Regardless of a pilot’s experience, collisions happen. Pilots can be so focused on scoring points in competitions that basic safety and flying etiquette can slip.
Always remember that when flying near others, ensure there's some 'blue sky' between your plane and others. The last thing anyone wants is to cross flight paths, as this is how mid-air collisions happen.
Sometimes two models may cross paths in your line of sight and be okay due to the difference in depth. But, depth perception can be tricky when flying at a distance. Keeping blue sky between models ensures no midair, regardless of depth or distance.
A thermal is warm that flows and expands upwards, which we use to extend our flight times and is critical for most tasks. We all know to follow the thermal downwind, but following the leader is just as important.
When entering a thermal, the first person who enters sets the direction. Then, everyone else who enters the thermal should follow that direction. With everyone circling in the same direction, the chances of a major midair dramatically reduce.
Take a moment to review the flap position and your plane’s overall condition. Wiggle your sticks to ensure everything works well, recheck battery connections, and ensure your battery voltage is good.
These three basic rules are essential to respect when building your flying career, and they don't disappear once you go pro. Instead, with time and experience, you'll make these essential practices parts of your flying behavior.
Remember that good flying etiquette doesn't limit your style and freedom. Instead, it ensures you avoid costly, embarrassing, and potentially dangerous mistakes to yourself and the people around you.
To visit and subscribe to our podcast, visit us on YouTube, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify.
]]>
FrSky's EthOS system offers most of the power and flexibility of OpenTX in a more straightforward graphical user interface. But EthOS also goes through constant upgrades as additional features are added and bugs removed. Updating EthOS on your FrSky X20 and X20S radios is relatively easy, and you can see how to do so below.
Check to see which EthOS firmware you are running. Go into Systems > Info, and it'll be the second line. You can also see your Internal Module version on this page; that is the 5th line. The Internal Module is for the RF link between the transmitter and receiver.
Download the newest EthOS firmware here: https://github.com/FrSkyRC/ETHOS-Feedback-Community/releases
Please follow this video if you don't know how to flash the newest firmware. Don't worry. It's a pretty simple process of downloading a few files and then dragging them into the correct spot on the SD cards: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XkVOgo5UUt4&t=384s
To update the latest Internal Module firmware, visit https://www.frsky-rc.com/tandem-x20s/ and click RF Firmware – TD Module, and download the newest version.
Drag the Internal Module firmware into the Firmware folder on the SD card, then turn your radio on. Go to Systems > File Manager > Firmware, long-press file, then choose Flash Internal Module.
]]>RC sailplanes strive for efficiency, especially competition models like discus launch gliders. Efficiency comes in many forms; it can be in launch height, how well the glider floats and penetrates, or even the setup of the linkages. Offsetting flaperons on a DLG uses all of the servo's deflection to maximize the control surface throw, torque, and accuracy.
The flaperon is a single wing control surface on a wing-half that combines the functions of the flaps and ailerons. Flaperons control three things:
These three functions require different deflections. The flaperons only move up or down by several mm for camber control, approximately 15mm for banking input, and up to 80 degrees of down deflection for brakes. Therefore, the flaperons require significantly more downward deflection than upward deflection based on these requirements.
So, what do you do? Do you set the servo horn to control horn radio closer to 1:1 so you get excess deflection in both directions, then clip the extra upward movement through the radio settings? No, because while this will provide you with the travel you need, it comes at the expense of lower accuracy and torque. In other words, you will have a hard time setting up the model, so it is repeatable, and it will likely flutter on launch.
You need to mechanically offset the flaperons during the assembly process for best results. Mechanically offsetting the flaperons provides you with the up and down deflection required with no excess while increasing the accuracy and torque. Instead of using the neutral point of the servo and flaperon as the base of the installation, this method uses the maximum up deflection required and maximum up servo movement as the base. After the installation, the flaperons are offset from neutral, and you can use your radio to bring the flaperons back to flush with the wing.
While the process is simple, it can be hard to visualize. Watch our tutorial video to see precisely how to offset the flaperons on your DLG mechanically.
]]>Setting up a failsafe for your RC glider is an easy way to minimize accidents from happening and protect the investment you've made in your gliders. But, what do we need a failsafe, and how does it help us save money and make flying RC gliders safer for everyone?
