Official Freewing JAS 39 Gripen 80mm EDF Jet

[Airguardian]

But it is the sound of flight time - unfortunately.

That's it. This is not an old stock setup, but an 8S system running a WeMo Midi Pro (6 blades) with a 1600kv HET motor.
With such a combo I can make the kind of constant energy-bleed aerobatics you see in these videos for 3 to 3.5min with a decent thrust-to-weight ratio (not 1:1 but close enough).
Alternatively, I can chill out and fly for 5 or 6 min with no issue. You don't get that kind of performance easily on any stock setup exceeding 9 blades.

The Hornet 90mm high performance EDF setup gets close though, but it's a different jet so not entirely comparable.

[James]

Hey Guys! The first of many Gripen vids to come is now live. In this one we were joined by Justin Lamb JLambCWU and we did a tandem flight and then he shows off the TV option as well.

Assembly video, canard mixing, cg and rates, and thrust-vectoring setup and mixing vids all to come.

[Evan D]

Thanks for the video!

[air-jon]

Yes, nice vid! that last landing was awesome!

[T-CAT]

Great flying guys! That looked like a ton of fun.

[janmb]

Yes, nice vid! that last landing was awesome!

+1 to that!

Love to see people land using throttle for what it's for.

[xviper]

Was it an optical trick or did both those planes have quite a bit of wing rock?

[crxmanpat]

Was it an optical trick or did both those planes have quite a bit of wing rock?

Gusty cross winds (look at the trees). Mentioned a few times in the video.

[JLambCWU]

Yes, nice vid! that last landing was awesome!

Thank you sir 👊🏼. Really looking forward to flying it in some steady or calm winds.

[xviper]

Gusty cross winds (look at the trees). Mentioned a few times in the video.

I think mine will get a gyro. We've always got some kind of cross wind here.

[JLambCWU]

Was it an optical trick or did both those planes have quite a bit of wing rock?

We mentioned it in the video several times.
For those that don’t know, the CCRC facility is beautiful but has the limitation of being encircled by 100ft+ trees with a relatively short runway.

The winds blew in and out all day between 10-20mph, and the winds spill over the trees from all sides while swirling in the bottom of the bowl. The wind at each end of the runway is often opposite from the other side. Still a fun fun field and a great group of members there!

[Spinny Testaverde]

Stay on 🎯

[janmb]

Was it an optical trick or did both those planes have quite a bit of wing rock?

They certainly do, but that is perfectly normal with any delta when flying in turbulent conditions - and especially unstabilized. Not that a gyro will ever really remove that either. You never really get enough gyro authority in the roll axis to take away that stuff - it is just an inherent trait to deltas. It's only really a visual nuisance though - as a pilot, all you need to do is ignore it.

[xviper]

They certainly do, but that is perfectly normal with any delta when flying in turbulent conditions - and especially unstabilized. Not that a gyro will ever really remove that either. You never really get enough gyro authority in the roll axis to take away that stuff - it is just an inherent trait to deltas. It's only really a visual nuisance though - as a pilot, all you need to do is ignore it.

Oddly enough, my Mirage used to rock like that. Then I put in a HobbyEagle A3-L and it eliminated it completely. Then there's my SU-35 - no gyro and it doesn't waddle at all in any kind of wind. Weird.

[Airguardian]

One thing to consider here is canard deflection. The way these are setup, with pitching-up canards during high alpha, the airflow that the wings get is mostly stalled and that can make wing rocking worse.

There's one of the reasons I like to run these type of jet with a very neutral CG and a gyro on canards.

Also, better do all the trimming with elevons and leave the canards flat in center position or even slightly pitch down, as that usually works best. ;)

[Miroslav Cerny]

Yes, nice vid! that last landing was awesome!

That hard landing was instructive for me. It looks like a respectful, high-quality chassis.

[JLambCWU]

Oddly enough, my Mirage used to rock like that. Then I put in a HobbyEagle A3-L and it eliminated it completely. Then there's my SU-35 - no gyro and it doesn't waddle at all in any kind of wind. Weird.

Not weird, the SU-35 has 2 enormous vertical stabs for directional stability.

The Gripen in smoother air doesn’t waddle around.

[Quickstop]

One thing to consider here is canard deflection. The way these are setup, with pitching-up canards during high alpha, the airflow that the wings get is mostly stalled and that can make wing rocking worse.

There's one of the reasons I like to run these type of jet with a very neutral CG and a gyro on canards.

Also, better do all the trimming with elevons and leave the canards flat in center position or even slightly pitch down, as that usually works best. ;)

You know this for a fact, or is it guesswork? airflow doesn't get "stalled", the wing does.

[Evan D]

Oh, poking the badger...

You know this for a fact, or is it guesswork? airflow doesn't get "stalled", the wing does.

[James]

Hey guys, posted 3 more vids today.

Assembly:

Canard Mixing (on Spektrum):

CG and Rates:

TV Mixing Video is coming next week (but really simple).