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<\/a><\/p>\nThings you can see in the notes (besides my ever-worsening handwriting):<\/p>\n
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- The name of the model and size\/event<\/li>\n
- The weight of the model and propeller used<\/li>\n
- Rubber Motor Used, Number of Turns, Torque at those turns, Results.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
This type of note-taking is critical – not just for remembering, but for analysis and improvement.\u00a0 Look at the notes for the B.A.T. Monoplane.\u00a0 The first four entries are testing observations where I was working up to final contest-ready performance.\u00a0\u00a0 He same is shown on the Yankee IV page.\u00a0 I worked up to the rubber size and torque setting until I got optimum results.\u00a0 Other things to note:\u00a0 the notes are a) inconsistent and b) incomplete.\u00a0 There is a lot more that could and should be added and observed.\u00a0 Keep track like this and your level of success will increase.<\/p>\n
The second thing that I do is on the other end of modeling.\u00a0 I do this during the design and build phase.\u00a0 Some of the information is created during the drawing and some is applied later after flying.\u00a0 Take a look (clicking the image will open it in a new tab and it will be bigger):<\/p>\n
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This is an Excel sheet in which I record every design I am building – or even thinking about building.\u00a0 There are over 100 entries and this is just some of them.\u00a0\u00a0 As you can see, I categorize them according to FAC Event.\u00a0 Why?\u00a0 This puts similar models together so that I can compare and predict performance.<\/p>\n
This spreadsheet’s primary purpose was to calculate CG Locations based on TVo calculations (thanks to Don DeLoach’s and William McCombs’ works).\u00a0 Later, I added modifications to the formula for biplanes and also a different TVo formula for Endurance ships.\u00a0 Finally, there are columns to record observed model weights and grams per square inch (erroneously labeled as g\/CuIn!)<\/p>\n
Why all of this work?\u00a0 well, during the design phase, I can predict performance based on the TVo.\u00a0 This also shows if the tail is too small (see those red and yellow indicators in the TVo column?) so I know when to enlarge the tail.\u00a0 Through these calculations, I know where to place the CG indicator on the plan.\u00a0 As you might understand, that much is for the eventual production product, for the customer.\u00a0 But the notes regarding weight, propellers, rubber, etc – that is basically for me.\u00a0 I can compare built models to new models and say “I think the new model is a lot like old model X and I can use a similar prop and rubber”.\u00a0 All of this helps with consistency and such when it comes to flying your models.<\/p>\n
(Curious about the other colors on the chart?\u00a0 Green on the model name = Short Kit in production, Yellow on the model name means a potential Production item.\u00a0 Over on the weight column, Green indicates actual measured weight of the built model.\u00a0 no color in that column often indicates a projected weight or a guestimate.)<\/p>\n
So what does this all mean?\u00a0 Well, looking at this and looking back at my history, I just don’t know how I ever got those first 75 kanones!\u00a0 I did very, very little of this type of analysis back then.\u00a0 Switching over (due to the fact that my advanced 50+ years made it difficult to keep track of model specs) has made an impact – my current kanone total is 259.\u00a0 If you want better performance, keep track of what you do.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Whether you fly for competition or just for fun, what follows WILL help you. Background:\u00a0 When I came back into the Free Flight game in 2012, I had about 75 FAC kanones (competition wins).\u00a0 My first kanone was in 1990 … Continue reading