Nowadays, most of us use 2.4 GHz radio systems to control our RC planes and gliders. 2.4 GHz systems come in many flavours - it could be FrSky's ACCST or ACCESS protocols, Spektrum's DSMX, Futaba's FASST, FASSTest, or FHSS, or any one of the dozens of protocols available on the market right now from the various brands. 2.4 GHz radios have made it very easy for everyone to pick up a radio and fly without seeing if anyone is using the same channel or swapping frequency crystals like in the old FM days, but it's not without drawbacks.
The biggest drawback is that 2.4 GHz systems require a visual line of sight (VLOS) to maintain a strong link between the transmitter and receiver. The connection is affected when things come between the two, which is problematic for competition-use RC gliders due to the high usage of carbon fibre. Carbon fibre effectively blocks 2.4 GHz signals. Because of this, we recommend modellers use receivers with two or more antennas so one antenna will always maintain VLOS with the transmitter; why some modellers run their antennas outside the fuselage; and why some RC gliders use fibreglass noses. All these measures minimize 2.4 GHz shielding.
The second drawback is range and interference. Under ideal conditions, many 2.4 GHz protocols can operate up to 3 km in range. However, most wifi systems use 2.4 GHz (although some are 5 GHz), and it can also be affected by cell towers. So if many pilots are flying simultaneously, or you're in the city with a lot of wifi hotspots, or even if you're just near a cell phone tower, your range will be affected. Except for ExpressLRS, Team Blacksheep's Tracer systems, and ImmersionRC's Ghost protocol, your range will usually be around 1-1.5 km in real-world situations. Depending on the location, it might be even less than that. The point is 2.4 GHz is and can be affected by many variables in the environment, and we use them in carbon RC gliders which are not ideal for installation.
So what happens if we lose the connection between the transmitter and receiver? Without a failsafe, it'd usually keep the last command received. Unless the link recovers quickly, this can lead to the model flying away or crashing. That's why we need a failsafe.
There are several ways to power a discus launch glider (DLG), each with its strengths and weaknesses. But the most popular batteries to power DLGs are single-cell lithium polymer (1S LiPo) batteries. The typical battery capacity is 250-650 mAh, depending on the model's usable space and weight requirements.
But are they reliable? Why are they so popular? How do I charge 1S LiPo batteries, and how should I store them?
LiPo batteries last the longest if you store them at 3.8 V per cell. That means if you're using a 1S LiPo pack, store it at 3.8 V, and if you're using a 2S LiPo pack, store it at 7.4 V.
But if that battery is already inside my DLG, I keep it fully charged, so it's ready to go on a whim. Keeping the LiPo batteries fully charged does degrade the pack over time, but I cycle them once every couple of months to keep an eye on the battery health and replace them at the end of the year.
If you haven't tried using 1S LiPos in your DLG yet, give it a try! You may find out exactly why it is such a popular option. Check out our ArmSoar 1S LiPo battery packs, they're designed to fit in most DLGs: 1S 350 mAh, 1S 500 mAh.
If you're new to discus launch gliders (DLGs), then pull-string tail linkages might be something new for you, even if you may have been flying other types of radio control planes in the past.
DLGs use several common types of tail linkages, such as pushrods, pull-pull systems, and pull-string installs, and pull-string installs are by far the most popular on a modern DLG.
The pull-string installation consists of a torsion spring mounted on the tail that deflects the control surface in one direction, while a string pulls against the spring to hold the control surface in position.
Every type of tail linkage will have its pros and cons, but to determine why pull-string is so popular, we need to understand what makes a good tail linkage design. There are many considerations, but the most important characteristics are that it must be light and accurate.
On any radio control glider, the mass at the extremities like the wingtips and tail must be kept as light as possible to keep the glider agile and to indicate the air it flies through. But on a DLG, this is even more important because of the launch. Heavier extremities mean higher rotational inertia that the vertical tail must overcome to fly straight after the spin going into the launch. The heavier the extremities, the higher the rotational inertia, the more energy is wasted in damping, and the lower the DLG will launch.
Additionally, DLGs are high-performance gliders, and even a little bit of inaccuracy in the rudder or elevator will lead to inconsistent setups. There are three leading causes for inaccuracy:
There are three main types of linkages throughout the years for tails on a DLG:
Because the pull-string design checks the boxes of being light and accurate while only having minor drawbacks, it has become the defacto tail linkage used on all modern DLGs.
