If at first you don't succeed...

For the last two days the winds have been light near the ground. As my plane goes around the circle the wind currents knock it all over the place. up high it gets worse. I haven't been able to determine if the thrust line changes helped the planes or did I have it close to begin with. We are heading to the park in a bit to give it another try.
  I watched a video on changing the brake pads on the Hyundai as there is a scraping sound when the brakes are applied. There's no difference from normal car brakes.

Whoda thunk it??

Stupid designers. After getting results by setting the engine thrust line to where it should be I checked almost all my planes. Most of them had down thrust. I managed to remove most of it and they are flying better as a result. I even checked the electric Pathfinder and shimmed the motor to zero it out. I flew it this morning and it flew very well. I have another plane called Mo-Best. It was a fairly expensive kit and never flew that good. I put an engine back in and set the thrust line to zero. I'll give it a try in the morning.Finding where the thrust line is on the plane is a hassle. Some I have the plans for and some I have to guess as close as I can to get accurate measurements. The next one I build will get set up to the plans early on when it's easy.

Even more tuning in.

I got some #6 connectors for the Shark 665 elevator. I put a longer screw in so I could lengthen the pivot arm for a slower response on the elevator. I removed some down engine thrust while I was at it. I got in a couple test flights and the changes look promising. Another turn on the elevator clevis and it's ready for another go at it. I checked all the other profiles for down thrust and found too much on all of them. I got rid of as much as I could without damaging the planes. That along with a new tank on the Wildcat and I've got testing to do in the morning. The Bearcat had a one degree shim under the engine and after removing them it flew a lot better. That's the reason I checked the others.

Tuning in.

I changed the fuel tank and muffler on the Wildcat. I got to the park later than normal and got in a few flights. I'm using the needle valve asm. that was on the engine but changed the venturi for more power. I set the engine at 9300 rpm on the last flight and it pulled the plane well through the maneuvers but still needs more. The tank won't hold enough fuel so I'll have to get one like the ones on the Nomads. So far so good all things considered.
   I sold the Twister kit I won at the raffle. It got mailed out this morning.
   I may have to assemble the Nobler ARF( an ARF comes already built and covered but in separate sections like Fuselage, wing and tail components) kit. I ran an Enya .35 engine with a couple different propellers but it seemed a little weak. I bolted a Fox .35 that has a hemi head and performance back plate and ran that one for a bit. I still have an old McCoy .35 to test. I may use that one for the Nobler.

Tough crowd.

I scored the highest ever at the contest and it was only good for last out of 6. I kicked ass at the raffle. A couple small items and a Twister kit and an ARF Nobler. The ARF is built, covered and ready for final assembly. A good $170.00 worth of goodies. I didn't have room for the Nobler box but an acquaintance from nearby brought it home for me. I got an email this morning and ended up selling the Twister kit. I'll mail it out in the morning..
  I got to fly the Nomad and it's back to where it was originally. If I could have flown it on Thursday I would have taken it to the contest. I made a few changes to the push rod today and it's flying very well.
  I got in two short test flights with the Wildcat today. I put the engine I bought from a guy at the contest and it worked for the tests but I changed the home made venturi for a stock one. I left the spray bar in but I think that will be changed if the fuel burn is too much.The plane was stable even going slow and the wings are level in flight which is a big deal. I may get in some more flights after meeting with the bank people tomorrow.

Good guess.

I headed for the park just after 0700. I flew the Nomad + first and it's running very well. I got in two good flights with it and put it away and grabbed the Nomad. I had put the tongue muffler back on and that doesn't work on suction feed. The sky was getting darker so I rolled up the lines and headed for home. At home I dug around and found a tongue muffler that I had drilled for a muffler pressure tap. I installed that and I couldn't get the balance right so I removed it and installed the Fox .35 muffler again. That has a pressure tap and I connected the fuel tank vent to the tap. I put the plastic spinner back on and the balance came back where it should be.
   I removed the rear seat cushion from the Hyundai and tried to get 4 planes in the back seat area. I got 3 in. I'll have to remove the seat backs to get 4 planes in. That shouldn't take too long and I'll attack it tomorrow afternoon.
   It started raining about an hour ago but the forecast winds are not here yet.

Almost done.

The rest of the decals came in this morning. I got them put on the plane and the black edge stripes. The nose was painted and needs a few days to cure before the clear coat.
 I found the tank on the first Nomad too small for the pattern. It only holds 3 3/4 ounces. I looked around and found one just like the one on the second Nomad and it holds a bit over 4 ounces. After cleaning and bending the tubes to the right shape I installed it on the plane. I flew it this morning and had plenty of fuel for the pattern and over 15 laps extra, which is good.
The weather is forecast to be windy and rain for Wed. and Thurs. so flying is done until the contest. I may be able to get in a flight or two in the morning as it's generally calmer then.