You know I've always wanted one of these planes.
(Video from this past weekend testing the new power plant. I've managed to comfortable landing the T-28 but go figure while shooting the video I completely botch the appoarch. Oh well ;) )
An opportunity I could not pass on...
Back in March of this year a fellow flyer at the field had a bad day.
Well rather his ParkZone T-28 Trojan did.
The owner had misjudged a snow bank and the out come was pretty harsh.
He said it was time to retire the plane! I offered to give it a good home and we struck a deal.
$20 with no electronics.
It did not take me long to mend the damage.
I used a tube of $ Store 5 minute epoxy to reattach the broken off nose section.
You can see she has lived a hard flying life but still very capable of tearing up the sky.
Might not have been the prettiest restoration job but the air frame is whole again.
For the initial flight and just to get the T-28 back in the air I mounted one of my trust 2830-10 1000 KV motors.
10x6 MA style prop, HK 35Amp ESC, 9X receiver, four HXT900 9g servos and a 3S 2200 battery.
“You have any bathroom caulking?” the previous owner asked. The look on my face said it all.
Yes you use caulking to seal in the servos when dealing with this type of foam.
I was sceptical at the start but it works very well. Holds them in while not damaging the foam. Easy to remove.
After a few hours of work my $20 T-28 was ready to go flying.
With the previous owner looking on to offer advice and support the T-28 took the sky like a pro.
I did have to fiddle with the trim a touch but it flew true and straight once I adjusted the flight surfaces.
First flight video.
The 1000 KV motor with 10x6 prop did the job.
I was able to fly for up to 7 mins.
To fly the T-28 at proper speeds I did have to push the power combo but still it ran well.
The ESC and battery get plently of cooling from the prop blast.
More Power
Enter my first motor upgrade. I’ve been flying since September 2013 and those 2830 1000 KV have been in all my planes.
The Durafly 3536-850 (Durafly 1100mm T-28 and SE5A - Replacement 850kv Motor) is the power unit used in Durafly T-28 model. An airplane with a flying weight that is 385g heavier then the ParkZone version.
Impoved mount. This is an E-Flite mount for their 480 class motor. Worked like a charm.
Spinner and prob combo again from the Durafly package. Those props are nice but not cheap at $4 a piece.
My T-28 is all set for a new round of tests.
So how does the new setup stack?
- Takes off well under 1/2 throttle.
- Will climb veritcally forever at 1/2 throttle.
- Flight times reduced from 7mins with the smaller motor to 5 and a half minutes.
- Tail weight had to be added to counter act the nose heavy nature of the new motor, prop and spinner combo.
- Still flies great, is well mannered and a complete blast to zip around the park.
I think I feel the same way as you.
My favorite planes are those made for no money, re used or no conventional material (it's why i like the flite test spirit). I always preferred them from the nice perfect and ready made kits.
PS : With what kind of camera was taken the film ?
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Funny you say that. I have an Flyzone Micro Tiger Moth.
It sat in a box all winter. My Dad was struggling with larger scale planes plus his park is small so even I was always in a banked turn any time I flew there.
I handed him the Moth/7 batteries and said fly. It was not in perfect condition when I passed him and well it is a little worst for wear (was my first new plane) but now he is flying up a storm. So I'm happy with that. I'll pass it to my son next. No point in keeping it in box all protected and new.
I more or less decided I will not buy new planes.
I really do like building the scratch builds but the foam ones have their pluses.
So if this ever happens again I'll act on it. The T28 is a super stable plane to fly just need to keep the speed up on landing. It handles very much like the FT Racer.
Cameras:
The hand held one is a GoPro 960. I'm looking for a used GoPro2 which has an audio input. My wife commented the wind noise was too much. So I've ordered a shotgun mic and wind sock.
The onboard footage is from the Hobby King HD Wing Camera 1280x720p 30fps 5MP CMOS. Sub $40, light and easy to stick anywhere.
I put a piece of velcro on it as well a piece of fishing line just in case.
I plan on shooting more videos over the summer.
Fly, Drive and Race.
Cheers.
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Link to the camera.
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Over the weekend we were experience some very high winds so I opt'd to fly the FT Racer. Belly landings vs geared.
It was a complete riot. Should have shot some video.
Rolls, loops and other aerial excitement.
I need to learn to use "unlock" my left thumb a little more and get comfortable using the rudder but I expect the T28 will see a lot of uptime this summer.
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Bigger bird too.
I did manage a flat spin with Racer which was impressive and scary all at the same time ;)
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