RE: Your wing loading seems to come out to 6.65 ounce per square foot. Im taking your 525 sq. in. and the 22.5oz plane flying weight . Thats very light for any wind performance. If those figures are credible, I would suggest trying to fly at a wing loading of 11oz. sq.ft. when your sure that thermals are abundant in those 10 mph wind conditions. So if my math is right, that flying weight using ballast would be 39 to 40 ounces total flying model weight . Geez, that sounds heavy, but your starting out very light! And,,,, 2 meter models dont have stellar performance to start with.
Just a note here, When I get chances to assist guys flying those super light models,,, I find it more difficult to read air even in a no wind condition because the model is milling around, "like cows grazing in a pasteur"; and not covering much airspace, " I prefer to mustang horses galloping on an open range". Specifically, Im talking about those 8 and 9 ounce wing loading types. To make matters worse if thats possible,,,, some of those models are really nose heavy too!
Now a point of interest Ill state here is not all airfoils like ballast. The airfoils that come to mind are: Clark Y, Eppler 205, SD 7037. I think those are all higher camber wing airfoils. My experience with those airfoils is the more you ballast, the faster they come down. I also found that happening to some extent on the Pike Superior and that is why I dont fly one any more. Although the v-tail flew, penetrated ,, the wind better than the crosstail!
So, If you are sure that there were thermals that day,,, Is the reason you werent happy with your acheived performance, the following: 1)your plane set up, with regards to balancing? 2) your plane set up with regards to coupled aileron differential and rudder throw. 3) your airfoil? 4)the wing loading too light? 5)the pilot? 6) There were no thermals? 7) Or the thermals were not strong enough to support your model? You said 5:00p.m., which is quite late in the day for good thermal organization,, Especailly at 35 degrees F. 8) It was a 2-meter? Thermals, Richard Burnoski
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Richard,
OK, you did say you would answer questions if asked...
I just went out to practice. A bit of detail on the plane first. It is an
Allegro Lite 2m. If you are unfamiliar with the plane you can think of it
as sort of a mini Ava. 525 sq inch wing area, the plane weighs about 22.5
ounces in the electric configuration I practice with. Right now, it is my
highest performance plane. It is also very convenient to practice with as
it assembles quick and is electric.
OK, so in southern Indiana at 5:00 today after work it was about 35 degrees
and the weather site says about 10 mph wind from the North. I could
definitely find patches of lift. And at times it seemed strong. I noticed
this both on the climbs and in glide. But it seemed every time I tried to
wrap it I would loose altitude. Sometimes when flying into the wind the
plane would speed up quite a bit and gain altitude, something I normally
associate with entry into a thermal. So I attempt a wrap but that was never
successful. I started to get cold and packed up but on the drive home I
thought perhaps instead I should have just tried to float through those
"patches" or perhaps S turn in it kind of like slope lift. Definitely from
the ground there seemed to be times when a thermal would pass through. Any
thoughts on flying in these conditions?
Ryan
