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[gauravag]

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Guys,
Finally the time has come to induct a new airplane to the operational fleet
As usual, after several months of collecting stuff, and planning, I think I am in a position to start the build now.

Airframe details :
MX2 - 28cc - 30CC
Wingspan 73"
Wingarea 1025 sq in (66sq dm)
Length 68"
http://redwingrc.com/planes/mx2.html
http://www.rcdhamaka.com/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=3_64&products_id=500&zenid=abtkjjkkuo9som737op5hdm4l7


Features:
Strong and light construction
Carbon fiber wingtube
Foam turtle deck, for super smooth finish
Fiberglass double truss control horns
Ringed Cowl for no external screws
Aerfoiled tail wings - scale and better flight
Prehinged Wings, partially hinged tail
Beautiuful painted fiberglass cowl and wheel pants
High quality Ultra-Cote covering
Full bodied true to scale appearance
Finished cockpit area, requires no work by you
Pre plumbed tank, ready for gas



Setup :
DLE - 30CC engine with rear carb
5x Hitec HS-7985MG Coreless Digital Servo 10.4kg/62g/0.16sec
1x Hitec 5485-HB Throttle Servo
Futaba 6008HS 8 Channel Receiver
Futaba 10CHP Tx
A123 2200mah 6.6V Twin Batteries as a RX Power Source
A123 2200mah 6.6V for ignition ( will use 2 Diodes in series to reduce voltage to 5V )
Miracle Servo arms - All round

This will be my first 30CC airplane. I picked this up because of its vibrant colors, good reviews, and because it was meant to be fit for a 30CC engine.

The build will be slow one, as I plan to take the time and get this airplane set up as true as possible.
More coming soon !
Stay tuned.
Gaurav

[rcpilotacro]

gaurav i have seen this flying , flies beautifully, pull pull on the rudder, and smoke system on it. sweet, my hand is itching to fly it.

[gauravag]

gaurav i have seen this flying , flies beautifully, pull pull on the rudder, and smoke system on it. sweet, my hand is itching to fly it.

Eager to get it up now too. Took me 5 months to collect the stuff and find time to start at this.
Hopefully the 30CC would be little easier to carry around than the 50CC Yak i fly, and hence provide some convenience.

BTW, doesnt this design look like a mix of Giles and Extra ? What say you ?
All these new models that are coming up these days - MX2, MXSR, Sbach, Raven etc , bear a strong resemblance to Extra is it not

[spitfire]

Hi gauravag,

That looks pretty nice plane and setup!
From where did you buy these stuff like airframe, DEL-30 and rest like servos and batteries?

[SunLikeStar]

All these new models that are coming up these days - MX2, MXSR, Sbach, Raven etc , bear a strong resemblance to Extra is it not

Extra is an iconic design. I see it every where; on TV, on logos, games, wallpapers..
You've got a very very beautiful plane
I'm subscribing to this thread 

[rcpilotacro]

Refer # Rep 2

you are right, little change in the horn, rudder trailing edge, sweep back etc however these small changes the flight characteristics quite a lot, giles 300 of the lot i found the best. MX2 is good, bailing out of hover though can be tricky, start at sufficient height

[gauravag]

The box arrived in a double box - usual for ARFs. I was apprehensive about damage, as there were some punch marks on the box, but much to my delight, everything inside was sound as ever.

The airplane is gorgeous - The trim color scheme of red, white and black is unbelievably good. Covering also seems to be of good quality and has better gloss than the 50CC i had earlier seen from the same manufacturers.

30CC airframe seemed to be small in size ! I have been flying 50CC solely for the last 6 months and this model seems to be quite small in size compared to the huge Yak . But it should be just right - Should be easier to transport and hopefully give out great performance.

I was also surprised at how little wood is used in the fuselage The good side is that the structure is very light - Downside would be its going to be very fragile, but thats how all 3D planes usually are !

Fuel tank is preinstalled in the fuselage, and the ailerons are pre-hinged and glued. Still, I will be taking out the tank and re-assembling it, as its a critical element and i would never take chances with it.

One thing that sometimes turns me down is how these Chinese manufacturers use glue . Thy seem to use some kind of hot glue on the wood, and usually there is more applied than is necessary and in some places nearly no glue. I know i am being finicky here, but cant help pointing out. Though i plan to strengthen the firewall section with strips of fiberglass, i may do the same to the undercarriage, where there seems to be a complete lack of glue.

Overall, first looks are very nice. Just as expected. Enough of drooling. Time to start work.
Here is the agenda :
1. Will iron the entire airframe. to seal the covering, trim and shrink out the wrinkles. Best to do now than later when everything is assembled.
2. Use clear nail-polish to seal the trims - There are some fine detailing done, which I am pretty sure will blow off or peel itself out later.
3. Strengthen the Firewall /Undercarriage; Fuel proof the firewall/box
4. Install the Stabilzer
5. Install the elevator / rudder
6. Install servos
7. Install engine
8. Install switches / electronics

With the #1 on now .
More coming soon.

[flyingboxcar]

Good choice there and looks gorgeous. Good idea to go through every single component on an ARF and every single joint.
Remember most of the times the model would have been built by some one on wages and not someone who loves building model airplanes.

