Peter Jenkins Posted January 30, 2016 Author Share Posted January 30, 2016 Mike, glad to hear that you are enjoying your Mythos. Which version did you go for in the end? I think that most folk who've not flown a specialist F3A design are surprised by their wonderful flying characteristics and secondly by the need to trim them! Even these birds are transformed by proper rigorous trimming. It's not difficult to carry out but you must follow the correct trimming sequence or you go round in circles! Let us know how you get on with the trimming - when the weather relents that is! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Jenkins Posted February 12, 2016 Author Share Posted February 12, 2016 Hi guys, you might be interested to know that Bondaero is offering a 20% discount on all their stock items from midday tomorrow 13th February until midday Sunday 21st February. This is to mark their 4th anniversary. As an example, you can get an Axiome 70 EP, with motor, ESC, wing bags, spinner and prop for £289.40! You can use standard servos on this but you will need to add the cost of LiPos and charger if you don't have them. Check out the website. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Martyn K Posted February 13, 2016 Share Posted February 13, 2016 GBRCAA are running another NPOD on the 9th April at Skelbrooke. Details are here. Martyn Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
graeme jones Posted March 18, 2016 Share Posted March 18, 2016 For anyone that's interested, I've started a build thread for my current project, a 2 metre F3A design, on the GBRCAA forum - http://www.gbrcaa.org/smf/index.php?topic=4663.0 Graeme Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiwibob Posted March 18, 2016 Share Posted March 18, 2016 Very interesting, Graeme ☺ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Jenkins Posted June 13, 2016 Author Share Posted June 13, 2016 Hi Guys and Gals I'm running a new to aerobatics pilot open day on Sunday 26th June at the Raydon & District MAC. The site is located on the old Raydon airfield which is off the A12 between Ipswich and Colchester. There are currently four places still available. The day offers coaching in aerobatics to pilots who are never flown competition aerobatics. All you need is an A certificate and an aircraft that will do aerobatics - Wot 4s have been used at previous NPODs - and a desire to learn how to fly better aerobatics. You will be coached by experienced aerobatic pilots who have lots of experience in flying in competition, some at the highest level. Incidentally, I'm serious about the Gals part. We have had one lady already fly in an earlier NPOD and another will be flying in this one. Don't be shy now ladies! So, if you are interested, please PM me ASAP with your email address and I'll send out some guidance notes and an entry form. Entry fees will be £8 which will include a BBQ for lunch on the day. Peter Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiwibob Posted June 13, 2016 Share Posted June 13, 2016 It's a great experience.. I flew in one a few years ago, and it changed my whole outlook on aerobatics.. Indeed, I used a Wot4.. and did a passable sequence.. Many thanks to you Peter for your encouragement Bob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kiwibob Posted June 13, 2016 Share Posted June 13, 2016 It's a great experience.. I flew in one a few years ago, and it changed my whole outlook on aerobatics.. Indeed, I used a Wot4.. and did a passable sequence.. Many thanks to you Peter for your encouragement Bob Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Jenkins Posted July 6, 2016 Author Share Posted July 6, 2016 The New (to aerobatics) Pilot Open Day was held on Sunday 26th June and 8 pilots flew in it. For a short report and to see photographs of the event please click here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linda Easter Posted July 7, 2016 Share Posted July 7, 2016 Thanks Peter for the pictures .It was a great day and as usual all your hard work paid off . The pilots did extremely well in those crosswinds. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Willyuk Posted August 29, 2016 Share Posted August 29, 2016 Well, I have just checked and I first posted on this thread on the 8th of April 2014, asking Peter what an NPOD was. At that time i had only recently passed my A test. 2 years on and I have just returned from competing at Clubman level at the Nats. What a journey it has been and what a rewarding 2 years of effort, although I realise that there is a huge amount more that I could do. For anyone contemplating trying to improve the precision of their flying I really recommend giving an NPOD a go and taking it from there. I have received huge amounts of help, not only from Peter but from everyone involved in aerobatics. I was very wary of entering a competition as I am not a competitive sort of person and did not want to look an idiot in front of anyone else but the friendliness and assistance shown by everyone took that fear away. During the past 2 years not only have I learnt a huge amount I have met some fantastic pilots and made some new friends. Give it a go!!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Willyuk Posted August 29, 2016 Share Posted August 29, 2016 here are a couple of photos of the event. I am the old guy at the back!! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Bott - Moderator Posted August 29, 2016 Share Posted August 29, 2016 Well done to GMACs young Alex Ames. Won gold in f3a clubman, if I'm not mistaken? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Linda Easter Posted August 29, 2016 Share Posted August 29, 2016 Well done to you all .The NPOD 's are definitely great for anyone wanting to get into competition flying and are a great learning experience. I myself learned so much from my day a few years back and I hope Peter continues to run them . Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Jenkins Posted August 29, 2016 Author Share Posted August 29, 2016 Congrats to WillyUK - you've come a long way in a short time - keep up the good work. Alex did win Gold, while WillyUK took Silver and Philip Lewis the Bronze in Clubman. Oh yes Linda, there will be another NPOD in 2017 and possibly some Clubman Events. So, all you pilots in East Anglia keep an eye out on this website which is where the info will be placed on these events. Your Club Sec will also get a note but by subscribing to the News section on this page (right hand side on the menu) you will get an email as soon as the event is posted on this website. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
