Category: Building

Recently, I did as the instructions directed regarding the studs that hold the vertical fin in place and “…checked periodically to make sure they remain tight”

I had done this after the first couple dozen flights and found that they were a bit loose so I tightened them up a bit…. and again a couple dozen more flights later… and again they seemed to be loose. On a third check I again tightened them and then noticed that the aft most “stud” had started to protrude from the bottom of the airplane.  This was unexpected, as each time they seemed to tighten up fine and I never tightened them using excessive force, or so I thought.

Not suprisingly, removal of the fin revealed that the rear stud in particular had begun to pull out. This is a bit disappointing as well as concerning as these two studs/bolts are all that hold the fixed portions of the tail in place. 

I noodled on this for a while and almost decided to do a more traditional epoxy/permanent installation of the tail surfaces but I still wanted to preserve the ability to disassemble this part of the airplane… so I decided to try to better secure the stud.  To this end, I added a bit of glue and pushed the stud back in to what seems like its original position.  I then soldered some washers onto the stud against the bottom wood of the vertical fin and then epoxied over the entirety of that bottom surface and the washers and let it dry completely before reassembly.

I’m hopeful this will now remain tight and stable. If you fly this airplane, I’d recommend keeping a close eye on this.  I know I’ll be checking it again in the future.

The first TT I had was the full BNF version.  Shortly after the crash, I went through the airframe and pulled the motor, every servo, ESC… every bit of electronics and control linkage including every LED and control horn.  I kept the servo mount plates with servos, linkage and control horns all still attached and stored it all in a tote.  I even kept all the servo screws and the little red spacers that are used to mount the servos in the tail.  At that point in time it was just in hope that I would end up with a new TT to install it all in… and if not I would find something appropriate.

When I finally received the replacement TT it was the ARF so I had a lot more work to get this bird ready.  I started working my way through the manual, step by step so that I wouldn’t miss anything… and while it is generally a decent document, it does have a few shortcomings.  Here are the things that caught my attention or where I made a decision to vary a bit from what was written.

One of the first steps is mounting the rudder and elevator servos.  Of course I had swapped out the provided screws for my preferred allen head screws but that is just preference.  What I did notice at this point is that while the pictures show them, there is no word about the spacers that allow the servos to mount properly!  These little wooden blocks are spacers that shim the back end of each of the tail mounted servos.  Without them, the servos do not mount on a direct plane with the control horns and potentially would bind at extreme throws??  At a minimum they would be out of line and less than ideal geometry would be the result.

Here is one in place.

The manual moves on to the wing servos which I was able to just swap in, ready to go from the BNF.  I did notice at this point the BNF came with some small snap on ferrite cores that were installed on the aileron wires.  Those are typically installed to block interference of some sort which made me wonder… If those are needed, then why are they not included with the ARF??  Or perhaps recommended somewhere in documentation?

I re-installed mine running both the aileron and flap wires through it.  A little interference prevention on both won’t hurt anything!  Here is my reinstall.

Moving on, the next steps are installing the horizontal and vertical tail sections.  I had forgotten about the 5.5mm nuts that hold this together and of course didn’t have a 5.5mm socket (again)… a 7/32 is 5.56mm so close enough considering you don’t want to crush to much wood anyway.  I noticed at this point that the manual had not mentioned installing any control horns on any surfaces.  I looked through the entirety of the manual at this point and could never find any mention of it!  Sort of obvious that you will need to do this so not end of the world that it is missing but it might have been helpful to suggest when this might be easiest to accomplish… like maybe before you mount the tail in place??

Following this is the landing gear, axle and wheel assembly.  This went without issue although, just as a note, they direct you to use two 1/2″ wrenches for the axle mounting.  The axles I got used a 1/2″ and a 7/16ths”.  I didn’t bother with the landing gear fairing.  I tend to pick up my airplane with one hand on the landing gear and that precludes having these installed.  My first TT lost both of those quickly… one in flight… anyway and if you don’t know it is supposed to have them, you will never miss them.

