Can't get your Aerobird Challenger to fly straight?

[bigedmustafa]

I've actually had a bit of success straightening out my Aerobird challenger lately. For me the big challenge has been keeping the elevators on the v-tail trimmed out correctly, which is harder than it should be.

One problem I had to overcome was getting the trim and the line tension to actually stay where I put it. I would trim things out, but after a bit of flying the plane would go out of control again.

The reason for this turned out to be the little micro screws on the back side of the line tension screws on the elevators. Those little microscrews have to be turned down prettly tightly to hold the tension screws in place. Mine weren't adjusted properly, so the tension screws kept slipping and making the plane uncontrollable.

I like to adjust my tail elevators now so that they're even with one another and slightly above what looks like neutral. That should make the plane fly neutrally with regard to left/right and provide a little extra natural lift from the elevators. I simply turn the line tension screws until the elevators are set how I like them, then I take a micro screwdriver and tighten down the tiny set screws on the back to lock in the setting I want.

Once that is done, it's just a matter of eyeballing the tail assembly as a whole and making sure it's reasonably even with the fuselage. I've crashed my Aerobird Challenger a lot, so my whole tail assembly has a bit of play. A gentle twist to the left or the right will usually get it all back into a reasonable level of alignment.

Since fine-tuning my Aerobird Challenger's elevator tension and preventing the tension screws from slipping, I've been having a much more enjoyable flying experience.

Hope this helps you!

[Walks]

Big Ed,

Yes, you really need to crank down on the screws. My son and I have had the same problems (learn by trial and lawn darts). We've learned the hard way as it sounds like you have with replacing the tail wing and not getting the screws back on tight. I would also recommend checking the screws before every flight. I've tightened them for one flight but they tend to still loosen up. I've been tempted to try some Lock-Tite. It may be a quick solution for fixing the screws that just don't want to stay tight. Also, last time I flew my Challenger I came down "rather ungracefully" and snapped the tail horn. Replacements are cheap ... about a buck. I now carry spares.

In regard to that, if you have to replace the tail horn make sure the hole for the tail horn isn't too big. I put a new one in where the hole was way too big (from taking the old one out) and it ended up being way loose. My bird did nothing but nose down into dirt. You might want to tape a small piece of business card on both slides of the tail wing over the tail horn hole then cut a slit for the horn so it fits tightly.

Keep 'er airborne!

Walks

[Piggy89373]

I used a thin bit of CA glue inside the plastic screw head, and haven't had any problems. I had the same misgivings about that little screws worthiness, so I took the precautions. I put a drop or two of thin CA glue on a scrap bit of plastic and used a toothpick to apply the CA on the inside area of the plastic screw cap.

On a similar topic, same plane, anybody have problems with the throttle cutting out on a fresh battery? First time I pulled it out of the box and flew it, I couldn't get more than 50 feet away before the throttle cut out and wouldn't respond anymore. Funny part is, the elevators worked but not the throttle. I'd get back within that 50 foot radius and had response again. (Sadly, first flight ended with a lawn dart that dented the fuse and bent the boom. Tonight will be the maiden flight of a new fuse and controller.) Anybody else have any similar problems?

[Walks]

Piggy89373,

Based on the number of posts you have (2200+) on RCZ please don't take this as an insulting question but did you test the controller as suggested in the manual? It mentions walking out 100 paces and checking the controller out before flying. That info might be a little late for your old fuse but hopefully it may help for tonight.

Also related, I have had weird things happen with controllers. My son's is Ch 4 and mine is Ch 1. On Saturday when we were flying together and were setting up the planes his controller worked my throttle and elevators and visa versa. They were only a couple feet apart but be careful if you're in close vacinity of another HobbyZone plane. When we were airborne all was well but we obviously did not stand next to each other.

Have fun!

Walks

[Piggy89373]

Walks, yup, did the test. Problem was with continuous power, it would cut out. Out at a distance, if you revved the motor, it would work. Of course, to keep things from moving around on you, you cut the throttle. Doing that, all was good.

I've since pulled the electronics out and put them on the bench. I had two problems going on. The voltage from the esc portion (from the best I can tell) cut out around the signaling...meaning, the ramp portion of the esc was cutting off. I could be anything from a bad transistor or cap and resistor problem. I also looked at the signal coming from the transmitter on a spectrum analyzer and o-scope. The throttle signal was cutting out intermittently. The signal was completely different than the commander controller and the new controller I bought. So, between the esc circuitry over-ramping and the transmitter cutting out, I was hosed on two points.

