Things didn’t go as well as I would have liked, and it’s my fault. So here is the tale of good news and bad news and a few things I learned that I’d pass along to others in hopes that they might remember my mistakes and not replicate them. Lesson 1. Don’t make your first test fight and your first flight of the season the same flight. Despite what I thought was good planning I grabbed box and plane and headed out for an early evening shake down flight in the warm calm skies. This was several weeks ago now, and looking back there were a few signs that trouble might be about. The grass on the field was a bit on the tall side. No matter, I didn’t need a long run, I expected the little plane to practically leap into the air. As I set up the plane I discovered the battery in the tach was dead.(lesson 2 check equipment) No problem I’ve set engines by ear for years.
The preflight and startup went OK. The OS15fp fired up in short order. Did I mention that I neglected to bench run this little Ebay gem.(lesson 3) The C/L spirits smiled at my foolishness and the engine ran smooth and strong on the 8x4 apc prop.
Out to the handed, safety thongs, check elevator, pull stooge line.
And we’re off… kinda. The tallish grass impedes the forward movement a bit and the Ki-84 waddles like a duck for a couple of feet then takes to the air in a quick bound with a slight inbound track that spells no line tension and eminent disaster. Having been down this road more than once I back stepped quickly enough to restore line tension and watched as the plane twitched around the circle. It was under control but very light on the lines. I was smart enough to NOT attempt any stunts at this point. I looked closely at the plane. Hummm… did I see the outboard wheel ahead of the inboard wheel? Yes, it was. Did I remember to check the lead out guide position? NO, I did not. So for the next 10 minutes (yes, I filled the 2 ounce tank) I kept the Ki-84 semi level and at the end of the lines while repeating the mantra: Dumbs#*t, Dumbs#*t, Dumbs#*t.
The landing was smooth and light except for the nose over caused by the tall grass.
Now did I count my blessings and go home to fly another day? Of course not.(lesson 4)
I adjusted the lead-outs and after a few grass arrested attempts I got the second flight in the air. Wow! What a difference. Good line tension for a small plane and the twitchiness was replaced by solid control. The lap times were a bit fast 4.5 to 4.7 but it looked and felt good. Time to stunt. First a couple of wingovers, OK. Inside loop? Alright. Outside loop? Also good. Inverted laps? Just fine. Three consecutive inside loops? No problems. Three outside loops? Looking good till the up side of the third loop. The engine sags. Too rich? Too lean? Power lost and slack lines. Backward run. Not quick enough. Power on dive into ground from about 20 feet up. Sick feeling in stomach as pieces are picked up.
Alas, the good news is the plane flies/flew quite well at 22+ ounces with no engine or rudder offset and the repair shouldn’t be too difficult just time consuming. The bad news is I should have been better prepared and methodical in test flights, and recovering and repainting is going to be a drag. I hope this story helps someone avoid a similar fate.
All the best.
Bob
Topic: Ki-84, flight update and lessons learned. (Read 862 times)