]]>Quite simply, a layup describes the materials used for the model or option. Most DLG gliders are currently made with full carbon skins in Light, Standard and Strong layups.
For more details, check out our video below:
]]>
To get the most performance out of your model, you will need to test whether the gap seal is an improvement or not for your particular model and setup. To do so is easy:
You can buy the Kapton and colored tapes on Amazon here:
ProTapes Pro 950 Polyimide Film Tape Kapton tape
Fodattm 6 Rolls Graphic Art Thin Tape Colored tape
I hope you find that useful! Just so you know, ArmSoar may collect a small share of sales from the links on this page. It does not change your price.
]]>I buy and try out a lot of different tools, so if I find one better than what I have on the list, I will make sure to update it! More updates will be made periodically.
Have suggestions and recommendations? Please let us know!
]]>As usual, the Swedish Team are starting off the season with event in Vercelli. Coming down from the cold Sweden spring to a warm spring in northern Italy, that’s really kicking us off.
Flying down from Stockholm/Skavsta to Milan/Bergamo and then a rental car for 2 hours, and then we are in place.
Friday morning we was heading out to the field for the normal practice. Whole day just flying.
The day was a bit dull and cloudy, with some small rain drops coming down, but not much.
In the afternoon a lot of other pilots starting to arrive. Participants from a lot of different nations: Italy, France, Schweiz, Czech Republic, United Kingdom, Austria, Belgium, Russia and Sweden.
In Vercelli, the focus is on having a nice event with good food and no rushing of the flying. The competition starts off on Saturday with a good barbeque lunch, and after that the flying starts.
This means that before lunch there is a lot of training for all participants.
The weather on Saturday was warm and sunny with low wind speed. The thermal were also good, sometimes very strong really booming and sometimes very light, but still slowly raising.
We were flying 9 pilots in each group, so there were lot of good pilots in every round, so there were no easy points awarded.
The task list were as follows:
Task K Big Ladder – 5 flights only, 1:00, 1:30, 2:00, 2:30, 3:00 targets)
Task H Best 4 flights, 1:00, 2:00, 3:00, 4:00 max in any order)
Task J Last 3 flights, 3:00 max)
Task A Last flight, 5:00 max) 7:00 window
Task I Best 3 flights, 200s (3:20)
Task G Best 5 flights, 2:00 max)
Task F Best 3 flights, 3:00 max)
Task B Last 2 flights, 4:00 max)
Task C All up, 3 flights)
Fun to start off with Big Ladder. For most of the pilots, this was the first time flying this task in a competition.
This is a much better task than the original ladder. Here you will get the seconds you fly, but you still have the pressure of getting the times and the increase of the flight times are much steeper.
Really liked this task, and I think that this will be used quite a lot as it’s is as well a QT task.
Most of the pilots were getting their times.
Following was 2 other QT tasks that most pilots were doing good, and we realized that there are some guys that are really fast doing this, and that we need to get tougher air to beat them.
Rounding off day 1 with task A, last flight, then it was time for dinner.
Sunday starting off with even better weather. Temperature was reaching 20 and some above. Thermals were many, strong and weak, and only some few groups having problems to get good air.
In the end it showed that all the normal top pilots was ending up in top with only some few new names coming up.
Pierre Meunier from France is one of the “new” guys. Doing a terrific job and getting a full score in all rounds. Pierre is launching high and is really fast in the turn arounds, that is setting a new standard, as I see it. Of course a lot of other pilots are also very good launchers and quick as well (some of us are a bit slower though).
Paulo Rota coming in in second place and Ondrej Rezler in third.
The top third was decided on their throw outs.
It was a big mixture on nationalities in the ranking, that is good. It’s also nice to see some younger guys coming into F3K and perform well.
Also on the model side it was a big mixture. Snipe was the most common model I think, but we also saw Arctuses, Vibes, CX4, Salpeter, Flitz, Smile, Fireblade etc etc.
It’s hard to say which model was performing best? My personal opinion is that the recipe for this event was light models. In many rounds, there were very slow rising air, and when using a heavier model, you were struggling much more, then the ones with lighter models.
I myself was flying my standard Vibe for the first competition, and I’m satisfied with both the performance and also my result (ending up in 6:th place).
Regarding the Vibe for this event, I should have wished for a lighter one (already ordered), my Vibe is on a flying weight of 275 grams, so removing 30-40 grams on that would be nice.
