ARV Condor ?

[Andy Greene]

I didnt do a search yet so forgive me-
Inherited a kit in progress- how bad do I hate myself ?? Tips and help welcome ....
Estes ARV Condor .

 

[rharshberger]

Fun kit, definitely a builders kit and skill level 5. I have built two, and have one still in the box. The weak point is the plastic nose cone keeper for the gliders is prone to breakage over time. Tuning the gliders to spiral glide makes recovery much easier. Over time the glider wings also tend to warp, still lots of fun to fly.

 

[aerostadt]

I found 2 reviews that looked good to me. There was a total of 5 reviews there.

https://www.rocketreviews.com/estes-arv-condor-hank-helmen.html

https://www.rocketreviews.com/estes-arv-condor-hank-helmen-8340.html

 

[Andy Greene]

Thanks for the advice and links fella's -
Getting ready to step off into this thing now that the work bench is clear enough to lay out the parts .
Seems my main concern ( so far ) is the dihedral for the gliders - As I read it - set the tips with the provided gauge / I did notice front to rear change slightly / the join the 2 on the b/t for the glider.
My question/s become , as the instructions are vague - do you use a B/T section at the wing tip transition to level and determine the wing to B/T attachment ?
And while Im at it- does anyone have a tailfin template for the gliders they can measure for me - mine is missing

 

[Andy Greene]

is this what Im after ??

 

[burkefj]

You need multiple eyes to watch this, I flew with my wife when we were first married, I asked her to watch the upper glider and I'd watch the booster and lower glider, mine landed and I asked here where hers was, she was watching mine....the one she was supposed to be watching was trimmed perfectly straight and went about a half mile, never found it, trim them to circle

 

[Andy Greene]

You need multiple eyes to watch this, I flew with my wife when we were first married, I asked her to watch the upper glider and I'd watch the booster and lower glider, mine landed and I asked here where hers was, she was watching mine....the one she was supposed to be watching was trimmed perfectly straight and went about a half mile, never found it, trim them to circle

I get that - but is this the method suggested in the instructions ??

 

[burkefj]

It was 28 years ago, I don't remember....

I get that - but is this the method suggested in the instructions ??

 

[burkefj]

They explain how to balance and adjust for balance and for a flat glide, then say if trimmed properly they will glide in large circles They comment about steep turning glide and how to adjust for that, I think they relied on the fact that one wing will always be slightly heavier than the other in most cases.....



https://plans.rocketshoppe.com/estes/est2075/A.R.V._Condor.pdf

 

[Andy Greene]

They explain how to balance and adjust for balance and for a flat glide, then say if trimmed properly they will glide in large circles They comment about steep turning glide and how to adjust for that, I think they relied on the fact that one wing will always be slightly heavier than the other in most cases.....



https://plans.rocketshoppe.com/estes/est2075/A.R.V._Condor.pdf

Gliders built - take em outside in the am and see how they fly compared to the living room and cats chasing them.

 

[Andy Greene]

finished it up , well built it anyway -

 

[Maxout]

I built one of these long ago...fun kit. I think I was 13 or so. Flew it a couple of times before I moved on to higher performance designs, but it definitely lived up to expectations and I've still got it around. Sad that they discontinued it as it was completely unique and overall a pretty solid design. I've often thought of going back and building one from contest grade balsa and hand rolled tubes to see just how well one could make that planform fly. Too many projects...

Fun kit, definitely a builders kit and skill level 5.

Nah, not really. Build an old free flight airplane kit, now that's a skill level 5.

I get that - but is this the method suggested in the instructions ??

I think this is the problem many face with transitioning from rockets to things that actually fly - they aren't instructions, they are suggestions. You do what you need to do to make the airplane fly, especially in the case of free flight gliders like these. Unfortunately the trimming of free flight gliders is becoming a lost art, and the lousy "instructions" in many kits don't help. The Condor, for its part, is well enough designed that if you balance the gliders per the instructions, you'll get a good glide right out of the box so long as nothing has warped severely. Not performance machines by any stretch, but they glide satisfyingly enough to make one want more of them.