Kadet Senior: Best Trainer!

That is an impossible question to answer, Joel. How much the servos are used to move the surfaces, what type of servos you are using, how stiff the surface hinging is and how fast the model is flying are just a few things that make a difference in how much current is consumed during a flight. I suspect that no two flights would be exactly the same either. So there is another factor that makes it nearly impossible to calculate the answer to your question.

The best solution is to constantly monitor your model's flight pack battery with an ESV (expanded scale volt meter) to get an idea of how the battery is holding up. This should be done after, or before, each flight. ESV meters are inexpensive and they plug right in to your model's charging jack. They are easy to use, but not so easy to interpret.

Yes, the Kadet Senior is a fantastic trainer.

May you and your father have a terrific time together.

Ed Cregger

Fully Charged? It'll probably last longer than you do but the previous post is also rite,Depends on a few things.

5 servos? Did you retrofit the kit with ailerons?? I just got a Kadet Senior and was considering this modification - is it desirable??? Did you change anything else (like the dihedral) when you added ailerons?

John

Joel wrote:

The new Kadet Senior ARF has ailerons. I don't know why they call it a Kadet Senior. It certainly isn't the same as the older 3-channel kit.

Jim - AMA 501383

John Morley wrote:

Joel. Can't really coment about the Kadet. I have never flown one. Enjoy your Dad's company as long as you can. It is really great to see you are doing something together. Dale

"John Morley" wrote

I can't speak for Joel but I built and am training a friend on a Senior with ailerons and 5 servos. This one has barn door ailerons and I took half the dihedral out. Also, it is a tail dragger. Flies super. Re-designed the vert. stab to make it resemble a Taylorcraft.

We can get (5) 15 minute flights out of it but we set the timer for 12 minutes. I like a cushion. We check the batteries after every flight (and before the first one just in case he forgot to plug in the wall wart . . . that's something I have done and it spoils a day at the airfield). If the meter says OK, we go up for another flight. Ron.

Ron,

When you say "barn door" ailerons, do you mean ones that go full-span??

Thanks,

John

Ackermann wrote:

I used 5 standard servos on my Sig LT-40 ARF. I too worried about the pack. Did some testing at home and "flew" the plane while watching TV in the den. Since my transmitter has a meter on it, I wanted to see which one would fail first. Got bored after a couple hours and decided to get a bigger pack for the plane. Since it's so large, the 1500mah pack fit right in fine. Never worried again.

Look up links about cycling batteries. When you are done with a day of flying, discharge the bateries on a timed cycler. then you will know how much energy you have left in the pack. do that 3 or 4 time and you will get a good feel for how much of your pack you are using. I doo that and use an old analog load testing ESV at the field to check the charge. How full a battery pack is, is just one of things you can't see, like a fuel tank.

It's great that you are enjoying this with your Father. Enjoy this time, it is truely special. Good Luck. Let us all know how it's going and if you have any more questions come up. Fill it up, startt it up and take off... Andy

We can make a box of wood.....FLY!!

"Strip" ailerons go full span. "Barn Door" ailerons are near the wing tips.

Morris Lee

"Morris Lee" wrote

Morris is right. . .we didn't change the chord of the wing. We rebuilt it with barn door ailerons out near the wing tips. The owner had originally designed the wing (and started to build it) with one servo and Gold N rod push rods. I re-built it and added a servo in each wing.

Ron.

::*Aloha, :D

I have a SIG Kadet Senior ARF ... I made mine electric using MegaMotors ACn 22/45/3 w/a 2:1 SuperBox GearBox and 16-Sub-C NiMH i two 8-cell SPT's from MEC ... Flying on a 14/7 EAPC ... :eek: http://4.35.226.10/AudioVideo/Video/WalterPerko/theElectricRed-SIG-Kadet-Senior/ I have photos and videos posted in that folder ... check it out .. :eek:

Having a real FAA Commerical/Instrument Pilots License back in th

1970's I used to fly sport aerobatics mostly using a 1972 Bellanc Citabria N2716Z ... I have some experience with a \"real version\" o the Kadet Senior ... so much like the Citabria and my \"Electric Re SIG Kadet Senior ARF\" seems to fly very much the same ... :D

As for the ailerons being \"barn doors\" ... they are about twice a big as what would be on the Citabria ... or any basic plane of tha size ... but they are NOT barn doors ... just longer in length alon the trailing edge of the wing ...

My first encounter with the term \"barn door\" was with Pipe Cherokee's ... they are described as having barn door wings ... whic is closer to reality ... they are great big rectangles ...

So, lastly, if anybody has a good SIG Kadet Senior ARF for the Refle XTR and/or AFPD I'd like to get them ... I'd like to tweak'em ' convert'em to electric and fly the crap out of them on the sims .. maybe match the integeral structural strength to test with 3 power:weight and some 3D aerobatics ... before I break another SI Kadet Senior ARF at the flying field ... *

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-- wperk

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