Official Freewing F/A-18C Hornet 90mm EDF Thread

[Evan D]

The thing is you don't know what you don't know and while I put my receivers under the battery trays too, satellite (may be more than one) and antennae placement is critical. I also swap out long extensions, sometimes going to heavier gauge wire and mostly bypass blue boxes. I also don't use many gyros and when I so I use simple HE ones or the preprogrammed ones in EF planes. I have seen as many airplanes crashed or nearly so from improperly installed/ set up/ programmed gyros as planes that fly perfect with them.

That's in addition to maybe moving linkages to get better mechanical advantage for servos, upgrading linkages, checking horns and mounts for security etc. I've even been known to swap fasteners I think are iffy for their application. There's a lot that can go wrong and all it takes is one minor thing. Even with this I have done dumb things, different throws on elevators where I have each on a different channel is a great example of my stupidity.

My F/18C was one of the very first and has been on a JF 8S all along and still flies awesome.

[Hugh Wiedman]

Thanks for the condolences gents. And good advice Ausie. I’m still just sick about it. Especially that I can’t locate her.

Oddly enough Todd, I seriously doubt the RX placement had anything to do with it. I've got my RX's mounted under the tray in both F18's and several others including the Mig. It does not have to be "perfectly" flat or "perfectly" straight either, just close to it. I just use double sided RX tape and as long as it dosn't come completely loose, no problem.

At the end of the day, those RX's are fairly simple to set up, only a few basic things to absolutely program. 1) most importantly the RX orientation, which can be confirmed by the gyro test response function which we did. 2) selection of the FM switch, which we picked the flap switch for. 3) gyro gain switch, which we used the right knob so we can instantly dial 0-100% of programmed gains in flight, and 4) the 3 Flight Modes actual gains on each of the 3 flight surfaces. That's basically it. It does a lot of other things you can program in, like nose gear gyro, heading gains, adjusting sensitivity, priorities, setting auxiliary surface gyros like TV units, etc. but we left those at default settings and went with the basics.

You can get quite exotic with setting it up like Jon with 2 Bros, where he uses variable gains based on throttle settings and 2X gains on TV units (which I use on 2 aircraft), but we set up the basics.

Only a couple of errors could have caused it: 1) the RX came completely loose-doubt it, even taping it down would have worked for a while 2) got the wrong RX orientation-doubt it, we did the gyro test, 3) somehow heading hold got programmed in-doubt it, you have to go through another programming step to do it, 4) some other servo failure. A single flap failure would make it unflyable (especially on the super sensitive F18-happened to me) but you changed the flap servos to hitecs. Possibly a failure in one of the elevator servos, linkage or elevator getting loose, witch would doom the flight (happened on an F4 where one elevator got loose on shaft-sending it into a blender). So this is a long and drawn out rambling of mine that basically concludes that I have no fricking guess why this happened. What about signal loss?

Don't give up on the F18 Blue Angel dream. I've got a spare Plus Rx and hitec flap servos that I'm donating to the "Aros Go Fund My F18" cause. We gotta make this happen!

[Aros]

Brand new H stabs. Just pay shipping. PM me...

[Aros]

Thanks for the condolences gents. And good advice Ausie. I’m still just sick about it. Especially that I can’t locate her.

[f4u ausie]

Don't have this plane,, but I'm presuming it has foam under the tray.. I had that with my Pitts loose Rx cause I taped it down...had time to turn gyro off that's a couple years ago.....and get it down to discover loose Rx... So now always I epoxy a small piece of ply to the bottom of the Rx and then epoxy it to the foam in place... That's incase U want to remove it,, and it doesn't warp the plastic case as U pry it up.....So if the foam is not level Under the tray. I have used a hot soldering iron b4 to level it out and then epoxy Rx in place. All that presuming U may buy another..... Absolutely would be great to have the wreck and see I have also shaped a small piece of foam and glued in place( to get a level bed for the gyro)... Whatever it takes. All. That's said loosing a complete plane like that still sucks

[Fruchtzwerg76]

Got it working now. Thanks to Facebook and a YouTube tutorial ;-)

I used a logical switch in combination with my as3x switch. Setting up more Flight Modes.

For me a little bit rocket science but it works.

Out of curiousity, how do you guys use the flaps for landing? Always landing flaps setting? Or takeoff flaps? Or depending on the wind situation?

Last year I almost always used takeoff flaps for my landings, fearing the landing flap setting would be slowing me too fast.

[Elbee]

Aros,

It is a mystery when you don;t have the airplane to reference.

Don't beat yourself up too much.

I know little or nothing about Spectrum Radios, though I am considering a purchase in the future.

There's not much room to mount stuff in the Hornet, but you've had several, so it's not like you haven't mounted all that before.

Sorry this just didn't go well for you.

