Some members of my local aircraft club have a similar issue with their models sinking into the grass on the runway. Some of the smaller "sport/scale" warbirds have ar difficult time taxiing and and landing on the runway.
Been there done that very frustrating, my solution is to have loads of up elevator and LIGHTLY hold your foot on the horizontal stab and give it full beans as you take your foot off it will start to roll and you need to reduce the up. Good luck 🤞
Good move Tim. It’s always hard to walk away when you so desperately want to fly. I’ve wrecked heaps been impatient. Get a mate to hold her and full then full beans.
I had a similar issue with my Avios 1.5M Spitfire . It taxied terrible . On closer inspection , I found the factory had reversed the struts . left and right ... causing a '' toe in " situation . I swapped the two sides , so they were now slightly towed out ...and it solved the problem . Taxis perfect now . Not saying thats your issue , but its something to check . Cheers . I made a video about this problem too BTW .
Used to always take another smaller plane so if main plane won't fly, still have a backup so get some flying in & not too disappointed. Looks like the wheel legs being low next to each wheel are running in the grass causing it to catch in the grass - needs bigger wheels for that spongey grass but obviously that causes other issues
My 2 cents worth: countless maidens are done when the pilot even states " it's a bit more windy than what I'd like". RC reviews included but they don't have the coin invested. I say don't do flights in bad conditions especially maidens. Instead stay home and admire your hard work, isn't that enough sometimes ??? I'm a Tim too, a cautious Tim.
Try reconfiguring your landing gear so that your wheels protrude slightly in front of the leading edge and that will solve your grass runway problem 👍 and good luck to you when you do actually get to maiden that lovely spitfire. 👍
Most warbirds want to tip over unless pilot holds up elevator during start of takeoff roll, (especially in grass). I wouldn't attempt to maiden a model with an unreliable engine. Use right rudder to counter left yaw as needed during takeoff. Don't try to maiden a model in windy or cross-wind conditions. Get some expert training, warbirds are not DIY "trainers" .
As there are a number of other videos with successful takeoffs from grass it would appear that there is a problem with the plane, the pilot, or both, combined with all that "extra nose weight". Was it actually required to obtain the correct CG or is it nose heavy. Bear in mind a "war bird" is just another low wing plane as are many others, scale or sports with tail dragger config. I fly their 1540 Dauntless, fixed gear, off grass with no issues.
@@hayloft3834 definitely no problem with the pilot. You’re right about the nose weight, I think the CG needs moving back. It doesn’t feel right it’s got all that weight.
My tail draggers have huge up elevator throw for take off mode. You should eventually get a feel for using the throttle and elevator to get the thing moving properly. Or maybe this particular model is just a bastard.
Lovely model Tim, I guess the other commenters have given good advice, looking forward to Part 2, cheers
Cheers Cliff. Spoiler… it gets worse!!
Some members of my local aircraft club have a similar issue with their models sinking into the grass on the runway. Some of the smaller "sport/scale" warbirds have ar difficult time taxiing and and landing on the runway.
@@Gavs_rc_hobbies yes it could do with some Tundra style wheels 😂
Been there done that very frustrating, my solution is to have loads of up elevator and LIGHTLY hold your foot on the horizontal stab and give it full beans as you take your foot off it will start to roll and you need to reduce the up.
Good luck 🤞
@@MarkCroucherRC4fun thanks for the tip 👍🏻
@@tdogrc th-cam.com/video/gZFX_Wn-Evw/w-d-xo.htmlsi=PvWe_HNQPvlQ7sTU
Good move Tim. It’s always hard to walk away when you so desperately want to fly. I’ve wrecked heaps been impatient. Get a mate to hold her and full then full beans.
@@Phildo1970 thanks dude 👍🏻
I had a similar issue with my Avios 1.5M Spitfire . It taxied terrible .
On closer inspection , I found the factory had reversed the struts . left and right ... causing a '' toe in " situation .
