Aerial Recon

[tkrahlin]

Out yesterday goofing around with the Apprentice and the FlyCamOne:

Six-Minutes-Over-Frederick (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D5IARh37ZiE)

[tkrahlin]

Location on MapQuest (http://www.mapquest.com/maps?address=8469+Opossumtown+Pike#a/maps/l::8469+Opossumtown+Pike:Frederick:MD:21702-2407:US:39.466156:-77.414423:address:Frederick+County:1/m:hyb:12:39.466156:-77.414423:0:::::1:1:1::/io:0:::::f:EN:M:/e)

http://www.mapquest.com/maps?address=8469+Opossumtown+Pike#a/maps/l::8469+Opossumtown+Pike:Frederick:MD:21702-2407:US:39.466156:-77.414423:address:Frederick+County:1/m:hyb:12:39.466156:-77.414423:0:::::1:1:1::/io:0:::::f:EN:M:/e

[ATIS]

nice video!!

[apprentice1]

Thank you for NOT having music.

[tkrahlin]

Thank you for NOT having music.

How ‘bout narrative? ::tonguee:

With Windows Movie Maker and a mic, you to add a narrative track;

“Ladies and gentlemen, if you’ll look out the right side of the plane…”

[WingingIt74]

cool vid, how high up were you?

[tkrahlin]

cool vid, how high up were you?

I’m not sure – I guess I’m bad at estimating. It was up where the plane was small and you had to pay attention to which way you turned last.

[WingingIt74]

Do you have a pic of the apprentice with the flycam installed?

[tkrahlin]

Do you have a pic of the apprentice with the flycam installed?

You betcha!

I stick it to the battery with Velcro and cut a hole in the door vents for the lens to stick through. This video doesn't show the Velcro, but I've since started using. Velcro is cheap enough that I put a strip on each of my Apprentice batteries.

Take the battery compartment door off by carefully bending it at the front until the pin hinges slide out of the holes.

Position the camera on the battery while checking the CG. Point the camera backwards and check the CG that way.

Once you're happy with the locations, you can trim the door vents to match the lens.

I also put a strip of white Velcro on top of the wings under the point where the rubber bands cross and stick the camera up there.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=shj8V0zCnkw

[WJCJR1]

The arresting cable is funnier than heck, good job, ncie video. Thanks for sharing, any damage?

Have you ever tried turning the camera around backwards? Especially at high altitudes the attitude of the plane should give a great downwards glance over the landscape.

Great video Tim.

Wayne

[tkrahlin]

If anyone is interested, here's a debriefing of Six-Minutes-Over-Frederick.

Winds were out of the south this day. Just south of the field are some lamppost and young trees that you have to climb over when taking off. Likewise, if you need to abort a landing, you need to decide early so you still have time to climb over them. However, those same southerly winds make it ideal for a nice long landing approach over the small grass field north of the parking lot.

At 1:42 the plane is facing west and the DuraCollar is covering the spot where my first GunFighter went down in those trees (a forestry preserve?).

2:28 the plane is facing east and the DuraCollar on the axle is just covering my house.

2:54 we’re approximately 14-nm south of Camp David up in the Catoctin Mountain Park (Thurmont, MD). When a VIP NOTAM is issued, a 10-nm radius no fly zone is enforced.

3:06 the plane is flying south and you have a clear view of the school parking lot where I takeoff and land.

3:35 you can see Frederick Community College off in the distance with Fort Detrick just south of that.

Around 5:36 I deploy the flaps and use a spare thumb to manually dial in about 5-clicks of down elevator that allows me to concentrate on throttle and rudder management. You’ll hear the motor throttle up to carry me over those last few feet of grass to reach the ‘runway apron’.

The landing looks much more violet on camera than it actually was.

I’m landing facing south with the sun setting in the west . If you watch the shadow off the nose gear, you can see the turn I make after a short roll out to circle around and bring the plane back alongside of me.

Ta-Da ::tonguee:

[tkrahlin]

Have you ever tried turning the camera around backwards?

Sure!

Mr. Power-25 climbs for nearly 30-seconds then does what passes for a snap roll.

Eflite Apprentice Zero-to-Sixty
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UHgRvJVgYCk

[tkrahlin]

Eflite Apprentice Bend-n-Stretch
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=693qI9497Fo

[WingingIt74]

I think the movement of the tail is actually the movement of the fuselage against the wing with those rubber bands stretching. One way to tell is mount the camera backwards under the fuselage.

[tkrahlin]

I think the movement of the tail is actually the movement of the fuselage against the wing with those rubber bands stretching. One way to tell is mount the camera backwards under the fuselage.

You're right - it's a little of each. You can see the camera angle change by how much back 'window' you can see in the bottom of the frame. Also, watch the line where the wings join the fuse will change when the front of the wings lift. But I was surprise to see how much those tail feathers flex.