Great Planes RC Universe FlatOuts ARF - GPMA1117 - Manual (Page 19)

additional ballast required. If additional weight is required,
begin by placing incrementally increasing amounts of weight
on the bottom of the horizontal fuselage until the model
balances. Once you have determined the amount of weight
required, it can be permanently attached.
❏
4. IMPORTANT: If you found it necessary to add any
weight, recheck the C.G. after the weight has been installed.
❏
1. With the wing level, lift the model by the motor propeller
shaft and the bottom of the fuse under the TE of the fin. Do
this several times.
❏
2. If one wing always drops when you lift the model, it means
that side is heavy. Balance the airplane by adding weight to the
other wing tip. An airplane that has been laterally balanced
will track better in loops and other maneuvers.
No matter if you fly at an AMA sanctioned R/C club site or if
you fly somewhere on your own, you should always have
your name, address, telephone number and AMA number
on your model. It is required at all AMA R/C club flying sites
and AMA sanctioned flying events. Write this information on
the bottom of the wing with a fine felt-tip pen.
Follow the battery charging instructions that came with your
radio control system to charge the batteries. You should always
charge your transmitter batteries the night before you go flying,
and at other times as recommended by the radio manufacturer.
Charge the flight battery using a charger designed for
Lithium Polymer batteries. Charging with any other type of
charger is very dangerous, and may cause the batteries to
combust violently.
Carefully balance your propeller and spare propellers before
you fly. An unbalanced prop can be the single most
significant cause of vibration that can damage your model.
Not only will motor mounting screws and bolts loosen,
possibly with disastrous effect, but vibration may also
damage your radio receiver and battery. When balancing the
propeller that came with your Fun Force ARF, add tape to
the light side of the propeller. Do not shave material away as
is done with traditional propellers.
We use a Top Flite Precision Magnetic Prop Balancer ™
(TOPQ5700) in the workshop and keep a Great Planes
Fingertip Prop Balancer (GPMQ5000) in our flight box.
Ground check the operational range of your radio before the
first flight of the day. With the transmitter antenna collapsed
and the receiver and transmitter on, you should be able to
walk at least 50 feet away from the model and still have
control. Have an assistant stand by your model and, while
you work the controls, tell you what the control surfaces are
doing. Repeat this test with the motor running at various
speeds with an assistant holding the model, using hand
signals to show you what is happening. If the control
surfaces do not respond correctly, do not fly! Find and
correct the problem first. Look for loose servo connections or
broken wires, corroded wires on old servo connectors, poor
solder joints in your battery pack or a defective cell, or a
damaged receiver crystal from a previous crash.
Keep your face and body as well as all spectators away from
the plane of rotation of the propeller whenever the battery
is connected.
Failure to follow these safety precautions may result
in severe injury to yourself and others.
MOTOR SAFETY PRECAUTIONS
Range Check
Balance the Propellers
CAUTION: Unless the instructions that came with your
radio system state differently, the initial charge on new
transmitter batteries should be done for 15 hours using
the slow-charger that came with the radio system. This will
“condition” the batteries so that the next charge may be
done using the fast-charger of your choice. If the initial
charge is done with a fast-charger, the batteries may not
reach their full capacity and you may be flying with
batteries that are only partially charged.
Charge the Batteries
Identify Your Model
PREFLIGHT
Balance the Model Laterally
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