A great event in nice surroundings. Really some good flying and very tight in the top.
You should all go to Vercelli if you want to have a nice start off in the World Cup every year.
/Stefan Wahlberg
]]>Common materials used for ballast includes:
Of the three, lead is most common as it is cheap, easy to find, and comparatively heavy. We do not recommend using lead due to health issues related to touching lead. Brass is a nice material to use, and is also quite economical to use, and we recommend using it for weights up to around 40 grams. Much more above that, the ballast stick becomes too long, which spreads the mass too far from the center of gravity, increasing the glider's moment inertia (no good!).
Tungsten is the premium material to use, due to its extremely high density. Due to its higher price-tag, we recommend using tungsten for your heavier ballast sets.
Below is a simple way of building your own ballast sets, using 1.5 mm music wire, a good set of pliers, a wire cutter, and your choice of weights.
Make a 90 degree bend in the end of the music wire to retain the weights, and slide the weights onto the wire.
Jog the wire directly in front of the weights to hold the weights in place.
This is a very important step. Remember this is just one way of doing it, and the background is that I prefer flying with a slightly-moved forward CG when I insert ballast. Take your stick of weights and place the center of the weights at the CG location. Mark the wire where the retaining hole will be located, and bend the wire 90 degrees 5 mm behind that (towards the weights). Then mark the depth of the retaining hole to the canopy to the wire, and carefully make a smooth 180 degree turn.
Cut the wire to a suitable length, so that it will not pop out unexpectedly when the canopy is in place.
And you're done! Make several different weights, and fly them in as many different conditions as you can to gain a peek into the black magic of ballast.
]]>
But, what can we do to further improve this system?
In a standard setup, the displacement along the length of the string varies from the center of operations to the end of the travel. This is because the radius is essentially decreasing in size as the servo arms and control horns are moved and deflected from center. By using a pulley on the servo side, the radius by the servo is kept constant against the varying radius on the control surface side.
Taking the rudder as an example, we typically aim to have 15 mm maximum deflection, and it is achievable using a standard installation with the servo-arm : control-horn ratio at the ‘golden’ 1:2. With the pulley system, to achieve the same maximum deflection, we can set up the installation with 1:2.65, greatly increasing the resolution, precision, and holding power via mechanical means in the central region where it’s most important. Suddenly, your system is 33% more precise and strong where it counts!! As an added benefit, the load on the servo is now reduced by 33% to keep the servo at center, leading to longer battery times and lower servo strain.
Resources:
Pull-string wiring: Beadalon 49-Strand 0.015" (0.38 mm) 30 ft (9.1 m) White Bead Stringing Wire
Crimps: Beadalon Crimp Tubes Size 1 1.5g-Silver-Plated,0.8mm
Pulleys (international): Pulleys - armsoar.com
Pulleys (USA): Pulleys - armsoarusa.com
I hope you find that useful! Just so you know, ArmSoar may collect a small share of sales from the links on this page. It does not change your price.
]]>In the mean-time, please enjoy some of these photos of pre-production Concept Xtreme 3 and 4 RDS.
]]>
With the GO, our goal is to provide an affordable, good-quality, easy-to-fly DLG, that doesn't give up too much in performance compared to the models twice its price.
One-piece molded wing construction with CNC milled solid foam core was chosen to provide the best finish and accuracy. Reducing structural requirements leads to the ability to not have to use the lightest/strongest/most expensive materials, so while keeping the area of a modern high aspect ratio wing (19.5 dm^2), the span was reduced to 1.3 meters. In addition to reducing the structural loads on the wing, this makes the wing chord wider, making the plane easier to fly and more forgiving to errors in flight.
Due to the molded nature of the wing, inherently there is less building/assembly required compared to the typical bagged DLG in the price range.
The GO will be $2,550 HKD (~$329 USD) shipped world-wide.
Standard colors are: Fl. Orange, Fl. Pink, Fl. Green, Fl. Purple, Yellow, Light Blue.
I expect sales to commence in about 1.5 - 2 weeks.
Here is the latest prototype from the factory, just out of the molds. TE core thickness still needs a little bit of tweaking but overall things are very close. Once it is ready for order, I will update a product page!