I swapped the two sides , so they were now slightly towed out ...and it solved the problem . Taxis perfect now .
Not saying thats your issue , but its something to check . Cheers . I made a video about this problem too BTW .
@@PhilipCockram brill thanks for that 👍🏻
Used to always take another smaller plane so if main plane won't fly, still have a backup so get some flying in & not too disappointed. Looks like the wheel legs being low next to each wheel are running in the grass causing it to catch in the grass - needs bigger wheels for that spongey grass but obviously that causes other issues
@@Yumbutteredsausage yep I should have taken another model you’re right 👍🏻
I have one you need to lower the tail gear by bending it . Hope that helps .
@@pilotpaddle4121 great thanks 👍🏻
My 2 cents worth: countless maidens are done when the pilot even states " it's a bit more windy than what I'd like".
RC reviews included but they don't have the coin invested.
I say don't do flights in bad conditions especially maidens.
Instead stay home and admire your hard work, isn't that enough sometimes ??? I'm a Tim too, a cautious Tim.
@@tim7402 yeah good advice Tim! 👍🏻
What is your engine and prop combo. I have the VQ P40, with a YS110 with MaS 14x9 3 blade
It’s a Saito 82b. Can’t remember the exact prop size. 👍🏻
@@tdogrc should be a good flier. Nice combination. I'd guess it's a good weight for the size. 4 -4.5kg as a guess
@@russcole5685 yep that’s about right. Thanks 👍🏻
Full welly a bit of up el,and away,you’ll struggle with a tail dragging warbird on grass.Ive had exactly the same problem,good luck!
@@terencemears7780 like your style 👍🏻
Try reconfiguring your landing gear so that your wheels protrude slightly in front of the leading edge and that will solve your grass runway problem 👍 and good luck to you when you do actually get to maiden that lovely spitfire. 👍
@@bb4l881 thanks a lot 👍🏻
Most warbirds want to tip over unless pilot holds up elevator during start of takeoff roll, (especially in grass). I wouldn't attempt to maiden a model with an unreliable engine. Use right rudder to counter left yaw as needed during takeoff. Don't try to maiden a model in windy or cross-wind conditions. Get some expert training, warbirds are not DIY "trainers" .
@@garygullikson6349 good advice. Thankfully I have years of experience flying 👍🏻
As there are a number of other videos with successful takeoffs from grass it would appear that there is a problem with the plane, the pilot, or both, combined with all that "extra nose weight". Was it actually required to obtain the correct CG or is it nose heavy. Bear in mind a "war bird" is just another low wing plane as are many others, scale or sports with tail dragger config. I fly their 1540 Dauntless, fixed gear, off grass with no issues.
@@hayloft3834 definitely no problem with the pilot. You’re right about the nose weight, I think the CG needs moving back. It doesn’t feel right it’s got all that weight.
@@tdogrc Not sure what VQ recommend but looking at some plans on Outerzone 25/30% CG at the root seems to be standard trending towards the 30% mark.
My tail draggers have huge up elevator throw for take off mode. You should eventually get a feel for using the throttle and elevator to get the thing moving properly.
Or maybe this particular model is just a bastard.
@@falconeaterf15 😂 maybe
I would suggest that you, lay artificial grass, along your strip, stretched and pinned down. 4 foot wide by 50 foot long, should do it.
@@waynehenderson7681 yeah I’ve seen a few sites like that 👍🏻
@@tdogrc TO much time and effort in building the neat machines, to crash first or second time. I remember. Plastic grass is cheaper than the models.
Maybe bitumen about a foot wide and 20' long? The grass shouldn't be an issue, how many of us fly off it?
It wasn't the 'worst maiden I've ever seen' there was no maiden at all! 🙄
@@bobflyman 👍🏻
Stop using a rotary lawn mower. Cylinder mowers are best for grass strips as they cut shorter without the spoungy buildup
@@davidfincham5181 yeah maybe. Let’s see what our new field is like 👍🏻
A rotary mower works fine on ours.