TLT Aviation (KMP) 50cc Extra 330L

[BTerry]

	Quote: Originally Posted by Fudman
	where did you get it?

PM sent.

[BTerry]

OK, I received my servos in the mail yesterday. Great prices and service from Doug at www.obrienhobbies.com, as usual. Now I need to wait for a Uni-Hub and RC blimp titanium tailwheel from airwild, and I will be ready to install the equipment.

I finished installing the hinges and control horns, and reinforced the firewall with triangle stock. I will install aluminum angle brackets as well, they were included in the kit.

I notice many planes leave the top of the engine box open. I am worried with this open I will not have the torsional rigidity I desire. The top side important! However, I also want access to the area. I am thinking of a structural, portable hatch of some sort. Has anybody tried this? I will probably glue a hardwood mount to the top of the sides, flush with the edge, and screw a thin plywood cover into place.

[SleepyC]

	Quote:
	Notice the location of the prop drive washer in relation to the cowl. Leave it to an engineer to mess up a simple calculation. I don't feel like cutting the extra 1/4" off the engine box and I don't want to tap new holes in the engine mount, so I will leave it with 1/2" clearance. Maybe I can claim it will help with cooling and "increase thrust".

To be honest you will probably want the nose weight out there.
In my Edge, I had to mount EVERYTHING forward to get the CG right. that 1/4" may just end up being your best friend.

Plane looks great... The color scheme is NICE!

I still think these KMP's (TLT) are some of the best flying bang for the buck planes you can get! (except the YAK it was a pig )


Keep the report coming!

[BTerry]

	Quote: Originally Posted by SleepyC
	Keep the report coming!

Thanks! I love the comments.

I only have about 2 hours of total work into this plane now. I just can't find the time to devote to it, projects keep popping up.

I have decided to replace the tailwheel with the RC Blimp titanium gear. It weighs about a ounce or so more than the stock gear, but I know I will NEVER have a problem with it. I hate dealing with tailwheels almost as much as I hate messing with wheelpants.

[BTerry]

I received my large-volume Pitts muffler from Brillelli yesterday and mounted it. It weighs just under 9 oz and fits well under the cowl. I will cut the cowl tomorrow but so far it appears the body of the muffler will fit inside the cowl with only the exhaust pipes protruding.

I also received a new Ultralite side dump muffler from Brillelli. The quality is very good and it is extremely light. See the pic on the scale.

I bought a wing bag from www.hobby-pak.com. It is very high quality. In fact, I feel a bit guilty because there are several highly-reputed domestic (US) wing bag makers and this is close in quality, but at a price they cannot match.
Anyway it is made from heavy nylon cloth and has a heavy fabric liner.

I started trimming the covering from the servo mounts. I honestly think the covering is all Ultracoat (Oracover), the real stuff and not the cheap junk.

I was hoping to run the engine this weekend. Wednesday was 72 degrees here in New England, but tonight through tomorrow we have a big Nor'Easter storm, and will have 10 - 18 inches of new snow by tomorrow morning, which will be followed by an inch or so of rain, and then freezing temperatures tomorrow night. Oh well! I guess I will stay home and work on Honeydo projects, hoping to steal a few minutes to work on the plane!

Brett

[SleepyC]

I have those wing bags.. got them on Ebay.
GREAT product for the price.
I have them for my 30% edge, and 35% yak, both work GREAT!

Plane still looks nice!

[BTerry]

I was concerned about the strength of the joint attaching my stab mounting tab plate to the stabilizer, so I pinned them into place with bamboo skewers (drill a hole, put Titebond on the skewer, twist it into the hole, cut off flush after the glue is dry).

I cut the skewers off flush using my cheap Home Depot-version of a Japanese Flush-Cut Pull Saw. It has a flexible blade and will not mar the substrate surface. I find this is a very useful tool and use it often with household and airplane projects.

I installed my RC Blimp tailwheel. I am very impressed with its quality and durability. I center-drilled a 3/8" dowel, 1/2" long, and installed that in the tailwheel mount plate. This tailwheel isn't going ANYWHERE! I dislike messing with tailwheels when I should be flying, so this is just the ticket!

I have my throttle arm installed but need to think about the servo installation a bit. I think I will install the servo inside the engine box, and try to keep the servo arm and throttle arm parallel and in plane. This should eliminate mechanical "exponential" in the linkage. My heli is set up this way and i like the feel of the throttle.

Well, this is all for tonight. We are getting yet another late-season snow storm this weekend so I probably won't get the engine running until next week.

Brett

[BTerry]

Now that I have been relegated to the second page (or rather, allowed myself to slip to the second page) I believe an update is in order.

After struggling with the throttle servo I believe I have it all set. The servo arm is as close to parallel and in-plane with the throttle arm as is practacable.

