Official Freewing B-2 Spirit Bomber 86" Twin 70mm EDF Jet

[Mud Duck]

I was too windy to fly today, so I made a modification to my B-2 and I thought I’d share it in hopes that it can save you some time if you decide to do the same. I love lights and almost immediately decided that I was going to add landing lights to the main gear struts as soon as I purchased the B-2.

Initially I bought and planned to use the same lights as on the B-2 nose gear, but that unit doesn’t fit the main struts properly, then I heard where avanti127 used the front gear landing lights from the Freewing PJ-50 and that worked very well with only a minor modification to get one side to mirror the other. They’re almost sized perfectly for the B-2 main struts and even include the machined screw needed to mount them and they’re only $4.29 each.
( https://www.motionrc.com/products/fr...41647263678649 )
The trick was finding the best route to run the wires and I was able to do it by only making ONE hole through the side of the wheel well (only about 3/8” to get through the wall), then through the ducted fan area and up into the cabin following the motor wires where I connected the landing light leads to a Freewing light controller (from the F-15 90mm spar parts list;
( https://www.motionrc.com/products/fr...troller-v3-e02 )
and set it up to be controlled on a spare channel. It would have been possible to use the B-2 control board, but I would have had to combine (solder) the connectors of two of the lights together to free up a connection port. I used the Freewing light controller because I also plan to add more lights later on.

I’ll be happy to try to answer any questions. Now that I’ve done it once, the next one should go quite a bit faster. 😄

[Epsilon83]

The second shipment is in the USA, already cleared customs, and very close to Motion RC. If everything goes smoothly, I suspect they will arrive next Wednesday May 4th or Thursday May 5th but you never know with the current state of everything. I'm estimating. Since we have things like chassis shortages, truck driver shortages, clogged ports, clogged rail, etc, etc, etc there is an outside chance it could be another 10 days. Of course it could also be Tuesday.

Awesome! Thanks, that's all I needed to know. Days/weeks vs weeks/months. Might just put in an order then.

[Tom]

Any rumor on when the second shipment might be hitting the US?

The second shipment is in the USA, already cleared customs, and very close to Motion RC. If everything goes smoothly, I suspect they will arrive next Wednesday May 4th or Thursday May 5th but you never know with the current state of everything. I'm estimating. Since we have things like chassis shortages, truck driver shortages, clogged ports, clogged rail, etc, etc, etc there is an outside chance it could be another 10 days. Of course it could also be Tuesday.

[Epsilon83]

Any rumor on when the second shipment might be hitting the US?

[kallend]

Anyone wishing to experiment with the gyro should check out this post from ridgerunr in RCG:

https://www.rcgroups.com/forums/show...postcount=1113

He successfully used the HE A3S3 programmer with the E52 gyro, and made the PC interface work.

[Aros]

Anytime! He used this high tech device I had not seen before. I was extremely impressed.

[viper1gj]

I am happy to report I have the perfect color match for this B-2. The guy at Home Depot NAILED IT. I can't even see where he put the test dab on the hatch. It's that good.

Here's the lid..

Aros, thanks for posting the HD code.
Gary

[Evan D]

I do it gear down just to make it easy to check sitting there. But I determine what I want for a balance point by flying it and then seeing where it is setting on the ground on its gear. I then mark where that spot is under the canopy.

[GliderGuy]

Aros- What is the left-most numbers / characters?

0Z
884th?

Thanks!

-GG

[Aros]

I am happy to report I have the perfect color match for this B-2. The guy at Home Depot NAILED IT. I can't even see where he put the test dab on the hatch. It's that good.

Here's the lid...

[mshagg]

I get that this is a motionRC forum but it would also help if people weren't overly sensitive about perceived criticism of a model.

There's no good reason to run a gyro at the ragged edge of over controlling the model. Period. The few extra % that causes it doesn't make a model's flight characteristics any more accessible. Nor is there a good reason to ship a B2 with Atti lock as a selectable flight mode. Its possible to call out these decisions while still being in awe of what they have brought to the market.