Since replacing both the fuse and the controller, I've had nothing but great results and no problems at all. Was flying last night happily doing loops.

Walks, I'm new to the airplane thing, but been around RC cars for almost 15 years. I learned long ago to test everything prior...I just didn't have an assistant hold the plane for a full walk test of the throttle. Live and learn through the mistakes.

Lastly, cross signaling is fairly common in AM, especially considering the power these controllers put out. Most folks don't realize it puts out a good bit of signal.

[zakerid]

Walks, yup, did the test. Problem was with continuous power, it would cut out. Out at a distance, if you revved the motor, it would work. Of course, to keep things from moving around on you, you cut the throttle. Doing that, all was good.

I've since pulled the electronics out and put them on the bench. I had two problems going on. The voltage from the esc portion (from the best I can tell) cut out around the signaling...meaning, the ramp portion of the esc was cutting off. I could be anything from a bad transistor or cap and resistor problem. I also looked at the signal coming from the transmitter on a spectrum analyzer and o-scope. The throttle signal was cutting out intermittently. The signal was completely different than the commander controller and the new controller I bought. So, between the esc circuitry over-ramping and the transmitter cutting out, I was hosed on two points.

Since replacing both the fuse and the controller, I've had nothing but great results and no problems at all. Was flying last night happily doing loops.

Walks, I'm new to the airplane thing, but been around RC cars for almost 15 years. I learned long ago to test everything prior...I just didn't have an assistant hold the plane for a full walk test of the throttle. Live and learn through the mistakes.

Lastly, cross signaling is fairly common in AM, especially considering the power these controllers put out. Most folks don't realize it puts out a good bit of signal.

I had the same prob., and the only thing I could figure is that the pack was false peaking. When I used a new pack the prob went away. the esc is designed to shut off when the pack hits a certain voltage and then will let you fly-in at 1/2 power.

[skyking1967]

Well I visited the local hobby shop and made the jump into model aviation. I was sold on the FBC2 due to the ACT mode. After the first flight I almost quit quit smoking. Climbed straight up, Stalled, Dove, Climbed Straight up, Stalled, Dove.... Thank God the wife and kid wasn’t there to here the verbal abuse I was administering to the Gods of Aerodynamics!! All the while at the top of the stall it was breaking hard right. ACT was going nuts and not giving me enough stick to bring the plane back to the left. All configs. were as were straight out of the box. Wing straight, control surfaces faired to stab, gear removed. Finally got it back on the ground, checked the book about trimming pitch with the setscrews. Launched again, rinse and repeat...Finally got to the point that it wouldn’t dolphin when dead stick, but under full power... climb,stall,dive...Turned off ACT and I could actually get control of it. Under low power and dead stick I had the trim setting full left and still had to hold 3/4 left stick to fly straight. Used what knowledge I thought I had to try and trim the yaw axis. Raised the left rudavaitor to keep the plane from flying right. Made it worse. On the second day of flying the plane got away from me and lost it on the other side of a very dense wood line. Had to use gps just to find my way through the woods. Found what was left of the plane in the back yard of someone who was very freaked out to see me pop out of the woods with a Tx and GPS in the hand. Plane was totaled. Did some accident investigation last night. Looks like the aft mount of the PCB broke loose. Could have happened on impact. I would like to believe this happened in flight due to stress of previous impact with tera firma. Everything I have read about this aircraft has been very positive. Just wondering if anybody else has had this problem.

[Dr_Who77]

probly your problems are due to poor shipping, I know shread fex does a bad job.

I have just upgraded my ABC to a SPEED 480 motor, twin HS-55 servos stock wing, tail, and prop all new linkage and a Hitec Supreme 8ch receiver.