graeme jones Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 Hi Peter - 2 points - 1. I want to thank you for enabling me to save a model last week which would otherwise have been re-kitted. I'll explain. I was testing an OrangeRX receiver with built-in 3 axis gyros, when something went wrong leaving the model rolling to the right at about 180 degrees per second with no stick input. A few years ago I would have twiddled the sticks a bit and then given up and waited for the inevitable. Thanks to the aerobatic flying I've been doing, I was able to restore at least a measure of control, full left aileron stopped the roll but gave a severe nose up pitch, so both ailerons were now fully down and acting as flaps. A bit of down elevator levelled it off again. Trouble was it wouldn't steer on rudder, just fly sideways, and it was at some distance and headed away. Relax the left aileron to roll to inverted, apply left aileron to hold and relax the down elevator to do a split-S and get it pointing back to me. There followed a 2 or 3 minute rollercoaster flight which got it almost to the field at 20 feet up but the wrong side of a large tree. That was when the engine stopped. I'm not quite sure what I did at that point, but it "landed" in the next field, just short of the tree. The only damage was 2 broken wing bolts. Lucky or what? 2. I came across an idea on an American F3A site to help those like me who have difficulty in visualising some of the "patterns". Basically it involves drawing them out to scale and holding the paper at arms length to see what it looks like against the sky. Sounds a bit iffy but it might have potential. At my arms length they have to be drawn quite large so I used a piece of foam-board 20" X 30" and came up with these - The scale is 1:250 giving a 300' loop at a distance of 370', or a 400' loop at 500' (150 metres), when held 18" away. I've taken them to the field once and the first thing that they show is that I fly loops etc, much too small. I'll post again when I've had another go. Keep up the good work. Graeme Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mark Allen 1 Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 Graeme, that sounds like an exhilarating flight, well done saving the model. Have you considered using perspex or similar to draw your visual adds onto instead of foam board? At the right scale and arms length you will be able to visualise it at the field. Better still ask a helper to review your shapes and give you some feedback. Mark Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
graeme jones Posted August 31, 2016 Share Posted August 31, 2016 Mark - yes, I have a sheet of clear polycarbonate 40" X 30" and I'm already working on it. I'll need an 8' post to mount it on though, or as you said, a helper. Graeme Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Jenkins Posted August 31, 2016 Author Share Posted August 31, 2016 Graeme - thank you for bringing out the value of learning to fly aerobatics. When things go wrong, as they do from time to time, you have plenty of experience of looking at your aircraft in strange position not to be fazed by it. The fact that you saved your model is what other non-aerobatic pilots might consider as being worthwhile spending some time on for just those situations. Another aid in visualising aerobatic manoeuvres and how the model will look to you is to use a stick model. You can either make one yourself or buy one. With your modelling skills I would think you'd make one in that looks like the aircraft you are flying in around 20 mins with some scrap balsa. As you move the stick model to either side of the box you will be able to visualise what the silhouette should look like. This is especially useful in edge of box down/up lines to get the wings level so that when you return to S/L flight you don't have the aircraft heading in or away from you. I speak with authority on this - that is aircraft flying in or out! I find it takes a lot of practice to gauge the correct attitude in order to come out on the correct line. That's what practice is for of course! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chris Bond - Bondaero Posted December 28, 2016 Share Posted December 28, 2016 My understanding is that subject to approval of the local Contest Director you will, in 2017 be able to compete in GBRCAA competitions without your BMFA B certificate so no excuses now. The GBRCAA are keen to support and help people fly the Clubman schedule at comps so hopefully some more NPODS to come also. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Jenkins Posted April 5, 2017 Author Share Posted April 5, 2017 Hi guys and gals, I've posted a note here advertising 4 aerobatic coaching days aimed at pilots holding an A certificate but with little or no aerobatic background. The idea is to provide training on how to fly aerobatic manoeuvres without resorting to flying a schedule. You can build that up as you progress. Please do consider giving this a go - you won't regret it and you might just learn something that will help you to save your model from going home in a bin bag! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Jenkins Posted August 29, 2017 Author Share Posted August 29, 2017 If you are interested in flying at the new National Centre and in getting coaching in how to fly precision aerobatic manoeuvres correctly, you can kill 2 birds with one stone on Sep 6th. The GBR/CAA is running an Introduction to Aerobatics Course at the National Centre. Cost will be £12 per head and will include refreshments and sandwich lunch. Full details are here. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter Jenkins Posted March 29, 2021 Author Share Posted March 29, 2021 Hi Folks, it’s 3 1/2 years since I posted in this thread! I noticed that when the forum migrated to the new platform that the view-counter was re-started. I note that people are still opening the thread and the count stands at around 285 views. Earlier on, much earlier on(!), someone suggest that I write a book. Well, family issues have diverted me somewhat but the lockdown provided the time to get on and produce a book. The text is around 90% new and there are now diagrams and photos to illustrate points better. The book, called “Model Aircraft Precision Aerobatics – A Guide for Beginners and Improvers” can be accessed through Amazon - https://www.amazon.co.uk/gp/product/B0914PW3XT/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_asin_title_o01_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1. There is a print version and a Kindle version. They are both identical with the exception of the treatment of footnotes – these don’t work on Kindle! Every paragraph is numbered and they are the same in the printed and Kindle versions so easy to cross refer. There is a comprehensive Table of Contents as well as an Index at the end. Navigation round this will be so much easier than it is in this thread – as no doubt you have already found! If you have any questions, feel free to post on here and I’ll try and answer them. The printed book has 136 pages with colour diagrams and photos. The number of pages in the Kindle version is anybody’s guess as it depends on how large your viewing screen is. Hence, I adopted para numbering. Follow the link or just type “Model Aircraft Precision Aerobatics” into Amazon and it will find the book. Peter 1 1 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ron Gray Posted March 30, 2021 Share Posted March 30, 2021 Well done Peter, I thought you’d been a bit quiet! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jonathan M Posted March 30, 2021 Share Posted March 30, 2021 Excellent initiative Peter, well done. Have ordered a paper copy and look forward to getting stuck in! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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