Next came the motor mounting box, ESC and motor mounting process along with the battery hold downs and receiver.  No serious issues were encountered, though I modified the ESC mounting method by installing some small mounting blocks and screwing the ESC down so that I could eliminate the velcro blocking the heat sink.  Improving cooling is always a good idea in an electric airplane!  I also used some better velco battery hold down straps though the provided are sufficient.  I did seem to need longer machine screws than they indicated to mount the xmount to the firewall.  I went with some 16mm length rather than the 10mm called for.

For the control linkages I took the clevises provided and tossed them in a drawer for later use on a 40 size trainer or something similar for which they are adequate (please note the dripping sarcasm).  I then pulled out the new 2-56 rod and DuBro bolt through ball links and created new linkage for all the control surfaces.  One I had them all built   I also some new 2-56 nylon insert aircraft nuts for the standard nuts that came in the Dubro pack.  I’m really NOT planning on having linkage issues on this airplane this time!

Here is an example of my reimagined linkages

I of course did the cowl scoop modification… I think it should be molded in from the start really… and replaced the wing bolts as well since I really dislike the very yellow bolts against the very white covering.  Plus I prefer the bolts with built in washers/flanges and a hex head for screw driver free attachment.

That about covers the build/assembly phase.  I did take the opportunity to install resistors in line with ALL the LEDs since I cranked the BEC circuit up to 7.4V and found out the LEDs are not wired to handle that voltage even if everything else is in the plane is capable.

Next I’ll get back to flying and dialing in balance, mixes, rates, etc… I’ll relate some of my experiences and what I’ve been dialing in to make the plane fly in the manner I enjoy!

 

 

This will be final installment in my series on the OG Turbo Timber BNF.  After this I will start a new installment on the TT SWS ARF or Mark 2. 

This is because after almost a month of back and forth with Tower Hobbies/Horizon we came to an agreement and they offered me an ARF as a replacement for what I suppose is likely the cost of shipping or therabouts.  I consider this very fair and am very happy with this outcome.  I actually suggested this remedy early on… whether they followed that or came to a similar conclusion on their own… I don’t know. 

By the letter of their warranty they could easily have just said… “Sorry for you loss, but we are not liable for any crash damage.” and just moved on.  They, of course, are not making any admission of responsibility.  In this litigeous world I didn’t expect they would.  I have hopes that they will someday upgrade the clevises on this airplane but in the meantime I will spread the word as best I can and encourage others to spend a few dollars and upgrade the clevises.  Here is my recommendation… 

The control linkage on this aircraft is (IMHO) incompatible with long life for this airframe.  My GPS shows the airplane is easily capable of 90+ MPH and weights ~8 pounds.  With the size of the control surfaces, the weak point is apparently the nylon clevises.  See previous posts for the possible result.

The servos seem sufficient, the control rods are pretty short and the L bend type snap on connectors all seem fine.  If you take my advice and replace the clevises I expect this would be a nice robust setup.  To replace these, you have a myriad of options.

In my case, I tried threading a 2-56 name brand clevis onto the existing rods and found that the threads cut/rolled on these are “not quite” a match.   The clevis seems to be “wobbly” and I can’t find a metric size that fits any better/at all… so I’m just assuming the threads are poorly done.  When you are essentially cutting threads into a nylon/plastic clevis it doesn’t much matter…. the existing rods works fine.  But, if you want to go to a nice metal clevis… I’d replace the entire rod as well with a good name brand piece of hardware and use a jam nut.

My own solution is to use a Dubro 2-56 swivel ball link.  They are made of a tough plastic of some sort on the end that the control rod threads into and has a small bolt (2-56 as well) that bolts through the control horn.  If you use thread lock or some other method of insuring the nut on this bolt does not come lose (I’m considering a nylon insert nut) I’d expect these things to be attached “for life”.

I’ll be starting my build on the ARF very soon so it won’t be long before I put this in use.  I’ll be doing my best to insure this is NOT the reason for the demise of TT SWS mark II.

 

 

 

Turbo Timber 2M SWS – Part Five

Having run through the majority of my checklist, I had a just a couple items left to consider. 

