Official Freewing 90mm F-16 Falcon Thread

[Hugh Wiedman]

Got another 4 flights in of my F-16 Wisconsin Fighter Wing version, along with 4 flights (including the maiden!!!) of the SU-30 and 7 of the Avanti. I've been using the 6000mah 50C Admiral Pro battery and thought it flew well on that, but this time I tried the Roaring Top 5500mah 70C battery and I have to say the inrunner loved it. Gets off the grass quicker and has a higher top end; just flies beautifully. That's all this baby is going to get from now on. This is THE only plane I own that I have yet to coat with the clear Spar Urethane, for fear of adding any extra weight. With the RT's, it can handle it, so it's now on the bench waiting to get coated over the next few days-I really like the extra protection the Urethane gives the foam. Next time out, I'm changing the tail and nose cone to the Lone Star Gunfighters so everyone thinks I have yet another F-16 (which is the only livery of 4 that has yet to see any flight time). Got 3 1/2 minutes with 28% battery left, and that was after doing multiple loops, Spit S's and Cuban 8's. Get more time on the 6000, but definitely not as fun!

On the RT, the 4068-1835kvv inrunner is drawing 116.7 amps (as measured on a GT Power meter) and 2684 watts - nice power. Wish I had a way to measure the thrust, other than stick my head in the exhaust nozzle, take a selfie, and see how my face looks.

[Aros]

I figured you would love the RT 5500's...That is my go-to battery for my EDF jets and this one especially. I will throw in an Admiral 5100 Carbon or 5000 but it just doesn't have the same "punch" to me as my RTs. Speaking of I need to grab four more...These two I have are getting pretty used up. That SU-30 is a beaut as well!

[Hugh Wiedman]

I figured you would love the RT 5500's...That is my go-to battery for my EDF jets and this one especially. I will throw in an Admiral 5100 Carbon or 5000 but it just doesn't have the same "punch" to me as my RTs. Speaking of I need to grab four more...These two I have are getting pretty used up. That SU-30 is a beaut as well!

Unfortunately, the 5500 is out of stock with Jetwerx and with Roaring Top themselves. Got the last 8. 3 arrived earlier this week (which I got to use in the F-16 and SU-30) and hopefully another 5 are coming tomorrow. Also tried to get some of the 6250's that Chris (RC GEEK) uses exclusively in all his FW jets, but snagged the last 1 only. I'll test the output tomorrow (assuming it arrives with the others). With potential shipments from China being stopped, I wonder if we'll see any more for a while, assuming that goes through.

[Aros]

Hey, save some for the rest of us!

[JLambCWU]

Unfortunately, the 5500 is out of stock with Jetwerx and with Roaring Top themselves. Got the last 8. 3 arrived earlier this week (which I got to use in the F-16 and SU-30) and hopefully another 5 are coming tomorrow. Also tried to get some of the 6250's that Chris (RC GEEK) uses exclusively in all his FW jets, but snagged the last 1 only. I'll test the output tomorrow (assuming it arrives with the others). With potential shipments from China being stopped, I wonder if we'll see any more for a while, assuming that goes through.

F-16 running the 1835 inrunner and 70C 5500mah RTs at AZ jets. 124mph on the radar gun. Stock ones were running at around 105mph.

Roaring Top for the win!

[Aros]

Well my dog is in the dog house. On takeoff today she decided it would be a great idea somehow to run right out in front of my F-16 at V1! Broke the canopy, nose cone, gear and nose doors and tanks.



Anybody could have heard me from a mile away. Boxers are especially sensitive so I did feel bad for yelling at her. I gave her a hug, told her I still loved her and yes that I still thought she was stupid for doing it.

Already ordered all the parts and my BP has returned to normal. To make matters worse, my RunCam didn't turn on. Thought it was charged but I guess not. I sure picked a fine time to go on a fast from wine!

[Hugh Wiedman]

Well my dog is in the dog house. On takeoff today she decided it would be a great idea somehow to run right out in front of my F-16 at V1! Broke the canopy, nose cone, gear and nose doors and tanks.



Anybody could have heard me from a mile away. Boxers are especially sensitive so I did feel bad for yelling at her. I gave her a hug, told her I still loved her and yes that I still thought she was stupid for doing it.

Already ordered all the parts and my BP has returned to normal. To make matters worse, my RunCam didn't turn on. Thought it was charged but I guess not. I sure picked a fine time to go on a fast from wine!

Just seems like there is nothing but bad news out there, first the health epidemic and now a mishap with my number 1 favorite modified F-16 (other than my own of course), say it ain't so. And excuse me for saying this, but it is a real shame your video camera didn't work; I'm rolling on the floor at just the thought of what that would have looked like, and God knows, we could all use a little laughter these days. At least it sounds like the parts that got damaged where all the easily replaceable ones though, so could have been worse. Good thing it wasn't me, cause I'd have order an immediate court marshal of the wayward 4 legged ground crew for dereliction of duty followed by a firing squad.

[Aros]

LOL yeah I too thought, "And I didn't even get it on video!!" Of all the luck! Definitely could have been worse. I even flew it after the event. Just had to tape certain things down and close the giant hole in the canopy. Luckily the airframe and gear is still unscathed. I will feel a lot better after I get all the parts and get her back to normal again. My 4-legged co-pilot has been grounded from all takeoff chases indefinitely!

[Aros]

She's back! All my replacement parts arrived today and she's good as new. Baylee was not allowed outside of the car during my flight.

[Hugh Wiedman]

She's back! All my replacement parts arrived today and she's good as new. Baylee was not allowed outside of the car during my flight.