[airdk]

skyking
I have had the same problem with the pcb. My son made an lawn dart out of his chalenger, he had been flying at 150ft got scared and wanted to bring it down, so nosed in down and never recoverd. there are four screws at the bottom of the fuse. remove them and also remove the foam blocks. loosen the control lines and tape them so they will not fall into the beam. slide the pcb so you can work on it. you should be able to epoxy the pcboard back in place, but don't get any on the control lines.
I had a simular problem with the trim on a firebird II, after a close examination I noticed that the right side of the tail had lifted up at the seam.
I cut the rudder off used packing tape around the cut part of the tail, then used packing tape as a hinge. If the tail looks fine you might have broken the pcb earlier.
Check the engine mount it might have moved forward, if so carefully push it back into place and then drill two holes on each side just infront of the motor. put a tywrap through one of the holes go through the fuse behind the motor and out the other sid of the fuse, thread the tywrap throug the other holes and then fasten snugly. clip the extra off.

Check your boom every so often, don't ask me how I found out. Some of them like to come loose and rotate slightly. I epoxyed one in after it came loose, that is a long story.

If the plane does not fly strait and you have checked everything out your tail is probably crinkled and flexes in flight. replace with a new one.

I wish I could claim all of the fixes as my own but most of them were found in different forum groups.
Good luck and good flying.

[skyking1967]

Thanks for the tips, however I don’t think there is much I can do with this fuse except learn from my mistake. The engine mount is completely sucked in and ripped through and the nose looks like an old Irish boxer. Turns out I had mis-read the chapter on trimming yaw axis at the tail. Having never dealt with a V-Tail before I was thinking in terms of elevator trim and not rudder. A/C was turning right and I was raising left surface thinking it would lower left wing. Opps. And to think I build airplanes for a living! Perceived knowledge can be dangerous!

See you at the flight line

[aqua_scummm]

Hint: Set it out in the sun, or where you will be flying, and let it sit for a min. before you trim. The sunlight or lack of can be affecting the temperature of the lines, causing them to shrink or expand.

[Elfi Flyer]

Get rid of it and get a T-Hawk!

E-F

[skyking1967]

The only thing I have seen uglyer than my FBC2 is a T-Hawk!!

[Elfi Flyer]

The only thing I have seen uglyer than my FBC2 is a T-Hawk!!

Yes, but it grows on you. Call it character..................and capability. ;)


E-F

[Dr_Who77]

uh hunh :D :D firebird freedom is uglier than FBC2 and the "sky seeker" is uglier than bolth of them. Thawk is the ugliest outta all of them!! :P (and flyes ugly ;) get it... ugli..:D:D:D:D har har)

[Elfi Flyer]

Beauty is in the eye of the beholder................or is that stick holder??

BTW: They call it an ABC Challanger because it is a challange to look at!! ;) I have been told that the reason many people start out with Firebirds is to condition them (the pilot) to the appearance of those planes. By the time you step up (or should I say crawl out) to the ABC, it is not such a horrible shock to the visual senses and you can proceed to fly the thing without becoming ill. :eek: Not sure if this is completely true, but that's what I have heard from some folks on RCGroups. :confused: :rolleyes:

Now, for absolute beauty in the skies, behold the Elfi! Even the T-Hawk looks ugly compared to an Elfi!

E-F

[Y2KGTP]

It's not ugly.....it's just highly visible :D I like the tail setup better than the firebirds I just ordered, looks more traditional.....


http://toytx.com/jpegs/Park7.jpg

[Elfi Flyer]

It's not ugly.....it's just highly visible :D I like the tail setup better than the firebirds I just ordered, looks more traditional.....
http://toytx.com/jpegs/Park7.jpg

Yes, the plane is highly visable and I REALLY don't think its that bad. I will be building T-Hawk 2 later this season. I will stay with the Hawk as it really does make a good "toss it and turn it" special. I completely agree that the standard tail plane is easier to work with. I believe it is more stable and allows for a stronger linkage with the servos. No rubber band hassles. Yes, V-tails are very effective in good quality sailplanes. Less drag, etc. However, these planes are anything but Park Flyers.

For a starter plane, or a project plane, the T-Hawk in my opinion offers very good value.........................despite it's looks. I have enjoyed mine.

E-F

"Elfi's do it in the sky!"

