Post by coupe1942 on Oct 25, 2013 22:24:53 GMT 1
Okay, so I am telling on myself, but what the hey... You learn by experience, even if it is not quite the learning you expected.
Went to a local park today to gain some operational control lessons about my SC. I had no intent to fly, as the wind was high enough that I didn't really want to fool about with that just yet. My mission was simply to check out the water rudder on my plane and to get a bit more used to the controls. Also, I had seen a jutting of rocks that looked interesting and challenging to steer the plane about with it having its floats in place. Best lain plans of mice and men. I got so caught up in getting the plane into the water, that I stupidly left out a step in checking things out as a normal pre-flight inspection. I was caught up in setting my cameras on my ball cap and on the plane, putting on the wing and adjusting it with those pesky rubber bands in place and finding my way down to the water without breaking my neck in the process. Yup, too excited and too hurried.
Put the plane into the water and set it skimming about with what felt like good control. At least at first. The rocks were like a small island and were maybe just over a half size of a football field away from the shoreline. The ducks were there and watching like hawks as the little plane approached. I turned the rudder to the right to back away from going straight at them. When I did, the wing flipped upwards and lifted the plane right into a flip. Yup, it went top side down as if it had been fully directed to do so. By then there were two workers who had walked up to watch. The water was in waves that were slapping toward me, so I decided the plane would float back in due time. It actually did that with no real problems. As I waited for it, the fellows revealed to me that local law enforcement would be there tomorrow for a picnic for the community. Very nice and best of all free. They told me I was at the deepest end of the pond that was maybe 10-15' in depth, but only knee deep out at the rocks. The pond has a dirty shore line and muddy look to it, so that any filming of it stands out as if it were filmed in sepia tone (off brown color).
When the plane came into the shore, it seemingly had no water damage. My battery is located at the top, inside portion of the
fuselage and not put in through that small battery door. Any rate, the prop would spin easily and other than a wet $15 buck camera, it really seemed to be okay. I saw immediately what I had failed to do and that likely caused the lift and overturn. Wanna' guess what it was? Okay, I'll let ya' do that and I'll affirm or deny later. :-)
Any rate, I swapped out the battery, checked the wiring and electronics and took her back to play about with it once again. I really don't believe that the water rudder actually does much in controlling direction of the floats. I can get as much control without it. It was interesting in speeding up the plane as it skimmed across the pond and trying to react just as if it were flying. You know, a sharp turn left or a sharp turn right. This forced me to react with the proper hand and eye hand coordination, so it was a good exercise for me. I chased a lone duck until he got tired of being followed by the Super Cub duck chaser. I am too lazy to fool about with editing the video I took with my ball cap camera, so I won't be posting that presently.
I learned something by this failure and by the success I also had on this outing. It will be raining cats and dogs tomorrow, so I probably won't try more for a few days. When you guess what I foolishly forgot, I'll share what I learned.
Went to a local park today to gain some operational control lessons about my SC. I had no intent to fly, as the wind was high enough that I didn't really want to fool about with that just yet. My mission was simply to check out the water rudder on my plane and to get a bit more used to the controls. Also, I had seen a jutting of rocks that looked interesting and challenging to steer the plane about with it having its floats in place. Best lain plans of mice and men. I got so caught up in getting the plane into the water, that I stupidly left out a step in checking things out as a normal pre-flight inspection. I was caught up in setting my cameras on my ball cap and on the plane, putting on the wing and adjusting it with those pesky rubber bands in place and finding my way down to the water without breaking my neck in the process. Yup, too excited and too hurried.
Put the plane into the water and set it skimming about with what felt like good control. At least at first. The rocks were like a small island and were maybe just over a half size of a football field away from the shoreline. The ducks were there and watching like hawks as the little plane approached. I turned the rudder to the right to back away from going straight at them. When I did, the wing flipped upwards and lifted the plane right into a flip. Yup, it went top side down as if it had been fully directed to do so. By then there were two workers who had walked up to watch. The water was in waves that were slapping toward me, so I decided the plane would float back in due time. It actually did that with no real problems. As I waited for it, the fellows revealed to me that local law enforcement would be there tomorrow for a picnic for the community. Very nice and best of all free. They told me I was at the deepest end of the pond that was maybe 10-15' in depth, but only knee deep out at the rocks. The pond has a dirty shore line and muddy look to it, so that any filming of it stands out as if it were filmed in sepia tone (off brown color).
When the plane came into the shore, it seemingly had no water damage. My battery is located at the top, inside portion of the
fuselage and not put in through that small battery door. Any rate, the prop would spin easily and other than a wet $15 buck camera, it really seemed to be okay. I saw immediately what I had failed to do and that likely caused the lift and overturn. Wanna' guess what it was? Okay, I'll let ya' do that and I'll affirm or deny later. :-)
Any rate, I swapped out the battery, checked the wiring and electronics and took her back to play about with it once again. I really don't believe that the water rudder actually does much in controlling direction of the floats. I can get as much control without it. It was interesting in speeding up the plane as it skimmed across the pond and trying to react just as if it were flying. You know, a sharp turn left or a sharp turn right. This forced me to react with the proper hand and eye hand coordination, so it was a good exercise for me. I chased a lone duck until he got tired of being followed by the Super Cub duck chaser. I am too lazy to fool about with editing the video I took with my ball cap camera, so I won't be posting that presently.
I learned something by this failure and by the success I also had on this outing. It will be raining cats and dogs tomorrow, so I probably won't try more for a few days. When you guess what I foolishly forgot, I'll share what I learned.
