BlueFlyer's Skywalker 1900

[BlueFlyer]

The tail isn't bent, and it's plenty stiff...

The tail is twisted, imagine holding the tail with both hands, one where it meets the fuselage and one where the vertical stab starts as if you're riding a bicycle. then twist one hand forwards and the other backwards... that's what I mean by the tail is twisted.

It's a very small twist and with a conventional inverted T tail, it would hardly be noticeable but because the skywalker has an upright T tail the weight of the horizontal stab and the forces acting upon it in flight have a lever effect at the base of the vertical stab meaning it will twist the tail with more torque than it would if it were an inverted T (if you know what I mean).

Look, it doesn't have a MASSIVE impact on the flying characteristics of the walker... it's just that when on a long flight, when I want to fly perfectly straight in one direction for a long time... the imperfection in the tail causes the plane to veer off course and continually turns, like it wants to do a really really big circle lol.

This just happens, some people are lucky, others aren't.

no disrespect intended, but some people might not even notice it.

[Dillwhacker]

Cool, no worries.
Can it not be trimmed out with a touch of rudder & aileron?
Trev

[BlueFlyer]

Cool, no worries.
Can it not be trimmed out with a touch of rudder & aileron?
Trev

Yes it can, but that's just masking the problem.

Also, when trimmed to fly straight and true at one airspeed... when you go faster or slower, the excessive trim you've applied comes back to haunt you and you need to re-trim again.

[Dillwhacker]

Cool, hadn't  thought it through that far..
Nice one!
;D
Thanks!
T

[BlueFlyer]

The only thing you should find yourself trimming at different airspeeds pitch due to the differing levels of lift generated as air passes over the wings faster or slower. A truly "straight" plane shouldn't need rudder trim.

remember as well, the vertical stabiliser is directly in the prop wash, so a not perfectly straight tail will definitely have differing levels of effect depending on throttle.

[Dillwhacker]

AHA ! cos it's in the spiralling propwash..
;)

[FPVSteve]

I noticed this about my Skywalker. I found myself obsessing over it.

Then I remembered what I used to fly when I first started off.... a massive dump of tape, hotglue, foamboard fixes, pop bottle nose etc..

And suddenly the SW doesn't seem so bad :D

[English Turbines]

My little AXN changes trim with speed change...Not suprising since its a pusher, it actually changes direction faster using rudder, very sensitive to rudder in fact with that constant airflow over it....I imagine my big SW1900 is going to be similar.....Its why models like the Mini Talon are so well behaved, no spiralling propwash....which reminds me, must resurect the Depron Drone for Summer...After the SW1900 is done...Too many models....:)

:vulture:

[BlueFlyer]

Well, that's the end of that lol

www.youtube.com/watch?v=tLyq4yupQYk#ws

New plane build here http://www.fpvhub.com/index.php/topic,49045.msg245428.html#msg245428