New Air One Electric Conversion

I’ve been itching to get this project to fruition ever since we got hold of the New Air Ones from Maslo of Acacia 2 fame. This is his new 3m F3F/B machine. It’s a HN ‘Sting’ section and with its light carbon wing panels and slim fuse I have been thinking for some time it would make an excellent Electric conversion, especially as I have an eye on developments on F3B electric where choices are really restricted to find a suitable model. Specifically, I’ve been searching for something sleek and so clean in the glide. I was not looking at big bulbous electric fuses which in the main most manufacturer E fuses tend to be. I ran several electric Skorpions which makes a great hotliner but the drag from the electric fuse and power set up slows it down in the glide. Yes it will always do that but something skinnier will do it less. So this is not a manufacturer's electric plane but a conversion done here at our workshops.

It's been Fu-Fix'd!

Front ballast tube is non standard addition. It carries 14mm square brass ballast approx 1/2 kg, so does the joiner and the rear round stock ballast tube. So altogether there is approx 1.5kg provision! 

Beautifully made, 'bigger ' 3m!

 The New Air One is what I would call a typical Euro quality 3m and that’s a compliment! It’s build extremely well and strong and most importantly light. The carbon wing panels weigh around 550g. It’s a ‘big’ 3m and all flying reports confirm a competitive airframe.

Sleek and clean

RFM 40mm spinner with air hole and 'nostril' air scoops in canopy helps this relatively high power set up breathe.

Several attempts got me either the power and ballast provision but not AUW weight or not the power. We did many Strega conversions and these are clean and skinny but even the lightweight version was 2.7kg on a 28mm can, B40 geared (around 700w), then when we got the power on a custom Neu motor and Kontronik gear box around 2.5kw it was heavy, around 2.9kg on 6s. Here in lies one of the problems sleek/ skinny usually means 28mm can motors and getting these to perform at 1kw+ is a push on all the components and even when it could be done you need either big lipos or lots of them.

  

What is needed is a skinny fuse that you can fit a 36mm can geared in runner like the Hacker B50. These are heavier than 28mm motors but they will give you 1kw + with ease and with good lipos, 65c, you can get a very light weight power train using small lipos.

B50 FAI geared on 6.7:1 Box, CC100 lite.

Thunder Power 65C 4s but only 1800mah. These I made up but 2s +2s pack joined in series fine. In fact small 3s+ 3s would fit too.

 As might now understand, finding an airframe to do this has been a bit of a holy grail, which is why I have been so excited about this model. We got a few empty fuses (no radio tray, ballast tube etc) and I set about converting to electric power.

MKS 6125 Mini in wing, bearing kit, 3mm bubble clear covers on flaps, flat cover for aileron, which also has RDH. It has the works!

Servos in tails are a necessary modification to help balance the model. Rock solid elevators using Fu-Fix bearing kit is a welcome by product!

It has come in at 2.49kg on 4s and uses a B50 FAI geared and set up to deliver 1.5kw+. Using just 1800mah Thunder Power 65c it should give about 30s usable motor run time. I will probably only need 10s maximum. Of course I have a strategy and a purpose for this model but it does mean it’s an unusually skinny Electric glider that could easily make a great hotliner on 3-4Kw+ running up to 6s. It won’t take huge lipos but it will be about as clean as you can get a 3m Hotliner!   

Electric conversion for the New Air One is just extra £20. (Fuse with CNC motor mount installed at correct down thrust). You will need to install servos in the V tails which is straight forward or you can get a full Fu-Fix conversion and build complete with 'nostrils' in the canopy!

New Air One Air glider is £975 including wing and tail bags

Hurricane prototype

massive joiner, could be off a 3m! 

Longer nose making radio installation much easier

Same aerodynamics as Jame's famous previous design

Our 'white ghost prototype'

CNC parts

Did I mention the joiner was massive (and so too the wing spar)!

CNC aluminium moulds produced this

The next Sloperacer, James Hammond designed model is nearly ready for testing! Here's what we have done to make what we think is going to be one of the best sports 2m gliders ever produced.

It's heavy!

Ballast is now more and more important to competition gliders and trying to load up to the legal loading permitted has recently created a big demand for extra ballast. Fine if your new competition glider already has provision but many don't and the stock 900g- ish is woefully inadequate now for most gliders out there!

Our new pre-preg carbon standard tubes for 19-20mm diameter ballast, super strong and light (approx 20g for 400mm)

14mm square ballast x 50mm x 5. One in each wing half not enough? 