Very nice, she looks none the worse for wear. And I love that you always fly her fully loaded, the only way to go! Baylee probably loved it so much that he was trying to hitch a ride, can't blame him. You really got the nose up landing attitude down! Looks like you got the place all to yourself with everyone quarantined at home, lucky dog. Both clubs I belong to are closed for now so starting to get cabin fever. Watching your videos does help though, so keep 'em coming.

[Aros]

Very nice, she looks none the worse for wear. And I love that you always fly her fully loaded, the only way to go! Baylee probably loved it so much that he was trying to hitch a ride, can't blame him. You really got the nose up landing attitude down! Looks like you got the place all to yourself with everyone quarantined at home, lucky dog. Both clubs I belong to are closed for now so starting to get cabin fever. Watching your videos does help though, so keep 'em coming.

Thanks Hugh! Yeah I have decided fully loaded is the ONLY way to fly this bird, lol...She just looks too ruthless! Yeah, you would think I have the AoA down pat but that's just because I don't show the less-than perfect landings, LOL!

I have heard more than a few comments telling me they appreciate the videos during this difficult time so it really makes me want to video/publish more flights right now. Every little bit helps I guess? Thanks for watching and enjoying! It means a lot.

[Hugh Wiedman]

With all this free time on my hands, I've been able to do a little more battery C and EDF power testing. As I said in the SU-30 thread, the EDF inrunners really seem to benefit from a higher C rated battery, say 70-100 (vs 35-50), although we all know that the true C is not anywhere near that. With that said, the Roaring Top 5500 70C tested with the internal resistance ESR meter a true C higher than the Admiral 6000 50C and RT 6250 35C, not surprisingly. Unfortunately that's all I have to test, but image the HRB and Gen Ace high C batteries are similar, but their weight is slightly more and the mah rating is slightly less, so I go for the highest mah for longer flights while still giving enough power for take-off on grass.

The F-16 upgraded inrunner and the SU-30's inrunners gave a power reading of 12% higher in watts (+250 to 350 watts) over the Admiral and RT 6250 35C. That's a big difference for me. Oddly enough, the stock 90mm outrunner EDF's in both my F4 Phantom and Blue Angel and my Stinger 90 got almost zero increase in watts between the RT 70C, Admiral 50C and RT 35C. My only conclusion is that the outrunners don't need or require the higher discharge rate. Chris with RC Geek says that he flies all FW jets on the 6250 35C cause the higher C isn't needed and just adds weight. I'll continue to fly the F-16 & SU-30 on the RT 5500 70C and the F4's and Stinger on the RT6250 35C (which is slightly lighter and should give an extra 25-30 seconds of flight time). If I ever get back out to the field, I'll try the 6250 in the F-16 & SU-30 to see if it is acceptable and gives more flight time. I already flew the F-16 inrunner on the Admiral 6000 50C for about 30 flights and it was good (but when I tried the 70C it rocked).

Just for the hell of it, I tested the stock outrunner in my 1600mm Corsair with each battery and the power increase over the Admiral 5000 50C was +130 watts on the RT 6250 35C and +350 watts with the RT 5500 70C. Just when I thought I solved the issue that the inrunners benefit from a higher C and the outrunners do not, this test baffled me. Maybe that's true with EDF's and not so much with props, but I have no idea. The Corsair really doesn't need any additional power, as it usually gets off the deck almost before you get to full throttle and I rarely "open it up" unless climbing or doing a split S or Cuban 8, so I'll stick with the Admiral 5000 50C which gives at least 6-8 minutes flight time.

After all this, I realize I now know less than I thought I did before. Does any of this make any sense to anyone, or am I completely in left field. All that matters is does the bird fly the way you like it with the battery you choose, and maybe that's the moral of the story.

[Aros]

LOL Hugh, the one thing I can say with ALL certainty after being in this hobby for 23 years is that I still no NOTHING about C ratings.

[Aros]

Bored with quarantine so I took the first photos of my two current Arctic Camos (FW 90mm F-16, FW 80mm A-10) in my hangar. I wonder what they talk about at night?

[Hugh Wiedman]

[QUOTE=Aros;n246719]Bored with quarantine so I took the first photos of my two current Arctic Camos (FW 90mm F-16, FW 80mm A-10) in my hangar. I wonder what they talk about at night? 😼

They discuss how they're going to break out of quarantine and fly FREE. I know this for a fact, couldn't sleep the other night (maybe it was all the alcohol with nothing else to do) and went by the room I use for my hangar and could hear all my planes discussing a mass mutiny. Although the sentiment seemed more centered on stopping me from getting my hands back on the controls as most were quite happy that I haven't been able to take them out lately.

[Aros]

[Aros]

Well it's been almost 24 hours since I killed the gear and just bought replacement parts. She should be all repaired soon and no worse for the wear. My ego on the other hand...

[Aros]

Received the gear a day early (nice surprise) and was pleasantly surprised how easy the main gear was to install! My biggest fear was trying to fish the servo leads through some impossibly small channel but I happily discovered the servo leads were easily accessible next to the main gear base. So the rest was unscrewing the base, retracts from the base, then installing onto the new unit and screwing back in. The nose gear simply had a bent lower strut so I simply unscrewed it and screwed on the new one. Whole replacement took me under 20 minutes! Well under my lunch hour. So she's all ready for her Flight of the Phoenix tomorrow.

[Aros]

Whoa, that was post 666! Should I be worried??

[Phantom]

Hmmmm, my screen says his post is #663.... this one should be #665.