Awesome, Glade you got it sorted, That should do the trick.

I have been working on the model but haven't had a chance to share my progress due to work commitments but I have made a lot of progress! so here we go.

Spinner:

Learnt this technique when I did this for my 1/4 FW190 and I just couldn't resist!. Took my a while to get the same orange color as per the model so I ended up using a mix of x2 Tamiya spray paints for the perfect match!

Once I worked out the engine mount and clearance for the spinner it was time to mount the engine properly and hook up the gas servo after having worked out the geometry and throws.

For the stock mufflers I used Nord lock washers with Loctite 272 as it just works! - mufflers were installed using a high temp. gasket maker from Permatex.

For the cowl, I marked the holes using a sheet template and transferred these marks onto the cowl for drilling with the Dremel, nice fit - not too much not to little, just right to get the cowl in/out without problems.

Once done I put some thin cyano around the edges of the muffler holes to avoid chipping.

Using the Powerbox Spark Switch pro allows you to hook up many sensors, including rpm and temperature. The switch comes with the temp probe already so installing it was easy.

I thought about getting another one and Y lead this into the switch - being a twin engine, but I am only installing it cos it came with the kit for general purpose only, I know it will give me readings on one cylinder but the other one shouldn't be far off.

Installing it is pretty easy, just drill the cylinder fin closest to the actual spark. Secure with a nordlock washer and Loctice 272. It also comes with some highly conductive paste which should be use in between the sensor and the fin.

Interesting note is that when installing you have to make sure the contact between the sensor and the fin is done properly so making sure the sensor itself (not the sensor metal O ring) touches the fin.

Since I installed the engine, I have been thinking a lot about weight and balance and where to put the remaining x2 Rx batteries plus Ignition battery plus smoke pump and so on..

My initial thoughts were to install the smoke pump somehow visible in front of the oil tank but before doing it, I did an initial weight and balance with all these items to see where we at.

Turned out that I was somehow tail heavy (even moving all batts up front) in what I thought it was an "ideal" placement for these, so I went and installed the smoke pump as much up front as possible in the engine box. This way I could be 100% sure that if anything, I can always play with battery placement.

For securing the smoke pump I came across with a fellow FG member who made a 3D printed holder for the PowerBox smoke pump, so I asked and he sent me the file to print it myself. It is fantastic as I can finally install this pump anywhere I want and secure it properly

Of course I painted it in orange.

Cables were left unmade until I knew where to place it.
Time to fit the smoke lines.

Freeking Awesome Love that Spinner, it is coming alone nice, Very high standard and quality of work you have, me like it Very neate setup.

After doing some research as to what battery capacity to use for this project, in the end I will be using:

x2 OptiPower 3500mAh for the PowerBox SRS
x1 OptiPower 2150mAh for ignition

The smoke pump will be fed from the x2 Rx batteries as at the moment I don't think I will be using another small extra pack for this, time will see if I need to counterbalance the CG...

Having these sorted out, before thinking where to place these it was time to put my new machine to work, my Xicoy CG & Weight meter which is awesome!

Initially I tried messing the CG lifting the plane with a friend, this method is not 100% but works just fine for small models, this time I wasn't happy with the results so I bought the Xicoy meter as it is something I wanted to get and it is a good investment for any serious modeller out there.

This machine consists on 3 digital precision scales, with 1g tolerance connected using standard servo leads to the computer terminal. It has a memory for up to 100 models so you can go back and forth and tweak the CG of any model anywhere.

There are 2 things that should be done first:

1) Level the plane as normal flying attitude
2) Take some measurements which are entered into the computer.

These are distance from mains to tail wheel and distance from mains to desired CG (as per manufacturer). The third measure is distance from mains to weight placement which is not that important as this is used to tell you exactly how much weight to add/remove to get to where you want.

The first 2 measurements need to be done with 100% accuracy, I checked at least 5 times that these were correct.

Once the model levelled and on top of the scales, you can read in real time where the CG is located, the total weight on each main and tail as well as how much weight to add/remove to get to the desired CG. Very intuitive and easy to use.

For this I placed the plane on a big table as flat as possible and transferred the manufacturer CG using a plumb bob to the actual table where I marked it on a masking tape across running across alongside with the other measurements.

Of course you have to place the batteries where you want them to be and everything else, included the pilot which I got from G-Force Pilots (awesome!) and took some readings:

1) Plane fully loaded (batteries+ 1000cc fuel tank + 500cc smoke) - take off
2) Plane partially loaded (batteries only)
3) Plane fully loaded with 500cc remaining fuel - landing

Turns out that when fully loaded I am of course nose heavy just 8mm AFT, with batteries only I am tail heavy by another 9mmm fully loaded with 500cc fuel I am still tail heavy by 6mm.

Looks like this place needs more weight at the front (hence why I placed the smoke pump in the enginebox), but don't want to really stack all batteries inside the engine box cos of convenience so I have marked my spot for these and I think providing these readings I will be ok and safe.