[MeyerVW]

No arguments offered…no offense intended / only personal perceptions about a non-major (IMHO) flight characteristic.

Tweak away/experiment until you are satisfied.

Others may provide the feedback you seek based upon their knowledge.

So, help everyone by confirming you specifically intended to ask for tips on optimal gyro settings….right? Nothing more. I was mislead.

-GG

Yes, thats what I was trying to get at. Fine tune it to my flying.

[radfordc]

Should CG be obtained gear up or gear down?

This answer is not specific to the B-2.

You don't want the CG to be so far aft that the plane is difficult to control.

If a plane's CG shifts aft when the gear is retracted (Corsair, P-40, etc) you should probably set the CG with the gear retracted. This ensures that the CG won't be too far aft. When the gear is extended the CG will shift forward some but this isn't a problem.

For a plane whose CG shifts forward when the gear is retracted (C-47, A-10, etc) balance with the gear extended. Again, the CG will shift forward slightly when the gear is retracted.

Once you have established that the plane is fully controllable at the most aft CG location you can begin to make small adjustments to improve flight characteristics.

[xviper]

Opinions vary….summarizing from historical posts:

1) Most time is spent flying with gear up, so set CG with gear up.
2) What about when the gear is lowered? Since you are “on the sticks” more in the pattern, it is a non-issue.

My B-2 experience: I am slightly nose heavy with wheels down. So, I mixed in some added “up” for when the wheels are down and at low power settings. I get rid of the extra “up” during wheels up/cruise flight.

Works for me. Other opinions will no doubt vary.

-GG

My thoughts exactly. Ask yourself .................. Do you fly this plane with the wheels down most of the time? Or do you fly it wheels up? With me, wheels are down when taking off and when landing. During those scenarios, I'm constantly on the sticks to change the plane's attitude and flight pattern. Compensating for CG at those times is easier. During those times when are less on the sticks is when flying steady state cruising - the wheels are up then and that's usually when you trim the plane for level flight "hands off".

[GliderGuy]

Should CG be obtained gear up or gear down?

Opinions vary….summarizing from historical posts:

1) Most time is spent flying with gear up, so set CG with gear up.
2) What about when the gear is lowered? Since you are “on the sticks” more in the pattern, it is a non-issue.

My B-2 experience: I am slightly nose heavy with wheels down. So, I mixed in some added “up” for when the wheels are down and at low power settings. I get rid of the extra “up” during wheels up/cruise flight.

Works for me. Other opinions will no doubt vary.

-GG

[Soonerflyer]

Should CG be obtained gear up or gear down?

[kallend]

Why does every question end with arguments. All I want to do is tame the aircraft a bit. I agree it flies very good as is. Just want to sweak it a bit to my personal liking. Not trying to break any speed records here.

Maybe you should have framed your original question more carefully.

[GliderGuy]

Why does every question end with arguments. All I want to do is tame the aircraft a bit. I agree it flies very good as is. Just want to sweak it a bit to my personal liking. Not trying to break any speed records here.

No arguments offered…no offense intended / only personal perceptions about a non-major (IMHO) flight characteristic.

Tweak away/experiment until you are satisfied.

Others may provide the feedback you seek based upon their knowledge.

So, help everyone by confirming you specifically intended to ask for tips on optimal gyro settings….right? Nothing more. I was mislead.

-GG

[Flying Dutchman]

Probably, it is a matter of choosing your wording more carefully.

Your initial question could be read as some sort of criticism, by your statement that the B2 had ‘flutter issues’.

In your posting above, you reply that you ‘want to tame the aircraft a bit’. Also suggesting that there is something amiss with the aircraft’s design, in your opinion.

That leads to responses that you would not be looking for.

[MeyerVW]

Why does every question end with arguments. All I want to do is tame the aircraft a bit. I agree it flies very good as is. Just want to sweak it a bit to my personal liking. Not trying to break any speed records here.