Bad day at the field today, and it was so beautiful weatherwise. Just wasted it. Took, my 50cc Extra 330L to fly today. As soon as I got there, I realized that I forgot to bring my rope and stake and hammer for holding the plane. Strike ONE. I got the plane together uneventfully and tried to start it with Mike holding the plane. Took about 70 flips to get a bark, then it would not stay running on the real start. Bah. Mike suggested my servo needed reversing! I thought, gee I think I have it right, but I should check. I took off the canopy so I could see the throttle flap, and indeed I would go full throttle and the flap would close. Go to idle and it was wide open. Oh well, strike TWO. Got that taken care of and got the engine started, but it would not stay idling at one speed. I moved the plane and it turns out the muffler stack fell off the muffler can and was laying under the plane...this was one that I had repaired with JB Weld...it does not hold. I did not even get one flight out of the repair, strike THREE. So like the stubborn genius I am, I decided to fly it anyway. Got ten feet off the ground on take off and the engine quit! DEAD STICK. Luckily I had speed and could float it down, but it was halfway to the RR tracks, lol. Strike FOUR! Ok, one strike too many, but no damage, so I decided not to push my luck anymore, packed up, and went home to sulk.
NOT! At home, I immediately removed the cowl and busted muffler. I installed a new one from the DLE 55...I did not use the stock muffler for the Ultimate. The plane is ready to go again. I am guessing and hoping that the engine did not stay running due to the change in back pressure due to the missing exhaust stack. The only other change I made since last time was to switch the new Airtronics SD 10G transmitter to this plane, and to create a throttle curve. I doubt that would make the engine die like it did. Will hope for the best and just try again!
UPDATE ON 04/19/2011: DUHHHHHHH. I started my Extra 330L with the DL-50 in my backyard just now. I know why it died the other day after take off. OPERATOR ERROR, DUH, of course, as it almost ALWAYS is! When the plane is stored, I put a little plug in the vent line to prevent dripping and the smell of gas near the plane. To fill the tank, I return overflow of the plane's tank to the gas can via a line connected to the vent line. After filling, I simply leave the vent line hanging, with no plug since it is supposed to VENT. OOPS. The other day, I stuck the plug back on the vent line after filling the tank. That means that as the plane sucked gas to run, a vacuum was created in the tank until the engine just couldn't pull the gas into the carb anymore. So it was SELF INFLICTED. Almost always is, isn't it? Oh well, glad that is solved!
This is just a place for me to ramble (sometimes rant) about my hobbies which include radio controlled airplanes, oil paintings, my sports cars, and any other random blithering from me.
Aloha and Welcome to my small speck of cyberspace! Dec 8, 2010 is the birth date of my blog. Never had one before, but my son encouraged me to have one, and it seemed like a good way to at least keep a log of my RC airplane building and flying. With the initial design kicked off by my son, I'll carry on from here and have fun with it. Now that I have it, I will use it to also keep track of my oil painting efforts, and any other ideas, hobbies, travels, or whatever else that come up. LIFE IS GOOD!
Update on 02/25/2011. It's been a few months since I began this blog, and I am enjoying creating and having it! I like documenting the things I have done in my hobbies, and sharing with my small family. I think Jer and Tad actually view it fairly regularly, as a means to see what I've been up to lately. At worst, it serves as a reference for my own use.
Update on 12/22/2011. This blog stuff is habit forming. My blog is a year old now, and I make an entry about every other day or so as that seems to be the frequency of doing something in one of my hobbies. Like my hobbies, this blog is a lot of fun, and it has become in itself another hobby that I enjoy.
Years are flying by...update on 01/11/2013. Still enjoying maintaining this blog even though hardly anyone sees it. I don't advertise it anywhere or to anyone, and it is mainly just a way for me to keep my own notes and thoughts on my flying, painting, and cars. If a stranger happens upon it, I think it is by pressing NEXT at the top of the current blog they are visiting, lol. It's a great device for me.
August 2014: still here! Took up flying RC helicopters one year ago and got hooked. Had flown micro Helis up to then, but got serious with 450 size for a couple months, then bought the Goblin 500 and Gaui X5 . Also got my Boxster in April 2013. Most importantly, Ariel was born 12/02/12 followed by Skylar 07/20/13, and they are little beacons of joy in our lives. Life is indeed good!!!
Tuesday, April 12, 2011
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