Tube made in carbon sock (2 layers) and brass slugs beautifully machined.

20x10mm brass rectangular section x 75mm long each one weighs 115g. Ideal for wing location typically in the thinner part behind the joiner. Tube this time is made in pre preg carbon.

Small wing ballast 9.5mm diameter, each weighing approx 85g for 10mm ballast tubes.

We have been increasingly asked for ballast and tubes to accommodate retro-fitting extra weight. We now have a tubes either made in Pre preg carbon or carbon sock. These are immensely strong and light with wall thicknesses typically 0.4mm. Of course we have the ballast to go with them. So if you want to put in ballast tubes in the wings, for instance, where there were none before, it's quite easy. We use expanding epoxy to bond tubes inside wings, which is perfect for the job and very strong and light.

So if you want to go fast start getting heavy!

  

We are committed to producing 6 new models this year. The first, the Schwing is already with us and will shortly be released to our distributors worldwide. 2 will be kept underwraps until we have prototypes but lets just say that the 20 year old Vector design and all it's guises has undergone some serious R+D to update and we are now beginning lay ups!
But one we can leak a sneak teaser is 'The Hurricane'. Same design wings and tails as James's best selling model the Typhoon but with some long overdue improvements:
Stronger joiner and a massive 36x12mm (from the Schwing).
Stronger reinforced boom as standard especially behind the TE where the originals all seem to break.
Longer nose by 60mm to make radio installation much easier.
Optional elevator servo installation in the fin using a 10g servo. This will make very little difference in wt as the bell crank weighs 6g anyway but slop free elevator control, oh yes!

Same wings, same sweet handling and safe characteristics
Only thing is now with bigger spars and huge joiner.

Tails same section too and AMT design

2 prototypes being made for testing, not quite there yet 

Just what this design deserves I'd say and these refinements are sure to make one of the best beginners/ intermeadiate mouldies around even better! Anyway we'll be finding out soon enough...

Willow servo Bundle now available

With the Willow proving itself on the F3F course as well as sports flying we've put together a great deal for a servo package when you buy any version of the Willow F3F. And of course we've flown and tested them and when you look at the perfomance vs cost, you really can't do better- just like the Willow itself!

The package of 4 KST DS125MG servos for the wings and 2 Savox 255 for the fuselage gives you the precise high performance control to get the best from you model and probably the best price you'll see anywhere for these servos.

Its £113.50- less that £19 per servo and if you check out the retail price for the KST DS125MG (£39.95) that's a great saving when you buy a Willow F3F! Stocks are limited for this servo pack so bag yourself a bargain. You really don't need to spend a fortune getting a great 3m racer in the air.

It just gets better!

2nd batch arrived today after an agonising 7 day delay in UK customs!

It just gets better. Wings are about 25 g lighter each panel and tails now all below 25g averaging around 24g. Empty weight before gear is now 1.23kg. The finish wasn't bad on the first batch but these are definitely better!

Even one of the Schwings from the first batch has now been maidened and reports back are outstanding and that's not from a top notch competition flyer!

First batch of Schwings are here!!!

Production has started and here's the first batch! It's been a journey and with fantastic flight reports from the test pilots this day has been eagerly awaited.

Another 5 already on it's way its going that's approx 5 per week. Our distributors will have to wait a bit longer until I can verify the consistency of the quality but these look good.
So how have the Schwings changed from the initial prototypes:

1. Ball raced bell crank fully enclosed and factory fitted. So too are both the elevator and rudder snakes. 
2. Boom now has substantial carbon reinforcement from the rear of the canopy opening all the way back. Also the fin has carbon reinforcement. Some would call it 'full carbon', very nearly anyway!
3. Ballast tube for standard 20mm/3/4'' ballast round slugs included long enough for 8 slugs (approx 700g). Also wing ballast provision for additional 200g.  
4. Revised aileron/flap lengths after extensive testing and big thank you to our test pilots.
5. Lighter tails now around typically 25g each!
6. Revised geometry for metal wing horns enabling a flush cover fit for both the aileron and flap servos.

Of course because of the massive spars and joiner we have retained the glass lay up wing and can't see any reason for a full carbon version. One of the prototypes has been flying in gusts up to 65mph with AUW of 2.9kg!
We are busy writing the build instructions and getting stocked up on the ancillaries like wiring looms, bagsets, ballast etc but were getting there and today has been a very happy day indeed!