Packing an F3K pod.

[mikef]

Having let my “Vibe“ F3K Model “settle” for five years, I have started installing the gear.  I won the model in a raffle at the 2015 World Champs in Croatia.  Lockdown has reignited my building urges and the Vibe follows a bit of a spree....

Built an indoor 'Gyminnie Cricket' kit

Built a 'Tom' indoor “living room stick” kit

Put a new battery in a 'Red Herring' EPP slope wing and re-taped the joints

Refurbished a ‘Bonus', F3K model - fitted pressure contacts to the wing/fus joint, fitted a new tailplane,  made and fitted a new balsa fin/rudder and tidied the wiring in the fuselage.

Assembled a 6 year old Snipe  (LN&LT) and got it trimmed.

The Vibe has a tiny pod with a sheath nose - here are the two 8mm thick servos taking up most of the room.  With them like this you can't get the receiver past to go under the back of the opening or the battery into the nose.  You could put the servos side by side but it puts one of the control cables on the wrong side and blocks the route for wiring trying to get past.  One behind the other gives good control cable runs and a nice wiring route down the other side of the nose.  The servo horns are different heights and the control cables can run direct to the back without touching anything.

The Vibe has the 'cockpit opening of the left side of the nose, not the top..... 

[mikef]

To get the battery and receiver into position, the servo mounting comes out.  You can see 3 captive M2 nuts on the inboard side.  Countersunk nylon screws hold the mounting in.  You can see the different horn heights well in the second picture.  To give an alignment feature and provide a backup for the countersunk holes in the thin nose skin, a hardwood rail with an 'M' logo on it  is epoxied to the inside wall - third picture.   (The front hole of the three is in shadow.)

 

[mikef]

Here's the outside of the pod, showing the screw heads.   The screws are countersunk so they don't interfere with the sheath nose sliding on.

[mikef]

For some reason, ‘M' logo mounting rails are smuggled to users inside ‘Magnum’ Ice cream bars.  Nice wood - possibly beech or something similar.   Eat the ice cream and wash/dry the mounting rail before use.

 

[oipigface]

Is that what those are for? I’ve been using them to mix epoxy for years! What a waste.

[isoaritfirst]

Nicely executed Mike.

Its the same method that is used in many of the AeroMod models. works well.

Also similar to how I did a Pace Ds model a few years back where I needed to slide the servo assy back down inside the fuselage, in that instance it was not only to make receiver and battery accessible but also the design was based around formers that once slide back on rails, created a anti crush feature between the front wing incidence pins.

 

I also use Magnum sticks for mixing epoxy - usually a quick whizz on the belt sander to shape to need. 

[mikef]

Finally got it done and ready to fly. The 'channel' down the side of the servos opposite the control cables has swallowed all the spare wiring.  Used pressure contacts to link wing servos.  Had to slot the wing servo covers and make blister fairings - 5 mm horns too long for thin wing.....  forgot to check before installing flapperon horns....

 

[CTR]

Looks good Mike.

Ballast?

[mikef]

I haven't made any provision for ballast In the Vibe - couldn't think of a way to do it that didn't risk fouling the controls and it's already heavy in my terms at 274 grams empty...  (2015 Vibe Mk 1.)

If that's too light, I have a 290 gram Twister II and a 322 gram Bonus, they can both take 100 + grams of ballast but it hurts to throw a 425 gram model!!  I have two Snipes at 279 and 254 grams, they can both take ballast but I haven't got any for them at the  moment.

 

[mikef]

Vibe first flown today - went out at 1645 and landed an 18:55 flight at 1735.  Seems to go on climbing longer from the throw and handles very well.  CG at 67.5 - suggested range 65-73 and they add that most pilots end up at 68-71.

Need to check it against my favourite Snipe but I'm liking it so far.