[gauravag]

Some pictures ..

[gauravag]

Some more..

Good choice there and looks gorgeous. Good idea to go through every single component on an ARF and every single joint.
Remember most of the times the model would have been built by some one on wages and not someone who loves building model airplanes.

True. Hate to see excess glue, or the lack of it . Was earlier debating on giving the entire plane a light coat of clear spray paint, but decided against it. Would rather use clear nail polish on the fine trims to make sure they stay put.

One thing that I forgot to mention was the hardware package . It is pretty decent. The landing gear is aluminium, and I am debating if I should replace that with a CF one. Will decide later, as CG will determine the decision. - No use using a CF landing gear and adding nose weight

[flyingboxcar]

Shouldnt the CF one be lighter than Al one? And I guess a light coat of clear on entire airframe would ensure longetivity

[gauravag]

Hmm. Really thinking of giving this a coat of clear now ! This is the only time I can do it ( when nothing is installed and right of the box. I know it will add weight, but I might save some by changing the gear/or maybe it wont be that much.

Any tips on doing this ? From what i know of, it needs to be :
1. Done on a clear / hot day
2. Tested on the covering first ( back side maybe
3. Cleaned/ and dry
4. Adequately thinned and a very light even coat

[gauravag]

Actually I may do it after assembiling the stab / and after doing the hinging.
Will also add decals, so they go under the clear coat.
After that Will continue with the isntallation of servos.

This is going to make things interesting !

[rcpilotacro]

True. Hate to see excess glue, or the lack of it .

Gaurav,
What i do is i got myself a Wood Glue called the Titebond II (A gallon of it) (Available here http://orders.ebay.in/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ImportHubViewItem&itemid=180646781906) it claims to be Waterproof wood glue which passes ANSI/HPVA Type I water resistance. Superior strength, sands easily, water clean-up. i lightly brush it in all the joints and on the servo tray and on the fire wall on wood too. for the insides i use a long brush. it is required for 3D, YAK 54 EP which i had, couldn't take the abuse, thinking it is small plane doesn't require Titebond was a mistake i made. i hope this info was of help

[santhosh]

the second picture is an addiction, did you started building it 

[rcpilotacro]

in fighter pilot parlance, if you see a bogey first and at a far off distance, it is said , GOOD SPOTTING, you qualify for that

[gauravag]

Nice. But this addiction is far greater than the one illustrated in pic 2. Build has started. I will be travelling this weekend so will continue on Monday.
Cheers

[gauravag]

Anyone has any tips on clear coat paint on the airplane ? Any hints on the consistancy of paint, coat strength, flash time etc ?
This will be the first time i will be clear coating on a covered airplane.

Will of course test , test and retest with the covering and decals, and start from the underside sections !

[anwar]

Related thread : http://www.rcindia.org/tools-materials-and-building-techniques/monokote-peeling-issues/

[gauravag]

Started off the build a little differently this time. By applying the decals first. Idea is to apply the decals first, then do a clear coat on everything, before moving to install the control surfaces, stab etc.

The covering was OK on the wings but wrinkled a lot on the fuse. This is usual for ARFs. I ironed off everything, and used the heat gun in a few places too. Overall happy, though some wrinkles on the fuse didnt go away.

I would note here that one has to be very careful in the use of heat gun. If the covering is not tacked well, it will shrink and edges would creep, and the wrinkles would never go away, in fact would become much worse. The proper way is to first iron the edges to ensure the covering is stuck well, and then shrink the middle portal with the heat gun.

Decals were cut out from the big sheet given, and after cleaning the surface with a local glass cleaner - Colin, I put them in place. The way I put the decals were - Spayed the base liberally with Colin, then peeled off the decal and 'floated' it in place. Used an old credit card to squeegee out the cleaner fluid underneath it. This ensured no trapped air bubbles, and also that I had adequate time to position the decals correctly.

The decals were of OK quality - Would have liked them to be more crisp, to match the high quality covering used.

Next, i bought some PU clear paint, hardner and thinner from a local paint store. Did a test on both the covering and the decals. Seems like the paint is causing no harm. Good news.

I plan to pray paint the bottom of the elevators first. If this goes well then will move to spraying the stab, wings, and fuse ! I just hope this all goes well.


Will post pictures and more progress soon.

[anwar]

Thinner AND hardener ?

[gauravag]

I intend to spray paint the structure with clear coat using an airbrush. I have a very old spray machine that I will be using. The paint is mixed with hardner, and then thinned with a PU thinner before it is ready to be used.

[flyingboxcar]

PU (or for that matter epoxy paint)requires hardener so that paint can dry to required hardness, else it would remain as a sticky gooo!
Thinner is to get the paint to flow to required consistency, specially when you are spraying the paint would need to be thinned to suit the spray equipment used. 

[spitfire]

From where did you buy these stuff like airframe, DEL-30 and rest like servos and batteries?

Hi gauravag,
I think you missed my reply#3 ?

[gauravag]

Hi gauravag,
I think you missed my reply#3 ?

I got the Servos and engine from Rotor Singapore and airframe from RCD