FW: Abbra first fly report

[vicenterc at comcast.net]

                          Abbra glow version 1st. Fly report

Yesterday, June 3, 2005 I flew my Abbra the first time.  For those interested in the equipment please see Bob Pastorello web page.  The version that I flew is the glow version using OS160 engine.  Final weight is 9 lb 14 oz.  I know that I could reduce the weight a little more by using lighter wheels and smaller receiver.  It is OK for me since this plane is my first 2 m class plane less than 10 pounds.
 
First Fly impressions:  Clearly the most constant speed plane that I ever flown.  I can fly closer to show a better presentation.  It is going to take some time for me to get along but definitively I like the change.  Please understand that this is my first wide body plane.  For those flying already wide body planes probably won’t be a big change.  The down lines are a pleasure to watch.  I felt as a pilot that I have more time to make corrections.  Slow and snaps rolls are fantastic. Landing is a pleasure.  Not sure yet about spins since I did it once only.  I really didn’t like the break.  I think I need a little more up elevator since I lost some travel amount after the elevator trimming.  
 
First Trimming Impressions:  As soon I took off I knew that I need down trim.  I got fixed and finish with 28 bits of down trim in my JR 10 X radio.  Also I finished with 4 bits of left trim.  Ailerons and elevators were set up for 10 degrees travel.  After the first landing, what a landing it was a 10 using the old rules, I checked the elevators and found that one half was a little more up than the other half.  Also, I found the same problem in the right aileron that was a little more up. When I say a little is almost difficult to see at naked eye.  Definitively the plane was telling me that I need a better mechanic.  This was clearly mechanic error (me!!).  I checked the CG and the plane looks fine now.  If you ask me where it is the CG now “I will say I don’t know”.  I am one of those guys that check the CG in the air.  I put the battery behind the firewall so I knew that I was a little nose heavy.  The plane requires a little pressure when flying inverted.  Right now I need more time to finish CG adjustments.  My taste is a little tail heavy so I will start to move the battery but I want to correct the positive incidence first.  I will check the actual location for those that want to have the information.  The rudder was set to about 30 degrees.  I think is OK.  I did the master schedule one time.  I feel now that I am OK for travel.  Probably, I will need to get a little more up for the spin but I did it only once yesterday.  In the second fly, I did finish with 8 bits of down elevator.  I know that my plane was set up for 0.75 degrees positive incidence.  I also know that you can order the plane now using 0, 0.25, 0.50 and adjustable that you will need to install.  It is clear to me that 0.75 is too high and probably I will go 0.25 in my next Abbra to reduce the down elevator trim.  The positive incidence and the elevator trim causes that the plane requires rudder with up elevator mix to hold knife edge in both sides.  In this regard, it is clear the plane requires opposite aileron also.  This is not a sur
prise to me since I never had a pattern plane that didn’t require any mixing during knife edge.  I still tweaking with rudder mixing with elevator and rudder.  The final information will come in the future.  My next step in trimming the plane is to try to reduce the positive incidence to 0.25 degrees to minimize the mixing and the down elevator amounts.  Also, I will increase to 12 degrees the up elevator to improve the break on spins.  On lateral balance I don’t think that I have to adjust.  The plane tracks very well in loops but I need to check a little more.
 
Tomorrow, I will have a judge calibration section.  The judges will tell me if my impression of fantastic landings, snaps and slow rolls are realistic. 
 
Vicente Bortone
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