Great Planes F-14 60 Kit - GPMA0435 - Manual (Page 52)

may wish to experiment by shifting the balance up to
1/2" forward or back to change the f l y i n g
characteristics M o v i n g the balance forward may
improve the smoothness and arrow-like tracking, but it
may then require more speed for takeoff and make it
more d i f f i c u l t to slow down for landing Moving the
balance aft makes the model more agile with a lighter
and snappier "feel " If you move the balance aft, the
elevator will have more authority, possibly resulting in a
plane that is too maneuverable If this happens, you
should reduce the maximum elevator throw slightly In
any case do not balance your model outside the
recommended range.
wing may have a twist due to uneven shrinking of the
covering material VERY IMPORTANT!: You must
check for this condition and correct it before the first
night
If you do not own a wing incidence meter, we
recommend that you purchase one from your local hobby
dealer or borrow one from another modeler With the
wing attached to the fuselage, block up the fuselage until
the stab is exactly level Then use the incidence meter to
check the angle of your wing at the root (next to the
fuselage) and at the tips The meter should read
0 degrees at the root, and minus 1 3/4 degrees at the tips
(this means that the t r a i l i n g edge is higher than the
leading edge at both tips) If the incidence meter reveals
a deviation of more than 1/4 degree from the desired
readings, you must grasp the wing at the tip and twist it
slightly, while reheating the covering material Keep
checking, twisting and reheating until the wing twist is
removed NOTE: If you have corrected a wing twist by
this method you should periodically re-check to make
sure the correction has held
D 2 Make sure the control surfaces move in the
proper direction as illustrated in the following sketch
D 2. The best way to balance your F 14 is to make a
balancing stand from two 8 " square pieces of 1/4"
plywood and two 3/8" dowels Mark the fore and aft
limits of the balance range on the bottom of the wing (at
rib W7) and place the airplane on the balancing stand
with the dowels on rib W7 and the f u e l tank empty
Move the airplane forward or aft on the stand until it
balances with the stab level If it balances outside the
"balance range," you must either shift the location of
radio components (the battery pack can be installed all
the way up into the fuel tank compartment if needed) or
add weight to the nose or tail until it balances within the
range NOTE: Nose weight may be easily installed by
using a Prather "Spinner Weight" (available in assorted
weights up to 2 ounces), or by gluing strips of lead into
the engine compartment under the engine Tail weight
may be added by using Prather "stick-on" lead weights.
Later, if the balance proves to be OK, you can open the
fuse bottom and glue these in permanently
FINAL HOOKUPS AND CHECKS
D 1 Check for wing twist as follows:
NOTE: Even if you have built your wing on a perfectly
flat surface and used utmost care, it is possible that your
Transmitter
Stick Movements
Control Surface
Movements
Elevator moves UP
Right aileron moves
UP and Left aileron
moves DOWN
Rudder moves LEFT
Carburetor Wide Open
RADIO SET-UP
FOUR CHANNEL TRANSMITTER
52