Originally, I had thought about making some servo/linkage covers for the TT, but on reflection I didn’t really think that was really necessary in this case.  With it being a high wing and keeping the wings somewhat cushioned from handling issues by storing them in wing bags, I am not really concerned about handling or field damage (on a low wing, sometimes the linkages would touch the ground during a less than optimal landing but not on this bird!).  Also, with the TT, I’m not expecting a lot of high speed flying so wind resistance or aerodynamic considerations are not really a factor so we will just check that box off and move on.

The next item was to add a glider tow release to the airplane.  I’ve had something similar on several planes and have a good handle on the proper placement and functionality needed.  The tow release is actually not the way you want to detach the glider from the tow plane, its simply an extra safety measure allowing the tow pilot another option in the case that the glider causes issues… release failure, erratic flight, or whatever…  and there is a need to quickly remove the connection between the two craft.

Placing the release toward the trailing edge of the wing is typically a good compromise.  Close enough to the CG of the plane to minimize the effect of the tow on the flight of the tow plane with plenty of avaialble structure to mount to and a clear path for the tow line to avoid any likely entanglement since the towed plane is typically above and behind the tow plane.  I had a nice tow release I pulled from another aircraft when I sold it, so all I had to do was create a mounting plate and assign a switch with appropriate endpoints and I was pretty much in business.  As I’ve done on other aircraft, I notched the trailing edge at the center of the wing to fit around the release.  Here are some pics of the installation.

I built the whole release mechanism out on a board cut to size to fit the bulkhead top to bottom brace dimensions and then glued and screwed it in…  Here is a shot of that installation.

Here is what it looks like with the wings notched to fit around the release.  I’ll clean up the notches a bit… maybe harden them with some glue on the exposed wood and then paint white or cover…

Another couple of items on my list are items for another day.  Having a camera mount would be nice to grab some video, but I’m still debating location(s) and how to attach the mount(s).  I may work on a design to use the glider tow release as one mounting point…  just don’t drop it by mistake!  Another option is in cockpit but the windscreen is curved and not perfectly transparent so likely I’ll look at something underneath instead… probably attached to the landing gear in some way.  But, I’m not in a big hurry for that.  Likewise, I’d like to put floats on the TT, but I have some time for that and I haven’t decided if I can adapt some floats I have or if I’ll dole out for the standard option available from E-Flite.  Likewise, I want to paint a prop with some matching colors to the scheme on the airplane but for now, my standard Xoar 15×8 is looking pretty nice so that can wait for another day as well.

Just as I thought I was going to concede that I was ready to fly this bird, I ran into a minor issue.  I was having trouble getting the prop nut tight enough to feel safe that the prop and spinner were going to stay attached… especially if I employ reverse thrust… without the prop spinning against the spinner backplate.  With a cowled installation like this, there just isn’t access to the motor to get another gripping point.  After some discussion online, I was reminded of an old trick I had employed before and had forgotten.  Taking some sandpaper and cutting out a couple discs and then gluing them back to back I created a very high friction washer.  Sandwiching this between the prop and backplate stopped the slippage and  allowed for a nice snug connection.

Of course, this was NOT the end of the story.  As soon as I had the prop and spinner properly attached, I ran up the motor and immediately noticed that the tip of the spinner had a very small “wobble”.  I verified that the motor shaft was running true so it had to be something in the spinner itself.  I have no idea where this went wrong… maybe in trying to tighten and hold the spinner, I damaged it/warped the backplate… maybe in manufaturing… whatever.  I found an appropriate location for the spinner… (I have several trashcans in my shop) and started looking for a replacement. 

I had considered replacing the spinner early on with a slotted spinner in order to increase airflow over the motor and so this was just an opportunity to check off that item.  I quickly found a couple of vendors out there for a nice spinner that promotes air flow and in a few days I had a nice spinner from Gator RC in my hands.  That spinner (57mm/2.25″ diameter) turned out to be a perfect fit, with the metal backplate fitting the motor shaft perfectly as well as eliminating the slipping issue AND no more wobble!