I quickly threw the receiver and batteries in the fuse to run the Brillelli engine this weekend. What a sweet engine! It has monstrous compression so the prop just snaps through with a swift flip. After tweaking the needles a bit I had it running with a smooth, slow idle and a slightly rich top end (stumbles once every 3-5 seconds). The best part is, the midrange is SMOOTH, and transitions are perfect. No stuttering, popping, or spitting at all in the midrange and transition from midrange to full throttle is quick and steady. Hot and cold restarts only require a couple of quick flips. The S&S ignition is high quality and makes the engine very user-friendly.

The vibration around 3000-3500, which is present in all single cylinders, isn't too bad on this engine. It is less than my ZDZ40 in this RPM range.

Here are the numbers (for those who care): 87 octane pump gas, 32:1 Pennzoil Air-Cooled, JXF 22X8, 45* ambient, approx 100% humidity (raining), 320 ft elevation. Steady idle=1250, WOT=6950 - 7150 with cheap Hanger 9 tach and low light conditions. If I fully lean the HS needle to get a smooth max RPM (perfect on the ground, too lean for flight) it picks up another 150-200 rpm (~7300 RPM). I think that is pretty good on a 22x8 prop, so thrust won't be a concern. The muffler had a thin coating of soft black soot around the outlets, which is easily removed (the GOOD kind).

I will post some pictures later.

Brett

[BTerry]

I have the Extra within an hour of flying at this time. I threw the plane together for a few pictures and to finalize balance, etc. Back in the days before ARFS I couldn't WAIT until the plane was framed up just so I could put it together, admire my work, and make airplane noises while dreaming of the fun times to come...

I was concerned about the strength of the fuselage sides, as they are only made of balsa. I made a receiver plate tying the aft locator pin retainers together and into the former at that location. This is the plate visible in the radio compartment picture. The receiver is sitting on it. I had hoped to install the batteries in this location as well but the engine is far too light and I need the weight forward.

I still need to install a spinner, just haven't picked one yet. I could use 4 oz or so of nose weight with the batteries next to the tank and the ignition battery on the side of the motor box (ignition outside, battery inside).

Here is the biggest surprise. I placed the wheels on my postal scales and thought there was a mistake. My initial guess was this plane would weigh around 16# rtf.

Well, my scales read 95.4+93.4+38.7 oz = 227.5 oz, or 14.2#. Can that be right? I pulled out the digital bathroom scale and verified it, 14.5 pounds! I still need to mount the canopy and that weighs 6 oz, but this weight is truly UNBELIEVABLE! If I didn't see it with my own eyes I wouldn't believe it myself. I can't WAIT to fly this plane!

Any comments? I love to hear from the FG brotherhood.

Brett

[BTerry]

Let's see, I need to explain the pics. The foam mats on the ground in front of the slide and the poor light conditions in my basement detract a bit from the color scheme but this plane looks NICE in person. I know the plane will be easily visible in any light condition. The wings and stab have a blue/white checkerboard design.

The aft end of the fuse has an access hatch and that should help. Of course this plane is tail heavy so I won't need to mount batteries back there.

The Brillelli 50gt looks sharp sticking out of the cowl! I think I have enough area for a decent air exit. If the engine tends to run hot I will baffle the cowl a bit (shouldn't be necessary).

The throttle servo is mounted low in the engine box in a non-serviceable location, but is mounted with the servo arm in plane with, and parallel to, the throttle arm at all points. That was a REAL challenge! I learned how to do that by setting up helicopters, and it makes a big difference in the controllability of the throttle. I don't know how much it will help with a butterfly valve carb though. Also, the choke arm is easy to reach from the front of the cowl.

I cut some of the length (3/4" or so) off the muffler exhaust pipes to clear the cowl, and ended up opening the cowl a bit more anyhow. I wish I left the tubes as they were! Oh well. If this gives me a problem I can add some silicone exhaust extensions later.

Thanks for looking!

Brett

[SleepyC]

My KMP Edge is 15.5 lbs AUW so I think your right in the ball park!
Good luck!

[BTerry]

I certainly dropped the ball keeping this thread updated. Here is a brief synopsis.

I replaced the engine with a slightly used DL-50 because the DL was very cheap. The Brillelli was very good, and while the DL is decent and slightly more powerful, it certainly won't last as long as the Brillelli.

After a few flights I noticed the wing tube was slightly bent. I replaced it with a carbon tube from Troybuilt, and am very happy with the results. The carbon tube is nearly bulletproof.

The plane flies very well! In fact the last time I flew the muffler bolts loosened and the engine started running funny. It wouldn't idle down completely and the plane would not land. It will actually fly (maintain altitude) at high idle. I had to line it up and use the ignition cutoff.

The final weight was just over 15# after adding the spinner and pilot, and if I remember correctly it has 1380 in^2 of wing area. The Extra is almost too light, if that is possible. Spin entries can be difficult at times because it just floats. 3D flight is quite good on the other hand. Harriers/elevators are simple upright or inverted

I think the plane looks very sharp at the field and in the air. Check out the pictures.

Thanks for looking!

Take care everybody, and Happy Fathers Day.

Brett