Of course once you fly you can really check in the air and adjust for whatever style you want, I am particularly interested in flying IMAC most of the time so will need a more nose heavy plane than tail heavy. If this is the case, once I maiden the 330SC I can move the batts inside the engine box or even get larger packs... (I hope not!)

For the batteries I am getting a friend of mine to print some battery compartments so I can easily plug these in safely and quick, ( soon in my next post)

One question I have is:

The recommended CG in the Pilot Extra 330SC 35% is slightly behind the wing tube, something a bit unusual, but what would be the CG envelope?, what is considered too dangerous to fly (tail heavy) within this envelope?

my experience with 35%s is that you are fine behind the mfrs CG. The CG range on these planes is very wide and require a lot of weight in the tail to be truly tail heavy. The SW Slick in my avatar was maidened with the CG well in back of the mfrs CG and it was fine. Since then it has about 1/3lb added to it in the tail and it is still not truly tail heavy. 8 mm is not something i would worry about.

Originally Posted by FGNewbie

my experience with 35%s is that you are fine behind the mfrs CG. The CG range on these planes is very wide and require a lot of weight in the tail to be truly tail heavy. The SW Slick in my avatar was maidened with the CG well in back of the mfrs CG and it was fine. Since then it has about 1/3lb added to it in the tail and it is still not truly tail heavy. 8 mm is not something i would worry about.

Yeah, that’s what I thought, I am even considering adding a bit of weight, like 150-180g in the nose if need be for IMAC but I think like this should be ok to maiden and later on see how it flies.

Time to baffle the engine.
I thought about doing these myself but considering technology nowadays and the endless possibilities of designing and printing any parts with 3D printers, I ended up going this route.

For these I ordered some custom baffles from RC3DPrint very good service and quality products

I just took some measuremens and sent to them, they just fit perfectly with good clearance between the engine fins and the baffles.

Some 30min epoxy and done!

yeah there some nice baffles, I might have to invest in a set looking really flash

Once worked out the initial CG of the plane it was time to figure out a system to secure both OptiPower RX batteries in the sweet spot that I wanted. Easy to reach and convenience.

So I decided to mount these forward the wing tube on both sides of the smoke / gas tank building some plywood trays cut to fit using the 2 joiners inside the fuse to take the weight and secure them safely.

To secure the batteries a friend of mine printed some trays using his 3D printer which were custom made for these batts. These plastic 3D trays are mounted to the plywood plate using x2 M3 screws which are flushed inside.

And again, I painted them both orange

For the Ignition batt I will do the same which I am waiting to be printed.

Now I have to figure out how to connect the two batteries onto the Powerbox SRS. I have 2 options:

1) Build an extension cable using MPX to MPX. That means having a possible point of connexion failure between the extension cable and the battery... 2 connections

2) Cut the MPX connector from the battery and extend the battery cables (using 12 AWG wire) to reach the Powerbox straight away...1 connection

I have my pros/cons for each method, being the most worrying one vibration and loosing connection using method 1.

What do you guys normally do to extend Rx batts that are far way from the power distributor?

Great work on the trays, looks very neate.

But do isolate the batteries against vibration, run some foam between the cell and the mount, lipos don’t like vibes nor any battery really.

The extensions are fine way to go, just have the cable secures against moving around, I do prefer xt60 or deans fittings but just ensure you have some strain relief on each connector, ie small amount of heat shrink on each of the solders wires and should be perfect.

Here is some examples, you might be able to get a multiplex ext with her molded in grips, these are solid connections.

Originally Posted by The Hodge

Great work on the trays, looks very neate.

But do isolate the batteries against vibration, run some foam between the cell and the mount, lipos don’t like vibes nor any battery really.

The extensions are fine way to go, just have the cable secures against moving around, I do prefer xt60 or deans fittings but just ensure you have some strain relief on each connector, ie small amount of heat shrink on each of the solders wires and should be perfect.

Here is some examples, you might be able to get a multiplex ext with her molded in grips, these are solid connections.

Yeah, thanks for reminding me about foam under the batts!, completely forgot :-)

As the batteries come with MPX, I can easily make a proper extension using high quality wires, no probs. Although very robust connections, I am always biased towards eliminating any unnecessary points of failure hence why I thought about cutting and extending the cables from the batteries instead.

But I guess either way, would work just fine

In the end, I made a couple of MPX to MPX extension cables for the two Rx batteries using 12AWG wire, nice and solid!.

Connectors stay solid but I was wondering if there is an easy put on/off MPX connector safety clip?, just for safety during flying..

Ignition: Finally got my OptiPower 2S Lipo 2150mAh for the Ignition which I also made a tray for it to be installed inside the engine box.
This tray is different from the Rx trays as it sits just above the gas servo and other things so I extended the ears to bolt it securely to the engine box with enough clearance.

PowerBox Ignition Pro module was then finally fitted to the airframe, crimping and finishing all remaining wires which I left once I knew where things were going.

Finally, it was time to glue to top of the engine box so I can install the engine ignition and figure out all the wiring left.