[grosbeak]

Originally Posted by stegl

...
Check out Thunderbolt RC on their A123/LiFe batteries and other goodies .....and it's all in Canadian Dollars with free shipping over $100 and he is a RCCanada advertiser.

+1. TBolt 2500 mAh A123s are all I use in my planes now. I have a couple of older planes with NiMHs - those will be replaced with A123s when time and budget dictate.

It's worth mentioning that, unlike LiPos, LiFe and A123 packs are chemically stable and not prone to fire or explosion.

[Cricklewood]

The one downside to the LiFE batteries that I have been told of is that while they maintain their power well the voltage drops off very quickly at the end. The key is that one does not let them get close to being fully discharged.

[machzx]

My personal preference is two packs LIFE or A123 on a jetti ds 10 switch and an ibec covers all your bases .
Over kill in a 30 cc but it is a large aircraft
You can also use two heavy duty switches like the jr type
I feed one to each side of the rx to share current flow across the board
This works fine as well the jetti is a batt share switch gives ins if one fails
Welcome to Giant scale
That exact plane hooked me on gas !!
It flys very well I have has two
Watch the door hinge I replaced with Robart hinge point early on I recommend before it fails
You can hide all electronic crap behind the door.
Wing struts are the only pain
Also the wing bolts are a loose fit
Have fun it looks awesome in the air

[machzx]

Originally Posted by Cricklewood

The one downside to the LiFE batteries that I have been told of is that while they maintain their power well the voltage drops off very quickly at the end. The key is that one does not let them get close to being fully discharged.

Buy a decent meter that checks them I have a Futaba one but guys are useing a clone for half the price at around 35$
it does all types and save me the other day on me 50 cc as one onf my packs showed 85% and the other 40%
i have heard and now am finding 2 years is the life span on these batteries .
Balance charge or not .

[Midair]

Wow! Lots of input. Thank you all for your advice and recommendations. I'm undecided as to what to do and I have a lot more to consider; I'm glad that I came to this forum for recommendations. I'll reread and study all of your responses before I make a decision. Again, thank you .

Peter

[Midair]

Originally Posted by machzx

My personal preference is two packs LIFE or A123 on a jetti ds 10 switch and an ibec covers all your bases .
Over kill in a 30 cc but it is a large aircraft
You can also use two heavy duty switches like the jr type
I feed one to each side of the rx to share current flow across the board
This works fine as well the jetti is a batt share switch gives ins if one fails
Welcome to Giant scale
That exact plane hooked me on gas !!
It flys very well I have has two
Watch the door hinge I replaced with Robart hinge point early on I recommend before it fails
You can hide all electronic crap behind the door.
Wing struts are the only pain
Also the wing bolts are a loose fit
Have fun it looks awesome in the air

Hello Ed:

I purchased this complete aircraft (RTF) from a wonderful modeller here on R/C Canada. Apparently he already replaced the door hinges with Robart hinge points, so all is good there. Question - the manual recommends that you attached flying wires between the vertical fin horizontal stabilizer, top and bottom, if you intend to use an engine that puts out more than 3.5(?) horsepower. The DLE 35 RA is spec'd at 4.1HP @ 8300rpm. So, should I attach the wires?

Peter

[machzx]

Originally Posted by Midair

Hello Ed:

I purchased this complete aircraft (RTF) from a wonderful modeller here on R/C Canada. Apparently he already replaced the door hinges with Robart hinge points, so all is good there. Question - the manual recommends that you attached flying wires between the vertical fin horizontal stabilizer, top and bottom, if you intend to use an engine that puts out more than 3.5(?) horsepower. The DLE 35 RA is spec'd at 4.1HP @ 8300rpm. So, should I attach the wires?

Peter

YUUP!!!!
the struts i was going to try the alum body pins the car guys use with a washer and hairpin clip where it attaches to the fuse .
i left them on the wing as the fold down just sandwich some foam in between
I have a bill Hemple version being put together with a ZDZ 56 Pitts and smoke
pin the fire wall with some bamboo skewers is a good idea
my First one had an rcgf 30 flew great but crashed on takeoff when a cross wind flipped it on the first 10 feet of takeoff roll
so i want more power
i have BNIB rc guys sitting which i am selling cuz ed has too many planes
The decathalon flies well in the wind
tends to balloon on landing
You could set up a landing condition to fix with down trim or play with flaperons

[Midair]

Originally Posted by machzx

YUUP!!!!
the struts i was going to try the alum body pins the car guys use with a washer and hairpin clip where it attaches to the fuse .
i left them on the wing as the fold down just sandwich some foam in between
I have a bill Hemple version being put together with a ZDZ 56 Pitts and smoke
pin the fire wall with some bamboo skewers is a good idea
my First one had an rcgf 30 flew great but crashed on takeoff when a cross wind flipped it on the first 10 feet of takeoff roll
so i want more power
i have BNIB rc guys sitting which i am selling cuz ed has too many planes
The decathalon flies well in the wind
tends to balloon on landing
You could set up a landing condition to fix with down trim or play with flaperons

I understand, I would never fly without the wing struts . However, I'm wondering about installing the flying wires bracing on the tail, between the vertical and horizontal stabs, and fuse. The original owner didn't have them, but I'm concerned. I will probably add the wires for my piece of mind. Would 2-56 hardware be sufficient, or should I go to 4-40?

[stegl]

If that was the Decathalon/Citabria you were referring to that you have ; yes do the flying wires or I used 2-25 rod and Sullivan clevises on my Bud Nosen citabria as it does stabilize the vibration from the two stroke engine be it gas or large glow. Once set up, put Loctite on the threads to minimise vibration wear. $-$0 wire is overkill but your bird. Plus I think they were on the full size one.... keep it scale !

The Nosen and yours are pretty much the same size. A very nice aircraft on floats as well. Still wish I had my float flying pictures.

[Midair]

Thanks Len. Yah, it is the 98" R/C Guys Decathlon to which I refer. I'm leaning towards the Sullivan flying wires bracing kit:

http://www.greathobbies.com/productinfo/?prod_id=SUL546

It's 2-56 hardware. Should be strong enough? And you're correct, keep it scale

Peter