Happy thermals,
Thomas Lee
He had so many questions and so many different thoughts, it was like a non-stop train! And over the course of 2014 it was evident through Facebook and the Taiwanese forums of his enthusiasm in this newly discovered hobby, having already helped organize several contests in the southern Taiwan, and going to countless practice sessions, all while still studying for school and exams. Many of us tried to convince him to come over to the Asia Pacific Open in China in October, 2014, but understandably it was hard for him to afford as a student. Luckily, he was able to find the necessary resources to pull it off, and boy did that impact his flying career.
During the Asia Pacific Open, you could see him running around, talking to all the top pilots, asking about setups, strategies, techniques, and humbly accepting all opinions and suggestions. As a bystander it was easy to see his desire to grow within the sport. When it wasn't his turn to fly, he could be seen observing intently from the sidelines, trying to decipher the weather conditions and the rationale behind some of the pilots decisions. In the end, he finished 28th with a score of 73.80%.
The next time I saw him was in Pingtung, November 2014. This was during the ALS Cup and in that short 1 month period after the APO in China, his flying style has evolved to be much more mature and aggressive, with huge confidence in flying great distances even under high-pressure situations (okay, he did have a land-out that was almost a kilometer away!). It is so exciting to see the progress, using all that he learned and incorporating it into his training and seeing the results all within a month. He finished in 4th place, with a score of 91.86%.
Over the next several months, his contest scores continued to improve, and finally in February won his first F3K contest in Taiwan. With high hopes, he traveled to Singapore for the Singapore Open, along with some of the top pilots in the Asia-Pacific region, including Jon Day (Team Australia), and Tang Zhigao (Team China), who had respectively got 2nd and 3rd place respectively at the Asia Pacific Open just 7 months ago.
I was following the contest results and within the first two rounds, he was in the lead!!! None of us could believe it. I mean, okay, we all knew he improved a lot, but to lead the pack (even early on) against these pilots? That is incredible. It must be a fluke. Round three ended with Tang Zhigao bumping up to first and our teen down to second. Everyone was rooting for him now, sending him good vibes to continue his performance, and he flew consistently throughout the preliminaries and ended up at 2nd overall heading into the fly-offs. Now, this was the big test. Since fly-off scores are calculated from zero, no one has a cushion from the preliminary scores, can he continue his good form?
Yes. Yes he can, and he pulled it off in good fashion.
Going from number 28th just 7 months ago, to 1st place at the Singapore Open against arguable the best pilots in the entire Asia Pacific has made all his hard work worth it. Of course, once he got back to Taiwan for another contest the weekend after, he continued his dominance and won both preliminaries and fly-offs. Who is he?
His name is Hsuan Hsin Lee, and I am honored to be able to witness his rise from a beginner to become the dominating force in Taiwan F3K. It is also my pleasure to welcome him into the Team ArmSoar family.
Keep an eye out for him! It's going to be fun watching his progress in the future.
Thomas Lee
]]>
There was a time when you had to use epoxy when you are assembling your new glider, and many had their own reasons. The main reason being, cores used in bagged wings and early solid core molded wings were made from a foam material called expanded polystyrene - XPS for short - which is not compatible with regular CA and many solvents.
Although there still are a few planes made with XPS foam, the majority of commercially available DLG's on the market are now either hollow molded with 1 mm Rohacell sandwich material, or solid molded with a Rohacell or equivalent milled core. These new materials are not reactive to CA, and forms the basis of modern DLG assembly with CA.
Now, there are several big advantages to using CA on a DLG compared to epoxy:
Of course, there are also downsides to CA glue compared to epoxy:
We have used CA to assemble our own gliders for quite a while now, and have found some ways to make life even easier when using it:
If you have any additional tips, or suggestions, please feel free to drop us a message and we will include it onto the list!
]]>
While the glider used is the Vibe, many of the principals are generic towards all DLG setup and tuning.
]]>Thank you for all the support, and hope you enjoy :)
Thomas Lee
]]>
If I throw with all my strength every launch, by the time we reach the fly-offs I will be too tired to throw consistently, resulting in less power (lower height), more wrong release timings (lower height, possibly wrong launch direction), and more hooked launches (lower height, wrong launch direction, damaging to planes).
The key is to design and maintain a launch technique for yourself where you only use 80% of power, but get 95% of the max height, then you will find going through a long contest much more rewarding, and possibly with increased ranking simply because you have power left and have fewer launching mistakes / mis-timings.
]]>