I've seen a few references to problems with the fuselage cracking just behind and in front of the wing on these models. On the (quite recent) ones I've seen the fuselage sides are doubled up with ply doublers from the nose to the tail, can anyone say whether earlier fuselages had these ? If so then I guess reinforcement would be a good idea even on a recent kit ?
The only Swallows I've seen have used the fixed u/c supplied with the kit, has anyone here used retracts ? If so which ones and how did they work out ? - they seem to put the wheels a long way behind the fixed u/c version, was this a problem over grass ?
Also I'm interested to know what engine people are using and how the cg worked out.
It was actually one of the members of our club who had the problem.
The older Swallow needs reinforcement at the trailing edge wing root otherwise the fuz will snap when lateral force is applied to the wing. I am not sure what needs to be done although ply doublers does seem about right. Actually a gentle landing with one wing brushing against the long grass at the edge of the strip was enough to snap the fuz.
I fully expect that the new Swallow EX has had these modifications added, what I witnessed on the original Swallow was unbelievable and I know that the clubmate in question had some "discussions" with Flair.
Hey Boo, i have the first swallow, got it at sandown last year and it definately has ply doublers down the fuz. not sure if they are right to the tail, but they go well past the wing anyway. havent flown it as much as i would like yet. Flair told me that there was no difference between the two versions except for colour scheme and cowl, im not sure how true this is. anyway i have a new MVVS 91 with rear exhaust and Just engines purple pipe, and its looking good. unfortunately my club has had to enforce the 82Db sound limit and its not just quiet enough yet (hence not much flying). the MVVS is a great engine, they take ages to run in but last for ever! my latest addition is a Dubro iso mount, which should cut out any fuz noise, and :) i'l be flying at it my usual club. Ive had it through some pretty harsh snaps and 3d stuff and it hasnt come apart yet ( please dont ruin my confidence in it!) blenders, wall, etc... it seems pretty strong and has powerful tail surfaces for that kinda stuff. i put 2 x 9601 coreless mini servos in the rear for the ele, 9402 on the rudder nad 9001s on the ailerons. its slightly heavier than i would like ( i dont usually go for ARTFs) but will go vertical no problem on the MVVS even with the slow revving quiet setup i have. I dont know how the one david refers to managed to snap so easily, maybe mine was a newer design. The ex version was just out when i got it ( but i couldnt wait as they had sold out!) CG came out fine on mine, engine well forward on the mount. I cant stand lead in a model and have never used it, so i usually try to balance my models with engine position before fixing. plenty of room in the swallow to move battery around for fine adjustment.
would fly on a good 60 2 stroke, or if you wanna be really trendy get a Ys
91 or OS 120 FS!
I wouldnt bother with the retracts, they just add weight and can cause all sorts of problems. Not a big advantage. Most F3a pattern guys use fixed gear now. I think i will invest in a nice carbon one in a few weeks if the model deserves it!
Flies great, cant wait to to get it out again!
"Boo" wrote in message news:bhj66a$onr$ snipped-for-privacy@news6.svr.pol.co.uk...
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