do need to use your own transmitter, and many of the adjustable aircraft parameters are defined in engineering terms rather than in more familiar language.  But for overall control realism it is a clear choice.

Reflex is available in the US from Hobbico, and the German manufacturer has very generous upgrade and free model policies, unlike you-know-who.  Wolfgang Nitschmann (wsn) from Reflex is frequently seen posting on RunRyder, answering questions and indirectly promoting the product.

 

11/26/03

A page has been added showing some early construction photos for the Tantrum made by Mountain Models.  The Tantrum is a lightweight 37" span 3D plane with aan approximate weight of 10 oz. without the battery. It can be powered with an inexpensive GWS gearbox/motor or upgraded with a brushless motor. The kit design and instructions are outstanding and better than anything we've ever seen.  Many of the laser-cut balsa parts that usually just butt together in other kits have little dovetail interlocks, like a puzzle.  Entire control surfaces can be snapped together and handled before even before any CA  is applied.  The assembly manual consists of 56 pages with excellent photos, and was clearly written by a professional technical writer. 

Tim Hart's 3DX has also been redesigned with larger control surfaces.  The new plans are available on his website.

11/12/03

I finally added a few photos of the full size Pitts that I built back in '86.  I have some interesting pictures taken during construction that will be scanned and added later.

Some corrections were made to the gearbox/prop recommendations for the 3DX.  We have been using the wrong gear ratio all along, and our LiPo batteries have been suffering for it.  There is also a link to the designer's site that has the plans and lots of tips not covered here. 

I have to go and help Becky.  She has fingers of both hands thoroughly glued to a strip of balsa.  

11/02/03

A Houston RC helicopter flyer named Ron Kyle was killed on Sunday, Nov 2 while assisting a student at Houston's Tom Bass park.  Apparently the student was attempting to land when the heli veered and shot towards them, striking Ron in the neck.  One of several RunRyder forum threads can be found here.  

On a lighter note, a few photos from this summer have been added to the gallery.  When I find more they will be added.

10/17/03

This website has been moved from Lycos Tripod to escape the annoyance of increased pop-up and box ads.  In the beginning, a single pop-up ad bought us 50 MB of web space; that was eventually reduced to 20 MB storage, a new pop-up with every new link, and multiple box ads within each frame.  Time to move.

This site will be updated soon with the equipment lists and building tips for some of the more exciting new electric planes, including Tim Hart's 3DX ( a fan fold foam model) and the Tantrum from Mountain Models.  Rapid breakthroughs in lithium polymer battery technology and the increasing number of relatively inexpensive brushless motors have drawn a ton of attention to electrics.  In fact, the 3DX is currently our favorite fun-fly plane, and just about everyone who has seen it fly wants one. 

Stay tuned.