Best, LB

[Aros]

Agree with you completely. Certainly sounds exactly like a gyro issue to me, but can't imagine where it went off. We programmed it over the phone together and set it up, I thought, exactly like both of my F-18's, which have performed flawlessly. My strong suspicion is in the RX orientation, as gains, FM switch and gain adjust where set as mine are. Todd even did the gyro response test, which would show any incorrect surface movement and apparently everything moved in the correct direction. I'm at a loss, programmed 20 of these Plus RX's in the last 6 months, which are fairly straightforward and haven't had anything like this occur. Could Heading Hold have been inadvertently programmed? Hope Todd finds the aircraft and we can see what the issue was.

The only other thing I can think of is when I placed the RX under the battery tray I wasn't really sold on that because I didn't have immediate access and two, there was no real flat area to mount it so I used Gorilla Tape to secure it where I could. It's very possible that with the lack of surface area to secure it that it came loose. That would definitely explain the erratic flight and loss of control. I just watched the video today and it was flat spinning, pitching up, rolling...It was a mess almost from the start.

[Fruchtzwerg76]

Those are the settings Hugh is using, and I really like them. Three different gain settings based on flap selection. Basically, cruise not so much, takeoff flaps more, landing flaps more. I've had roll axis wobble during cruise and have had to reduce gain, each plane will be different. That said that is the only change I've made from Hugh's settings. A good start.

If I think of anything else, I definitely post it. Questions welcome.

Richard

Hey,

maybe someone could assist in setting up these flaps based gains. I´m currently struggling.

I´m familiar with having my gains on the rknob which is adjustable in flight.

So I´m having my switch for my three flight modes (AS3X off, AS3X on and Safe) as usual. Then I choose my flap switch as my gains switch. Correct?

How do I now dial my settings in for flight mode 2 (AS3X on) for instance for the different flaps positions (no flaps, takeoff flaps and landing flaps)?

I´m lost at the moment. Any help is really appreciated.

Alex

[Aros]

All good questions. It flew like it was extremely tail heavy but I know you recommended what you have found to be the sweet spot so it shouldn't have been the issue? It's insane how many problems I've had over the years with this model. No other EDF has ever come close to these types of issues. I took my drone out to see if I could find it and no luck. The field it headed towards in the end is surrounded by heavy, dense evergreens so my guess is it crashed in the woods which means bye bye RunCam, Admiral 6S 6000, AS3X+ and electronics. Ugh.

To add insult to injury my replacement H stabs arrived today. I ordered them because one of them was full of pock marks and dents. Not sure how that happened. Well, I'm sure she's much worse off than a little cosmetic issue now! lol...

If anybody would like this brand new set of H stabs let me know.

Hugh Wiedman don't beat yourself up buddy. You did I fine job walking me through the process and I did do the gyro test and all the surfaces moved in the right direction, so it's just a true mystery.

[Hugh Wiedman]

I have to believe the programing of the RX was flawed. I have done three F-18's now with the Plus RX, two PNP's and one parts airframe. All three have performed flawlessly with the exception of the flap servos which I replaced. My stepson preforms some awesome high alpha flights on par with Airguardian with his F-18 and its pretty cool. He's a Marine reserve flying the real F-18 and he mimics what he does in the real F-18.

One thing to note is updating the RX, even a newly purchased one needs to be updated to the current software. As an example, I just purchased, within a week, a 10 channel Plus RX and it needed to be updated. This is done with the Spektrum Programmer app with the Spektrum Update Cable purchased through Horizon Hobby. It is a must!!!

I wish I was closer to you Aros, I would've got it really dialed in for you.

Rich

Agree with you completely. Certainly sounds exactly like a gyro issue to me, but can't imagine where it went off. We programmed it over the phone together and set it up, I thought, exactly like both of my F-18's, which have performed flawlessly. My strong suspicion is in the RX orientation, as gains, FM switch and gain adjust where set as mine are. Todd even did the gyro response test, which would show any incorrect surface movement and apparently everything moved in the correct direction. I'm at a loss, programmed 20 of these Plus RX's in the last 6 months, which are fairly straightforward and haven't had anything like this occur. Could Heading Hold have been inadvertently programmed? Hope Todd finds the aircraft and we can see what the issue was.

[jetpltrich]

Well I wish I had better news, Hugh Wiedman. Went to maiden last evening and she took off fine but instantly I could tell something was off. I fought the sticks the entire time and all she wanted to do was flip, roll...Completely uncontrollable. I tried my best to bring her back and land but she wasn't having it. She face planted in the dirt on a hill. I tried locating her to no avail. She's gone in the wind. I can't believe it. Hugh, you did everything to help make her as flight worthy as possible but I am now convinced after 8 or 10 of these models that there is some gremlins in her. Nothing else makes sense. To be that wonky and unflyable after installing the AS3X+?? I won't ever buy this version of this model ever again.

Fare thee well.

I have to believe the programing of the RX was flawed. I have done three F-18's now with the Plus RX, two PNP's and one parts airframe. All three have performed flawlessly with the exception of the flap servos which I replaced. My stepson preforms some awesome high alpha flights on par with Airguardian with his F-18 and its pretty cool. He's a Marine reserve flying the real F-18 and he mimics what he does in the real F-18.