All that is left at this point is to check balance and throws and get a good day to get in the first flight or two.  Eventually, I would like to consolidate my various rate switches (I always start out with Ail/Elev/Rudder throws and expo settings on individual switches) but for now I want the flexibility to switch each individually and see what setting best matches the way I want the airplane to fly.  I’ll try to post some pics and report on how that goes but I have every reason to expect it is going to be a great flying airplane.  Here’s to a successful maiden flight!

Here’s a quick “chapter guide” if you want to jump to any of the other posts on this aircraft:

Part 1 – Buying and unboxing

Part 2 – Inspection and possible modifications

Part 3 – Assembly and modifications

Part 4 – Radio setup, modifications, and repairs

Part 5 – Final tweaks

Part 6 – Flying and Analysis

 

Turbo Timber 2M SWS – Part Three

Assembly has begun after a good read through of the manual.  I am proceeding in an order that does NOT follow the manual but just as my fancy strikes me and the time available allows.  So here we go.

The first step I tackled was assembly and install of the landing gear.  This went pretty much according to plan until I went to mount the gear on the bottom of the airplane.  At that point I noticed that the landing gear cover that sits over the landing gear and acts as a large washer could not sit flat… it seemed to be to thick/long to fit.  This shows the gap.

Then I figured out that there was a layer of ply that apparently is held in with double sided tape…  very strongly in my example… still attached to that cover!  Once I realized it was there I pried the plate loose and everything fell into place.  The manual doesn’t mention removal of the landing gear cover at all, it just jumps to mounting the landing gear and attaching the cover.  Here is the cover and the excess plate you want to remove.  I marked the front as I was working as the body of the plane is tapering gently at the point where this mounts.

The final part of the landing gear is attaching the “fairing” to the outside surface of the landing gear.  The manual calls for simply gluing this in place but I’ve seen several examples already of those disappearing during the first flight or two so I was wondering how well this was going to work.  So the first thing I did was to glue it on as directed and give it time to set up.  It lasted about 8 hours until I accidently contacted it during a later work session before I knocked one of them off!  So I reapplied the glue and clamped and let set once more.  Then I went back and drilled and tapped the landing gear (on each side) for a single 3mm bolt.  I put a washer undel the head of the screw and after tightening added a nut on the reverse side just as a jam or lock nut.  I am hoping that this will help the fairing stay in place.

Another task I took on early on was to mount the Propeller Adapter to the motor.  As I was working on this I checked the bolts holding the motor box to the front of the firewall as well as those holding the X-mount to the motor box.  I noticed several needed a bit of tightening so I took the time to pull each and put some lock tight on before a final snug up.

 

Another step in the build manual was applying velcro in the battery tray and setting up the battery straps.  I varied from the method in the manual and went with some shelf liner and a couple of straps but the method outlined in the manual will work as well.

Next, I mounted the cowl.  With predrilled holes this was pretty painless.  Of course I decided to add the additional cooling scoop which requires a bit more modeling skills than most of the build and risks your Cowl if you cut in the wrong place… but it went on easily and I’m always a fan of better cooling to keep my expensive electronics working well.  I have my doubts about the glue holding this on, so I may revisit the attachment a bit later.

Finally, I turn to assembly of the tail section of the airplane.  You put the horizontal in place and then slot the vertical down into the top of the plane… part of which extends through the horizontal, creating a solid connection.  long studs extend through to the bottom of the airplane.  It was a bit difficult to work the vertical into place, but I eventually slotted it in with a little wiggling and a small amount of profanity.  I actually like how tightly it fits and while my first instinct was to add some glue, I’m resisting that idea with the thought that removal of the tail surfaces is possible in the future should the need ever arise.  Also, have a 5.5mm nut driver or deep well socket handy for this part as the nuts that hold all this together go down in a bit of a hole!

There is not a lot more to talk about that falls into the category of assembly.  Pretty much all the other steps in the manual were self explanatory and went without any real need for modification or comment.

Next, I’ll tackle all the electronics and radio setup work I’ve been doing.

