Speaking of lessons learned (was are you looking for something)

Mon Jan 19 13:39:28 AKST 2004

Neck straps are not perfect either.

Imagine this.

Holding a WOT extremely "hot" OPS Ursus .61, tuned pipe in a 5lb biplane, by the fuselage ready for a vertical (more like rocket) launch. Just as you let go of the fuselage and go for the TX with your free hand, the TX in gone. You look down and the TX is lying face down at your feet. You look up and the plane is doing wild full throttle 17,000rpm, full deflection gyrations, two feet above you... Back at the TX you just know it landed "butter-side-down" and is lying on and deflecting the sticks. 

What now? run, scream, duck all while making a mental note to later kill your, (who are laughing from a safe distance BTW).

Answer, drop to the ground, make yourself into a smaller target and grabbing the TX at the same time. The TX is grabbed still face down and you elect not to try and fly mode-1 with and inverted TX, considered it but didn't. This turns out to be a good move because cutting the throttle would have dropped the plane on your head. 

Mercifully and thankfully the plane is now heading off somewhere? - This is determined the change in motor sound or perhaps some reduction in personal screaming, or even the lower level of peanut gallery laughing...

Then you flip over the TX, nearly dropping it for the second time, of course, and scan the sky for the plane. A small dot above you becomes controllable and you wonder if you can say, "I meant to do that/"------ Naaahhh! 

No longer use that type of strap clip (1987, was the year). Now get others to do the vertical hand launch :-)

Eric.

-----Original Message-----
From: discussion-request at nsrca.org
[mailto:discussion-request at nsrca.org]On Behalf Of Brian Young
Sent: Monday, January 19, 2004 4:11 PM
To: discussion at nsrca.org
Subject: RE: Speaking of lessons learned (was are you looking for
something)

I heard of 33% Sukhoi going in due to a transmitter
tray breaking and allowing the TX to hit the
ground,,,,along w/ the plane.

TX tray had plastic arms connecting to the neck strap.

--- David Harmon <K6XYZ at comcast.net> wrote:
> I've seen this happen before as well as a crashed
> IMAC biggie due to the
> strap turning off the transmitter switch.
> I made a 'J' hook from a piece of wire and now it
> just slips through the
> ring on the transmitter.
> Problem solved.
> 
> Regards
> 
> Dave Harmon
> NSRCA 586
> K6XYZ[at]comcast[dot]net
> Torrance, Ca.
> 
> -----Original Message-----
> From: discussion-request at nsrca.org
> [mailto:discussion-request at nsrca.org]
> On Behalf Of Keith Black
> Sent: Monday, January 19, 2004 11:08 AM
> To: discussion at nsrca.org
> Subject: Re: Speaking of lessons learned (was are
> you looking for
> something)
> 
> Speaking of lessons learned!
> 
> Saturday I went flying in a brief window of good
> weather. I was anxious
> to
> go not only because I'm always anxious to go but I
> was also anxious to
> try
> out my new 10X.
> 
> I'd spent a lot of time making 100% sure that
> everything on the 10X
> behaved
> exactly as my old 8103. As the plane reaches
> lift-off speed I gently
> pulled
> back on the elevator and the plane pulled up hard
> going straight up. I
> thought to myself "that wasn't very smooth". I apply
> a slight bit of
> down to
> level it out but still it's going straight up, and
> beginning loop
> backwards.
> Now I push a lot of down to keep it from coming
> over. I'm thinking "I
> can't
> believe I missed the setup that bad, there's no
> way... fix the trim and
> see
> what's wrong on the ground". I feed in down trim,
> barley any effect, now
> I
> feed in a lot of down and finally get it leveled
> out, then suddenly
> vroom
> straight up again. I think "OH NO, CHECK THE
> ANTENNA", but it's up.
> Shove in
> down, get it level, hit trims more, plane levels
> then surges up again.
> Back
> off the throttle, hold down, plane levels but is so
> slow it's mushy and
> I
> think maybe the ailerons are also gone. Wait, no
> it's turning now. Level
> the
> elevator trim again. Then I hear that beep, beep,
> beep, beeeep of the
> trims
> moving BY THEMSELVES! "Oh NO the radio's flaking
> out! Did I spill water
> or
> my cleaner on it? It wasn't having any problems
> before!"  Now the plane
> is
> doing a wild porpoise routine all around. I think to
> myself that there's
> no
> way this things getting on the ground without being
> destroyed. I call
> for
> help, no pattern fliers there, mainly newbies,
> finally one seasoned
> pilot
> comes to my side. I tell him the radios got
> problems, the trims are
> going
> nuts. He encourages me to just get it down the best
> I can. I make a long
> slow porpoising circle to line up for landing. He
> says, " the field's
> wet
> and soft just set it down out there and maybe it
> won't get damaged too
> bad."
> I pull up the retracts, try to level it out, it's
> coming at the runway
> at a
> 45 deg angle, I've got to get it down before it gets
> too close! Kill the
> engine, forget the trims now just hold down, it's
> pretty sensitive, just
> easing off the elevator slightly makes it porpoise
> up again. It's level
> now,
> gentle, gentle...  I can't believe it, it's on the
> ground smooth as
> silk!
> 
> Now I look down at the radio and see what the
> problem is! The ring
> that's on
> the end of my neck strap was caught behind the
> elevator trim. The weight
> from the radio on the strap was pulling the trim
> back to full up trim!
> With
> the trim precision set to 4 steps per click full up
> trim was a lot of
> trim.
> 
> I can't believe how close I was to loosing my plane
> over something so
> stupid! I've used that same strap with my 8103 for
> the last two and a
> half
> years and that's never happened, but on the 10X the
> trims are just
> enough
> closer and/or higher to allow the ring on the end to
> get wedged between
> the
> trim and strap connector.
> 
> I should point out that I was not using the strap
> that comes with the
> 10X,
> the one I was using is more comfortable, but from
> now on I'll opt for
> control over comfort. :-D
> 
> Keith Black
> 
> ----- Original Message ----- 
> From: "D Suding" <junk at velocitus.net>
> To: <discussion at nsrca.org>
> Sent: Monday, January 19, 2004 12:11 PM
> Subject: Re: Dennis Suding, are you looking for
> something?
> 
> 
> > Okay, I left my wings to my Temptation at the
> field one night last
> week.
> > My wife is 9 months pregnant and my mind isn't
> with my wings.
> Thankfully
> > Tony Quist recognized them and took them to the
> nearest hobby shop
> > (Franks)
> >
> > Let this be a lesson, kids: Don't forget your
> wings!  It's hard to fly
> > without them.
> >
> > Thanks again Tony!!!
> >
> > -D
> >
> > > Dennis email me privately.
> > >
> > > Tony
> >
> >
> >
> > =====================================
> > # To be removed from this list, send a message to
> > # discussion-request at nsrca.org
> > # and put leave discussion on the first line of
> the body.
> > #
> >
> 
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