One thing to note is updating the RX, even a newly purchased one needs to be updated to the current software. As an example, I just purchased, within a week, a 10 channel Plus RX and it needed to be updated. This is done with the Spektrum Programmer app with the Spektrum Update Cable purchased through Horizon Hobby. It is a must!!!

I wish I was closer to you Aros, I would've got it really dialed in for you.

Rich

[Hugh Wiedman]

Well I wish I had better news, Hugh Wiedman. Went to maiden last evening and she took off fine but instantly I could tell something was off. I fought the sticks the entire time and all she wanted to do was flip, roll...Completely uncontrollable. I tried my best to bring her back and land but she wasn't having it. She face planted in the dirt on a hill. I tried locating her to no avail. She's gone in the wind. I can't believe it. Hugh, you did everything to help make her as flight worthy as possible but I am now convinced after 8 or 10 of these models that there is some gremlins in her. Nothing else makes sense. To be that wonky and unflyable after installing the AS3X+?? I won't ever buy this version of this model ever again.

Fare thee well.

Oh 💩, I can't believe it. I would have bet a fortune that you would have had a tremendous success. All I can think is we (I specifically) screwed up with the programming in some way, just can't possibly imagine what it was. I'm sure you didn't have time to dial the gains off as you most likely were too busy on the sticks to turn the knob off. Definitely sounds like a gyro issue, wanting to roll over. Almost like the RX orientation was off. Don't blame the model, I'm sure I must have "screwed the pooch" on programming, so so sorry.

[f4u ausie]

Oh that's horrible

[Elbee]

Well I wish I had better news, Hugh Wiedman. Went to maiden last evening and she took off fine but instantly I could tell something was off. I fought the sticks the entire time and all she wanted to do was flip, roll...Completely uncontrollable.

Aros,

Now that just sucks, Pards.

I have no words or do I?

So what do you do when something sucks?

Let me say this, "cold beer, bottle of wine, single malt" not in any particular order; not that I would know anything about this strategy.

I suppose we must 'Accept the Suckiness'.

Your thought to "never ever" brings to mind something I think about from time to time "If it causes a problem it is a problem."

Condolences, my friend.

Best, LB

[Aros]

Well I wish I had better news, Hugh Wiedman. Went to maiden last evening and she took off fine but instantly I could tell something was off. I fought the sticks the entire time and all she wanted to do was flip, roll...Completely uncontrollable. I tried my best to bring her back and land but she wasn't having it. She face planted in the dirt on a hill. I tried locating her to no avail. She's gone in the wind. I can't believe it. Hugh, you did everything to help make her as flight worthy as possible but I am now convinced after 8 or 10 of these models that there is some gremlins in her. Nothing else makes sense. To be that wonky and unflyable after installing the AS3X+?? I won't ever buy this version of this model ever again.

Fare thee well.

[Hugh Wiedman]

Doing a little preventative maintenance on one of my F-18 Canadian models now that I'm flying them much more after the elevator servo upgrades, the flap servo upgrades and especially the Plus RX upgrade. Still only have about 75 flights on the one, but a few issues came up that maybe you want to keep an eye on with yours. Doubt any of you will experience these issues, as you know I'm quite "special" , so just in case.

The first was the horn on one of the elevator shafts actually broke off, fortunately on the ground and not while flying. Of course, that's one of the items that's "out of stock" at the moment from MRC. Must be yanking and banking too hard! Rather than wait around for it to be available, I decided to try a "Rube Goldberg" (many of you may be too young to know what that refers to) fix of my own. Sandwiched the broken horn between two 0.5mm shaped carbon fiber sheets and epoxied it together, then drilled the ball screw and another screw to help hold it together. Should last until they get them back in stock.

Second item I noticed was that the carbon fiber outside tube for the wings (glued into the fuselage) was starting to crack. There's not much foam surrounding the ends of the tubes where the wings attacked to give it support as there are channels cut about 2" in for the wing harness wires to go, leaving it fairly bare. So again, "Rube Goldberg" to the rescue. I took two 1.5mm sheets of carbon fiber cut, epoxied and inlaid around where the tube ends out of the fuselage on each side. Again, hopefully that will reinforce any torque on the wing tubes and stop any further cracking.

Photos of the operations below:

[Hugh Wiedman]

U see. Guru. Was correct

Wait till after his maiden. Hopefully I won't have to change my name and move to Namibia!

[f4u ausie]

U see. Guru. Was correct

[Aros]

Shout out to Hugh Wiedman for taking the time on the phone with me on Memorial Day to walk me through setting up the AS3X+. I tried my best over the weekend but just couldn’t get it to work. It’s definitely not Plug N’ Play but once you see the capabilities it’s really intuitive.

I will get those F Modes set up as well! I can’t wait to maiden her with what should be a boost of confidence. Thanks again buddy!