Here’s a quick “chapter guide” if you want to jump to any of the other posts on this aircraft:

Part 1 – Buying and unboxing

Part 2 – Inspection and possible modifications

Part 3 – Assembly and modifications

Part 4 – Radio setup, modifications, and repairs

Part 5 – Final tweaks

Part 6 – Flying and Analysis

 

Turbo Timber 2M SWS – Part 2

As I was ordering, unboxing and just enjoying looking over the new addition to the fleet, I was reading and thinking and starting to make lists of possible updates, upgrades, modifications and accessories that I wanted/needed for the new airframe.

Its pretty cold and windy here in Indiana in the wintertime (Jan-Feb) so my available hobby time was in the shop or attending swap meets when possible.  Often I was going to the swap meets and selling stuff to pay for the TT SWS!

While I was doing all that I started compiling a list of things to consider changing/adding as I assembled the airplane.  Some came from reading about it on line, some from my experience with similar airplanes and what I knew about this new one and some came up during my unpacking, inspection and assembly.  So here is my list, in no particular order along with a few notes.

1. How to attach the landing gear “spats” to the aluminum gear.  – I’ve already seen videos where they fell off on the first flight or landing or both.  I don’t think glue is going to handle this by itself.
2. Install a light switch? – I had one in line with the landing lights on my Grand Tundra and it was nice to be able to switch those off and on separate from all the other lights.
3. Crow?  – If I separate the two ailerons onto individual channels I could have full span flaps and crow if I wanted them… there’s some other mixes this enables as well.  Of course this plane doesn’t need any of that… but I could.
4. Replace the ugly yellow wing bolts. – The yellow bolts just stick out like a sore thumb against the pristine white covering.  Black would look more in keeping with the color scheme as it exists so if I don’t have some “whiter” nylon bolts available I can go that way.
5. The wood prop that it comes with is labeled 15×8 and looks remarkable like, other than being a tad shorter and not as shiny a finish, a Xoar E prop.  I happen to have a Xoar 15×8 in the drawer brand new so I could swap and maybe paint the stock prop to look nicer.
6. Replace the wheels/tires.  – I’ve seen complaints on the tires being to hard but I’m not a fan of the inflatable types on this size/type of plane because they are hugely heavier than these.  If I have any other options laying around or if the new tires are really hard I can look around for a good light replacement.
7. Servo Covers  – I’ve had a plane or two that had little 1/4 of an egg shaped covers or cowlings that shield the servo arm/linkage.  They look nice and are nicely aerodynamic.  I also like the protection they give the linkage/servo when the plane is in transit…
8. Floats – I’v sure the TT makes a great float plane.  I love flying on floats and I have 3 or 4 sets around the house in dusty crannies… If I can find some that are a good fit I might adapt those.  Could always spring for new ones too…
9. Add lights (interior).  – I would like to light this thing up internally to make it easier to fly at dusk and beyond.  
10. Multi-connectors for the wings.  – I have some hanging around already and have the ability to tools to make more.  I know how much easier it is to connect/diconnect the wings when you only have one or two keyed connectors to plug in.
11.  Spinner  – I had another plane recently that used a slotted spinner to increase airflow to the motor and love the idea of keeping the motor as cool as possible for long life and good performance.  Need to see where I can get one and at what price.
12. Wing bags  – There are no wing bags with the airplane and a good set is really needed to keep things looking and functioning like new for a long period.  I need to see what I have around and if not, will probably order something.
13. Identification  – Just a reminder to make sure I add my FAA registration as well as my AMA number.  Don’t want to run afoul of any regulations that will keep me from focusing on having fun when I’m out to fly.
14. Personalization  – I pretty much always do something to separate my bird from the flock and this one will be no different.  Intially I’m thinking of stripping anything that is an actual decal and then add some stripes/pin striping or something similar made from vinyl or RC covering rather than water slides.
15. Camera Mount  – Sooner or later I will want to put a GoPro or two on the plane and get some video so need to start planning location and method of attachment.
16. Clean and Wax  – I have found that, especially on foamies but on covered aircraft a well, if you give the plane a good coat of wax… something like a good map on floor wax… less dirt clings to the airplane and it is easier to keep clean.
17. Glider Tow  – Towing gliders is great fun and this plane looks like it would server very well for this.  I just need to figure out a mounting plate I can put near the trailing edge of the wing (top) and get that in place and controllable from a switch.