[HottsOne]

Good looking tail, I have one for you guys complaining about the sheer beauty of the ABC. One that makes the flight characteristics more interesting. I took the foam "pro-tail" and made it durable for you who think you are ready but really are not, and for those who are, well, lets just say I can die a happy ABC pilot now (not that I plan on dying LOL)

[HottsOne]

Here is the video of the tail I spoke of earlier. See both for how it works and what to expect. www.putfile.com/hottsone email me if you want one shane@dealerpartstrader.com

[Elfi Flyer]

I tried pulling up one of your videos. It crashed my system. Probably due to a conflict with the high security settings of my firewall software. Then again, the video deals with the ABC and I understand "crash" is synomous with this plane!! ;) :eek:

I finished my T-Hawk #2 project ahead of schedule. Flew it last Sunday, and am very happy with the results. Yes, it looks like a plane Jane T-Hawk, just the way I want it to look. All the better to fool the ABC flyer.

It eats ABC's for breakfast!! :rolleyes: :D

I understand Dr_Who's ABC chokes on Ovaltine for breakfast!! ;) :D :D

T-Hawks rock!!

[HottsOne]

The problem with the video when used by a T-Hawk flyer has a high probability of being user error LO L :p !!! No, it is a large file for only being a minute thirty second video. You may try again, or email me and I may be able to send you the video if you like. BTW, I would love to hook up the combat modules and go for a spin with ya, but wait......T-Hawk is minus the x-port? Just giving you a hard time, thanks for viewing! Happy flying. :)

[Elfi Flyer]

My problem with system crashing on certain video feeds, or even some websites is a problem here, not with your file or site. Upgrades to the firewall are scheduled later this year.

No sense is trying to hook up a combat module on T-Hawk #2. You would have to catch it, first! ;) :)

Then again the extreme G-loads now possible with the plane would most certainly damage or destroy the module. Can't have that!! ;) :eek:

Thanks for the response.

E-F

"It may be ugly but it's dependable!" (speaking of my wife, not the plane!)

[Dr_Who77]

>>I understand Dr_Who's ABC chokes on Ovaltine for breakfast!!

Um.....whats a Ovalteen?

:confused:

[HottsOne]

Ovalteen, I believe that is the generic version of Hersheys Chocolate. Just as teh T-Hawk is the generic version of the Aerobird with a different tail so as not to get them sued. LOL.

[Dr_Who77]

I hear the Pseudo-stock T-hawk went down hard. Not enuf Ovalteen for breakfast?? :eek:

Dr_Who

[HottsOne]

very nice Doc.

[Elfi Flyer]

I hear the Pseudo-stock T-hawk went down hard. Not enuf Ovalteen for breakfast?? :eek:
Dr_Who

It will be back, count on it! Only a T-Hawk could come back after a hit like this one. Had it been an ABC, it would now be ABC! (Already Been Cremated) :eek: ;)

E-F

[Straick]

Well I visited the local hobby shop and made the jump into model aviation. I was sold on the FBC2 due to the ACT mode. After the first flight I almost quit quit smoking. Climbed straight up, Stalled, Dove, Climbed Straight up, Stalled, Dove.... Thank God the wife and kid wasn’t there to here the verbal abuse I was administering to the Gods of Aerodynamics!! All the while at the top of the stall it was breaking hard right. ACT was going nuts and not giving me enough stick to bring the plane back to the left. All configs. were as were straight out of the box. Wing straight, control surfaces faired to stab, gear removed. Finally got it back on the ground, checked the book about trimming pitch with the setscrews. Launched again, rinse and repeat...Finally got to the point that it wouldn’t dolphin when dead stick, but under full power... climb,stall,dive...Turned off ACT and I could actually get control of it. Under low power and dead stick I had the trim setting full left and still had to hold 3/4 left stick to fly straight. Used what knowledge I thought I had to try and trim the yaw axis. Raised the left rudavaitor to keep the plane from flying right. Made it worse. On the second day of flying the plane got away from me and lost it on the other side of a very dense wood line. Had to use gps just to find my way through the woods. Found what was left of the plane in the back yard of someone who was very freaked out to see me pop out of the woods with a Tx and GPS in the hand. Plane was totaled. Did some accident investigation last night. Looks like the aft mount of the PCB broke loose. Could have happened on impact. I would like to believe this happened in flight due to stress of previous impact with tera firma. Everything I have read about this aircraft has been very positive. Just wondering if anybody else has had this problem.

I had a broken board mount after first impact. I fixed it by taking out the board and mount and hot gluing everything back into place.(first plane, didn't realize weight could be an issue) It did repair the problem. About 5 crashes later, the board was still in there tight, but the tail finally broke. Time for a new plane I guess.