Great Planes Seawind .60-.91 ARF - GPMA1360 - Manual (Page 23)

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
engine mounting screws and bolts loosen, possibly with
disastrous effect, but vibration may also damage your radio
receiver and battery. Vibration can also cause your fuel to
foam, which will, in turn, cause your engine to run hot or quit.
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.
If the engine is new, follow the engine manufacturer’s
instructions to break-in the engine. After break-in,
confirm that the engine idles reliably, transitions smoothly
and rapidly to full power and maintains full
power–indefinitely. After you run the engine on the model,
inspect the model closely to make sure all screws remained
tight, the hinges are secure, the prop is secure and all
pushrods and connectors are secure.
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 100 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 engine 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 all engine fuel in a safe place, away from high heat,
sparks or flames, as fuel is very flammable. Do not smoke
near the engine or fuel; and remember that engine exhaust
gives off a great deal of deadly carbon monoxide. Therefore,
do not run the engine in a closed room or garage.
Get help from an experienced pilot when learning to
operate engines.
Use safety glasses when starting or running engines.
Do not run the engine in an area of loose gravel or sand; the
propeller may throw such material in your face or eyes.
Keep your face and body as well as all spectators away from
the plane of rotation of the propeller as you start and run
the engine.
Keep these items away from the prop: loose clothing, shirt
sleeves, ties, scarfs, long hair or loose objects such as pencils
or screwdrivers that may fall out of shirt or jacket pockets into
the prop.
Use a “chicken stick” or electric starter to start the engine. Do
not use your fingers to flip the propeller. Make certain the glow
plug clip or connector is secure so that it will not pop off or
otherwise get into the running propeller.
Make all engine adjustments from behind the rotating propeller.
The engine gets hot! Do not touch it during or right after
operation. Make sure fuel lines are in good condition so fuel
will not leak onto a hot engine, causing a fire.
To stop a glow engine, cut off the fuel supply by closing off
the fuel line or following the engine manufacturer’s
recommendations. Do not use hands, fingers or any other
body part to try to stop the engine. To stop a gasoline
powered engine, an on/off switch should be connected to
the engine coil. Do not throw anything into the propeller of
a running engine.
Read and abide by the following excerpts from the Academy
of Model Aeronautics Safety Code. For the complete Safety
Code refer to
Model Aviation magazine, the AMA web site or
the Code that came with your AMA license.
AMA SAFETY CODE (excerpts)
Failure to follow these safety precautions may result
in severe injury to yourself and others.
ENGINE SAFETY PRECAUTIONS
Range Check
Ground Check
Balance the Propellers
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