There are bound to be other things that pop up as I walk through the assembly so I’ll be back in the next part to talk about my assembly process as it proceeds and also comment on the above items as I address them or decide not to… as well as resolving any of those discovered issues.

Here’s a quick “chapter guide” if you want to jump to any of the other posts on this aircraft:

Part 1 – Buying and unboxing

Part 2 – Inspection and possible modifications

Part 3 – Assembly and modifications

Part 4 – Radio setup, modifications, and repairs

Part 5 – Final tweaks

Part 6 – Flying and Analysis

 

Turbo Timber 2M SWS – P1

I have long been a fan of versatility in an airplane.  I love aircraft that have a wide flight envelope, can fly for a good while if you keep out of the throttle, can tow a glider, haul a payload, fly off grass, snow and/or water, and look pretty good doing it!  For that reason, I have had many planes that to some extent fit that description.  I had my Telemaster 40 rigged with a bomb drop, glider tow release, floats, etc… over the course of serveral years and had several of the Timber line of aircraft, as well as the Grand Tundra and some others…  The Grand Tundra was my everyday airplane filling that role for a good while, but it was never a particularly attractive aircraft and it is foam… I know a lot of folks thing that is great, claim they are easier to repair, etc… but I am in the opposite camp.  I would always prefer to work on a wood airplane.  Once its broken/bent/scraped and battered, I find it much harder to get a foam plane back in shape.  I know partly that is because I hate the sanding and finishing work it takes to make a foam plane look good.  Without a huge amount of work, a foam plane just looks like… well… foam… and once you compress it and tear it… lots of work involved to get it back looking decent… flying maybe but no exactly straight or pretty without a lot more work than I want to do.

So, when E-Flite dropped the Turbo Timber 2.0 SWS it caught my attention.  It is almost the perfect plane, on paper. 

I prefer Electric power to anything else these days (check).  I love anything that uses 3S, 6S, 8S or 12S as I have the appropriate batteries for most of these already in hand.  6S aircraft in particular often fall into a sweet spot of large enough to fly well, easy to haul and inexpensive to operate with high quality 6S batteries being easy to get at good prices these day.

I have been using more and more of the Spektrum electronics in my planes.  The ESCs have all the features I want, including some useful telemetry when combined with the Spektrum receivers I’m already choosing.  They also have some good servo lines and what seem to be good motors and this has all of that as part of the package.

Wood construction covered in good quality iron on covering with a nicely visible scheme.  This means the airplane just looks better than most foamies ever will.  Plus a wood airplane is often just stiffer with less material involved so ends up holding its shape better under G loads… at least that is what I believe.

Thus began my determination to get one…  Several planes went up for sale, along with assundry other items laying about the shop… bye-bye Grand Tundra and hello TT SWS

First of all, I know some folks are going to say… “The price is to high!”  and I get that.  But, my feeling is… aside from I’m getting old and everything seems high to me… the price actually seems very fair.  Especially when you buy the ARF like I did.  The electronics that they chose in this airplane seem to be pretty high end.  The Spektrum line of ESCs, Servos and Motors all seem to be good quality.  My experience so far with their ESCs has been nothing but positive and I have several.  I especially enjoy the programmability right from my transmitter and the available telemetry is something I consider to be a must in an electric aircraft.  You have to combine them with the compatible receivers to get all of this but I would have bought that or a very similar receiver anyway!   I will point out that I do not have, nor want the Spektrum batteries and chargers and don’t see the value to justify the cost of that part of the Spektrum product line.  I have done a lot of study on LiPo batteries and I have a couple of favorite brands I purchase from at a much lower price and better performance than anything Spektrum has produced so I don’t expect that to change anytime soon.  The servos have great specs for the price and while I’ve only had a few, so far so good.  I don’t think I’ve owned any of their motors yet, but they appear to be well built and I’ve not seen anything that would give me pause… so the ARF comes with equipment I would likely chose for myself so all in all the bundle makes sense to me financially.

