Official Freewing Twin 80mm/90mm A-10 Thunderbolt II Thread

[RCjetdude]

Ammonia is to latex like paint thinner is to enamel. Basically.

[Hardway]

Copy that!!! I will try it on the new A-10 paint job... Thanks Bro. :Cool:

[fhhuber]

I will have to try the ammonia trick....

[bill34207]

Here's the one I have.

https://www.amazon.com/Master-Airbrush-All-Purpose-Precision-Dual-Action/dp/B0026SHUMA/ref=pd_sim_201_14?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=B0026SHUMA&pd_rd_r=REZ8TAZTC0J3DRHC5VN7&pd_rd_w=tTruK&pd_rd_wg=TeVJC&psc=1&refRID=REZ8TAZTC0J3DRHC5VN7

I have had it for a few years now and its been great!

Grossman56

Glad to hear that. That's the one I ordered after I got there. It arrived today, maybe I'll get a chance to play with ti a little tomorrow.

[purduephigam]

Bored today so I set up a new Admiral rx as well as installed the new TL nose gear and the ole TI main gear mod. Went ahead and painted the gear white as well. Also did a little riveting. All this airbrush talk makes me want to weather this dirty bird!

[Dirty Dee]

nice work!

[RCjetdude]

The riveting looks good. :Cool:

[MikeT]

I have noticed that quite a few folks use Windex. What advantages does it have over plain water. It is ammonia based I think.... Thanks for educating me!! :Cool:

This is what I went by when I started using a airbrush. It made sense to me.

Mike

[Grossman56]

Awesome riveting, I know it takes some time but the results are beautiful!!

Grossman56

[purduephigam]

Sadly I enjoy tedious and meticulous, time consuming things like this. I've been motivating by some of the others because these small details really add a great scale effect! Plus, between cars and planes, I could never leave anything bone stock!

[RCAV8R]

It really does look great and your attention to consistency is admirable! You didn't go too deep (like I did) and your spacing is impeccable! And, no surprise, if you poll those of us on this thread that confess to early onset OCD, you will find you are in good company! :) Rob

[crxmanpat]

Two flights today using the upgraded trailing link nose gear. Both landings were absolute greasers, so not sure how effective it is. I guess I will find out on a less than perfect landing. However, the nose does seem more solid now during taxi and take-off, no bounce whatsoever.

[RCAV8R]

That's great news! I'm looking forward to getting a second shot at picking one up, hopefully along with the mains! Rob

[Phatbob]

Good to know! I like the single action, and my only complaint was on this A-10 project (this being the largest plane I have ever worked on) I had a hard time with the airbrush not covering large swaths, so I got a lot of inconsistency in the finish due to differing amounts of paint, and using house paint was a real challenge. I was constantly having to clear clogs. I did use the High Performance Reducer for the house latex that RCJetdude recommended, and while I think it was great (I can't imagine I would have made it without it) the house paint seemed to dry almost instantly and had a lot of solidified stuff. I should have screened it with a cheese cloth or something, but was too impatient. Rob

I never had issue with latex and airbrush. I thin with windshield washer fluid. Stir a few seconds with a stick to consistency of milk. If you're clogging, it's to thick. I use a single action with correct tip. I speed drying time between coats with my heat gun. After a good week to fully cure, apply decals and flat or matt clear with Krylon spray.

[Grossman56]

Keep a wet paper towel handy and wipe the tip often, block the tip and pull the trigger slightly to let the air back flush the gun can help as well. I use a lot of latex and the consistency is the key as well as a clean tip.

Grossman56

[john2kx]

This is my first post to this thread. I've made it through all 7000+ posts and always read threads like this before starting a new project. Started my assembly last week and have about a hour into it. Have not applied power to the system but am at that stage.

No plans to paint or put a lot of scale detail on her to start with. I do however have concerns after reading so many comments on the landing gear and at this point not sure which approach I'll take (leave stock, flip the mains and or replace nose gear with T/L).

