Hyper Viper Eats Dirt...

and survives.

So basically not following my own advice or Leonard's, I put in my Hyper Viper today at the field. Problem is that I haven't quite figured out the launch rpm. On the ground I was able to peak the engine at +15k rpm (up from yesterday, so it is getting a bit better), but it immediately went richer on takeoff--I think this is just the "normal" venting of the tank. I flew most of the flight with climbing and diving. Near the end, the engine cleaned up a bit so I thought I'd try a loop. Well, it was way wide, and coming over the top I thought 'd recover ok, but the wind was high enough that it blew in on me and then ploughed on in.

Post mortem was that everything survived! I was lucky because it was 50+ degrees today, and the ground had defrosted (yesterday I couldn;t even push my stooge stakes in the ground, but today was a cinch!). So a lot of dirt, but no damage. That plastic is tougher than I thought.

I definitely need to go to my next shorter set of lines (35 foot instead of 50 foot 008's.

I just put together a Cox Cub which I bought last year at a contest. I guess I am regressing when I need to get that rush of competing a plane in less than an hour!

We will see what the weather is like tomorrow!

I apologize for these posts, but it is so much fun to actually get outside after about 2 months on solid snow on the ground. Actually I should get that Oriental anf Pathfinder finished!

50 feet!, that is way to long. I tried mine on 40 and I didn't think is was capable of doing any manuevers.

I will try tommorrow on 35', but I don't think it will do a rule book vertical eight no such short lines, even if the engine was running 16K.

I found that the engine was going rich in the air no matter how lean I set it on the ground. An easy fix, though, I cut the fuel filler and vent tubes to have 1/2 the angle they did before, now something like 15 deg angled into the wind.

End of problem!

Good idea, didn't think of that.