So a few days ago I figured out how to get a 10% off coupon which aligned well with the balance in my “RC fund” as a result of some sales at a couple of swap meets and Facebook marketplace adds and the order was placed.  I also got lucky and caught it in stock for what I understand was about a one day window on Tower Hobbies web site.  I think this was the second shipment they received and the ARFs didn’t last long!  I settled in to wait the predicted 2 weeks or so for free shipping and started looking for any discussion groups or video reviews that I hadn’t already read.  That lasted for about a day when suddenly I got an update saying it was shipped via Fedex!  Being only 100 or so miles from Champaign, IL where Tower is based has some advantages and the predicted arrival was 1 day!  It got confusing for a bit as Fedex seemed to decide it hadn’t shipped after all then changed the expected arrival day two or three times until finally it actually showed up after only 2 work days!  Yahoo!

I was a bit concerned when I saw the box had a corner torn out…

It turned out the outer corrugated box had done its job and protected the contents and even the inner box with all the pretty graphics was in like new condition! 

Work got in the way and it took me the better part of 2 days to unpack the box and another to unwrap all the parts and lay them out on the bench.  It may have taken a few hours just to clean the bench and make room to do this but much of that was done while I attended to some conference calls with my headset on.  Having a new airplane all layed out on the table right behind you can be distracting but I managed to at least do my cleaning chores and some unwrapping while paying sufficient attention so a few business calls!

Here’s some pics of that process to give you some idea how well the packaging worked out… Everything seems intact with nothing beyond a scuff or two… that’s about as good as can be expected for a shipment from (I presume) China all the way to the midwest US.

Just taking off the lid…

Wings out and down to the tail sections… everything taped down to minimize shifting/scuffing.

Tires, LG, all the hardware… bags in bags to keep things separated.

Notice the wings have guards over the servo linkages to keep those from digging into anything else… nice.

Front and back of fuse are embedded in foam to keep it away from box sides…

With tail pieces removed we find the cowl (fiberglass) nicely protected/wrapped and secured in place.

After removing the cowl and body… down to the bototm of the box where we find the prop and wing tube.  Prop looks like a copy of a Xoar (or maybe made by them??)  Finish on the prop is not quite up to Xoar standards and the length of the blades is a few mm short of my actual Xoar but the basic shape and profile is very close.

All the parts on the table… awaiting unwrapping.

Now free of all the plastic wrap… not a lot of parts.  If I was in a rush maybe a 2-4 hours and I could have it done??  But I am being meticulous on this one so it will take much longer.

I’ll break this up at this point and start on my next steps with the following disclaimer:

I’ve seen enough on the lists and video reviews and such that I am confident in saying that you could easily (if you have much experience at all) just go through the directions provided in a few hours and come out the other side with a perfectly serviceable and good flying, completely stock, Timber 2.0 SWS…. but that is just not how I roll!  I’m not big on doing modifications just to do them, but I like to do what I think will result in the airplane having a long life… no silly crashes because someone didn’t tighten a bolt… and I want it to be just a little distinct from every other similar airplane at the field.  I also want to do what I can to make it run efficiently with adequate power and flight time, and as easy to transport and assemble as I can without to much effort.  So next up will be an inspection and a list of what I see that I might check/change or modify to make this airplane uniquely mine and to help make it last (I hope).  Some other setup/changes will be to suit my intended purpose(s) without getting to drastic.  And I’ll be picky and try to fix anything I see that jumps out at me as being “not to my standard”.

Here’s a quick “chapter guide” if you want to jump to any of the other posts on this aircraft:

Part 1 – Buying and unboxing

Part 2 – Inspection and possible modifications

Part 3 – Assembly and modifications

Part 4 – Radio setup, modifications, and repairs

Part 5 – Final tweaks

Part 6 – Flying and Analysis