Angel’s Shadow v20 Biplane

Last week I broke out the ASB from its shipping crate. This is not a build in the typical sense.  This is a true ARF. I was able to prescribe the motor and radio equipment I planned to use.  The airframe came fully prepped for what I prescribed. They even included all the necessary hardware plus some really nice  preconfigured pushrods with ball bearing connectors.  Even the landing gear was fully rigged with wheels and pants in place ready to mount to the fuse.  I’m making slow progress but everything fits and goes together like it should.

Here’s a small  sample of what’s been done to date.

 

Hacker C54 installation 

D3 controller mounted in direct airflow

Pull-Pull rudder

Elevator linkage

BJ Craft Epilogue ARC status

The Epilogue was ready-to-fly back in March of this year.  Since the EPIC Evo and Invitation G2 I have been flying so well that I was in no hurry to maiden the Epilogue.  However, at my club’s annual pattern event held in early May, an FAI competitor flew a stock color scheme Epilogue.  I was blown away by how it performed which motivated me to get mine in the air.

The following Monday after the contest I maiden my Epilogue.  As a starting point I applied for the radio program I use for the EPIC E.  Since both planes are powered by a Hacker C54/D3 combo I also applied the same RPM per flight condition and throttle curves.  Within a dozen or so flights and a few tweaks to the radio program and a couple of prop changes, I was feeling very comfortable flying the 2022-23 Masters sequence which is unusual for me.

 Likes:

·    The ARC kit quality.  It took minimal effort to prep surfaces for covering and painting

·    Positive and negative snaps, present a break, rotate quickly, and stops immediately, enabling the plane to stay on-line

·    Cross-wind tracking

·     Speed management

·    Finished flying weight

·    Access to internal equipment thru canopy opening

Dislikes:

·     Landing gear supplied with kit, it’s heavy and stiff (substituted PT swept)

·     Condition of the factory added a nose ring to change the thrust arrangement 

This past weekend, I competed with the Epilogue. It flew flawlessly.  I receive many compliments on my flying, which I attribute to the Epilogue. I was fortunate to come away with a win even though I seem to have trouble counting the correct number of revolutions of the 3-turn spin 😊.

Jetero Contest Results

Epilogue Update

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.

Next in the pipeline to complete, Bridi SunFli IV

Space City Pattern Classic 2022

 Space City RC's 12 Annual Pattern Classic April 30th-May1st 2022.  We have 24 preregistered pilots to date and expect more.  All AMA and FAI classes have registered pilots. The club is ready and expecting to host a successful pattern event to kick off the 2022 season.  Pattern continues to be strong and active in SE Texas.  Come join us...

Preregistration is still open

Painting box lines in preparation for the event...

Epilogue Ready to Maiden

Epilogue ARC is ready for its maiden.  RTF weight is 4828grams

• Radio System - Futaba 32MZ, 7108RX,
• Batteries - Thunder Power 10S 5000, 2S 910mAh
• Propulsion System – Hacker C54, D3 Controller, APC Carbon 21.5X13, Falcon spinner
• Main Undercarriage – PT legs & pants, Gator RC 55mm wheels, CH titanium axles
• Tail Wheel – Custom, Dubro ¾ wheel
• Paint - Wings West
• Covering – Monokote (wings, stabs, rudder)

                                        

Angel's Shadow V20

The Angel's Shadow V20 is in transit.  I just received the Air Waybill confirmation with tracking information.  The manufacturer indicates the current weight as pictured to be 2498grams less the aileron/elevator linkages and spinner.  That is an outstanding weight for an all-composite airframe which includes:

• motor mount and rear support for C54
• landing gear legs, pants, and wheels
• adjustable battery tray
• rudder servo tray for pull-pull
• control horns
• tailwheel assembly

The finish in the photos appears top shelf.  I'm really looking forward to seeing it in person. Servo cutouts, linkages, and motor mounts are configured to the customer's specifications. I also got to prescribe color options 😎 for the standard scheme. Considering the completeness makes the value of this package second to none short of being a custom build.  I placed the order in late August 2021, I applaud the manufacturer for meeting the quoted timeline of 4-6mos.

Contact details:

Vladimir Kozlovskiy / vk.angelsshadow@gmail.com

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2022 Winter Practice

Texas winter 2022 so far has been mild compared to 2021. Today’s temps were in the low 70s with a moderate south wind.  Those conditions lured me out of the workshop to the club field to begin sorting out the 22-23 AMA Masters sequence.  The first 2 maneuvers after takeoff are challenging. You gotta be sure to roll in an intended direction to ensure not to score a zero in the double stall turn and in the fighter turn roll as to position the plane in vs out.  Other than those two the rest of sequence is a matter of figuring out the nuances of how execute them to maximize scoring. Practice, practice, practice….

Epilogue ARC Progress - Monokote (wing/stab tops)

Finished the wing and stab tops.  This included adding black pin stripes to compliment the stripes on the fuselage using a Monokote on Monokote method provided by a friend.  In the past, I haven’t had much luck with Monokote on Monokote eliminating unsightly air bubbles.  By following my friend’s advice I am very pleased with the results.  I plan to do more of this on future projects.

T-Can wing and rudder are next on the list to cover.

Monokote on Monokote process:

1. Clean Monokote surface
2. Saturate surface with Windex (enough to float trim piece to desired location)
3. Using a tissue, lightly wipe away excess Windex.  During this step, if trim piece needs repositioning apply Windex if needed
4. Using a credit card or similar (old AMA card worked best for me) squeegee to remove air pockets from underneath trim piece
5. Let stand for 60 minutes
6. Squeegee again to remove any remaining air pockets
7. Let stand for 24 hour
8. Squeegee again if needed to ensure there are no remaining air pockets 
9. Use low iron heat with a sock covering the iron shoe to secure trim to the surface.  It’s a good idea to test iron heat on scrape pieces.  The goal is to activate the trim piece adhesive without detaching the Monokote underneath from the main surface 
10. Use higher heat to secure the edges of the trim piece, like at the wing root and tip edge

Epilogue ARC Progress - Monokote (wing/stab bottoms)

Okay, just finished Monokoting the wing and stab bottoms.   I'm going with a basic hopefully very visible color/scheme layout. Cub yellow-based schemes with dark contrasting colors dark red and black are visible to me in most sky conditions.  The exception are those cloudless blue sky conditions.  This is where dark red on the fuse and on top of the wings and stabs becomes beneficial. To me, light red, blues, and white are difficult to see at distance and at times can become invisible in certain orientations. 

I'm in the process of deciding between two different scheme layouts for the top of the wings and stabs. I hope to have the Monokote work completed in the next few days.

Wing and stab bottoms

Various tools used for Monokoting

Epilogue ARC Progress - paint (step 3 - black)

Okay, the final masking and painting of colors are behind me.  With the effort and man-hours, I've logged so far on this project I have a greater appreciation of purchasing a custom-painted ARF. So far I am very happy with the results. Next steps involve wet sanding then applying clear coat.

Step 3 - black