Earlier this week I maiden the Epilogue. Winds were slightly quartering from the SE at about 10-12mph. ePower takes the worry out of test flights by knowing you have a preconfigured reliable power system during initial flights. Not having to add the necessary step of tweaking the setup of a wet fuel system powerplant, ePower also expedites the initial trimming process. I flew 4 flights in all. After the first two, I made minor adjustments to the wing incidence and shifted the CG more forward of BJ's suggested CD range. On the 3rd and 4th flights I flew the Masters' sequence and quickly realized this plane is a winning design.
I've been able to log 4 more additional flights. An unexpected but pleasant surprise is the sound/tone of the C54 in the Epilogue. I elected to hard mount the C54 in the Epilogue vs using a Budd Engineering soft mount system which I've used in past in-runner installations. The gearbox chatter is more muted and has a deeper tone compared to the high pitch tone of the C54 in my Epic Evo. All of my 2m planes use geared Hacker in-runners, to help mute the gearbox sound I use solid carbon APC props vs hollow carbon which amplify the sound of the gearbox In addition, the heavier weight of the carbon APCs adds a flywheel effect which smooths out the up/down spooling relative to adding and reducing power. Lighter hollow carbon props spool up/down much faster requiring a more thoughtful application of adding and reducing power. The aircraft's change in speed can also be very noticeable.
BJ Craft's ARC kit quality is outstanding. For those wanting to individualize their color scheme, the prep work needed for paint and covering the wood surfaces is very minimal. An ARC version is a wonderful alternative. I hope BJ continues to offer ARC versions of his designs.
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