I fly from a 1500 foot grass strip and have owned 4 turbine powered models over the years. All of those models worked best with T/L gear vs oles. I still remember watching my BVM Bobcat doing the bucking bronco on my first few outings and the repairs I had to make to a $5000 model. Over time, I learned the importance of getting her slowed down, touching with the mains first and finding the correct center of gravity. All of which so many of you have mentioned over and over again. I'm really leaning toward flying it stock and seeing if my past experience pays off.

Anyways, I've enjoyed reading all the posts and look forward to flying the A10 in the next week or so.

John

[crxmanpat]

For flying off grass, I'd recommend leaving the mains stock and getting the trailing link nose gear. Good luck with it and post some pics!

[RCjetdude]

This is my first post to this thread. I've made it through all 7000+ posts and always read threads like this before starting a new project. Started my assembly last week and have about a hour into it. Have not applied power to the system but am at that stage.

No plans to paint or put a lot of scale detail on her to start with. I do however have concerns after reading so many comments on the landing gear and at this point not sure which approach I'll take (leave stock, flip the mains and or replace nose gear with T/L).

I fly from a 1500 foot grass strip and have owned 4 turbine powered models over the years. All of those models worked best with T/L gear vs oles. I still remember watching my BVM Bobcat doing the bucking bronco on my first few outings and the repairs I had to make to a $5000 model. Over time, I learned the importance of getting her slowed down, touching with the mains first and finding the correct center of gravity. All of which so many of you have mentioned over and over again. I'm really leaning toward flying it stock and seeing if my past experience pays off.

Anyways, I've enjoyed reading all the posts and look forward to flying the A10 in the next week or so.

John

Welcome to the Squawk John and kudos for reading this entire thread. I would recommend you go with your leaning and then maybe consider what Pat said if you feel so inclined. It flies great and with your experience, you may have very few issues with it.

[Sky Wolf]

This is my first post to this thread. I've made it through all 7000+ posts and always read threads like this before starting a new project. Started my assembly last week and have about a hour into it. Have not applied power to the system but am at that stage.

No plans to paint or put a lot of scale detail on her to start with. I do however have concerns after reading so many comments on the landing gear and at this point not sure which approach I'll take (leave stock, flip the mains and or replace nose gear with T/L).

I fly from a 1500 foot grass strip and have owned 4 turbine powered models over the years. All of those models worked best with T/L gear vs oles. I still remember watching my BVM Bobcat doing the bucking bronco on my first few outings and the repairs I had to make to a $5000 model. Over time, I learned the importance of getting her slowed down, touching with the mains first and finding the correct center of gravity. All of which so many of you have mentioned over and over again. I'm really leaning toward flying it stock and seeing if my past experience pays off.

Anyways, I've enjoyed reading all the posts and look forward to flying the A10 in the next week or so.

John

Hello John, and welcome to the HobbySquawk neighborhood. With your experience of turbines and the way you described your experience with landings, I’d say you have it down to how this plane will land. I’ve personally never had to mess with the landing gear, along with many others. I’ve flown on both grass and pavement with no issues thus far. (Fingers are still crossed)

I don't think you you can go wrong with any of the mods either though. Many swear by the TI main gear reversal mod.

Good luck with the maiden!

[john2kx]

Thanks for the welcome! Funny, having spent a few weeks reading all the posts in this thread along with the modifications thread, I feel like I already know some of you guys.

I entered this hobby to fly jets and had a steep learning curve with nitro powered ducted fans back in the early 80's, and always dreamed of having a turbine. A few decades later the pioneers of this hobby made it possible. I enjoyed turbines but found they require a lot of time to setup at the field and the cost involved for the average guy can take away from the enjoyment in flying. So, another decade begins and this one will be with my first EDF. From my research, FW seems to have a good product for the money. The club member who showed up with the first Avanti a few months back kind of got the EDF thing rolling at my field. Now, there are four of them and another few guys threatening to follow suit.

Batteries seem to be a area of concern and I plan to use jeti telemetry to count mah's consumed. Have found this to be a great tool in all of my electric powered models over the past 5 years and using this approach has allowed my batteries to now last for seasons vs months. I just started using flight controllers (gyros) a few months ago and really like how they take the edge off on windy days. The A10 will get one and eventually will slip in my spare gps unit to determine stall speed and convert that to a audible tone on landing approach.

John