Skylark... It is done! Maiden flight SUCCESS!
03-01-2021, 10:36 PM
#1
Community Moderator
Thread Starter
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Sevierville, Tennessee
Posts: 20,773
Skylark... It is done! Maiden flight SUCCESS!
So after a little over 2 years, (on and off) my Skylark is done. I have completed my punch list items and all that is left to do now is fly it.<br /><br />Will be taking it down to my buddies in Georgia for the maiden flight later this week. Shooting for Thursday as the weather looks good for that day. Making it a mini vacation and taking the camper with my wife and pup.<br /><br />Well wishes and good vibes sent my way will be much appreciated! One way or another it WILL be spectacular.<br /><img src="https://www.wattflyer.com/forums/attachment.php?attachmentid=188386&amp;d=16146 38205"></img>
Last edited by firemanbill; 03-06-2021 at 04:00 PM.
03-06-2021, 03:58 PM
#6
Community Moderator
Thread Starter
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Sevierville, Tennessee
Posts: 20,773
The Skylark has flown. Maiden flight was a huge success! After a little tweaking on the elevator trim it was stable as could be. Was soaring with a live hawk for what seemed like forever. Flew about ten minutes with no power on. Love this plane!
I lost the wheel dolly on the maiden. It did not drop out on takeoff as planned which was weird, it dropped out on the upwind and fell into the tall grass on the far side. Looked for a while and ended up just building a new one with my buddies help. Part of the reason I wanted to go down to his place for the shake down flights. Upon further review we determined the hole for the dolly in the bottom of the fuse was off to one side just a mm or two causing friction when inserted one direction but not the other. just enough to keep it from falling out. So that issue was resolved. the rest of the week flying was uneventful except the battery getting a bit too warm. Will add some cooling holes to the battery box and open up the nose a bit to get more air in there.
All in all a huge success. Needless to say that after 2 years of building I am super excited and very happy. My buddy got some video and posted it to Facebook. Need to figure out how to get that uploaded here.
I lost the wheel dolly on the maiden. It did not drop out on takeoff as planned which was weird, it dropped out on the upwind and fell into the tall grass on the far side. Looked for a while and ended up just building a new one with my buddies help. Part of the reason I wanted to go down to his place for the shake down flights. Upon further review we determined the hole for the dolly in the bottom of the fuse was off to one side just a mm or two causing friction when inserted one direction but not the other. just enough to keep it from falling out. So that issue was resolved. the rest of the week flying was uneventful except the battery getting a bit too warm. Will add some cooling holes to the battery box and open up the nose a bit to get more air in there.
All in all a huge success. Needless to say that after 2 years of building I am super excited and very happy. My buddy got some video and posted it to Facebook. Need to figure out how to get that uploaded here.
Last edited by firemanbill; 03-06-2021 at 05:34 PM.
03-06-2021, 08:12 PM
#8
Super Contributor
Join Date: Oct 2012
Location: South East Queensland, Australia
Posts: 1,639
Wonderful! Congratulations on your hard work and success. It should last for many years. Thanks for the update. Beautiful day too with just a bit of wind according to the windsock in the background.
03-06-2021, 08:31 PM
#9
Community Moderator
Thread Starter
Join Date: Sep 2005
Location: Sevierville, Tennessee
Posts: 20,773
Originally Posted by Panther
Wonderful! Congratulations on your hard work and success. It should last for many years. Thanks for the update. Beautiful day too with just a bit of wind according to the windsock in the background.
